Thursday, June 30, 2005

Tunica!

I just got off a plane in Atlanta, and now it's time to go straight to Tunica!

I'll try to write updates from the first real poker tables I've seen in almost a year.

I'm sure it'll be strange to be back, but I'm ready to sit at a table.

My plan: post a live straddle and shout "Gam-boooool!!!"

Monday, June 27, 2005

PokerintheUSA.blogspot.com?

Surely, pokerintheUSA.blogspot.com wouldn't be as interesting as Poker In Chile or 5,589 Miles From Vegas.

But I am moving back to the States, so this blog will have to change somehow. I can't very well claim to be a lost poker player on the other side of the world if I'm in the States.

I need to come up with an idea. One concept is that I could turn this blog into a forum for hand analysis. My friends and I already exchange Hands of the Day, which are either problem hands or victory hands. It might be fun to have a place to post and talk about hands.

Or maybe I'll just do the same thing I've always done, except I'll just re-brand the blog for whatever I'm doing.

We'll see. I'd be happy to hear any suggestions.

The plan from here:

1) Leave Santiago on Wednesday.
2) From the Atlanta airport, drive directly to Tunica, Miss., for gambling. I won't even see my family first.
3) Get back in Atlanta just in time for July 4.
4) Travel to Vegas on July 8.
5) Get rich.
6) Go bust.
7) Find a job.

Maybe I should just stop after No. 5.

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Back in the grind

I'm going to go with the easy-way-out entry full of notes.

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It's funny why I'm a winning player. It's not because I'm particularly good, although I would certainly place myself in the better-than-average category.

What's interesting is that when I look at my gambling spreadsheet this year, I find that all of my profits come from bonus whoring and rakeback. At the tables themselves, I'm slightly down for the year! But I'm way up overall because of bonuses and rakeback.

I don't feel too bad about being down in actual play because I did a lot of experimenting early on at different limits and shorthanded games. Research often costs money, and I think it was a worthwhile effort.

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Speaking of bonuses, the Empire Poker redeposit bonus started Thursday (bonus code JUNEFEVER). It's a 100 percent bonus up to $100, with a 15X (1,500 hands) workthrough. I went ahead and deposited $600 into my account so I can four-table NL$100 there.

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The reality of the expendable bankroll is beginning to set in. I figured out how much money I have left in my poker accounts after living off of it for a couple of months. I'll be using that money to survive when I move back to Atlanta until I find a real job.

So I have a few thousand dollars of poker money to party and travel with for a while. I mean, I figure I'm willing to use my poker money for a good cause, and avoiding the real world seems like a noble endeavor. When I work again, I'll just rebuild.

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My friend Daniel over at Poker Cats is once again in Vegas! Wish him luck.

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Upon my return to the States, I'll travel straight from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Tunica for a weekend of gambling. The next weekend, I'll be in Vegas at the same time as the World Series of Poker main event.

I can't wait!

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I'm beginning to work with some friends on a competition to make a quality poker bot. This bot is not for online play -- the purpose of it is to try to make a smart computer program that can play poker. It's part of a competition called the WSOPR (World Series of Poker Robots).

We're just starting the planning on this, but if anyone has any ideas or resources on building computer programs that can play poker, let me know.

It's interesting to me that it seems like there is no poker program that's a truly effective opponent against good players. I've read about a couple that supposedly do well, but I don't know of any that I could test out.

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Coming back to the no limit tables after vacation is funny. I had so much pent up aggression/gamble that I blew a couple of buyins when I finally got to play again. But now I feel like I'm back on my game. And it was fun to mix it up with a little gamble.

Monday, June 20, 2005

My Biggest Leak

Despite my prolonged vacation from the tables because of all these travels through South America (aww, poor me), I've still been reading and thinking about my game.

And I think I've realized my biggest leak (in limit poker, at least).

It's something I like to think about because of this old (but very good) 2+2 post by Ed Miller: "I think my biggest leak is..." He emphasizes that many people don't know their biggest leak because it goes deeper than missing a marginal decision. Major leaks more frequently occur when you have a fundamental problem of mindset or playing style that you can't identify or can't change. Of course, it's necessary to be able to identify a problem in order to fix it.

So here's my problem: I play a formulaic game. I play tight preflop and will only try out marginal hands if I have position and several players have entered the pot. I will generally call down with any hand that's 2 pair or better.

But most of all, I haven't been trying to read hands as well as I should. I've fallen into the trap of merely putting my opponents on a range of hands rather than specific hands.

Over the last two or three months, I've called down much more because of another post of Ed Miller's where he says that many people's biggest leak is that they fold too much. And I agree that folding too much is a huge leak, but my problem has been that I've called down mindlessly against my opponents' mysterious holdings.

The problem is that when my opponents hold a tough hand to figure out, I slip into calldown mode rather than put them on a specific hand. That isn't to say I should always fold even when I think I'm beat, but I need to pay closer attention.

And that's what it all comes down to. Reading hands isn't like skimming a book. Reading hands is more like analyzing every word of poetry, looking for the meaning behind the words. Unfortunately, I often don't have the patience for poetry.

I was inspired by this 2+2 magazine article: "Some Notes on Reading Hands: Part II"

Perhaps, when I go back to the promised land of limit poker, this time it will be for good. For now, I'll keep taking the safe money at no limit games.

