3103 Hands @ 11.04 BB/100

I reached my 3100 hands goal, and even reached my pseudo-goal of running hotter than 10 BB/100.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Ad, Ah.
UTG raises, MP calls, 1 fold, Hero 3-bets, 1 fold, UTG calls, MP calls.

Flop: (10 SB) 4h, 2d, Qd (3 players)
Hero bets, UTG calls, MP calls.

Turn: (6.50 BB) Qh (3 players)
Hero bets, UTG calls, MP calls.

River: (9.50 BB) Jh (3 players)
Hero bets, UTG calls, MP raises, Hero calls, UTG folds.

I took a long time before calling here. I'm beat very very often here, but the way that it played out, I didn't really think Qx was a likely hand to see, unless it was QJ. Backdoor flush draws are a little bit sparse as MP would probably have needed a combo draw like A3s or A5s. So after thinking for a while, I decided to go ahead and look him up. It turns out I got beat by JJ.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (3 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Ad, Kd.
Hero raises, SB 3-bets, 1 fold, Hero calls.

Flop: (7 SB) Ac, 6c, 7d (2 players)
SB checks, Button bets, SB calls.

Turn: (4.50 BB) 3c (2 players)
SB bets, Hero calls.

River: (6.50 BB) Qh (2 players)
SB bets, Hero calls.

I don't always cap AKo HU in position, though in a 3-handed game I probably should have. Villain's flop play confused me, and I was wondering if he flopped a set on me, which is why I only called on the turn and the river. In retrospect, since I underplayed my hand preflop, I have a little more latitude to put in an extra bet postflop simply because villain will not read my hand quite right.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Jd, Ah.
UTG raises, MP calls, Hero 3-bets, 2 folds, UTG calls, MP calls.

Flop: (10.40 SB) 5d, 8h, Ad (3 players)
UTG checks, MP bets, Hero calls, UTG folds.

Turn: (6.20 BB) 8d (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

River: (8.20 BB) 8s (2 players)
MP bets, Hero raises, MP 3-bets, Hero calls.

Looking back at the experiment, I'm quite amazed at how much money I made because villain put in far too many bets with a second place hand. I thought about raising the flop donk, but with AJ facing an coldcall of an UTGraiser, I figured myself to be in decent shape, but not good enough to face lots of heat. It turns out that villain flopped a flush draw with K4s and caught up on the turn. But the river was odd as anyone can plainly see the trip 8s on the board, so that any pair beats his flush. But he felt it necessary to put in the extra raise (I probably could have raised again expecting to chop often, but I didn't want to feed extra to the rake).

Fatigue is kicking in right now because once again I'm posting this at the end of a work day. So that's all.

2697 Hands @ 11.66 BB/100

I'm coming close to my 3100 hand goal, and because I'm going to be busy this weekend, I've got to finish this up during the week. I am hoping to squeeze in most of it in tomorrow night.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is CO with As, Jd.

UTG calls, 1 fold, Hero raises, 3 folds, UTG calls.

Flop: (5.40 SB) 4h, 5s, Td (2 players)
UTG checks, Hero bets, UTG raises, Hero calls.

Turn: (4.70 BB) Js (2 players)
UTG bets, Hero raises, UTG 3-bets, Hero calls.

River: (10.70 BB) 3s (2 players)
UTG bets, Hero calls.

These are spots where I call down even though I often expect to lose (I lost to J4s in this hand). The turn raise is completely standard as many players with Tx or even 5x/4x/medium pocket pairs will call down. Getting 3-bet is unfortunate, but unless the player is particularly passive (in which case it would call into question the turn raise), the pot is large enough that I don't mind going to showdown.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (3 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Ad, 6h.
Button calls, Hero raises, BB calls, Button

Flop: (6 SB) Ah, 2c, Kc (3 players)
Hero bets, BB folds, Button calls.

Turn: (4 BB) Jc (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

River: (6 BB) 5d (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

Against a player who sees too many flops, this out of position isolation raise is quite standard for me. BB called, which is unfortunate, but it still isn't terrible. Flopping top pair in a 3-handed pot means that I'm going to showdown, and if I get raised anywhere I simply go into calldown mode. In this hand, Button called down with T2o. Players who open-limp that hand on the button are prime candidates for isolation both in and out of position.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Ah, 4h.
1 fold, MP calls, Button raises, 2 folds, MP calls.

