It's only been 3 weeks since I did any blogging, meh. I was in Durant in April and had a less than amazing 0-12 MTT series and about break-even at cash. Hey, cant win them all, but it was a disappointing series. Nevertheless I came back to Tulsa planning to take a couple days off then get back to grinding, but I got a nasty head cold and was completely out of it for two weeks. I don't get sick often, but it seems when I do, I get really sick. So I grinded out a cold watching a bazillion movies and emptying my DVR, and finally got to feeling better. Unluckily we are having some of that odd Oklahoma weather and I am still running into a ton of hot/cold situations so I hope to keep the cold away.
This last week I have played a few sessions of cash, a freeroll, and a weekly tournament. The freeroll was a bust, the tournament was a bust, but I did have a couple decent cash sessions to make a profit. I will probably be mostly playing some cash trying to increase my WSOP bankroll, but I will be playing the Main event of a series in Siloam Springs this weekend. It's a $350 20k that usually has a decent turnout. Other than that my next couple weeks will mostly be full of cash games and preparation for WSOP. I fly out the 29th and plan on staying for the whole series. I am still ironing out all the details but I am excited for another WSOP.
I went to the WSOP in 2011 for 32 days and thoroughly enjoyed it. My trip was planned for 2 weeks there, one week back, and then I planned to fly back for the main for a week. Once I was there I couldn't leave with all that action so I changed some flights and stayed. Last year I was forced to miss the WSOP and hated every minute of it. The WSOP is just one of the things a poker player should try not to miss, the action is everywhere and amazing. This year my plan is to go for the whole thing and I hope to have some break out moments.
Good luck to all the grinders out there and I hope most of you get to experience the WSOP, even if just for a week or a weekend.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
5/14/2013
4/25/2013
Variance
Meanwhile, I have been running up against it. It is Thursday and I have been in Durant, OK since last Thursday. I am 0-11 in MTTs and I am down $103 at cash. Sounds like a great trip so far, ay? Lol, luckily for me I understand variance and poker and I am not sweating it. I have built decent stacks in several MTTs but was unable to capitalize and get to the end. There is still 2 MTTs left for me a $350 50k tomorrow and then a $1100 300k on Saturday. It only takes one, and I plan on doing what I can to play my best.
On the cash front I have only played 4 sessions. I won a nickel the first day I played at 2/5, then lost half a buy-in at 1/2 in 10 min the next day and got invited to dinner so hopped, and then I didn't play for a couple days. My next session was 2/5 and I lost 1k my first hand with AA verse KJ, good times. I did grind my way back to $100 winner than night though. And my last session I lost AK
Poker has streaks, sometimes we run good and sometimes bad, its all about understanding it and handling it better than the other grinders. The last couple days I just went to the room and relaxed after busting the MTT. Sometimes not pushing it is good, sometimes pushing it and grinding is the way to go. You will find me doing both. Tonight I am going to go grind cash and try to play my best, that is truly all I can do. I am ready to book a winner, LEGGO!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
On the cash front I have only played 4 sessions. I won a nickel the first day I played at 2/5, then lost half a buy-in at 1/2 in 10 min the next day and got invited to dinner so hopped, and then I didn't play for a couple days. My next session was 2/5 and I lost 1k my first hand with AA verse KJ, good times. I did grind my way back to $100 winner than night though. And my last session I lost AK
Poker has streaks, sometimes we run good and sometimes bad, its all about understanding it and handling it better than the other grinders. The last couple days I just went to the room and relaxed after busting the MTT. Sometimes not pushing it is good, sometimes pushing it and grinding is the way to go. You will find me doing both. Tonight I am going to go grind cash and try to play my best, that is truly all I can do. I am ready to book a winner, LEGGO!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
4/19/2013
1 Mirrion
I woke up early and drove the 3 hours from Tulsa to Durant yesterday to play in the 1 million gtd series at Choctaw Casino. Yesterday was a $350 50k, a $240 10k, and a $125 5k. I played all three and finally go above start stack in the $125, lol. I was off to a good start but didn't make the money. There is a 50k Player of the Series contest that pays 30 places and 10k for first. We get 2 pts per registered event and then a point per place in the money, so there is incentive to grind. I was lucky enough to have a god 2/5 nl session between the noon and 5pm MTT to cover most of my buy-ins for the day, but still came out a little loser.
Today is the Silver Ring event the $450 100k. Tomorrow is the Gold Ring a $550 200k, and next weekend is a Platinum Ring 1k 300k. Through the week there are lots of 20k, 10k, and 5ks and should be a few guys chasing points.
I would like to throw a shout out to Daniel Hughes for getting 9th in the 50k yesterday, he got it in good with JJ vs 97 but the villain flopped the nuts, lol, run better. Also congrats to Louay and Willie both from Tulsa who got 8th and 7th. Nice work Tulsa players.
248 players in the noon yesterday, so today should have even more. Pretty impressed with the Thursday turnout, this may be a bigger series than I thought. Good luck to all the grinders out there, keep improving and play your A game.
I have a new article coming out on P5s this weekend so keep your eyes out. It is about Live Reads and Leveling ourselves, hope y'all enjoy it.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
Today is the Silver Ring event the $450 100k. Tomorrow is the Gold Ring a $550 200k, and next weekend is a Platinum Ring 1k 300k. Through the week there are lots of 20k, 10k, and 5ks and should be a few guys chasing points.
I would like to throw a shout out to Daniel Hughes for getting 9th in the 50k yesterday, he got it in good with JJ vs 97 but the villain flopped the nuts, lol, run better. Also congrats to Louay and Willie both from Tulsa who got 8th and 7th. Nice work Tulsa players.
248 players in the noon yesterday, so today should have even more. Pretty impressed with the Thursday turnout, this may be a bigger series than I thought. Good luck to all the grinders out there, keep improving and play your A game.
I have a new article coming out on P5s this weekend so keep your eyes out. It is about Live Reads and Leveling ourselves, hope y'all enjoy it.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
4/17/2013
Blogging? Whats that
Wow, I have been a little lazy when it comes to writing. I haven't blogged in a week or two and just now finished up and article that was due Monday. Luckily Dan is amazing and allows me some leeway as most of my time is spent playing and some weekends I stay hella busy. So when due dates come around Monday he will let me have a day or two if I am running behind. Also it seems my articles are usually posted over the weekend so I do not think it messed with his planning, but who knows. Thanks for being awesome Dan!
As far as poker goes, 2013 has been really good for me. Obviously not to the extent of lots of players, but I am having a decent year. It feels good, especially after having such a dismal year in 2012. Tomorrow I am heading to Durant for the 1 Million guaranteed series at Choctaw Casino and then will finalize my plans for WSOP. I am hoping for a good series at Choctaw, but I am also planning on playing quite a bit of cash so I hope the action is good.
