The Office: Schrute Poker Wisdom
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
The Office: Schrute Poker Wisdom
One of my favorite shows to watch these days is The Office, on NBC. On occasion I hear a quote from the show that makes me think of poker, for whatever reason. It could be because I am often playing poker while watching the show or just because I think about poker more than the average bear.Regardless, here goes my half ass attempt at poker wisdom extracted from quotes on the show. If you're looking for true poker wisdom, you have definitely come to the wrong place. But if you just need to waste the next 1 to 2 minutes of your life, I'm your huckleberry. Class, lets begin:
Dwight Schrute: In the wild, there is no health care. In the wild, health care is, "Ow, I hurt my leg. I can't run. A lion eats me and I'm dead." Well, I'm not dead. I'm the lion, you're dead.
This quote had me thinking about my MTT game. The tournament is "the wild" and you have a choice to be the lion or the animal with the hurt leg. That does not mean you need to be a maniac, but play a strong game, go with your senses, and control your destiny. Be the lion or be dead. In other words, be the lion at the table or you will find the rail.
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Dwight Schrute: Through concentration, I can raise and lower my cholesterol at will.
Pam Beesley: Why would you wanna raise your cholesterol?
Dwight Schrute: So I can lower it.
This one had me thinking about switching up my game when the time is right. It usually only takes an orbit or two to exploit the characteristics of those at your table, whether tournament, SNG or cash game. If you can extract a few chips from your fellow man by switching up your game, then do it!
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Michael Scott: It's simply beyond words. It's incalcucable.
This one had me thinking about the horrendous plays the fishies make when they push their chips in the middle with 1, 2 and 3 outers and no where near the pot odds to justify it. It truly is beyond words when they hit their miracle, rake in the chips, and think what they did was justified. Incalcucable indeed.
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Michael Scott: This is our receptionist, Pam. If you think she's cute now, you should have seen her a couple years ago.
I don't want to wake up five years from now and still be playing $5 SNGs or $.50/$1 limit. Nor do I want to be playing anything below where I am at now. This quote just got me thinking about consistently striving to grow my game to the next level. Something I have not done, but need to do. I know it is random and a bit of a stretch with this quote, but work with me here folks.
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Michael Scott: No, I'm not going to tell them about the downsizing. If a patient has cancer, you don't tell them.
This is one goes out to the glass tapping dolts out there. I was once a glass tapper, but I have learned my lesson. Do not berate a fish for playing a hand terribly and taking your chips. Bite your tongue (or is it lip?), suck it up, and keep playing solid. You want the fish making that same play the next time you have the best of it with your chips in the middle so that you can punish him for his horrible play. Variance is a beetch, but play your game strong, get your chips in with the advantage, and let the numbers work for you in the long run.
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Jim Halpert: God, this is so sad, this is the smallest amount of power I've ever seen go to someone's head.
This one got me thinking about the Table Captain's out there. I don"t play huge games. I typically play $5 and $10 SNGs or a cash game that rarely exceeds $1/$2 limit or $25 NL. So when someone starts mouthing off about why they are so much better than everyone else or why I sucked for what ever reason, I just have to laugh. That or leave my typical chat response. "Great, another $5 pro." That usually shuts them up or at the very least brings them back down to earth. Idiots.
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Michael Scott: Would I rather be feared or loved? Um, easy, both. I want people to be afraid of how much they love me.
When you can find a way to take people's chips from them and still have them be your "table friend", you have found a good thing and should run with it. Jordan often speaks about how, when playing live, he usually develops a bond with a few of the players at the table. Gaining respect from a few of the players at the table will often result in them fearing your game, but enjoying the time they had at the table. If you can accomplish this, you have a good thing going.
~~~~~~~
Well the rest of these are sans poker wisdom, but I just thought they were funny. There are so many one liners from this show and so many other great quotes to use, but alas, time is money, and I must end the post here. Hope you enjoyed my dumb ass. So here are some final quotes to finish this post up.
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Dwight: As a volunteer sheriff, I can look up anyone's psychiatric records or surgical histories. Yeast infections, there are a huge number of yeast infections in this county. Probably because we live right down the river from that old bread factory.
Michael: (at the Year End Office "Dundie" awards) This year's "Busiest Beaver" award goes to Phyllis Smith!
Phyllis: This says "Bushiest Beaver!"
Michael: Damn typos!
Michael: I've beat up black belts.
Jim: How'd you know they were black belts?
Michael: They told me. After.
Michael: Chili's is the new golf course. It's where business happens. Small Businessman Magazine.
Jan: It said that?
Michael: It will. I sent it in. Letter to the Editor.
Michael: You want to see other people? Oh, you want to see only other people.
posted by TripJax @ 11:51 AM,
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It's A Celebration Beetches!
Tuesday, November 29, 2005
It's A Celebration Beetches!
With all the hoopla that is the holiday season, I friggin' forgot about my blog birthday. That's right folks, one year of blogging is in the books as of November 25th, 2005. It's A Celebration Beetches!I started this here blog with one plan. Make sure someone goes to poop during a heads up match against me. With that said, I feel I have accomplished everything I strived to achieve when starting this blog. But now that I have accomplished all my goals in such a short time, I feel the need to start some new goals. Therefore, at some point in year two, I would like to give back to the community by dropping trow during one of my own heads up sessions. Fun will be had by all.
~~~~~~~
Along the way this blog has had some changes. To my readers who have been with me the long haul, you will recognize the template below as my original:
This is the template that really started things for me. If you want to let yourself be known in a community of poker degenerates, chances are this template will get you started on the right track. To anyone out there interested in a template change, this one is always a good starter kit.
