Washed away

There comes a time in every poker players life where they just cannot win. It doesn't matter what you do, how good your bluff is or how good your hand is and what position you are in, you just cannot see the cash coming your way. This has happened to me on a number of occasions and I fear it is rearing it's ugly head again. I have won a few hands but then when I have had something really good that can be really profitable it has gone in the opposite direction. You get this massive smile on your face because you have the highest two pair, there are no possible straights or flushes, you move all your chips to the centre of the table and they end up on the other side because three of a kind is much better. In fear of losing anything else, I have decided to take drastic action and not play online for a week. Luckily it is EPT Berlin week so I will be filling in my EPT Blog. I didn't finish it for the London leg so hopefully I can try harder this time. Plus I still have my pub game tonight...if it's on.

@AntoniaChigurh

Heads-up!

I have never played heads-up games in my life. I avoid them like the plague as I am always second. Always the bridesmaid and never the bride I think the saying goes. Then...I log onto PKR and they have this heads-up challenge thingy on the go where you need to enter as many heads-up sit & gos and win as many of them in a row as humanly possible for big prizes! I'm not too fussed about this as I don't think I can win, that's not very good thinking I know. However what I did think was that I never do this and I have been looking for ways to both improve my game and start to really enjoy poker again, which is why I have been cheating on Hold'em with as many other poker games as I can find.

I set myself up with my own challenge, the challenge where if I completely fail and I hate everything in life because of it then I don't have to do it ever again. After all, you can't dislike something until you have tried it. My challenge was to complete 10 heads-up sit & gos with $1.50 and $3.50 buy-ins not being fussed as to whether they were speed or standard blind structures. I created a tally chart to show my results and the results aren't actually that bad. I won 6 and lost 4 meaning I made no loss at all. Plus I quite like heads-up, it's nice and short so I can complete a game in no time, I made $6 before 8am this morning on my way to work. Plus you only have to focus on one playing style. Plus I found out I really need to work on playing against tight players, they don't do anything!! Aggressive players seem quite easy to deal with, you just have to act back on them with some good cards, it's like having an argument with a lot of shouting. But like with any game in poker, you have to have the last word.

@AntoniaChigurh

4x4=16 not 12

Last week I entered my usual nightly MTT; the mini 4x4 on PKR. But this didn't seem enough for me so I had to enter the 4x4 as well only starting 30 minutes later into registration time. This was, strangely enough, a good idea. I manage to bust out of the mini 4x4 in 58th position after countless attempts to nurse my chips back to health, but now, this could only mean my full attention was on the big one. I am usually terrified to spend just $6 on a tournament so you would think that I wouldn't even put my mind to a $12 tourney. Especially since the last time I entered this specific tournament I did it by accidently clicking on it instead of the mini 4x4 with the excuse that I was sat too far away. (I was sat on the other side of my room). Anyway, so I was having some fun, staying away from Omaha and I was doing so well that I managed to make it into the money. Only just though, I came 15th and the first cash was in 18th position. I got my $21 and went to bed a happy bunny. It's just unfortunate that I cannot say the same for the day after where I mirrored my mini 4x4 exit in 58th position.

Ahh well, it was fun while it lasted.

@AntoniaChigurh

Waste disposal

Sometimes I think I should just create a bin that I can throw money in because essentially, that is what I do sometimes. I wanted to play 10-game but realised I had to learn 3 other games before I started; 2-7 triple draw, 2-7 single draw and Badugi. I never got as far as Badugi. I went straight for 2-7 triple draw as it is also linked to single draw and not only did I read the rules but I decided to throw myself in at the deep end. I never throw myself in at he deep end. By this I mean I bypassed the play money and went straight in at 10¢/25¢...baaad idea when you have no idea about strategy of the game in the slightest. I lost all of my $7. However I did have a good run and lasted at least an hour. So then what did I do? Popped another £6.53 ($10) onto my account and sat down at the Courchevel table again, I felt so at home that I took a profit of $20 whilst someone else at the table took a hot $75. Happy endings :).
Got killed in the tweet roll by the way, plus, to be too honest, it was really boring. I hate free rolls because everyone goes all in for about the first hour constantly! It may as well be a lottery!

@AntoniaChigurh

To draw or...to triple draw?

I'm on the bus on my way to work and decide that this is the perfect time to read the rules of 2-7 triple draw. They say your mind is best in the morning right? I had to read over the fact that you are looking for less than a flush, straight or even a pair about 5 times until I thought I heard it right in my head. It then goes on to the fact that you get dealt 5 cards, that shouldn't be too hard since I keep banging on about Courchevel. My mind goes blank. I blog. I read on.

@AntoniaChigurh

100% Beef in Horse Meat?

I could tell people a hundred times, or maybe more that I love HORSE. But where are all the other HORSE lovers out there? They sure aren't on Full Tilt like they used to be. Liv Boeree has a horse, but it's a real on that makes sounds, is tall and furry and demands food so it may poop everywhere. I would like please: Hold'em, Omaha, Razz, Stud and Eight or better hi/lo Stud. Not only that but some players please!!

I remember that late night freeroll that I would always enter, even though it was far past my bed time in the dead of the night but still you'd catch a guy sitting there in a better time zone ready to steal your chips...and your thunder. Looks like the beef went along with the Black Friday evilness of stealing my US opponents away from me, okay financially I have been better off since. However my love for HORSE yearns some opposition and me sitting in a tournament that then gets cut to 'tournament void' due to lack of players is not a pretty sight. Remembering that it is the dead of night so no one would be able to see my face right now. You can only hear the clicking on an angry bird on a keyboard.

@AntoniaChigurh

Take a shot at almost

I have a cold, my face is on fire, but that's not keeping me from the tables. There's too much excitement to be missed out on.

I'm back on PKR, what was my favourite site, playing my favourite tournament; the mini 4x4 which is always on late so I have to catch a nap beforehand. I have cashed in it a few times previously and I do love a little bit of short hand action, though it's not preferable when you need to leave the room for a few moments. I must mention that this is a nightly short hand event and since I have been playing so much Omaha, my play seems a little off. Like if you we're to have a biscuit that has been left out of its packaging for a day or two. That's right. I've gone, soft. Last night I popped before the bubble in 46th place when prizes began at 42nd and tonight even worse in 70th when I'd need to get down to 30th and I'm telling you, it was a long way there.

Well: Ever tried, ever failed, no matter, try again, fail again, fail better.

But I did fail worse. God damn! ...Back to it right?

@AntoniaChigurh