Action in Tulsa has actually been on point. I mean we always have some decent 1/2 nl but here lately there is often a 2/5 nl, there is PLO a couple days a week and one is a big 5/10 with a 25 Mississippi straddle, And we also have a huge 10/20 Omaha 8 crowd playing everyday on 1 or 2 tables. Action has been decent here, I can't complain. SO if in the area, get to Riverspirit we be gambling.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
As far as poker goes, 2013 has been really good for me. Obviously not to the extent of lots of players, but I am having a decent year. It feels good, especially after having such a dismal year in 2012. Tomorrow I am heading to Durant for the 1 Million guaranteed series at Choctaw Casino and then will finalize my plans for WSOP. I am hoping for a good series at Choctaw, but I am also planning on playing quite a bit of cash so I hope the action is good.
Action in Tulsa has actually been on point. I mean we always have some decent 1/2 nl but here lately there is often a 2/5 nl, there is PLO a couple days a week and one is a big 5/10 with a 25 Mississippi straddle, And we also have a huge 10/20 Omaha 8 crowd playing everyday on 1 or 2 tables. Action has been decent here, I can't complain. SO if in the area, get to Riverspirit we be gambling.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
4/04/2013
V101
What up everyone? I just ate Chipolte for the first time, it was pretty good. Pretty sure my next mexican adventure will be Chuy's. Things have been going pretty good for me. I am having a solid 2013 and am very happy to be planning on some upcoming events. My last cash session on Tuesday went like shit, but occasionally one will. I have been doing very well at cash and will be heading out tonight for some more. Tuesday I was on a good 1/2 table but only for a little bit. I was rivered for the first buy-in and then ran into AA with top pair verse a guy that would have played bottom pair or air the same way. I was kind of hungry at the time so I decided I would just cut my losses at two buy-ins and get them the next time. Often times I will try and grind it back if the game is good, but I got the feeling it was time to go and went with it. Sometimes just knowing to follow our gut can be really important.
Tomorrow is the $350 50k day1a at Riverspirit and I will be there. Not only will I be there, but I will be there by 10 am when they start. Yep, you read that right, 10am. Why in the hell would a tournament start at 10am when they know they will have less than 150 players a day? If anyone can think of a good answer, please let me know.
I am hoping I make day2 so I can break out my new RunGoodGear that I ordered. Obviously just by wearing the gear all players instantly start to run good. You can get your own gear at this link. http://rungoodgear.com Make sure to check out the site and get yourself some gear ordered. RunGoodGear is owned by an up and coming poker player who does a lot for poker, so get to the site and order some gear to show your support.
Next major stops for me will be the 1Million guaranteed series the 18th through the 31st in Durant, OK at Choctaw casino, and then the WSOP. I am sure I will hit up a couple MTTs between but that is for sure the next two events I am excited about right now.
I have been on pocketfives quite a bit posting/replying in the forums and reading articles. There is a ton of good info there so go check it out and join in on the discussions to improve your game.
I am excited about the Final Four and really do not know what to expect. Obviously most expect Louisville to run away with it, but I think any of the 4 teams could win it all. Of course WSU will have to play really well, but all that means is they need to do what they have been doing.
Freaking brutal how Yu Darvish barely missed out on a pefect game, i was so sick for him. Truly the last few pitches were not that great and maybe he should have tried to dig a little deeper instead of count on the defense. Still an amazing feat and I am sure he will get another attempt with his skill.
Good luck to all the grinders, make sure your IBR is on point and keep working hard.
Tomorrow is the $350 50k day1a at Riverspirit and I will be there. Not only will I be there, but I will be there by 10 am when they start. Yep, you read that right, 10am. Why in the hell would a tournament start at 10am when they know they will have less than 150 players a day? If anyone can think of a good answer, please let me know.
I am hoping I make day2 so I can break out my new RunGoodGear that I ordered. Obviously just by wearing the gear all players instantly start to run good. You can get your own gear at this link. http://rungoodgear.com Make sure to check out the site and get yourself some gear ordered. RunGoodGear is owned by an up and coming poker player who does a lot for poker, so get to the site and order some gear to show your support.
Next major stops for me will be the 1Million guaranteed series the 18th through the 31st in Durant, OK at Choctaw casino, and then the WSOP. I am sure I will hit up a couple MTTs between but that is for sure the next two events I am excited about right now.
I have been on pocketfives quite a bit posting/replying in the forums and reading articles. There is a ton of good info there so go check it out and join in on the discussions to improve your game.
I am excited about the Final Four and really do not know what to expect. Obviously most expect Louisville to run away with it, but I think any of the 4 teams could win it all. Of course WSU will have to play really well, but all that means is they need to do what they have been doing.
Freaking brutal how Yu Darvish barely missed out on a pefect game, i was so sick for him. Truly the last few pitches were not that great and maybe he should have tried to dig a little deeper instead of count on the defense. Still an amazing feat and I am sure he will get another attempt with his skill.
Good luck to all the grinders, make sure your IBR is on point and keep working hard.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
4/02/2013
I'm still here
Hello all, How's it going? I have been pretty busy playing live poker and giving lessons and have not took the time to write in over a week. So far I am having a pretty solid 2013 with several tournament scores and lots of success playing live cash. It is an amazing turn of events for how poorly my 2012 went. I truly feel that I am playing the best poker of my life and i plan to make that a mainstay by continuing to improve daily.
I have picked up several new students and the lessons have been going well. Most of my new students are live players probably due to the fact I haven't played online since September, but I am happy to work with anyone be it online or live. I have enjoyed seeing #TeamVariance101 grow and the players get more and more scores as they improve. All in all things are going pretty well but as always I could use more business and would love to help.
My next MTT will be a local $350 50k this weekend and then I will be going to the 1million guaranteed series at Choctaw in Durant, OK the 18th through the 31st. The Choctaw series should be pretty good and I am excited to get down there.
There has been a ton going on in the poker world with several of my friends getting WSOPc rings and hitting big scores. I would like to send a special congratulations to a good friend Michael Sanders Jr for getting his first ring and removing himself from the "Best players without a ring" list. Great job bro!
Today I dropped my awesome dog off at the groomers for some TLC and then came home and got to work. I got started some review and reading and then enjoyed Sheets chat on PxF. After the chat I read a couple articles on P5s and then wrote one myself, you should see it soon.
