Coming back to the fold
May 19, 2009
It’s been a year of hell as far as poker is concerned. Not so much as in I’ve been losing shed-loads of money, but more in the ‘losing total interest’ scenario.
Having had a poor run on the tables last year, problems started in my personal life in the shape of losing my job. Money was tight and I ended up dwindling away what was left of my bankroll at the various sites I had money in. Thinking I was getting back on my feet after finding a new job, that uber-shitty thing called fate intervened yet again when the company I was working at folded after 3 months. Almost 6 months later, and after a helluva lot of CVs sent out, I managed to get another job. Fingers crossed, this will last a bit longer than 3 months!
From the time I lost the first job up until now, I’m lucky to have played poker more than 20 times. But I’m hoping to start making a comeback. It’s going to be a hard slog, but I’m up for the challenge.
This year, I’ve played a couple of the OFC freerolls. I’ve not won any money from any of them, but have played quite well and managed to finish in the top 10% of most of them, normally going out to either a bad beat or more commonly going card dead and being blinded away, then going all-in with the first good hand I can get.
I’m using these freerolls as a re-learning tool. When I sort of stopped playing last year, I had been playing quite poorly. I was complaining about anything and everything that was making me loose. In hindsight – and something that should have been obvious – I was the only person to blame.
As I was saying, I’m using these freerolls to re-learn. To re-learn the dangers, pitfalls, and plays of the game of poker. Freerolls are not normally the place I would recommend practicing, but I’m getting the benifits I’ve been looking for. I’m gaining my patience back. I’m making my mistakes and steadily learning from them. I’m experimenting with different plays. I’m experimenting with aggression. Basically, I’m trying out everthing, learning from the results in the hope that I get it right for the time I start playing seriously for cash again. It’s costing me nothing to experiment, so it doesn’t matter if I go out first hand or later in the tournament. As long as I’m not put out through a dumb move (by me) I’ll be happy. The more I learn now, the better.
So, soon you’ll see me back on the tables, hopefully better prepared than ever. And hopefully winning more than ever!
The problem with online poker…. part 2
March 10, 2008
I came to a conlusion the other night after being donked out of yet another tourny. Lets set the scene.
The game is a $10 headhunter tourny at William Hill (European site). 50% of the prize pool goes on everyones head and the other 50% contributes to the usual prize pool. I took someone out on the very first hand to double up in chips and claimed the money on his head. From then on I went virtually card dead, but managed to steal a few pots here and there.
Just over 2 hours into the tourny, I was short stack at the table with around 2700 in chipsand have been playing tighter than a duck’s anus. I’m in mid position and the action folds around to me. I have 
and as I’m shortstacked I go all-in. The table fold around to the small blind (3500 in chips) who insta-calls. Big Blind folds. Read more
Dude, I Think We Picked the Wrong Bar
March 4, 2008
SYDNEY, Australia - An armed robber picked the wrong target when he raided an Australian bar where a biker gang was holding a meeting. He ended up hog-tied and in a hospital.
The man and an accomplice, wearing ski masks and waving machetes, stormed into a club in a western Sydney suburb shortly before 9 p.m. Wednesday and yelled at patrons to lie down as they tried to rob the cash register, police said Thursday.
About 50 members of the Southern Cross Cruiser Club had just started a club meeting in another room, and the bikers jumped up to intervene. Read more
The problem with online poker
March 3, 2008
Going by the title of this post, you might be expecting a rant from me about how online poker sites are rigged, or there are too many sites who allow ‘colluding’ etc… but you’d be wrong! Online poker is going about it’s business just fine. Yes, there have been a few issues been highlighted at ‘reputable’ poker sites, but the outcome of these incidents should give us some faith in the online poker in general.
My problem with online poker is that it has adversely affected my live game. I’ve hardly played a live game this year. Last night was the first time since the beginning of January that I had played live…. and it showed (at least to begin with!) Read more
Slowly but surely…
February 21, 2008
It’s been a busy few weeks for me away from the tables, but I’m slowly easing myself back to the virtual felt. I’ve had plenty of time to think about the game and to do a bit of self-analysis.
Self-analysis is one of the most important aspects of your poker game.
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop to look once in a while, you could miss it!
- Ferris Beuler -
This same quote can be applied to poker. If you don’t stop to analyse your game once in a while you could potentially miss out on pinpointing any problems you may have. Stopping and looking for areas where you can improve is a must, or you will find yourself going nowhere in the poker world. There are loads of ways to do it, and here are a few of the things I have done…… Read more
On the up?
January 21, 2008
After my little ‘Resident Evil’ infatuation, it’s all calmed down a little in Dagopher’s household and hopefully I can get back to playing - and more importantly - enjoying poker again.
I joined another forum at the recommendation of some friends ( I’m not even going to name the forum!) and I’ve only managed to play one game - my last game! It was bingo city with people chasing with absolutely nothing and being rewarded for their efforts by the time the turn and river cards arrived. Normally it would be great to have a player like this at the table, but when there’s EIGHT of them, it’s imperative that you get your fair share of luck….ie. going in with the best hand and it standing up!