A few months into the blogging gig I decided the booty template did not offer enough of the extras I needed so I started looking for a change. This template was my pick:
It didn't take long for the poker blogging community to let me know what they really thought about that change. "Erm, hey jackhole, why did you get rid of the booty pic and replace it with this?" Nuff said, the booty pic was back within hours of the revolt.
But, alas, I did need a change, and found it with the skin I am currently in. I have put some blood, sweat and beers into this template so I do not foresee a change in the near future, so what you see is what you get ladies and gents.
~~~~~~~
GCox recently posted about how he was sucked into this poker playing world and I thought I would chime in. I actually explained myself in my very first post so what better time to review than in my blog birthday celebration post. G has a story that many, many players share. He saw Moneymaker - a nobody turned somebody - outlast a huge field to reign supreme in the 2003 WSoP.
My story is similar, but begins a year earlier when a luckbox named Robert Varkonyi won it all. I will never forget watching the footage and thinking, "Man I cant believe they are showing poker from the 1980's on ESPN!" I was amazed when they displayed a banner noting it was the 2002 WSoP. WTF? Most of those guys really needed a wardrobe update. And thankfully ESPN did their own wardrobe change and have since put a little more work into the production.
Like G, I was hooked and immediately started reading up on poker. Not long after I was making my first deposit online and the rest is history...in the making.
~~~~~~~
Though we are past the time of Thanksgiving, I do want to send out a hearty THANK YOU to everyone out there who takes the time to read this blog and even, on occasion, leave a comment. As of today there are 2,376,554 other sites that pump out much better content than me. And there are 78,657,456 other sites that have pictures of boobies that you could be looking at. So thanks for taking the time to visit this humble ole blog.
Also, thanks to all the original Heads Up Challenge crew, and all the new bloggers I've met along the way, especially GCox and Jordan. You all make playing poker much more fun.
And finally, in the thank you department, a huge thanks to all the other poker bloggers who take time out of there day to write up quality posts in order for me to take time out of my day to read them. It has been over a year and I still love reading all the stuff you buoys and goils pump out.
~~~~~~~
Gotta finish this tripe up quick before I lose every single reader I currently have. Last night poker was my friend and I am very thankful for that. I did take some pretty tough beats early on, but all in all things worked out. I was able to clear some good bonus points at Hollywood, I received my Instant Bankroll at Titan, and I won an 18 player SNG at Stars. Thank you sir, may I have another? Condolences to G and J who were both knocked out at the final table before any payouts. J's was tougher to watch as it happened on the bubble. As for my play, I hope the positive trend continues this week and into December.
~~~~~~~
Finally, please welcome FullTilt poker to my Help-A-Brotha-Out links on the left. Like Stars, these guys get it. They listen to the players and actively work to be a part of the community. They have great software and are headed in the right direction with almost everything they do. To that end, I certainly hope they are successful in their attempt to become one of - if not the - premiere poker site.
~~~~~~~
Well, that will have to do it. It looks like the celebration is over beetches! Thanks for making it this far into the post. I promise I will try and put some worthy content out in year number two. That and a poop.
posted by TripJax @ 9:58 AM,
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Happy Fatsgiving!
Friday, November 25, 2005
Happy Fatsgiving!
Man I love Thanksgiving. It really is one of the best Holidays out there. STeelerJosh helped remind me why with some reasons I had never really thought about. What other Holiday do you not have to worry about gifts, no cards have to be given out, people feed you unbelievable amounts of food and you are expected to watch football? Bless you Pilgrims.On a sour note, I sit here at work Friday morning cursing the wankers who feel the need to have the stock market open a half day the Friday after Thanksgiving. Don't give me some crap about it's good for the economy or any such muck. People need to be with their families today. People need to be recovering from the food induced coma they experienced yesterday. People need to know they don't have to cancel travel plans because of a 4 hour day where no production will occur and no one will do one iota of work. I am people, and I am less than enthused at the moment.
~~~~~~
I played in a home game Tuesday night for a little Pre-Thanksgiving pokery goodness. I had been feeling bad about going to play poker because, up until I found out about the game, I was supposed to go with wifey and the kids to a birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese. I only felt bad because I hate to leave wifey dealing with the kids while I'm off being a degenerate. However, she was cool with it and I knew once they got there boy would be playing the whole time and baby girl would be passed from one parent to the next cause everybody loves cute babies.
About halfway through the first game I decided to call wifey to make sure everything was going o.k. (drop huge Milwaukee's Best Light can on me at this point for checking in on wife and kids during poker game). To my surprise, and relief, wifey was having a good ole time and was actually drinking it up at Chuck-E-Cheese. Gotta love a place you can take kids to play that serves pizza and beer. That made me feel much better about my decision to sneak in a little live poker before the holidays.
As for the poker, I ended up bubbling in the first game and finishing 2nd in the last game. I don't recall any monumental hands, though in the 2nd game I did have a hefty stack and put a guy all-in while I held the hammer. He called and his hand held up giving him new life. He ended beating me for the win in that game. Dohl! If anything these guys know I'm willing to take them out with any hand given the right situation. They don't know the power of the hammer and unfortunately I didn't either - at least during that hand.
We had a guy who was not much of a poker player who decided to join us for both games. He didn't exactly do well and I only bring him up for what happened in the final hand of the night. I'm heads up with the guy I played the hammer against and I've lost a couple of hands to get pretty shortstacked. The blinds are huge and I have to put half my stack in the middle just to meet the big blind. The other guy pushes all-in from the small blind and I insta-call with K 9. He flips over K J. I had hoped to have two live cards, but no such luck.
The other guys - including the newbie - had been in the living room watching hockey, but when they heard we might be on our last hand, they came back into the room. As we were flipping over our hands the newbie sat down at the table and started shuffling what he thought was the other deck on the table. Erm, not quite dude, you're shuffling the deck we're playing! He apoligized and we went ahead with the hand. I not too surprisingly lost, but can only ponder the suckout I might have dropped on my opponent had the deck not been shuffled. Oh well. Fun times were had by all.