I hope everyone is doing great and remembering to try and improve daily, not just go play. Good luck everyone!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
I have picked up several new students and the lessons have been going well. Most of my new students are live players probably due to the fact I haven't played online since September, but I am happy to work with anyone be it online or live. I have enjoyed seeing #TeamVariance101 grow and the players get more and more scores as they improve. All in all things are going pretty well but as always I could use more business and would love to help.
My next MTT will be a local $350 50k this weekend and then I will be going to the 1million guaranteed series at Choctaw in Durant, OK the 18th through the 31st. The Choctaw series should be pretty good and I am excited to get down there.
There has been a ton going on in the poker world with several of my friends getting WSOPc rings and hitting big scores. I would like to send a special congratulations to a good friend Michael Sanders Jr for getting his first ring and removing himself from the "Best players without a ring" list. Great job bro!
Today I dropped my awesome dog off at the groomers for some TLC and then came home and got to work. I got started some review and reading and then enjoyed Sheets chat on PxF. After the chat I read a couple articles on P5s and then wrote one myself, you should see it soon.
I hope everyone is doing great and remembering to try and improve daily, not just go play. Good luck everyone!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
3/20/2013
Four Four
Well, I have been pretty busy and playing lots of poker. I went to Siloam Springs last Tuesday and Wednesday. Then I went to Downstream Casino for the MSPT near Joplin, MO Friday and Saturday. Then after not making Day2 I went back to Siloam Springs for the Main Event Sunday. I won the Tuesday tournament but did not do any good in the others. I do feel I am playing well and have been enjoying my time at the tables.
I have also been very busy giving lessons. I gave three lessons today and enjoyed spending some time with my quickly improving students. One of my newer students is improving so quick it is amazing. He actually has been hitting score after score since we started and I expect him to have a killer 2013. Good luck to all of #TeamVariance101 and make sure your IBR is on point and keep improving.
Now I am going to share a hand from the Wednesday night tournament at Siloam Springs Cherokee Casino. In this hand I make a mistake and leak off some chips early and would like to share my mistake to help all of you.
It is 100/200 no ante but there is a catch. It is actually 100/200/25 but our table had a mishap and we paid 25 ante for 15 minutes at 100/200 so we are now playing 15 minutes with no ante at 100/200/25. Nevertheless I am Hj+2 at an 8 handed table and I 2.5x open to 500 with 44 and about 18,000 behind. The cutoff is a decent internet players 3bets to 1275 with 21,000 behind. It then folds around to me and I call with the intention of set mining. In this scenario we need to either fold or set mine if we know we are paying 5% or less of the effective stack size. I have the effective stack at 18,000, so I can afford to call 900 here to hit my set. The call was for 775 more so it was within the price range for a +EV set mine.
The flop came out 973 rainbow, I checked and the villain bet a curious 1325 into about a 3k pot. I had been playing with this villain for over an hour and I noticed his sizing was smaller than normal. I truly felt his bet size may be due to the fact he was polarized with either a big hand or a missed AK or AQ type hand. My intentions where to fold the flop if a 4 did not land, but after his bet size I decided to float with a plan to check/reevaluate his play on the turn. I thought that I had some showdown value and could have the best hand a decent percentage of the time.
The turn was an 8 and I checked. The villain then bet 2200 into a 5700 chip pot. Again, I felt I had some showdown value and could have the best hand a decent percentage of the time so I chose to call with a plan to check/call most rivers while sticking with my plan to get to showdown as cheap as possible. Obviously I am leaving some room to adjust my plan and reevaluate if his bet sizing or action throws me for a loop.
The river is a J completing a rainbow board of 9738J. I check and the villain bets 4200 into a 10k+ pot. Now I am wanting to sigh fold and am thinking that the J is not a great card and his bet felt like it could be for value as much as it could be a last ditch attempt to win the pot with an overplayed AK or AQ. My plan was to check/call but I am second guessing the decision and thinking about folding. What would you do? Would you have played other streets differently?
Honestly, I think I just got a little to fancy in a spot way to early with no ante. The play is to set mine and fold almost every time we do not hit a set. The only other times we continue should be on other decent flops like 235 for example. I think the play is to fold the flop, and in some cases I am okay with folding pre if we think the villain is good enough to not give us value when we hit a set.
I have also been very busy giving lessons. I gave three lessons today and enjoyed spending some time with my quickly improving students. One of my newer students is improving so quick it is amazing. He actually has been hitting score after score since we started and I expect him to have a killer 2013. Good luck to all of #TeamVariance101 and make sure your IBR is on point and keep improving.
Now I am going to share a hand from the Wednesday night tournament at Siloam Springs Cherokee Casino. In this hand I make a mistake and leak off some chips early and would like to share my mistake to help all of you.
It is 100/200 no ante but there is a catch. It is actually 100/200/25 but our table had a mishap and we paid 25 ante for 15 minutes at 100/200 so we are now playing 15 minutes with no ante at 100/200/25. Nevertheless I am Hj+2 at an 8 handed table and I 2.5x open to 500 with 44 and about 18,000 behind. The cutoff is a decent internet players 3bets to 1275 with 21,000 behind. It then folds around to me and I call with the intention of set mining. In this scenario we need to either fold or set mine if we know we are paying 5% or less of the effective stack size. I have the effective stack at 18,000, so I can afford to call 900 here to hit my set. The call was for 775 more so it was within the price range for a +EV set mine.
Good luck to everyone, keep improving!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
3/13/2013
Siloam Springs
Took a trip over to West Siloam Springs, Ok to the Cherokee Casino for a $100 re-entry with 1k added last night. I arrived about 40 min late but there was two hours of late registration. My first buy-in lasted about an hour but I ended up losing AJss to 99 aipf. So I re-entered and was lucky enough to go all the way through and win the tournament with no chop for a little over 2.3k. There was 72 entrants and it paid 8 places. It was also a kind of fun final table as two of my friends from Tulsa was there finishing 3rd and 5th, good job guys!
Tonight I am heading back there to play a $125 with $20 rebuys. Should be a decent MTT and I am hoping for another deep run. Good luck to all my friends grinding, I hope we all have a great weekend.
Variance101 is going well. I have picked up a few new students and have been giving several lessons. If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
Tonight I am heading back there to play a $125 with $20 rebuys. Should be a decent MTT and I am hoping for another deep run. Good luck to all my friends grinding, I hope we all have a great weekend.
Variance101 is going well. I have picked up a few new students and have been giving several lessons. If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
3/10/2013
Clustered Weekend
Sometimes it amazes me how so many casino's with in two hours of each other can have a tournament series at the same time. Starting last weekend through this weekend Downstream Casino near Joplin, MO is having a MSPT. Their series is mostly just satellites into the $1100 main this weekend, but the main is decent. At the same time Cherokee Casino is West Siloam Springs is having a series as well. And this weekend Creek Muskogee is having their first ever decent tournament with a $100 re-entry with two day1s friday night and saturday day playing into Day2 Sunday.
