Best Session Ever – Seriously! Woohoo!
Hours after flaming out in disgust over a couple of coolers, I came back strong and put in my best (most profitable) session in my cash game history. YAY! So I was able to pad those June numbers LOL.
Session Stats:
Time: 78 minutes
Tables: 4
Stakes: $25nl
Hands: 388
End Result: +$53.70
To say I'm elated at those results is a huge understatement. I watched ChuckTs latest video, and there were some things about PF 3betting and betting big on the turn that I saw. I adjusted my game and really let loose on the steals from not just the button but the CO and HJ seats, and it worked fantastically. Lets look at some fun hands ...
Hand 1: Steal attempt Goes Great
Ok since my steal % was something unruly like 50% I was stealing basically anytime I remotely saw the situation be favorable because it just kept on working. I see a nit (I have 3k hands on Choi) limp UTG and some dude that posted early. I make it $1.25 to go fully expecting everyone to fold, or maybe 1 to remain. When the flop comes I'm just screaming at my monitor "another club baby!!!" and sure enough its checked around and that's exactly what happens. I find myself with the nuts at the turn, and took my time to make that call against Choi. The 4th club hurt me actually, I knew it either made or (what I had a feeling) put fear into my opponent. I bet for value on the river and he thankfully called. Nice pot.
Hand 2: Got a little lucky, but that's okay.
Limp in MP with 33 and hit the mid-set at the flop (yay). Not really too coordinated so I'm wa/wb here (54s isn't terribly out of the question, and neither is 66). Since there is diddly-squat in the pot I 1/2 pot it and was glad to see the call and the A on the turn. He checks so I'm honestly thinking he has something stupid like QJ or JTo. Whoops. His HUGE mistake was not stacking right there and then but he's thinking he's trying to get value out of me. The board pairs giving me a boat. I get him to stack and he's tacos. Great pot.
Hand 3: The biggest pot I've ever won
Yup - it's true, at least for online poker 
This is where watching ChuckTs' video altered my play. I really recognized my opponent was in love with his hand. Fortunately my stealing stats really played to my favor here and I got a weird call from the SB PF. The board isn't scary really, but I dont want something like A2s or 56s drawing out against me. I didn't make the right bet but it was only $0.25 off. I also LOVE this $1 cbet on the flop because it looks so weak it always gets raised at $25nl. It's a great way to induce a raise. Anyways, I 3bet the flop and instead of stacking he flat calls (that's fine). However his play at the turn was terrible. I overbet the pot with the blank fully knowing that either he was going to lay it down (really to any bet) or would stackoff figuring I had a weaker Q. It worked.
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No disaster hands obviously so I think I am finally done for June I might fire it up at midnight to get a head start on July though! Next post probably June results + July goals.
What A Day to be on a Cooler. UGH!!!!
So WVHillBilly left a comment that I basically felt was true before he wrote it, and that my play wasn't all that great yesterday, especially the TT hand. Looking back I agreed. I wanted to put in some final end-of-month hands in to pad my results. Boy I wish I hadn't, it was a hell of a time to go on a cooler. Alright people, get ready to hear some bad beat stories (along with how I suck)! (boooo!)
Hand 1: I suck. Big time on this hand. Totally blew it. Misplay. Ugh.
Pettey has stats of 15/7/2.9 over a large amount, and this Purnell guy is 34/9/7 over a small amount. My PF raise is good. 2 callers ... fair enough. Mistake 1 - horrible betsize on the flop. In my mind I'm thinking to make action on an uncoordinated board with top pair good kicker. It actually kind of worked as what turned out to be a worse hand raised and the shortstacked just pushed. I call confident I'm not losing. Again I see an uncoordinated card hit the turn, and again my bet size sucked a big one. Villain smooth calls, and at this point I really failed to look at what he had done in the hand ... call - raise/call - call. Looks like a fish or a HUGE hand. I wanted to just check it down but he had other plans so I made the idiotic call and lost most of my stack.
Hand 2: You want coolers, I got coolers.
Not much else to say other than "THAT SUCKED" ... I knew I was tilting after this so I pretty much shut it down and turned it off after this hand.
Hand 3: This sucked too. Lets analyze...
Preflop I should have raised but the limp isn't horrible at 25nl. I have no idea why I called at the flop, that's a mandatory raise. He stacks at the turn and I still have my overs. I read the situation correctly and he had top pair shit kicker. He's down to 5 outs ... and he hits it. Sucks.
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Anyways, I have lots going on today, so maybe tonight there'll be one last June session. This month has been so swingy it's not even funny. If you couple good play with bad play with coolers you don't end up well. Here's a little graph of my last ~1500 hands ... you can see the swings!
Good Little Session for Sunday Night
This weekend was my birthday and it was a great one. I spent it with family, and my close friends surprised me by showing up later in the night. Fantastic!
Anyways, this is a POKER blog not a personal one. Down to business, shall we?
While doing some online email reading, I put on Stars and sat with some CCers. I played $.02/.05 NL and it was fun, I think I bought in for $5 and left with $6.50. I was even referred to as "famous" which of course made my day
The Stats:
Hands: 313
Tables: 4 $25nl + 1 $5nl
Duration: 60 minutes
Net Result: +$10.72
I can sum up the night in two hands really, although I felt I played really well tonight for some reason.
Hand 1: Got my gonads ... and not much else.
Villain stats are off the charts at 44/23/4 over 87 hands. An absolute maniac. I 3bet with the Hilton Sisters and of course that f'ing King had to hit. Seriously though, I can't always be scared to death when an single overcard hits. His range is HUUUUGE. Looking into PokerStove at this point when he check-raises for his stack (which was less than 50% of mine), I have 69-31% equity in my favor. You bet your candy ass I call here. Oddly enough he turns over K7s for the win. Bizarre player ... bizarre 3bet call ... easy to put him in my friend list for later.