~~~~~~
Me thinks I'll try and sneak some poker in this weekend, so hopefully I'll have more to report soon. Work is kicking my badugi these days so that coupled with the holidays will probably make for some random posting over the next few weeks. I'll do what I can though...
posted by TripJax @ 12:43 PM,
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Mundane Monday Musings
Monday, November 21, 2005
Mundane Monday Musings
Well, apologies for the lack of posting lately. I have wanted to write, but I needed a few days away from ye ole blog. And to be honest, I have not had a ton to write about, but I guess we will see where this post goes. It is Monday and the creative juices are not exactly flowing, so please work with me here folks.
~~~~~~
As you may have read in a prior post, I want to play more of the larger guarantee tourneys, but my bankroll is not in a condition to support playing $20+ tournament buyins very often. As a result, I created the TripJax Qualifier. Basically, you play a $5 SNG and, if you win it, you use your winnings to play in the $20 + $2, 40K Guarantee that Party offers nightly. If you place 2 or 3 you can either book the profit or play another game of choice.
GCox and I gave the qualifier a test run on Wednesday night and things started off quite well. We both won our respective SNGs, which set us up perfectly to sign up for the 40K. We both did so and things were going well for us for quite a while. Unfortunately for G, he got pretty cold decked and went out somewhere in the 800s, out of about 2400 starting players. I managed to chip up late in the tourney and was poised for at least a money place.
Unfortunately, I got married to a BB hand and ended up going out 250 when top 220 placed in the money. At first I was extremely disappointed in going out without at least placing in the money, but it was not long before I realized that I played well and should not be disappointed with my result. With this tournament I did something I have not been able to do in the past, continue to play my game regardless of where I was currently standing in the stats. I did not care that there were only 30 more spots before the money. I cared that I had a good read on the player I was in the hand with and I wanted his chips. My read was correct, but unfortunately the board helped him more than it helped me. When we got all our money in I had AJ to his A9. We both hit our Ace, but he hit a nine as well to take me out. We were about even in chips so whoever won that hand would chip up quite nicely and be well on their way to a good run towards a nice payday. He just happened to catch his card and I did not. Oh well. I would like to thank all the railbirds. It was great for the support and on occasion you helped me head in the right direction. That was quite cool.
~~~~~~
I signed up for the $75 Titan Instant Bankroll promotion through PSO and am patiently awaiting my confirmation email so I can get started. I imagine many, many people have signed up for this promotion so it is taking a while for PSO/Titan to sift through all the entrants. I am giving up 9000 PSO points by doing the Instant Bankroll instead of the normal promotion, but I would probably just use the 9000 points towards a $100 gift card at Party, so I just figured I would take the quicker/easier route and hope to build the $75 up above $100 or more during the process.
I know some of the degenerates already have Titan accounts so it will be nice to be able to join them now.
~~~~~~
I received my PokerStars shirt on Friday and ended up wearing it Saturday when I went out on the town with some buddies. On 3 separate occasions I had someone ask me if I play online poker. One guy even asked if I played in the 2005 WSoP, but I could not bring myself to bluff and say yes. He apparently knew that someone from Greensboro had done well and he was hoping it was me. Trust me, I was hoping it could be me too, but alas that will have to wait. The shirt is kick ass (see below post for a pic) and I really appreciate the PokerStars folks for sending it to me. Thanks again guys!
As for that night, many a SoCo drink was consumed and at one point I was remiss in not having Als number in order to have my first DialAShot. I really gotta get some bloggers phone numbers plugged into my cell phone so I can call during my drunken moments.
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I finally got my HU game in order and have started to win a few of them. Thankfully, the tide turned while playing the 4 player matches at Stars so I was able to book some nice $20 wins over the weekend. I hope the trend continues.
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Congrats to the R.O.W. (Rest Of the World) for again crushing us in the blogger U.S. vs. R.O.W. tourneys. LittleAcornMan showed his true colors in outlasting all other bloggers in the 18 person SNG we played. Congrats to LAM and Veneno for placing in the money. Condolences to the rest of us buggers for not cashing, especially G whose bubble was yet again burst. Sorry dude.
~~~~~~
That will have to do it for now. As usual, I never write the things down that I really want to post in this here blog, so the drivel that comes out is just all the crap off the top of my head. For much better writing, please consult the links list on the left. Booya!
posted by TripJax @ 3:46 PM,
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Pass The Sucrose
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Pass The Sucrose
I have so much I want to write about the 2005 WSoP Main Event, but I'm not even sure where to start or if I'll ever really get it down in the blog. I really enjoyed watching this years event and think it will again leave a lasting mark on the pokersphere. After viewing the last few episodes, however, I have decided to change up my strategy in MTT play and work to be the underdog when I get all my chips in the middle. It seems when you're an underdog these days, you're a shoe in to win the pot. Some harsh beats and wild hands played out during those last days of poker play in the Main Event. I can't wait to slap a bad beat on some candy ass in the Main Event someday. I'm hoping 2006 I can yell, "Pass The Sucrose Beetches!"
~~~~~
As for Hachem's new home, PokerStars, this post is primarily about them. Since the OPBC they've really shown themselves to be the class act they really are. I've kept in contact with a few of their employees via email and they really are great guys. If you're reading this Ryan and Chris, thanks for all your help lately. Ryan was kind enough to place my latest game idea into the hands of their game developers without me ever asking. That was just plain cool of him. In addition, as most of you know, I was able to pick up a cool gift for having been one of their blogs of the day. As a result, the gray and black shirt on the far left is in the process of being shipped to me now. I can't wait to wear it and, when I go out on the town, have every Johnny Jopker out there ask me, "Do you play that online poker stuff?" As you can see, I've added PokerStars to my affiliate links to the left. I try not to clog this blog with links and banners and, up until recently, only hade the PSO banner. However, I want to support poker sites that I believe in. I also want to drive business to poker sites I think are doing the right things. PokerStars has created new game options like the 18, 45, and 180 SNG. They offer 4 player HU matches and HU tourneys. They now offer deepstack MTT's. These are things that might not necessarily be the best option to increase their rake up-front, but they are listening to their clientelle and responding, which in the long run will drive business to their site through word of mouth. Kudos to you PokerStars.
