Stop making big calls

I'm not disliking that I make big calls but it's completely unnecessary. My read is usually on, but I can't do much when villian hit some obnoxious runner runner and he goes overshoving the river. Sure I had him beat before the last card came, but I shouldn't be making these calls on the river. Variance just shoots up, and it's marginal at best. The key is that, if you don't make this particular call, you'll eventually catch an easier situation and bust him anyways. There is a thin line between making great call downs and complete spew. This is not based on results, it's based on long term profitability. Sure this guy shoving 2x the pot on an innocent river looks like he's bluffing, maybe he got a set on the river, can it happen? sure! I'm just starting to dislike the word "call", I feel every time I "call" it's -ev. I think this is good, think twice before "calling".

By the way, if you wonder why I make these posts, I make them to grind something into my head. Today was a great day for me, I haven't had almost 5BI day for like a month now. But this short term result should not affect me wanting to improve and learning to play better. It's definitely easier to keep trying to improve when you are running bad, because it forces you. When you run well, you need to have just as much proactiveness to improve. I need to remember that.

Aggression

Everyone knows aggression is good for NLHE. I might have talked about this before but if I'm repeating myself I'm mostly just trying to grind it into my head. I personally do not like "raising for information", I think it's an horrible intent to raise. But in this NLHE, unless you have a monster hand or a hand that will improve into a monster, I do not like "calling" in general. Sometimes your hand might be best and someone raises you, his range of raising is wide and the range you beat is pretty narrow, you should probably just fold if raising isn't the right play. I'm not saying to be nitty, but it makes your play so much easier when you are the one being aggro, not the caller.

I'm sure you guys hear people using the term "putting the pressure on". It's very true, I can honestly say I never dealt with a good player that is not aggressive. Sometimes just because they are aggressive a couple times, you really think twice before raising him or betting into him. If you apply enough pressure, it makes your play that much easier when people are afraid of you. While sometimes it's correct to make "calls", but if you aren't going to win a big pot anyways, you can apply the pressure and take it down. It's great for your image and people make more mistakes against you. You want people to think you are betting/raising them with junk and I love not showing down a hand because it makes them question your play. They'll look you up sooner or later, also realize that if you notice someone is folding to a 2/3 barrel a lot, you can do that with air sometimes.

So you might ask, how do you get this information? Hand reading and aggression! You can find out people's tendencies just by having hands and playing made hands to gather information. If you don't put the pressure on, you never will get a good feel for the villian's play. Poker is not just about the cards, it's about the people but if you are going to make a play based on the villian, you should be at least 80% confident before doing so, or it's basically a pure spew. That's why these days, I really focus on villian reads and tendencies.

Little Pots

This week or two has been rough for me. I think I had one big winning session, and the rest of the sessions were either I was down or broke even. I've been really thinking about the importance of the little pots. If you take down like 5 or 6 pots with just cbets in maybe 100 hands, you are already making a good winrate. But every time you make a small mistake and call too loosely to a raise or something, your winrate is hurt. I've had many sessions where I win 3x stack vs stack and still come out break even. I mean surely I flipped with shorties and that crap happens, but some of the hands, I think could be avoidable. Is your middle pair good against an aggressive player? Ya probably, but are you going to call him down 3 streets to find out? Just escaping these RIO spots will help my winrate a lot. Anyways, the small pots really adds up. I think I can honestly have a session where I can win 8 stacks and lose them all through 20-30bb pots. This is something I really want to focus on. I know that's one of my biggest weaknesses.

Thoughts...

Something struck me earlier today. It's not really game changing but probably lowers down my variance. As my hand reading is getting better and better, but I'm starting to neglect my villian reading which is probably just as important. The fact is that I might have second pair and I read the villian as weak, I will very often go to showdown with my second pair. Yes, I'm right a good amounts of times, but it's also very hard to play when villian psb the river and you called a turn bet marginally. Basically I'm cross the line into a lot of RIO situations because I am trusting my reads more. Is this good or bad? I think both. But variance really sky rockets when you cross this line. In a long run, if I am doing the right thing, I expect like another 1 ptbb/100. But I feel it also expands mistakes if I am making them, because I'm constantly putting myself into a bad spot on the river.