Flop: (5.40 SB) 4c, Td, 3c (2 players)
MP checks, Hero bets, MP calls.

Turn: (3.70 BB) 3s (2 players)
MP checks, Hero bets, MP calls.

River: (5.70 BB) As (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Villain's river donk here puts me to an interesting decision between raising and calling. Folding is clearly not an option. Given that villain has gotten this far the way that he has, it's not clear what his hand range is. Potentially, he has been chasing Ax, in which case he will call if I raise. Alternatively, he is donk-bluffing some overcard type hand. Other possibilities include a strangely played 3x and 25 for the flopped straight draw (though this is discounted because of hand selection).

I tend to play this spot a little more passively than some and simply call. The reason is that much of his hand range simply cannot call a raise (however, if he's known to be calling the river with all sorts of weak hands, then raising again becomes an option). Most pocket pairs will bet/fold this, as would 4x and sometimes even Tx hands. In this case, villain had Q8s for a flopped no pair and no draw, and I have very little sense of why he would call the flop and turn with that hand. But again, I'm not responsible for knowing why they do things the way they do.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Kh, Ks.
Hero raises, 3 folds, BB calls.

Flop: (4.40 SB) Qc, 4d, Jd (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB calls.

Turn: (3.20 BB) 2s (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB raises, Hero calls.


River: (7.20 BB) 3h (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB calls.

This is a spot where I play a weaker game than I should. In the more aggressive environment of 6-max games, an overpair is worth a 3-bet on the turn in a heads up pot. Once villain checked the river to me, it once again becomes an easy value bet.

Hand #5:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)



Preflop: Hero is Button with Kd, Jc.

2 folds, CO calls, Hero raises, 1 fold, BB calls, CO folds.

Flop: (5.40 SB) Tc, Ks, Th (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB calls.

Turn: (3.70 BB) Jd (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

River: (5.70 BB) 8c (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

This is another type of hand where passive play rules over aggressive play. The board is moderately scary, but not scary enough to fold. The connectedness of the board opens up semibluffing opportunities, which is why I need to keep calling, but my hand strength on this paired board is not enough to withstand a lot of action, so I need to make sure I limit the number of bets that go into the pot. I won this hand against A5o, which is a bit of a surprise because that's about the weakest type of hand I can imagine getting involved here.

Hand #6:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Qs, Qh.
UTG calls, 1 fold, CO raises, Button 3-bets, Hero caps, 1 fold, UTG calls, CO calls, Button calls.

Flop: (17 SB) 6h, Ts, Qd (4 players)

Hero bets, UTG calls, CO raises, Button 3-bets, Hero caps, UTG calls $0.75 (All-In), CO calls, Button calls.

Turn: (15.50 BB) 3c (4 players, 1 all-in)
Hero bets, CO calls, Button calls.

River: (18.50 BB) 2d (4 players, 1 all-in)
Hero bets, CO calls, Button calls.

This hand was my first at the table, so I had no read on the aggression of the other players. However, capping preflop is completely standard in unknown situations, and flopping the nuts is clearly a bet/raise situation. I find this to be somewhat funny because UTG called all-in with 33 and turned a set. I don't know if I won more or less than I would have if he had a deep stack because he may not have called the flop if he had lots more money behind.

I'd post more, but I'm too tired.

2461 Hands @ 11.17 BB/100

I was fortunate enough to find myself at a table with a maniac at it, and even though I was on the opposite end of the table from him, I was able to capitalize on it and take a good number of bets off of him.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Td, Ts.
UTG calls, Hero raises, 2 folds, SB 3-bets, 1 fold, UTG calls, Hero calls.

Flop: (10 SB) 2s, Kd, 7s (3 players)
SB bets, UTG calls, Hero calls.

Turn: (6.50 BB) Ad (3 players)
SB bets, UTG calls, Hero calls.

River: (9.50 BB) Ac (3 players)
SB bets, UTG folds, Hero calls.