I should mention I am now able to set up private tables at PokerStars so look for some ideas and planned tourneys from yours truly soon. I'm no WWdN or Saturday's With Pauly, but I'll try and put a few fun events out there on occasion. I have some ideas for fun blogger events and I'll let you know of them as they come to fruition. In the meantime, whenever we have another US vs UK sng, just let me know and I'll set it up.
~~~~~
DoubleAs offered a great reminder to us low limit players that we have the potential to grow our bankroll to new levels, but we must work hard at it. We will get out of it what we put into it. I've always respected his guidance and I think it is great that he is lighting the fire under our asses. In fact, I've decided to go back and read all of his 2004 posts during lunch over the next couple of days as a reminder how he got where he is today.
~~~~~
That's gonna have to do it for today.
posted by TripJax @ 1:16 PM,
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And Then There Was Poop...And It Was Good
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
And Then There Was Poop...And It Was Good
Well there's nothing like a poop post to bring in loads of comments. If you didn't get a chance to see the previous post, check it out. Thanks to everyone for the stinky comments.
~~~~~
Congrats are in order for one of our local Greensboro players. Dan Starkey managed to make the final table at the 2005 WSoP Circuit Event in Vegas this past Saturday. The buy-in was $1000 and he finished in 9th place for a win of $3,977. First place was $65,000 so I'm sure he is bummed he didn't finish higher, but it never hurts to make a WSoP final table, circuit event or not.
Dan is the young punk us older folks occasionally wish we could be. He's not married, not in school, has no job, and plays poker for a living. He wakes up in the aftertoon and plays poker into the early morning. He plays poker every.single.day. He's in that group of people we all figure 95% of will eventually crash and burn and wind up with no money, no job, and no direction. But he's got game and he's young, so he's doing what he wants and I can't knock that. I play $5 - $20 MTT's and SNG's online and he just cashed in a WSoP event and has his own page on CardPlayer. Nice job Dan.
You may recall Dan and some of the other local young guys were on my blogroll for a while at GSO Crew. However, just like I figured, they posted a few times and then it became a beached blog, with no posts and no love. It remains to be seen if they'll surface again via the blog, but until they do, they've been yanked from my blogroll.
~~~~~
A quick story for a change of pace. When I first started chatting it up with the poker degenerates, I quickly found out that GCox was an avid Keystone Light drinker. He even has a pic of him holding a can of the brew for his PokerStars avatar. When I found this out I couldn't wait to tell him this little factoid.
Keystone Light is simply Coors Light in a dented can.
The Coors Light and Keystone Light cans are rather thinly made, thus susceptible to denting. During production, if the can has no dent, it proceeds down the labeling line for Coors Light. However, if there is even the smallest dent in the can, it proceeds down the labeling line for Keystone Light. But it's the same beer.
As a test, I implore you to taste beer from a can of Coors Light and Keystone Light and find a difference. I also solicit all beer drinkers to buy a 12 pack of Keystone Light and check the cans for dents. To date - and with many years of drinking the stuff - I have never seen a Keystone Light can without a dent. Since GCox came upon this interesting news, he as well has yet to find an undented can, and he's been pounding the stuff like it's water (which isn't far fromt he truth).
I realize Keystone Light is not on the list of beers to drink for the typical person, but from where GCox and I are from, it's always available. I've been meaning to write that in the blog and I'm glad I finally did.
~~~~~
I continued to struggle with tough beats last night and was down about $30 at one point, but managed to come in 2nd in an 18 person SNG to get me back to even. After placing in that SNG I was pretty much spent and didn't play another game. The beats have just been doing a number on me lately. At one point I was yelling into my headphones not to bring the card I knew was coming. G was there to console, but it still smarts to be running bad like this. After playing, I continued to railbird G with his Pacific tournament and spoke with Jordan for a while as well. Good times guys...
~~~~~
Speaking of Jordan, he's in the process of trying to update his blog and I'm gonna see what I can do to help. After updating my blog and helping G out with his, I've received a few requests to help with blogs and I'll see what I can do over time. So if you've asked for help on a new blog, please be patient. I've got a lot going on, and when I don't have a lot going on I want to play poker. But I'll try and help when I can...
~~~~~
Gotta finish this thing up quick. Much to write about, but no time. I'll be back hopefully tomorrow with another post...
~~~~~
***Addendum***
I just realized I didn't post something I had mentioned to G and J last night, so I better do that now. After reading WiredPairs mention the great value on the Party 40K nightly guarantee I decided to check it out. It is a $20 + $2 event with an average of 2200 players, thus a good chance to make some good money relatively cheap. On Sunday I went searching out the tournament, but couldn't find it in their arsenal so I emailed Party Support requesting info. I also asked in the email if they offered qualifiers to that particular tourney. As soon as I hit the send button on the email I immediately felt like a dolt. Qualifiers for a $20 tournament? Yeah right...not a chance. That clearly showed my mentality and my currently low bankroll.
I received the info that I needed in the email and decided I would create my own qualifier. $20 is not a lot of money, but when you are at the level I am currently at after cashing out for our 2005 family vacation, it is enough to keep me from playing the tourney regularly. So here's my plan...
On a night when I can afford to stay up late, I will play a Party $5 single table SNG.