Truly I would play all these events if they were staggered and not at the same time. Who comes up with these dates? It happens all the time too. Several times I have seen Choctaw and Winstar hold events at the same time for reasons unknown. I would think someone in the higher ups might contact someone at the other casino and try to mutually decide they would be better better off if they didn't run events at the same time. Anyway, end rant!
Post Ok State I have played a couple cash sessions that went pretty good and then yesterday I played a $125 NL MTT at Hard Rock with no success and then went to Downstream to play a $260 satellite. Hard Rock always has a decent turnout for their Friday 7pm $60 mtt and the Saturday $125 so I play them occasionally. At Downstream I was truly surprised that the turnout was so small and that the structure was a little turbo-ish. The satellite had 30min levels but there was no green chips in play. The satellite started at 100/100 and at level 5 the antes kicked in at 500/1000/100. By the 4th level the average stack was a little over 10bbs. Meh.
I am not 100% sure of what is in store for me this weekend. I am probably going to play the MSPT and if I do not make day 2 I will probably head to West Siloam for the Main. Nevertheless it is good to be grinding some and I hope to continue on a decent 2013.
Variance101 is going well. I have picked up a few new students and have been giving several lessons. If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
Truly I would play all these events if they were staggered and not at the same time. Who comes up with these dates? It happens all the time too. Several times I have seen Choctaw and Winstar hold events at the same time for reasons unknown. I would think someone in the higher ups might contact someone at the other casino and try to mutually decide they would be better better off if they didn't run events at the same time. Anyway, end rant!
Post Ok State I have played a couple cash sessions that went pretty good and then yesterday I played a $125 NL MTT at Hard Rock with no success and then went to Downstream to play a $260 satellite. Hard Rock always has a decent turnout for their Friday 7pm $60 mtt and the Saturday $125 so I play them occasionally. At Downstream I was truly surprised that the turnout was so small and that the structure was a little turbo-ish. The satellite had 30min levels but there was no green chips in play. The satellite started at 100/100 and at level 5 the antes kicked in at 500/1000/100. By the 4th level the average stack was a little over 10bbs. Meh.
I am not 100% sure of what is in store for me this weekend. I am probably going to play the MSPT and if I do not make day 2 I will probably head to West Siloam for the Main. Nevertheless it is good to be grinding some and I hope to continue on a decent 2013.
Variance101 is going well. I have picked up a few new students and have been giving several lessons. If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com. #TeamVariance101
3/06/2013
Lets Ketchup
So let's get caught up! My last blog was after winning the partners tournament, since then I played a few more tournaments and was lucky enough to have some more success. The partners tournament was Wednesday and the 150k Day1a was Thursday at 10am. We played until about 3am Thursday morning so even though I had every intention to make Day 1a it just didn't happen. Instead I slept all day and went and played a mega satellite that night. The satellite was a bust and I managed to get back home and get a little rest for Day 1b. Friday 10am came pretty fast but I was ready to build a chip stack. We started with 10k and I peaked at 80k at dinner break after 6 hours of play.
After dinner I made it another couple hours but was sent to the showers when my Q10 lost to K8 in a wild hand around 7:15pm and play was ending at 9:30pm. In the hand UTG+1, a weak middle age fish with about 60k opens to 5k at 1k/2k. The loose calling middle aged woman in UTG+2 with about 100k calls, fold, fold, and a very solid grinder calls 5k out of a 45k stack. I am next to act and have 27k and move all-in expecting to get through if I get past the first guy. Well, the first guy calls with K8o and the other two fold. The flop is 9J3 flopping me an open ended straight draw, but then it comes brick, brick and I am out. I was kind of surprised at the guy calling with K8. I had not been at the table all that long and did not have the best read on him. I simply could not resist a spot where I felt I had just enough fold equity to shove and pick up a nice pot. Oh well, cant win them all. I went on home and got some rest and was prepared to try again the next morning.
Saturday I was able to make it through with 127k and we would be coming back to a 4k big blind on Sunday. There was 54 players returning and we were ITM. I feel I really played well and got my stack up to about 400k when I lost a 800k chip pot for the chip lead and went out 19th. In this pot I was on the Button and an aggro player was in the big blind. I have history with this player as we played together Saturday and in other mtts. He had recently been moved to my table and had won about 8 out of 10 hands in a row and had 3bet me off two opens. At the time I had a very nice stack compared to the field with 390k but the big blind was 16k so truly I had 24bbs. I had A5cc and opened with a plan of shoving all my chips in if he 3 bet me again. I open to 35k, he 3bets to 95k, and I shove. He tank calls and has QQ and flops a Q. Good game me. I am not upset with my play I just feel as if the scenario played out perfect for the villain.
I busted around 1:30pm and the main event started at 4pm. Me and a friend went to the buffet and toyed around the casino and then I got myself ready to attack the last event of the series. The Main Event was a $550 offering a 15k starting stack and 40min levels. The mtt got 70 players and paid 7 spots with bottom money being $1400 and top money being a little over $12k. I went into the final table with the chip lead but lost a few hands and got unlucky verse a couple short stacks and was quickly 10 of 10. I got back to the grind and got down to 3 handed when the other two players wanted to chop 3 ways. I am not the biggest fan of chopping and asked who would get the ipad that goes to the winner and the chip leader said he wanted it. I said I wouldn't do that and offered that we all take 2nd place money and play for the remaining about 2k and the iPad. They both agreed and then I got 3rd. Shortly after they chopped the remaining money and the MTT was over.
It truly was a great series for me as I managed two 3-way chops, two outright wins and a 19th place in the 150k. I feel as I am playing well and I am excited to keep tackling 2013. I was also lucky enough to pick up a few new students and have been busy with Variance101 too.
Since the series I have played two 3 hour sessions of 1/2 NL at Riverspirit and managed to win two buy-ins each day. It sure is nice when things are going well, I do not plan on taking it for granted but instead to worn harder and be smarter. Good luck to all the grinders, make sure your IBR is on point!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
After dinner I made it another couple hours but was sent to the showers when my Q10 lost to K8 in a wild hand around 7:15pm and play was ending at 9:30pm. In the hand UTG+1, a weak middle age fish with about 60k opens to 5k at 1k/2k. The loose calling middle aged woman in UTG+2 with about 100k calls, fold, fold, and a very solid grinder calls 5k out of a 45k stack. I am next to act and have 27k and move all-in expecting to get through if I get past the first guy. Well, the first guy calls with K8o and the other two fold. The flop is 9J3 flopping me an open ended straight draw, but then it comes brick, brick and I am out. I was kind of surprised at the guy calling with K8. I had not been at the table all that long and did not have the best read on him. I simply could not resist a spot where I felt I had just enough fold equity to shove and pick up a nice pot. Oh well, cant win them all. I went on home and got some rest and was prepared to try again the next morning.