A CR members said something that got me thinking. He said he rather be choosing when to play a huge pot than let the villian choose it, even though it might cost him to fold the best hand. I think it's a good thing to remember. Also, these days, I've been doing a lot of reading of the 2+2 forums and try to extract more things into my game. It helps to get me thinking.

A quick update, today, I ran a pretty good session. I ran pretty hot, like almost all RR pots I was in, I hit the board like a truck. That's not much of an accomplishment, but it's nice to run well for a change.

5 dollars!

I'm officially only up 5 bucks for the month. Happy days.. :) At one point, I think I was at 3k. You can blame bad plays and etc.. but being completely honest with myself, I'm running really bad. I'm not saying I couldn't have played certain hands better but the truth is at that particular moment, I made the best decision at the time. So I can't complain about that. I mean everyone makes mistakes including the biggest winners but their correct decisions are overcoming their mistakes. Therefore, it makes them a winning player. I know now that I'm playing pretty well, but just I'm not getting things to go my way.

Anyways, when you struggle, you start to think of more ways to improve your game. This is what I'm doing, I didn't really change much that I did but I'm adding stuff to become better. This is a good experience, I'm really glad my BR gives me that luxury to not worry about losing it all. I don't know when things will turn around, nor do I have control over that. All I can do is keep playing my best game and making the best decision possible. I already stopped thinking about the fact I am in a downswing, because that doesn't change the results nor my performance.

Good News!

Finally a winning session! One thing I'm working on tightening up my raising a limper range. I think that's a small leak of mine. It's good to isolate limpers but when you do it too much, people start to give you little credit. Basically I'm strengthening my range of raising EP limpers. Also, I'm paying more attention to flop textures and taking away pots at appropriate times.

Also one thing I need to remind myself is every cent I put into a pot, I should be expecting a return and try to avoid RIO situations as much as possible. Just wait for a better spot if things get hairy, losing tons of money in one bad spot is not the winning way.

FT's Encouragement

"Dear Neb

Thank you for playing on Full Tilt Poker. As a token of our appreciation, we have credited your Full Tilt bonus account with $25.00."

Geeez thanks FT, keep encouraging me in losing more. That $25 will sure cheer me up!

Argh..

So I'm already running really really really bad these days. I decided to 4 table because I realize I was missing some key reads and it's spewing slowly when I probably should have played a hand differently. Anyways, one this table I had two maniacs sitting next to me, one of my right and one on my left. I was slowly closing out all my tables and I just felt it was a waste to give that table up. So my plan was, I'll play like a nit and try to hit a big PP and leave the table whether or not I get paid off. So apparently I had KK on the button and a utg regular raises, then a nit 3bets him. Well there wasn't much I could do, I was like "whatever the nit probably has like AK, JJ+ here, hopefully not AA". So I decided to 4bet pf, of course the nit shoves over me and there was no way I'm folding my KK. And there you have it, we all know where I'm leading to. I mean this normally doesn't bother me, but having losing sessions for the past few days really frustrates me. When you are running really bad, you really run really really.... really bad.

Overall I'm taking this decently well. 10+BI downswing just sucks balls. I think it hurts my confidence more than anything else after every session. I begin to question whether I can beat this stake or I was just lucksacking through. This is not the first time I suffer from 10+ downswing, but each time it has a new flavor to it and each time it is a new test. I can honestly say even with my optimistic view to things, I don't know how long I can hold up. :(

Poker....

Poker is all about ups and downs. Sometimes you'll feel like nothing can stop you and you can outplay every person out there. And sometimes, you'll wonder how you were even once a winning player. You'll have days where you win 5 BIs and lose 10 the next. It's just that swingy. The game is very tough mentally.