- If I place 4 - 10 in the SNG, I will then play the nightly $5 ShootOut event that usually draws over 1000 players. Worst Case: I don't place in the ShootOut and am down $12 on the night. Best Case: Make it past Round 1 and then play for the big money that pays off in Rounds 2 - 4.
- If I place 3rd in the SNG, I wll play the $5 Shootout as noted above, but this time I'll be freerolling on the night (except maybe down slightly due to rake).
- If I place 2nd in the SNG, same as above, but with the $15 win in the SNG, everything in the ShootOut is gravy...
- If I place 1st in the SNG, I will enter the $40K guarantee and pay the $20+$2 off the winnings from my SNG. If I place in the MTT, that is pure gravy. If I don't place I'm still up $3 for the night.
So, anybody interested in tackling this plan maybe once a week with me? I realize this is primarily directed towards the lower limit players looking to get a "freeroll" into a $20 tournament, so taking the time to go through the SNG might not cater to some of my readers, but that's o.k. I think it would be a good time to try this out with a number of other bloggers whilst chattting it up with the headsets. I would suggest we play seperate SNG's however...
Let me know what you think...
***End Addendum***
posted by TripJax @ 3:06 PM,
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Stinky Poker
Monday, November 14, 2005
Stinky Poker
I played rather horrible poker tonight. For the last couple of weeks I've been playing the 4 player Heads-Up games at PokerStars with some success, but tonight it was just plain shitty. I went 0-4 and played rather ugly. I will say the turn and river were not very kind, but there were times where I let the player see the turn or river when I shouldn't have. Dats my own fault so I get what I deserve. Still, regardless of tonights results, I'm really liking these HU SNG's like someone else I know, so you'll probably see me frequenting those tables going forward.
On a just plain sad note, I lost to a guy who went to take a shit right in the middle of our game. He gave up about 500 of his chips while he dropped trow and then came back and beat me. I will say he caught cards to take me down, but it still smarts to lose to a guy who put his poker game 2nd on his list of things to do during that hour. Check out the chat from that game...
Damnit, no more poker for me tonight...
***Addendum***
I forgot to mention, this guy pulled a royal flush out of his ass (pun intended) versus my flopped fullhouse. I had Kc3c to his JhQh. The flop came down 3sKhKs and of course I slowplayed him into his open ended straight flush draw when the turn brought a 10h. The river was a very stinky Ah. That sucked. That's when things went into the toilet for me. I lost only a few hands later. Stinky!
***End Addendum***
posted by TripJax @ 1:10 AM,
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PayOuT ODDS
Friday, November 11, 2005
PayOuT ODDS
If you haven't read my earlier post from today, be sure to check it out and leave an answer in the comments.
I want to thank everyone who commented on my recent "Poker Sites Take Notice" post where I detailed my most recent tournament idea. I'm doing this because I like to think up ideas that might just be good enough to work. It's nice to get it out of my head and to have you all let me know what you think.
Before I go forward, if you haven't read the "Poker Sites Take Notice - Part 2 - Super SNG's" post, then scroll down and read it before reading further...
TraumaPoker left a comment in that post that I wanted to briefly write about. He writes:
I think this would create some odd play. If I understand correctly you are saying after the first table that is it. Once there are 3 no more playing at all the additional 30 payouts are based on chip stacks correct? So say you are 4 handed at your table and you have all started with 1K in chips.You have 5K to say 2K 2K and 1K. You are in the BB UTG pushes allin for his 1k, both 2k stacks call, you have J3o and you have to call. YOU HAVE TO CALL. A majo suck out awards you all the chips and a lock on the super SNG award. I find this kind of tournament interesting but the play once the table reached 5 players and then 4 would be very odd. You would be making plays based on the bonus, not on your hand value.
Trauma makes some good points in this comment and I appreciate his critique. His comment prompted the title of this post, which is something I don't recall ever hearing before, but I thought up after looking back on the details of my idea. To make a play that takes into account the PayOuT ODDS. This Super SNG idea could, at times, cause you to make a decision based on the potential payout rather than it being the "right" move. I think it would be similar to someone making a move in a tournament that might be on the gambooool side because they know if they take down the hand they will have a huge advantage making a run to the final table.
As I mentioned in my earlier post, I think this type of SNG/Tournament would bring out a whole new type of strategy for players. For instance, lets take a look at the scenario Trauma mentioned. I believe the 5K player still has more than one move of pushing all-in. Though it will give him the best chance to hit 10,000 in chips thus making him a lock for, at a minimum, a share of the top payout spots, it is not his only move. Let's look at what happens if Mr. 5K folds instead of calls the all-in with a poor hand...
- If 1K Player Wins: Mr. 5K is still the chipleader, 1K now has 3K, and the other two players have 1K each. Mr. 5K has still put himself in a good position to take down the $20 award for being in the top 3 at his table. He has also given himself a chance to use his 5K to bully the 1K players, thus building his stack to a size that might just place in the top 30 for the Super SNG payout.
- If One Of 2K Players Wins: 1K man is eliminated and Mr. 5K has guaranteed himself $20.
Now I'm not saying that either calling or folding is the absolute correct play here, but I just want to show there are options. This style tournament will require quick thinking and decisions. It will surely put some piss poor players at a disadvantage when they make incorrect moves when they are not thinking about how their play could effect their potential payout and the place at their table. But at the end of the day, you are playing a $10 SNG with a chance to make up to $1200 in about 1 hour or less. I don't know about you, but I would be willing to play that type of tournament, occasionally gambooool where the PayOuT ODDS make sense, and take down some decent money along the way.
And looking further into Trauma's scenario, even if it would be an odd play to call an all-in with J-3o, it would take many, many attempts of that play not working for it to eventually be unprofitable. You're staring at an incredible chance at a $1200 payday if you hit it and if you don't you are either still in the SNG with 4 players playing or you have automatically earned $20.