Hand 2: My cahones are officially grapefruits
Villain stats are basically unknown at this point. Tonight I almost exclusively raised 4x BB PF. Fun times. Two jabronis call and the flop is all unders with a couple of connectors. I'm not fooling around and basically bet it to take it down to discourage bastards with overcards (I know ONE of them is in this situation) to just fold now. I'm also giving TERRIBLE drawing odds to flushes and straights. Kouks2001 raises nicely ... and I took my time with this one. He could have a set ... or was on a draw ... and best case had something like A9o. Chances are he just had overs. Screw him ... so I stack with the hopes (really) of him ending the hand there but he makes the call and turns over QJs ... for overs + flush draw! This is one the rare times in poker where you are winning the hand but an underdog to win (he had 15 outs and was about a 59-41 favorite at the flop). Missing the turn was HUGE for me, as the percentages wildly swing back in my favor, and the river blanks both and I take home a huge pot.
So, I had those weird huge hands work in my favor for a nice profit for the night.
read moreBoo $6 Token Frenzy. Plus Cash Update.
So one of my goals was to win a $6 Token Frenzy token and play in a $26 tournament. They finally brought them back since all the WSOP satellites are done and I just finished playing in one. My unspectacular 78/165 finish comes away with a bad taste in my mouth over the structure. 5 minute blinds ... really? Really?! Not even worth playing and I wont try it again. Shortstacked, I go AIPF with AQo and get called by 55. I don't hit. The end.
While I was picking my nose at that "tournament" I played at 3 cash game tables. It went well actually ... almost paid for that dumbass $6 token frenzy.
Hands: 154
Eventual Result: +$4.90
Obligatory Hand 1:
I was not thrilled to get 3 way action on this flop. The flop was pretty dangerous although QK to a big 3bet for one of these two guys was loose (but their lines made it well within their range). Shortstacker (I hate shortstackers) calls my pop at the flop, with the big stack leaving. Thanks for the money.
read moreThursday’s 2nd Session
Thursday's 2nd session went "well" but I was not happy at all when I left playing. Thanks to one lucky hand I ended up in the positive (that hand is below), otherwise the way you can look at it is that I was up $32 in 16 minutes ... and managed to donk half of that off by the end of the session.
Session 2 from Thursday:
Hands: 168
Tables: 4
Time: 43 minutes
End Result: +$14.90
So on the day as a whole I ended up about +$40 which is real nice. Lets take a look at those weird hands.
Hand 1: Why was he in this hand in the first place?!
OK I have adjusted my game that if i have suited 1-gappers in an unraised pot I'll either limp or raise into it about 25% of the time, with the rest of the time just mucking. This villain's stats are 85/0/1.6 over 60 hands. Juicy right? OOP with AKs I throttle a three bet which is called by one. I put in a healthy bet at the flop with TPTK and I get a flat call. Again I take a shot at it at the turn and he stacks. With his line he could have anything and I'm thinking that TPTK against this guy is probably good. I go for it and call and he turns over .... 68o?!?! Seriously?!?! He calls a PF 3bet for about 8% of his stack with 68o - and got rewarded for it by hitting 2 pair. I'm down to 8 outs and I hit the Ace on the River. Justice is served.
Hand 2: New Strategy Pays Off
In Harrington's cash game book, and from ChuckTs' advise, I've been playing these suited 1 gappers when I can. I limp and love that flop - I have a lot of cards that can help me and don't put either guy on an A. Predictably its checked all around and I fill my flush at the turn. I'm not crazy about a T high flush and I'm taking the risk that another heart won't fall at the river and flat call to build what is otherwise a -EV pot. The 8 comes on the river and he stacks ... and clearly I do not think he has the better flush and since I can beat a good range of hands (55, 77, AA, 44, 88, A2-AK) it's an easy call. He flips over his unlucky 4-8 straight.
Hand 3: Donking 88
I am glad preflop I made the raise because that's the right play 6 handed. I'm trying not to c-bet as much (there was a thread on CC and I was hearing optimal was something like 60 to 65) since my c-bet stat this month was something like 78%. This was probably a case to c-bet so I blew it there. He flat calls the bet at the turn and i see a second over card at the river and for whatever reason double barrel right there. Apparently this guy wasn't thrilled about the flush filling at the turn and made a good flat call at the river with TPTK.
Hand 5: OMG what was I thinking?
Here's a hand I beat myself up on. Sometimes you make the right read but make the wrong decision. Kane has stats of 19/11/2.4 and the SS is a complete unknown (0 stats). I am now in the habit of strongly 3betting AKs PF, and when I saw a 4 bet and a 4bet called I took my time and though "I know one of them has QQ-AA for sure. I think the other has AK or AQ. In that scenario I'm a huge dog, so I better let this one go." Well, I was right ... about one of them, it was 66 (dumb) vs QQ (predictable). In this scenario I'm a definite underdog but a flat call here isn't unreasonable. Of course fate gives me a slap in the face with the A falling at the flop.
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Anyways ... at least I'm in the positive. Looking back at the hands I actually played well and not as bad as I thought leaving the tables.
read moreAbout Me
My name is Sean Gibson and I am a poker journalist and part time poker player. I work full time at PokerNewsDaily.com where I host a daily news show called "The Daily Deal" and also handle the bulk of the live player interviews. In terms of poker you will find me playing $1/$3 No Limit Hold'em in Vegas or in Los Angeles (or San Diego) and online playing small stakes games.
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