Saturday I was able to make it through with 127k and we would be coming back to a 4k big blind on Sunday. There was 54 players returning and we were ITM. I feel I really played well and got my stack up to about 400k when I lost a 800k chip pot for the chip lead and went out 19th. In this pot I was on the Button and an aggro player was in the big blind. I have history with this player as we played together Saturday and in other mtts. He had recently been moved to my table and had won about 8 out of 10 hands in a row and had 3bet me off two opens. At the time I had a very nice stack compared to the field with 390k but the big blind was 16k so truly I had 24bbs. I had A5cc and opened with a plan of shoving all my chips in if he 3 bet me again. I open to 35k, he 3bets to 95k, and I shove. He tank calls and has QQ and flops a Q. Good game me. I am not upset with my play I just feel as if the scenario played out perfect for the villain.
I busted around 1:30pm and the main event started at 4pm. Me and a friend went to the buffet and toyed around the casino and then I got myself ready to attack the last event of the series. The Main Event was a $550 offering a 15k starting stack and 40min levels. The mtt got 70 players and paid 7 spots with bottom money being $1400 and top money being a little over $12k. I went into the final table with the chip lead but lost a few hands and got unlucky verse a couple short stacks and was quickly 10 of 10. I got back to the grind and got down to 3 handed when the other two players wanted to chop 3 ways. I am not the biggest fan of chopping and asked who would get the ipad that goes to the winner and the chip leader said he wanted it. I said I wouldn't do that and offered that we all take 2nd place money and play for the remaining about 2k and the iPad. They both agreed and then I got 3rd. Shortly after they chopped the remaining money and the MTT was over.
It truly was a great series for me as I managed two 3-way chops, two outright wins and a 19th place in the 150k. I feel as I am playing well and I am excited to keep tackling 2013. I was also lucky enough to pick up a few new students and have been busy with Variance101 too.
Since the series I have played two 3 hour sessions of 1/2 NL at Riverspirit and managed to win two buy-ins each day. It sure is nice when things are going well, I do not plan on taking it for granted but instead to worn harder and be smarter. Good luck to all the grinders, make sure your IBR is on point!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/28/2013
Ship, ship, shiparooo
Well, me and my partner @rscrbuyer won the partners tournament at Hard Rock Tulsa for the Oklahoma State Championship Series. There was 45 teams with a $230 entry paying $3840 for 1st. I think we both played well and had no plans of chopping. We were 4 out of 4 when they were trying to discuss a chop and we told them we had no plans to chop, they have to take us out. From there we just kinda ran away with it. The structure was solid with 30 min levels allowing partners to switch every 30 min.
So far it has been a good Oklahoma State Series for me. I 3-way chopped a 7pm $130 Saturday, I won a 70pm $130 on Monday outright with no chop, and no we win the partners tournament. Hopefully I can continue the success through the weekend in the 150k guaranteed.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
So far it has been a good Oklahoma State Series for me. I 3-way chopped a 7pm $130 Saturday, I won a 70pm $130 on Monday outright with no chop, and no we win the partners tournament. Hopefully I can continue the success through the weekend in the 150k guaranteed.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/27/2013
Howdy partner
Last night was 6max at Hard Rock Tulsa for the Oklahoma State Championship Series. There was a decent turnout for a Tuesday at 7pm with 80 players. I went out fairly early when I opened to 500 at 100/200 with 99 from UTG with about 6k. It folded around to the BB who called. The flop was 965, I bet 750 and he called. Turn was a 4, he checked and I bet 1200 and he called. River was a 2 and he shoved all in. We have some history and at the time I was thinking he probably hit a straight on the river, but I also was thinking about how he is capable of doing this with hands other than straights, and I was a bit tunnel visioned on the fact that it was around 2200 to call to win 12k or so. In hindsight I think that the villain is truly just fishy enough to play his hand face up and shove like he did. I should have just folded. A disappointing error, but we live and learn. In a way this can refer back to my most recent article. I knew I should fold even though the price was great and there may have been a small percentage of the time he has hands I still beat. But, instead I let some of the wrong thoughts over power and I went away from the default play to go with a read and hit the showers. Reads are great and very useful, but we have to make sure we are going to be correct a huge percentage of the time and not get crazy and justify bad play by saying, "I had a read."
The 150k guaranteed starts tomorrow at 10am with flight Day1A. There we be two other starting days, Friday and Saturday at 10am for Day1B and Day1C. Day2 is Sunday at 10am and should be a pretty good size field and a long day. This is the first time the started the big guarantee at 10am instead of noon an I bet they hear lots of comments. I prefer noon but I will handle it fine. I will say Hard Rock is decent at listening to the players and fixing things. They have really improved the structures over the last couple years and there is plenty of play. It is not quite as good as WSOPc structures but it is fairly close. Good luck to everyone that plays, run good and play good for the win.
Tonight is a $230 partners tournament with 30 min levels where you tag team in on the same stack with your partner playing 30 min at a time. I am playing with a good friend from Arkansas and I plan on having a good time. Most partner tournament are Jack and Jill where a boy and girl alternate a stack. This will be only my second time to play an open partner tournament. Good times!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
The 150k guaranteed starts tomorrow at 10am with flight Day1A. There we be two other starting days, Friday and Saturday at 10am for Day1B and Day1C. Day2 is Sunday at 10am and should be a pretty good size field and a long day. This is the first time the started the big guarantee at 10am instead of noon an I bet they hear lots of comments. I prefer noon but I will handle it fine. I will say Hard Rock is decent at listening to the players and fixing things. They have really improved the structures over the last couple years and there is plenty of play. It is not quite as good as WSOPc structures but it is fairly close. Good luck to everyone that plays, run good and play good for the win.