Thanks again everyone for giving your 2 cents. Keep the comments coming if you have further thoughts or replies to my notes above.
~~~~~
I've been playing my MTT SNG's with a lot of confidence lately. I've been playing the PokerStars 18 and 45 SNG's and feel like my moves have been spot on. On Wednesday I missed placing in the money on two different SNG's only due to some tough beats. That made last nights SNG (see below) all the more justified. It was the only one I played and I loved the way I played it...
PokerStars Tournament #14948626, No Limit Hold'em
Buy-In: $6.00/$0.50
18 players
Total Prize Pool: $108.00
Tournament started - 2005/11/10 - 21:27:23 (ET)
Dear TripJax,
You finished the tournament in 1st place.
A $43.20 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
Congratulations!
Thank you for participating.
I back doored my way into the money and only had about 2K in 4th place while the other 3 players had about 13K, 8K, and 4K. At that point I made the comment, "I've got my work cut out for me." From there I took over the table and won the thing within 10 minutes. It was a small win and I shouldn't even post it, but when you're playing with confidence and not seeing results, it is small wins like this that give you the boost you need. I'm really digging the 18 and 45 player SNG's and am really looking forward to the 180 person SNG's when they open up the buy-in range to inlcude $5 and $10. Right now I'm not comfortable doing the $20 until I can build the roll up a little more.
~~~~~
I'm at a crossroads on what my next cash game promo should be. I want to take advantage of the 9000 points being offered at PSO, but I also want to try out VPP. I'm thinking I may do Absolute at PSO so I can show having signed up through PSO for the freerolls as well as get 9000 points. Then, after that one is done I'll give VPP a try so I can help out Jordan.
As for my eyes on the prize, when it comes to what I'll use the points to buy, I've decided not to worry with the iPod Nano and instead will be buying the Party Poker Gift Certificates. What I need right now is a boost to the bankroll and that will be the best way to meet my needs.
~~~~~
That's gonna have to do it for now. I had planned on this post being a little big longer, but work is spanking me right now so I'm gonna have to cut it short. I probably won't be posting again until Monday unless I have an epiphany. Will there be another US vs. UK SNG this weekend???
posted by TripJax @ 5:25 PM,
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Very Superstitious...Writings On The Blog
Very Superstitious...Writings On The Blog
I'm working on a long(ish) post currently in draft status that will hopefully be out this afternoon, but I wanted to post a quick question that I was thinking about during my drive into work this morning. We've probably all heard about strange superstitions people have when playing in live tournaments and cash games, but I want to hear from you all about your superstitions with online play.
Maybe you have to be wearing those raggedy ass boxers (and only those raggedy ass boxers) whenever you play MTT's because you did well in an online MTT while wearing them ages ago. Or maybe you have to drink Tab cola whenever playing in a ring game, but can only take a sip when you win a hand or when you're in the Big Blind. Maybe you will only play at Party Poker on Monday nights because you always do well there that day. I don't know, I'm just making shit up, but you get the idea. As for me, I can't currently think of any superstition I have with my online play, but if I come up with anything I'll post it in my comments section.
Drop me a comment with your superstitious ways...
posted by TripJax @ 12:03 PM,
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Poker Sites Take Notice - Part 2 - SUPER SNG's
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Poker Sites Take Notice - Part 2 - SUPER SNG's
How would you like to play one $10 SNG and have a very viable chance at winning $1200? If you answered No Thanks, you need help that I can't offer, but if you said Tell Me More, then read on...
SUPER SNG'S
I believe this idea would work best at the larger poker sites as you will need a decent size clientelle to handle the size of the tourney on a regular basis. I figure a scheduled tourney once a night or as often as they fill up would work. PokerStars, PartyPoker, and UltimateBet are just a few of the sites I thought of for this idea, but I'm sure it would work at many other sites. I will use specific numbers for my example, though the buy-in and structure can be adjusted to an optimal format.
- 1000 players (10 players @ 100 SNG tables)
- $10 entry fee with $1 rake
- Each table plays down till 3 remain, thus 700 are eliminated with 300 in the money.
- The format is like a shootout in that you don't consolidate tables as players are eliminated.
- The 300 remaining players are awarded $20 for making it into the money.
- Each player who is in 1st place at their respective table is eligible for the Top 30 SUPER SNG payout based on their chipstack. Therefore, 30 out of the 100 players who came in 1st at their table will receive a payout above and beyond the initial $20 payout. The schedule below details the payouts for the top 30 players based on their chipstack size once all tables are complete (have played down to 3 places).
Chipstack Size.........Prize
1st................................$1,200
2nd...............................$600
3rd............................... $400
4th................................$280
5th................................$200
6th................................$160
7th................................$120
8th................................$100
9th................................$80
10th..............................$60
11th-20th.....................$50
21st-30th.....................$30
Let's take a look at the Pros and Cons...
Pros
- You only have to out last 7 players at your table to book a profit.
- In a typical MTT you have to outlast nearly 1000+ players and make it to a final table before seeing a decent payday, but in a SUPER SNG you only have to make it in 1st at your table to qualify for a spot at the Top 30 SUPER SNG PAYOUT.
- In a typical MTT tourney, an average of 10% of players breakeven or see a profit. In a SUPER SNG tournament, 30% of the initial players (300 players) see a profit and 10% of those 300 in the money will see an even bigger payday.
- It will take MUCH less time to compete for a substantial payday since you only play one table which only plays down to 3 players remaining. Imagine playing one SNG for a couple hours or less and booking a $1200+ profit. Sweet eh?!
- For those like me who value preservation of the initial buy-in, a payout to the top 30% of players with the potential for more $ is quite enticing. Much better than the typical MTT where approximately 10% make it in the money.