At this moment in time, I'm being "tested" by the game. I admit that I'm again in process of further explorations. I'm running pretty poorly, the cards are definitely playing a lot of games with me. I do not know when things will turn around, perhaps not for another 10 or 15BIs, but I will definitely duke this out and beat this down. Once I defeat this new demon, I'll be yet again stronger than before.

Playing Poorly/Stubborn

I think I'm getting to the root of the problem. I know where I stand in a hand almost all the time, but I somehow like to convince myself that there is a chance if I "induce a bluff" I can continue. I'm really frustrated at myself, and I'm glad the deck is slamming into my face. I need to remind myself to make profitable plays for the long run and stop being stubborn, let go hands that is obviously beat.

Very Weird Session

I played a relatively long session and it was really weird. I was put into a lot more marginal situations than I usually am. I dealt with many situations that I haven't encounter before. Also, it seemed like every time I flopped a big hand, someone turns or rivers a big deceptive hand. It was pretty frustrating overall.

There were couple spots I felt I could have played better, but a few spots, it was just so marginal that I just went with my read. It's horrible to think when you have a good hand, villian has some weirdly played better hand. I was probably showing down less than 30% winning hands.

At least I found some situations where I had leaks in my game. That's always a plus. But I feel like I'm on a break even stretch these past week or two. Though I think I'm slowly climbing up, but I always end up having these losing sessions follow closely behind. Anyways, nothing I can do about the past, just play better for the future. But I need a break today.

Definitely Restarting

I stopped my no look cashier thing for like 2 days, and I already feel the difference emotionally. I'm definitely going to do this for a long term and try to resist looking. I feel I get too bogged down by my performance per session, and it starts to bother me for the day. I don't like that, I don't think my decision on the table changes much but off the table, the difference is night and day. Also I end up worrying about whether I'm up or down a session, that by itself will cost me money.

Happy B-day To Me!

Screw you if you don't care. :)

Played really poorly

I don't know how many times I called down w/ an OP today and was shown a bigger OP. I just wasn't believing anybody has anything. Maybe I'm being a donk that thinks someone has AK all the time. It might spawned because I caught a big bluff from a regular earlier and he sucked out to hit a gutter on the river(though the money was already in on the turn).

Btw, I look at my BR today. Well it's hard to avoid it every time when you are multitabling and trying to reload every two seconds. Today I accidentally stared right at where the numbers were, that was just great. Actually I did that two times in one session! Oh well, I guess I'll just review my stats and hands today. But overall I'm up a bit. If I didn't play poorly today, I think I would have done much better. It's iffy, because I made some call downs that could or could not go my way. It WAS the best decision I made at that time, but I'm not too fond of it after thinking back on some of them. I think I'm in the "call down" mood and think everybody is bluffing me.


*edit* After reviewing my session, I don't think I played that poorly. Just put into tough spots that I decided to go with.

Rough Session

I just finished a really ugly session. I don't know if this is true but it seems all the tables were filled with aggro regulars. The games were so tough, and it was just a horrible situation when you aren't hitting hands. I've been thinking of Taylor's 2.5x 4bets a bit, I really want to 4bet semi light against those light 3betters and not be committed to go with it if I get 5bet shoved. It's frustrating getting 3bet and needing a decent hand to call them. I feel I'm getting milked when that happens.

Still I don't know how I did this session, I shouldn't think about it. I just need to play my best.

Funny Feeling

So I played a couple days without checking my cashier. I really like it, I mean I don't know the results but I feel I'm not worried whether I'm up or not. I'm just playing and not worrying about the results. I would recommend those who are result oriented to try this exercise, I'm definitely feel a lot "free" from the mental stress of the game. Another thing is that I've been forced to think of plays in the "long term", frequently I ask myself "is this going to be profitable in a long run?". This is something I didn't really do because I worried about the immediate result of the play I was making.

Also I think if I have leaks in my game, it'll be easier to spot once I see a much bigger sample size though I'll forget most of the reasons why I made a play. The upside is that you can see your own hands without a bias.

Just finished a session

So I do not know how much I'm up or down. But I think I played pretty decent poker, I screwed up on some value betting situations with my monsters but that happens. I feel good about my game right now, I'm playing very confidently and aggressively.