Tonight is a $230 partners tournament with 30 min levels where you tag team in on the same stack with your partner playing 30 min at a time. I am playing with a good friend from Arkansas and I plan on having a good time. Most partner tournament are Jack and Jill where a boy and girl alternate a stack. This will be only my second time to play an open partner tournament. Good times!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/26/2013
No chop
Winner, I won the 7pm $130 tonight at Hard Rock Tulsa for the Oklahoma State Championship Series. Just a small field nightly but it is fun to win with no chop. Head up I was playing against another good local player, but his speciality is PLO and I was able to take it down. Head up lasted almost thirty minutes and was a fun grind. The final hand was full house>full house. I had 77 and opened for 5k at 1k/2k 500. I started the hand with about 100k to his 50k. He calls and the flop is Q7J. He checks I bet 7k and he shoves. I snap call and he shows Q2. Turn 2 and river 2 to make my 7s full beat his 2s full. It was a good match and I enjoyed it.
I am currently watching ESPN3 trying to sweat my friend Clint Tolbert win the West Palm Beach WSOPc Main Event. He is currently the chip leader 3 handed but the chip lead has been tossed around some. I sure hope he snaps it off, especially since he is wearing the RunGoodGear patch. GL Clint!
Well, the snow is coming down like crazy outside but it is only supposed to get down to about 33 degrees so I don't think it will stay down long. Hopefully it disappears quick I don't want any trouble getting to the casino the next few days for the rest of this OK State Championship. Thursday starts day 1a of 3 starting days for a 150k guaranteed that should have a solid turnout.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/25/2013
Pineapple Express
So I played my first pineapple tournament last night. It was actually crazy pineapple, where you shuck a card after the flop action is complete. It was fun. I have played cash pineapple before but this was my first tournament experience. I got a penalty once for flipping my hand over after getting in all-in with another player. It was my first experience with this and didn't realize that you see the flop, shuck, then flip your cards over. Overall it was a fun tournament.
Tonight is a $130 nl I plan on playing but weather says we are getting 2-4 inches of snow so I am playing by ear. I figure I will probably try and go I just hope I can get back in my apartment later tonight.
Variance101 is going well, I picked up two new students yesterday and have been talking quite a bit of poker in the chat and with friends. It's awesome when I start working with a student and I get to see how quickly they begin to improve. Teaching can be fun and fulfilling if you enjoy it. It's mostly just a bunch of positive experiences. I am generally coaching to help them improve, but then with that my students get motivation help and some life coaching help. You take any poker player and get them to review more hands, talk poker, and build an improvement based routine and they usually get motivated and have positive experiences. The whole process can be a profitable joy for all.
I was thinking of trying to post a hand in my blog a little more frequently but my last attempt got no replies. LMK if any of y'all would enjoy a hand review more often. I have an article coming out soon on P5s where I review a hand, make sure to keep an eye out for it and please leave a comment.
Good luck to all the grinders out there. I am sweating in a few friends. Clint Tolbert, @soonerCT and Bryan Campanello, @b_campanello45 are both down to two tables in the WSOPc main in West Palm Beach, Florida. And then we got Arthur Morris, @ARMorris86 deep at LAPC. Good luck to all of you and it's awesome seeing @RunGoodGear get more and more exposure. Tana Karn, @tkarn421 is an awesome guy who is great for poker, make sure and support Run Good Gear!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
Tonight is a $130 nl I plan on playing but weather says we are getting 2-4 inches of snow so I am playing by ear. I figure I will probably try and go I just hope I can get back in my apartment later tonight.
Variance101 is going well, I picked up two new students yesterday and have been talking quite a bit of poker in the chat and with friends. It's awesome when I start working with a student and I get to see how quickly they begin to improve. Teaching can be fun and fulfilling if you enjoy it. It's mostly just a bunch of positive experiences. I am generally coaching to help them improve, but then with that my students get motivation help and some life coaching help. You take any poker player and get them to review more hands, talk poker, and build an improvement based routine and they usually get motivated and have positive experiences. The whole process can be a profitable joy for all.
I was thinking of trying to post a hand in my blog a little more frequently but my last attempt got no replies. LMK if any of y'all would enjoy a hand review more often. I have an article coming out soon on P5s where I review a hand, make sure to keep an eye out for it and please leave a comment.
Good luck to all the grinders out there. I am sweating in a few friends. Clint Tolbert, @soonerCT and Bryan Campanello, @b_campanello45 are both down to two tables in the WSOPc main in West Palm Beach, Florida. And then we got Arthur Morris, @ARMorris86 deep at LAPC. Good luck to all of you and it's awesome seeing @RunGoodGear get more and more exposure. Tana Karn, @tkarn421 is an awesome guy who is great for poker, make sure and support Run Good Gear!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/24/2013
Chop Suey
Well, I managed a 3-way chop in the 7pm $130 at Hard Rock Tulsa in the Oklahoma State Championship of Poker Series. This was just a nightly tournament but it was still fun to go deep and get a chop. I was an early hold out on the chop as I do not like to chop with several players unless it benefits me. But once we got three handed I was 3 of 3 on chips and told the other two I would chop now. The chop was for better than 2nd place money and the average stack was 20bbs or so. It was a fun final table as two of my friends where there and they both made the money finishing 8th and 7th.
Ok State Championships started Thursday and goes through next Sunday. There are still several decent MTTs and over the weekend there is a 150k guaranteed with three starting days that should make for a great tournament. For the most part the schedule consists of a $60 10am MTT, a $45 4pm satty and a nightly $130 that is usually NL but is 6max one night and crazy pineapple tomorrow.
I did have one crazy situation tonight. We had a player abandon his hand before it was his turn so I asked the dealer to warn him. The dealer refused because he is a lazy turd who could care less about anything to do with Oklahoma Poker and improving it. When the player returned I asked again and got another no, so I asked him to call the floor. Its just ridiculous, when you players that don't know the rules its easily fixed if the dealers will politely tell them. Then they know and it helps them. But instead, we had another player do the same thing 1 min after the other guy returned. Then the floor, who I think is a BJ supervisor filling in, barely handled it right and there was still confusion. So now the dealer is pissed at me and when I accidentally exposed my cards because they flipped over when mucking from UTG pre flop 1st to act, he calls the floor on me for exposing my cards with action pending. This same "new floor" comes and starts to give me a penalty even though they never give a penalty for exposed cards when its done when folding by mistake like that unless a repeat offender. The dealer wait till she starts to tell me that I am on penalty and then says, "it was on accident." What a vindictive shit head.
We pre tip for chips in these MTTs and the dealers act like it sometimes. A no point should a dealer be vindictive and acting like that. One of the other factors is I know this guy from before the casino for several years, then we worked together at the casino for almost 4 years, and now he has dealt to me for another 5 years and I find that sometimes if you have past with people they just refuse to treat you as a customer. I hate that. If I am a paying customer I would appreciate getting treated like one. Luckily I was able to talk to a solid floor man who handled the problem and helped the MTT function proper. We can't let a bad seed or two spoil everything so we move on. Hope that dealer has a good evening and a great week next week. I forgive you sir.