- With the 1000+ players I see every night at the PartyPoker Shootouts and PokerStars Tournaments, I gotta believe there would be a market for this.
- The players are happy because they have a chance at big money in a short timeframe. The poker site is happy because it books a $1000 profit on the rake without having to take up the time a full MTT with 1000+ players would take.
Cons
- Help me out with the cons please via the comments...
So there you have it. I named it the SUPER SNG because that was the best I could think of on a whim. I like the idea that strategy becomes so important in these SUPER SNG's. There will be some who play tight trying to get close to the money before they make a run for 1st place. There will be others who try to make big moves early to build a large stack right off the bat. I think it would be a great game to play. I look forward to your comments, criticisms, suggestions and any other ideas for improvement that you may have. Thanks for reading! Look for this link in my sidebar once it gets archived...
posted by TripJax @ 3:10 AM,
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C'est La Vie Can Kiss My Ass
Monday, November 07, 2005
C'est La Vie Can Kiss My Ass
Poker and I are not on speaking terms right now. By Sunday night at 11pm I pretty much felt like the picture shows. No that's not me (I use red tape) and no, though it looks like a tinfoil hat, it's not. Tinfoil is way too expensive for a low limit player so we use newspaper in TripJaxville. As for my mistress poker and our little spat, I feel like I played quite well, and still managed to drop 4 buy-ins at BoDog Saturday and Sunday. I was able to squeeze a little back in the end, but I'm prepared to throw in the towel now that I've cleared the bonus. Playing their has been nothing but a headache of sorts and I'm glad I can move elsewhere for a while. I hit the 200 required BoDog points and got the F out.
I only finished down $30, but a couple of things really left a bad taste in my mouth. Over the last couple of weeks I had been having connection problems at BoDog, Stars, and Party. Stars and Party are no longer a problem, but BoDog has been horrible. I'm sure my connection has something to do with it, but I'm not letting BoDog off too easy cause I am no longer having any problems anywhere else, but BoDog is still shanking me constantly. If it wasn't for the PSO bonus, I would have left that place long ago.
The shite hit the fan on Saturday night while two tabling at the NL tables bonus clearing. I got into a hand with 2 other players and hit Jacks Full of Eight's on the turn. At the river there was $25 in the pot and I checked expecting to get some action based on what I had seen in the players. The first guy went into what I thought was the think tank. Nope. He insta went all-in and the other guy called, $14 and $13 respectively. Only problem was when I thought the think tank was going on my connection was going all fuktard on me. My hand was folded and I'm pretty sure steam started coming out of my ears.
I looked back on the action to see that I would have won the hand. I knew I would have won and would have made the easy call of the all-ins with the only hand beating me being quad eights. So there went $52 down the drain. I immediately logged off and got into a back and forth email royale with BoDog support, but never got any answer I wanted. I'll say this about their support, they get back to you quick, I just don't like their answers. So long story long is I would have been up for my time spent on BoDog, but instead I'm down $30. I know it's not much and that's life, but C'est La Vie Can Kiss My Ass.
~
I did play in the U.S. vs. U.K. blogger SNG and had a good ole time. We had 7 punters for the show and I was able to get heads up with Davee3283 and at one time had a sizeable chip lead. I did manage to donk off a good portion over playing 44 and never really got my game back after that. In that 44 hand he had JJ and flopped Quad Jax on me. Wanna beat TripJax? Make QuadJax. It's that easy. I had a great time all and I can't wait to do it again.
~
I finally broke my streak of 793 straight Heads-Up losses this weekend. I think I broke even in them on the weekend, but just getting some wins was nice. On one of my $10 matches I managed to get Quad Aces and Quad 2's in a matter of minutes. I got the minimum on them, but I know it had to leave the guy feeling like the world was against him. I managed to win that one which was nice.
~
Go check out Jordan's blog, High On Poker to see the trail he blazed through a Stars tourney on Sunday. He was able to outlast over 1000 of his best friends and finish 4 in a $10 tourney. He took home over $600 for his efforts and was creeping towards $2500 for 1st place. Good job J. Glad I could be there to see the last 30 minutes. And by the way, he highly recommends Snapple.
~
So much to blog about, but so little sleep. I'm out. May the felt be with you...
posted by TripJax @ 3:32 AM,
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"Das One Cold Mofo"
Thursday, November 03, 2005
"Das One Cold Mofo"
On Halloween night wifeys father came over to the house to take pictures of the kiddies in their outfits. He's a strange bird to say the least. Not long after he came in the door he told me he had seen one of my friends recently. A few months back I had told him if he ever had any trouble with his computer to go see a buddy of mine who works for the Geek Squad. Well he had problems and went to see him last week.This friend is mainly a poker buddy I play with on occasion so it's not like I see him every week. When my Father-In-Law (FIL) finally found the guy at BestBuy and introduced himself as Jason's FIL, my buddy ended up catching him off guard. After the introduction my buddy looked around to make sure no one else was near them in the store and then rattled off, "Yeah Das one cold motherfucker." Confused, but very interested, my FIL asked what he meant. He told my FIL that we play poker together and that I'm as cold as ice with no regard.
As my FIL is telling me this story I'm just laughing as I think back to why my buddy said all this. Historically, when I play with these guys, I switch it up quite a bit and keep them guessing on my game. Some nights I'm real tight and others real loose, but almost always very agressive when I'm in a pot. In the last game I played with this guy I built a large chipstack very early and just crushed them with huge bets. At least twice I dropped the hammer on them and showed it down. Both times this guy folded better hands. I ended up taking out every single player at the table that night and really left my mark. It was a good time.
