1. 2008-03-19 08:06:56

   Pre-Vegas Warmup Online Session

   Last night I finally spent some time relaxing. I watched a Poker After Dark episode and then channel surfed for a bit before it was time to get to work. Packing and preparing to leave Buddha while I'm in Vegas is always a pain. But I managed to squeeze in two sit-n-go tournaments to warm up for Vegas :)

   #1

   The first was a $2+0.25 two-table game. I took an early chip lead after I check-raised all in with a weak top pair and got called by an underpair with no draws. I spent a lot of time folding but lost most of my stack when I had and I didn't believe my opponent had an 8 when the board came . He actually had .

   #2

   The second tournament was a $5+0.50 single-table game. Again I folded a lot, and built my stack here and there. I ended up losing over half of it when my opponent flopped a well-disguised straight to my top pair which turned into two pair.

   After that, my M was low, so it was time to go in with a relatively good hand into an unopened pot. I pick up and hope it folds around to me. It does, so I go all in. Unfortunately, the small blind has and calls. The board comes and I win :p

   I continue to mostly fold, pick up a flush, and make it to the top 4. The top 3 get paid off, so it's bubble time. We all are about evenly stacked, so I decided to loosen up - my image was tight and people tighten up when they're on the bubble, so it seemed like the perfect time.

   I steal a few blinds a couple hands in a row and then get in the big blind. The player to my left (same player I sucked out on above) limps in and the button and small blinds fold. I decide to check to disguise my hand.

   The flop comes . I check, my opponent bets half the pot, but I don't buy it. He could have an 8 or 9 or a flush draw, but he is usually pretty aggressive in position pre-flop and he didn't raise, so I don't figure him for an ace or pocket pair. I call.

   The turn is the . I check, and he bets the pot this time. I just call.

   The river is the . I'm still pretty sure my hand is good, but I decide that if I'm right and I bet, he'll just fold to my value bet. However, if I check, he might try to bluff at it. I check, he goes all-in (for half the pot) and I call without hesitation. He shows .

   As I'm writing this up, it seems like I could have been crushed many different ways... 2 diamonds, a flopped open-ended straight draw, or any 8. It's hard to convey the exact situation, but what it really came down to was my intuition. I need to figure out what precisely I picked up on so I can do that more frequently. Or maybe I was just stubborn and lucky.

   I ended up taking 2nd after a good 10-minute heads-up session. I ran into pocket kings, clawed back to even, then put my money in good but lost when my opponent rivered a straight :/

   Posted by Jason M at 2008-03-19 08:06:56

   View all posts

Comments on “Pre-Vegas Warmup Online Session”

1. • Posted by Jason M g 2008-03-19 23:53:12
   • 

   • 1: Yeah, I noticed adding the extra table only added one more payout, and I didn't dig that too much. Especially at that low level of stakes, I'm pretty much not gonna play them. Too much crazy action, and I don't want to "grind" 4-6 of them at once. Part of the reason to play the tournaments is for a change of pace. Maybe I'll try a couple sometime when I want yet another change.

     2: Thanks. I think I'm going to stick with these. They take a while, but it seems like you can do pretty well if you just play decently.

2. • Posted by Krishna g 2008-03-19 18:50:49
   • 

   • Hand #1
     2-table game has more variance than 1-table since it has less number of payouts.
     5 table MTTs have even more variance but I find that I do well on these compared to 2-table ones. I guess there are a lot of people gambling very early wanting to double up.
     But you need lot of volume on these to make it worthwhile because you will cash only 25%. So I open 4-6 tables.

     Hand #2
     Nice read on the opponent.
     In bubble situations on paired flop first one to bet takes it down.
     I guess he got caught and followed up with a multi-street bluff.
     The $5 SNGs are very nice especially when your bankroll is small.
     I built half my bankroll on these (I ran super hot first few games).
     I highly recommend them to build your bankroll and get SNG experience.
     You can be patient and have high ROI.