Well, I wanted to blog since something positive happened and I felt my last couple blogs where lacking on some positivity. It felt good having a little uptick tonight even though it was just a small cheap nightly.
Variance101 is still kicking along and going pretty well. I picked up a couple new students this last week and should be giving a lesson tomorrow. Make sure to go to http://www.pocketfives.com and check out my articles to get an idea of where I am coming from and some of the topics I like to talk about.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
Ok State Championships started Thursday and goes through next Sunday. There are still several decent MTTs and over the weekend there is a 150k guaranteed with three starting days that should make for a great tournament. For the most part the schedule consists of a $60 10am MTT, a $45 4pm satty and a nightly $130 that is usually NL but is 6max one night and crazy pineapple tomorrow.
I did have one crazy situation tonight. We had a player abandon his hand before it was his turn so I asked the dealer to warn him. The dealer refused because he is a lazy turd who could care less about anything to do with Oklahoma Poker and improving it. When the player returned I asked again and got another no, so I asked him to call the floor. Its just ridiculous, when you players that don't know the rules its easily fixed if the dealers will politely tell them. Then they know and it helps them. But instead, we had another player do the same thing 1 min after the other guy returned. Then the floor, who I think is a BJ supervisor filling in, barely handled it right and there was still confusion. So now the dealer is pissed at me and when I accidentally exposed my cards because they flipped over when mucking from UTG pre flop 1st to act, he calls the floor on me for exposing my cards with action pending. This same "new floor" comes and starts to give me a penalty even though they never give a penalty for exposed cards when its done when folding by mistake like that unless a repeat offender. The dealer wait till she starts to tell me that I am on penalty and then says, "it was on accident." What a vindictive shit head.
We pre tip for chips in these MTTs and the dealers act like it sometimes. A no point should a dealer be vindictive and acting like that. One of the other factors is I know this guy from before the casino for several years, then we worked together at the casino for almost 4 years, and now he has dealt to me for another 5 years and I find that sometimes if you have past with people they just refuse to treat you as a customer. I hate that. If I am a paying customer I would appreciate getting treated like one. Luckily I was able to talk to a solid floor man who handled the problem and helped the MTT function proper. We can't let a bad seed or two spoil everything so we move on. Hope that dealer has a good evening and a great week next week. I forgive you sir.
Well, I wanted to blog since something positive happened and I felt my last couple blogs where lacking on some positivity. It felt good having a little uptick tonight even though it was just a small cheap nightly.
Variance101 is still kicking along and going pretty well. I picked up a couple new students this last week and should be giving a lesson tomorrow. Make sure to go to http://www.pocketfives.com and check out my articles to get an idea of where I am coming from and some of the topics I like to talk about.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/23/2013
Thrift Shop, K10hh
I love that song Thrift SHop by Macklemore.
I am going to share my bust-out hand from last night. I could have folded but decided to go with my read and was kind of wrong. The reason I say kind of, is because I was right. He did not think he was ahead and was showing weakness. When I said call, he immediately said, "You're good." But, I was wrong and he had top pair, and I had second pair.
Here is the hand.
I am on the button with K10hh in a $130 7pm nightly during the Oklahoma State Championship of poker. The hand started with the HJ+1 opening for 3.25x to 675 at 100/200. The HJ+1 was a 30 year old black guy drinking a mixed drink and talking some. I chose to call from the button and take a flop. The BB calls as week. The flop is J510 rainbow and the BB checks, HJ+1 checks, and I make it 1200. Bb quickly folds and then the Hj+1 starts yapping about whatever and then shoves after about a one minute tank. Now as I am tanking to decide what to do as I had a plan for him raising and calling, but was not expecting a check/shove. As I am thinking he begins to talk more and more so I juts listen. I am fairly certain he is not happy that I haven't folded yet and begins to show some signs of distress. After about two minutes he calls the clock on me and continues to talk. I end up calling and he had QJ and held. The villain had me covered and i started the hand with 8kish so it was a bit of a spew. I knew I should fold as risk doesn't always equal the reward in these spots. In the end I went with a read that was not accurate enough. All in all if I could do it again I would 3b/f pre and as played I would fold to the check/raise.
If you have any comments about the hand please reply.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
If you have any comments about the hand please reply.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/13/2013
Aaaarrrggghhhhhh!
C'mon man! Grrr, I am a little frustrated. One step forward and then two steps back. Rinse, repeat, rinse, repeat. Blah, blah, blah. I am sure this is what y'all want to read. Variance is awesome! I have worked hard at keeping emotion out of my game and away from my decision making. I also pride myself in taking beats with class and usually just rolling off, maybe offering a "Nice hand." But, I will admit that I will occasionally on the drive home or in reflection say, "Shit!" And when I say it, by golly I mean it. So, for those of y'all wondering, this is me saying, "Shit!"
I need to step up my game apparently. I truly feel that I have worked on my game a ton, but I keep ending up in this spot. I really miss online poker. I have played as many MTTs live over the last two years, that I would have played in one week online. But, it is what it is and we must make the best of it.
And you know what, I am not done. I am not defeated, and I am not giving up. I will soldier on and keep grinding away until the worm turns. Oklahoma State Championship of poker is starting in about a week and I will make sure I am playing. Hopefully I can make something happen and take another step forward.
I have had some writing inspiration recently. I have two articles coming out soon on P5s that flow together as a two parter, and then I also just about finished another article based on a poker hand I recently played. I have also been scrolling P5s and commenting on a couple hand questions players have asked. P5s forums is a great place to practice talking poker and reviewing hands.
Variance101 is still grinding along. I have been in the chat talking poker quite a bit the last two days and just picked up another student today. It's been a little slow but V101 will keep on keeping on. Good luck to all the grinders, lets finish off this February strong.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
I need to step up my game apparently. I truly feel that I have worked on my game a ton, but I keep ending up in this spot. I really miss online poker. I have played as many MTTs live over the last two years, that I would have played in one week online. But, it is what it is and we must make the best of it.
And you know what, I am not done. I am not defeated, and I am not giving up. I will soldier on and keep grinding away until the worm turns. Oklahoma State Championship of poker is starting in about a week and I will make sure I am playing. Hopefully I can make something happen and take another step forward.
I have had some writing inspiration recently. I have two articles coming out soon on P5s that flow together as a two parter, and then I also just about finished another article based on a poker hand I recently played. I have also been scrolling P5s and commenting on a couple hand questions players have asked. P5s forums is a great place to practice talking poker and reviewing hands.