As for my FIL, he had no idea I played poker until that moment, but rather than have concern with his daughters husband playing poker, he wanted to know why I had never invited him to a game. Dohl! I told him I rarely played a game at my own house and usually was invited to a game at the last minute. He said I need to start inviting him cause, "I was quite the player in college." Erm, o.k. PaPa, bring it on. I have no problem taking PaPa's money.
Well, this is gonna have to be a short post today folks. I'm leaving work early today to do some community service so I'm short on time. I know what you're thinking...that degenerate gambling fool went and got arrested for something and now is serving his time. Not so dear readers. I'm actually doing this one on my own time and looking forward to it. Until next time, I may not be able to post until next week as I've got a lot going on this weekend. I do plan, however, to be in the US vs. UK SNG event where ever it ends up being...
**Addendum**
I just got an email from a buddy with this article regarding the new and ever growing Google Library. I typed in "Poker" in the search engine and found a ton of content in case you are looking for some free reading that might otherwise not be available. Could be cool and will definitely cause a stir with copyright this and you stole that. Good luck with all that Google.
posted by TripJax @ 6:02 PM,
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Aw-Ren
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Aw-Ren
I've been enjoying the 2005 WSoP coverage on ESPN this year. ESPN still has some things they could improve on, but for poker content, I'm getting my fill. The funniest thing I've seen this year - besides Mike The Mouth - is the Japanese lady who won a seat and has a short skit where she is sitting behind a bunch of chips and pushes her hands forward while saying "Aw-Ren." They should change the Degree All-In moment to the Degree Aw-Ren moment and insert that clip before each Aw-Ren hand. I love it.
Did anyone else see the bowling alley poker player Stillman suckout numerous times earlier in the episode(s) and then talk trash when his ill advised all-in play with pocket 2's proved to be his demise. How quickly we poker players forget the coin flips and lucky draws that often propel us to the money spots when we could have just as easily been on the rail. Joker.
~
Speaking of Aw-Ren, after some pretty bad plays with all-in moves in my cash game play, I've taken a little extra time to look at when and why I go all-in. I was a tad alarmed when I thought back on my play. I didn't go search out hand histories or data mine my numbers, I just thought about my actions as of late. The pretty easy questions I asked myself are:
- More often than not, do you go all-in hoping you don't get called?
- More often than not, do you go all-in with a made hand or are you drawing?
- Do you push all-in more often than you call all-in?
I rarely push all-in on a stone cold bluff, thus I usually have a decent hand or I'm drawing to a great hand with odds. The obvious problem is typically people aren't gonna call an all-in unless they have reason to do so, like their own draw or a better made hand. And then there are the donkfish who don't have the right odds and still call you and take your buy-in when the board rips you apart. Lately, I've been over playing top pair and have gotten ripped when someone makes 2 pair or a set. After the play I look back at the hand and wonder why I was all-in. Did I really need to be?
The last question is one of those that people typically answer quickly. You should rarely be calling an all-in unless you feel you have the best hand. Pretty obvious huh?! This brings me back to my top pair situation I mentioned earlier. Just like I've over played top pair as of late and had to re-evaluate my decision making, sooo maaaannnnyyyy people push all-in with mediocre hands trying to push people off their hand. It has made my decision making quite easy the last few nights. Play tight aggressive and allow them to donk their chips to me. I want to push with very strong hands when I am playing with calling stations and I want to put myself in less situations where I am calling with mediocre hands or pushing all-in hoping I don't get called. My new motto...Be the donker, not the donkey.
~
Last night brought with it a very enjoyable poker session for me. Fresh off my review of my game I played some damn good poker over at BoDog. The board also decided to be my friend at the right times which doesn't hurt. I ended up nearly quadrupling my buy-in and really brought back the confidence in my cash game I sorely needed. One of the most important things I did last night that differed from my previous play at BoDog was I quit worrying about clearing the PSO/BoDog points. In previous play I would continuously look to see if that hand qualifyed to get me .20 or .50 or whatever more in points. So stupid. I also found myself getting into more pots just so the hand would qualify for points. That is no way to play poker. I realized that before it was too late and it paid off for me. After my session was over I had actually cleared more points than any other night and I had not cared in the least.
~
After finishing up my BoDog play I decided to fire up the IM and see if there was any blogger fun going on. I think it was approximately 8.4 seconds after I logged on that Veneno IM'd me to see if I was down with a little HU action. I was expecting it and was happy to comply. Shortly thereafter we were slinging chips at UB. I was very impressed with her play and her decision making and she certainly deserved to win, which she did. Unfortunately for me I didn't take my own advice from above and pushed all-in on a mediocre top pair hand and it cost me. That play and my recent thoughts on my all-ins is really what prompted me to write all this down today.
No matter my results in the HU match, good times were had by all. I can't say enough about you freakin' bloggers and the good times I have while on the virtual felt. And with the introduction of speaker phones (I really gotta get one of thos things), I can see some serious potential with private blogger SNG's and cash games. Playing like that would be just about as close as I can get to playing live with my friends while still sitting in my Simpsons boxers on the couch. Strike that last sentence.
Veneno, I had a great time chatting and playing against you and I can't wait to play again. Unfortunately, I think my HU game needs a serious re-haul. Since my HU challenge win I've been in a serious doldrum of sorts. It's been a combination of things that have sent me on a HU downward spiral. When I'm playing bad, my opponents are playing quite well. When I'm playing well, the board is ripping me to shreds. There's a lot more to it, but in general terms, that's where it's at. Last nights game I wouldn't put in either category. I think we both played well, you just played well...er. Damn that's some shredding of the written word there folks. Me thinks I should call it quits before I really lose it. But first...
~
Congrats to Kipper who managed to make it to Step 5 at the Party Mini-Steps and earned a cool $200. He was smoking the tables and proved those things can be profitable. I may get back into them soon.
~
Remeber kids, Don't Do What Donny Donk Does.
posted by TripJax @ 2:43 PM,
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