The difficulty now is that I need to train myself not to think how I did in the last session, or try to calculate how much I am up or down. I just need to focus on playing my best game and keep it that way. Make the decision and move on.

I think I'm going to skip the PIF weekly updates this week for the purposes of this exercise. I don't think anybody really cares how well or bad I do anyways. My plan is stick with this for this month. I'll see the results and see how I feel about it, if everything goes to plan I might even just stop checking at regular interval basis.

it has begun...

Starting the next session, I will NOT look at my cashier or my PT until the end of the week. I am trying to focus on making best decisions and not worry about up or downswings. I feel I'm confident enough about my game that I will win whether or not I look. This will also fix the problem I have with ending a winning session too early. I will play my best poker but I will not let the result affect me.

"Stop thinking about your "poker earnings peak". That is irrelevant now, all that matters is what is in your roll at this moment, everything else is in the past. The money you have lost is no longer yours and you must work with what you currently have. Continue to follow recommended bankroll rules and play your best and you will get through this with a higher bankroll than ever.

Remember, don't start consciously or subconsciously thinking in terms of " I can't win, or I will get sucked out." Keep a positive attitude and think in terms of "I will make the best decision possible on this hand, or If I play my best I will win money in the LONG RUN." Ever heard of the self-fulfilling prophecy? If you think you can't win it will be much MUCH harder to actually win... and you may end up making losing plays you normally would not and actually end up losing."

-Duckslayer2k


Not sure if it's his words or taken from a book, but it really reminds me about the mindset I really should be under. I feel these days, whenever I'm running good I always think I'm "due" for another downswing. It's true that will happen but it's the mindset that makes me think I'm actually in a downswing.

This is what I really want to focus on: "If I keep making what I believe are profitable plays, I will profit, don't worry about immediate results, they will balance out in a long run."


On another note, I've been thinking of my short term goals. I'm going to build my BR to 20k and then stab 2/4. I know it's probably going to be my toughest transition yet, but I'm not going to give up and beat this down. Hopefully the time between now and then, I'll become a even stronger player and the transition will go much more smoothly. Having this goal helps to keep my fighting spirit up, which keeps me motivated. If I do successfully make this transition, I'll probably make my first withdraw to treat myself something nice. That'll be something to look forward to, though I know it's not going to be an easy fight.

Profits from Poker

So how much have I won from playing poker? I think the best answer is "zero", and realistically I'm actually down a couple hundred. This might be a shock to some of you, but I believe that's the best way to see my situation.

I believe the money that acts as your BR should be kept as an investment at all times. If I want to buy something, I am never looking at my BR to pay for it. This is a big no no. Some people might ask me why I keep my job at my restaurant that make marginally what I make from poker. The answer is that I haven't made a cent of profits in poker because all the winnings from the game is going straight back to the BR.

The distinction between your BR and your "profits" should be *clearly* made beforehand. What I mean is, if you decided 4000 is your BR and any extra you make past 4000 is going to be your profits, you need to keep it that way. Never should you ever creep into your BR for extra profits. Without your BR, you cannot make the profits you desire.

This comes back to my original point that I have made "zero" dollars from poker. This is because the thing I've been doing is BR building, so my BR is classified under the untouchables. Without it, I cannot make more money from the game. Essentially your BR is your "tool" in poker, you need it to earn more. As you keep developing that tool(building the BR), you can make more and more. If you think of your BR like that, you will have better success with the game.

This is the tricky part. I seriously do not have a goal how big my BR should be. It always seems like as I keep building my BR up, there is always another limit I want to tackle. It's an endless tunnel that keeps going up and up(I guess until you are sitting next to sbrugby and Phil Ivey). I am not sure what seriously will satisify me, when does BR building stop? Until I reach my limits? Or until I somehow go busto?

This is a dilemma for me. I do have a goal but do I keep BR building until I get there or should I actually make some "profits" from the game? This is always an interesting question to think about. Anyways, I guess I'll leave it that.