Variance101 is still grinding along. I have been in the chat talking poker quite a bit the last two days and just picked up another student today. It's been a little slow but V101 will keep on keeping on. Good luck to all the grinders, lets finish off this February strong.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
2/08/2013
Poker
Wow, almost a month since I have made a blog post. For some reason writing has not been in my priority list for a few weeks. I was in Durant at WSOPc through most of January and spent a few days relaxing after the series. I did manage a few cashes but was not able to get winner. The trip was a great experience though and I did get lots of play in.
Next on the agenda is Oklahoma State Championship of Poker Feb. 21 through March 3rd. There is a 150k gtd that starts the 28th that should draw a nice field. There is also a MSPT coming soon to Quapaw that starts March 7th that might be alright.
After a couple weeks of not doing much I think I might try and get out and play some this weekend. I also just turned in my latest article to P5s so keep an eye out for it this weekend. Variance101 is still chugging along and I have a couple new students I am excited to start working with.
Hopefully I can make something happen on the felt that will fuel more writing, until then I want to wish good luck to all the grinders, just keep improving.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
Next on the agenda is Oklahoma State Championship of Poker Feb. 21 through March 3rd. There is a 150k gtd that starts the 28th that should draw a nice field. There is also a MSPT coming soon to Quapaw that starts March 7th that might be alright.
After a couple weeks of not doing much I think I might try and get out and play some this weekend. I also just turned in my latest article to P5s so keep an eye out for it this weekend. Variance101 is still chugging along and I have a couple new students I am excited to start working with.
Hopefully I can make something happen on the felt that will fuel more writing, until then I want to wish good luck to all the grinders, just keep improving.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
1/11/2013
Limp, call
Its day eight of my WSOPc trip n Durant, OK at the Choctaw Casino. Today was the start of the 500k gtd. which has four starting rounds. Two starts today and two tomorrow, at noon and five. I got knocked out of the first round when I go two pair all-in verse and over pair on the flop and the board comes running queens to give him a better two pair. I will be trying again at 5pm.
Yesterday was the first ring event of this series and the attendance was pretty good. Yesterday there was 482 players for the $365 ring event and the three days prior that had $365 25k's with no rings averaged about 80 players. They come out of the woods for a WSOPc ring. Yesterday I went out after about four hours of play in a blind verse blind hand where I got my money in bad making an aggressive play on the turn. His range was polarized to pretty much nuts or nothing and it wasn't nothing. The day before I got 14th in a $365 25k and it paid 12 places. I got it all-in preflop with AA verse AQss and the villain made a flush on the river. I feel I played well and I know there is more to come.
I have been having a good trip so far enjoying the play and the people. I have played the least amount of cash games that I ever have at a live series but have had my focus on these events and have been trying to shake a slight cold. Luckily, I am feeling a bit better today and I am excited to get back in there and splash some chips around. I am firing at all four starting round in this 500k and both starting days in the Main and I really expect myself to perform well. 2012 was a great year for my game even though it wasn't a great year of results. I spent most of the year at home grinding online and giving lessons and I believe it is all starting to pay off. I know that all I can do is put myself in the spots to succeed and then make the best decisions possible and comfortably live with the results with little to no emotion, and that I can do.
This will be a great series and I am sure several of my friends will have success. Best of luck to everyone here, long live Oklahoma poker.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
1/07/2013
Ga ga ga garinding!
Well, its day 4 of my trip and things are going okay. I got here Friday and played Day 1b of the $365 300k and made it to day2 with 107k. After qualifying for Day 2 I played some cash Friday night and then played cash Saturday but neither cash session went very well. Sunday I turned my 107k into 450k in the first two levels of day 2. I then went down to 300k and back to 450k over the next several hours.
Then, I came back from break with a little over 440k when playing 7k/14k 2k and had back to back hands where I had to fold. In both hands I 2x opened and got a caller in pos and then the BB called as well. Both hands I C-bet and the caller in pos folded but the BB check-raises. So in two hands I go from 440k to 300k making what I felt was good lay downs. I then went into short-stack ninja mode for a while but was knocked out in 16th. The last level was rough as I was trying to get it in but never had a hand within the shove chart I could get it in with without having action in front of me permitting me to play. Overall I am happy with my play and feel I did what I could. Obviously there may have been a play or two I might have made different, but not many and I am continuing to improve.
Today I played the $365 25k at noon and got off to a decent start before losing a 25k chip pot at 100/200. I flopped two pair and got in verse an over pair but it ran out a flush for him. #ontothenextone Tomorrow I am playing another $365 25k and then the 500k starts Friday.
Tonight its BCS Championship time. I am watching the game and relaxing. I may head out to the casino and grind some cash after but not sure. Good luck to everyone playing, make sure you are focusing on making good decisions.
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
1/05/2013
WSOPc Durant, OK
Today I arrived for Day1b of the 300k at Choctaw Casino in Durant, OK. The MTT had a $365 entry fee and there will be Day1c tomorrow and Day2 Sunday. There were 393 players today and a total of 723 after two days with less than a 100 remaining for Day2 going into Day1c. I will be here through the 20th playing several MTTs. Next weekend there is a $580 500k with 4 starting days and the following week is a $1675 1 million gtd. with two day 1s. This should be a great series and it is always busy and ran well.
Today I ended the day with 107k and average was a little above 60k I think. I have been really comfortable at the table and truly expect good things this series. After the MTT today I went up to the cash game for a little grind. I jumped in a 2/5 game and got a little stuck but kept grinding, then got it all-in on a KQ7 flop with AKs verse K3o and it came running 3, 3. Weeee, can't win them all, haha. Even though my first cash session didn't go well I still expect a great series. My main focus this series is the MTTs but I will be grinding some cash.
Good luck to all my friends that are here playing, I hope you play well. The turnout here is great and I expect to see a few people I know win some events. Lets get em!
I will try to find time to blog some and keep y'all updated, have a great weekend!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
Today I ended the day with 107k and average was a little above 60k I think. I have been really comfortable at the table and truly expect good things this series. After the MTT today I went up to the cash game for a little grind. I jumped in a 2/5 game and got a little stuck but kept grinding, then got it all-in on a KQ7 flop with AKs verse K3o and it came running 3, 3. Weeee, can't win them all, haha. Even though my first cash session didn't go well I still expect a great series. My main focus this series is the MTTs but I will be grinding some cash.
Good luck to all my friends that are here playing, I hope you play well. The turnout here is great and I expect to see a few people I know win some events. Lets get em!
I will try to find time to blog some and keep y'all updated, have a great weekend!
If you are interested in taking poker lessons or would like any information visit http://variance101.com/# or email me at variance101@gmail.com.
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