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Soft games

Once again, coming at you from Buenos Aires, where all the women are beautiful but not a poker game in sight...

A few of my friends that I talk with about poker always want to debate what the softest site is. Some say Paradise Poker, some say Ultimate Bet, others claim the Party Poker network of sites.

My preference? None of the above.

My thinking is that all the sites are pretty fishy -- so much so that it's hard to tell the difference. I had a hell of a time at Ultimate Bet in late January, but now it's one of my best sites.

I lost a little money at Poker Room (Sucky Room) because of their sucky software, but then I made it back quickly against the sucky players.

When I was a newbie, I told everyone who would listen how much I hated Party Poker, but now it's probably my favorite site.

My feeling is that among the larger sites, there are going to plenty of fish in the pond. Any negative downswings a player has at these sites is just that: a short-term decline that will even out in the long run.

Sure, some of the smaller sites may have tougher games. But if you play at any of the major ones, there are so many players, such a large mix of good and bad players, that the games aren't that tough overall.

Tuesday, June 14, 2005

Quick update

Well, I'm in Buenos Aires, Argentina this week, and I haven't had hardly any time to play any poker at all in the last week and a half.

But I figure I should write something.

I played a small amount last week to clear the Party Poker bonus.

I also played five heads-up matches against my friend Matt while he was visiting, and I lost all but one. Whatever -- I'm happy to contribute to my future profits!

The Chile poker tournament that was scheduled for the weekend was cancelled, so that was disappointing. I guess I'll look at it as money saved because winning any tournament is unlikely.

That's all for now. Keep grinding it out at the tables until I get back!

I think this is my first real vacation from poker, and I can only hope it will do more good than harm to my game.

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

All's Well

Just a few quick tidbits to report...

I've reached my bankroll goal for my time in Chile, which means that I will feel good about myself (and my savings) when I head back to the U.S. in a few wekks.

No limit really paid off last week. I'm always amazed how easy poker seems when you're winning.

My friend Matt from Atlanta is in town visiting this week, so don't expect many posts. I already lost one poker game to him, but it was a suckout. Can't feel bad about that.

Finally, there's a tournament here that takes place on Saturday. You can read about it at PokerChile. I'm siked. The buyin is 30,000 pesos (about US$50), and first prize is ... wait for it ...

One million pesos! (Said with a Dr. Evil voice)

I'll have a full report on it later.

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Link:
Party Poker Bonus (expires today!)

Friday, June 03, 2005

Fundamental Dispute

You hold AA preflop. Rockets. American Airlines. Bullets.

Three people come into a raised pot. Flop comes rags, perhaps with a flush possibility and a K. You bet your AA. Player No. 2 folds, player No. 3 raises big.

Push, call or fold?

I argue for pushing with AA. I think I have the best hand. The only hands I'm behind right now are KK or a set. My thinking is that aggression goes rewarded when you believe you have the best hand.

I'm willing to accept a loss. I'm willing to lose my entire stack in this situation because I will win this hand much more than I will lose it. I think calling or folding is weak play and will cost you money.

But some players that I know and respect see things differently.

They argue that against most of these weak, fishy players in no limit games, you have to take a reraise like this very seriously. Why would your opponent keep raising you when you've already shown strength?

So maybe you should raise for information at some point, or simply let the hand go and wait for a better opportunity, my friends say. Any yokel could have a hidden set, and it's not worth the chance.

I disagree, but I'm not sure I'm right. I think the sacrifice is worth it and it's part of the game. You need to lose your stack sometimes. No limit poker isn't about cutting corners and trying to be cheap. No limit poker is about intimidation, aggression and confidence. When I think there's a probability I have the best hand, I will take the risk.

That's kind of a one-dimensional view though, and there are constant exceptions. The situation depends on the flop texture, the betting action and your reads on your opponents.

Sometimes it's OK to fold the best hand because the risk outweighs the reward.

Most of the time, though, I do not fear the Iraqi insurgent hiding in the weeds with an RPG -- a powerful set that can strike me down in an instant. Being afraid of the RPG is more dangerous than the RPG itself, and I believe I will win more through fearless plays than I will lose through crash landings.

Link:
Morton's Theorem

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

The Truth

I don't believe in much, but I have faith in what I know about poker.

I think playing with wild cards with the gringos here is fun, but not necessarily profitable.

I'm thankful when fish suck out on me because that's how I make money in the long run.

Good players win and bad players lose over time.

Losing streaks are short-term occurrences that are nothing to worry about. I know that I'm good at poker and the results will come.

I know it's important to keep accurate records of wins and losses because I should only try to bluff other players, not myself.

Even the best poker player is lost at sea without a bankroll to support the limits he's playing at.

The rake is expensive, but the games are still profitable.

No limit poker is easier to play than limit poker, at least at the levels I play.

Aggressive play wins money; passive play misses opportunities.

It takes money to make money.

Most people don't have the discipline to play poker well, even if they have a strong grasp of the game.

The only way to improve is to practice and study.

Betting for information can be valuable, but it's often overpriced.

Losing is part of the game.

Getting in with the best of it is always profitable. But sometimes it's OK to fold in marginal situations.

I hold these truths to be self-evident ... and comforting.

Link:
Everything I needed to know about poker I learned from watching Star Wars