One of the advantages to not being directly next to the maniac is that you have position on the rest of the table since the maniac will be leading the action most of the time. I am definitely playing for a cheap showdown with my marginal hand, and I probably do not overcall if UTG calls in front of me. The reason is that this flop offers very little for him to hit that doesn't beat me. The turn card made it worse for me against his hand range as now even a hand like A2 or A7 is better than mine. But as soon as he folds, this becomes an easy call. Maniac shows 93o and loses.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)



Preflop: Hero is Button with 7h, 7d.

UTG raises, 2 folds, Hero 3-bets, SB calls, 1 fold, UTG caps, Hero calls, SB calls.

Flop: (13 SB) 2h, 5d, 2s (3 players)
SB checks, UTG bets, Hero raises, SB folds, UTG 3-bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (9.50 BB) Td (2 players)
UTG bets, Hero calls.

River: (11.50 BB) Ks (2 players)
UTG bets, Hero calls.

The preflop 3-bet is a standard isolation 3-bet, and when SB comes along to the flop, I have to also raise the flop to knock him off of his overcards. Once that happens, I have no problem just calling down again. He had 83s this time and lost again.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)



Preflop: Hero is MP with 7d, 7s.

1 fold, Hero raises, 1 fold, Button 3-bets, SB caps, 1 fold, Hero calls, Button calls.

Flop: (13 SB) 2d, Td, Ts (3 players)
SB bets, Hero raises, Button folds, SB 3-bets, Hero calls.


Turn: (9.50 BB) 9d (2 players)
SB bets, Hero calls.

River: (11.50 BB) Ad (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks.

Knowing the results, I missed a value bet here, but I'm not sure if a 7-high flush is enough to bet and call a raise. I am definitely showing down any reasonable hand here, so the question is whether I think it's worth two bets on the river or not. And even though I might be good, paying off a river check-raise probably loses more money than what I make from making value bets and having him call with random pairs. He had a good preflop hand this time with AKs, but he still lost.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Qh, Ks.
Hero raises, 2 folds, Button 3-bets, 1 fold, BB calls, Hero calls.

Flop: (9.40 SB) Ad, 5h, Jd (3 players)
BB checks, Hero checks, Button bets, BB folds, Hero calls.

Turn: (5.70 BB) 8d (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets, Hero calls.

River: (7.70 BB) 2h (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks.

This hand highlights something rather subtle about this maniac. He didn't bet the river with his weak made hand (53s), but he's 100% willing to bluff his nothing hands. In a certain sense, this hurts him because now he fails to collect on hands when he actually has something, but then he loses money when he has nothing. It's rather strange, but some players simply do not think through their actions enough (and that's perfectly fine with me).

2293 Hands @ 10.50 BB/100

I just played a short session that got interrupted by an offer to play some backgammon. No hands will be posted.

2000 Hands @ 9.95 BB/100

I may try to squeeze in a late session late tonight. I happened to stop precisely at the 100 hands/day rate, but given that my weekend will be occupied, I should probably get those hands in sooner rather than later. Sadly, I ran into a lot of sets in this 200 hand session, so I'm down from where I was before, but still overall running quite hot. I'm only going to post one hand.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Kh, 2h. UTG posts a blind of $0.35.
UTG (poster) checks, MP calls, Button calls, Hero completes, BB checks.

Flop: (5.80 SB) 2c, 3s, Kd (5 players)
Hero bets, BB folds, UTG calls, MP folds, Button raises, Hero 3-bets, UTG folds, Button calls.

Turn: (6.40 BB) 5d (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

River: (8.40 BB) 5c (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

Given the action, button is sitting on a king most of the time. What this means is that on the river, I have been counterfeited and I lose. At the time, I decided to bet hoping to see a medium pocket pair or something, but in retrospect that was highly erroneous. I should definitely check, and while I would like to think I can check-fold, most likely I end up check-calling in hopes to catch a bluff from said medium pocket pair. But really, I would prefer to get to showdown for zero bets.

1777 Hands @ 11.68 BB/100

I played a short 40 minute session this afternoon and ran super-hot. I'll probably play again this evening.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Kd, Js.
UTG calls, Hero raises, 2 folds, SB calls, BB calls, UTG calls.

Flop: (8 SB) 3d, Kh, Ah (4 players)
SB checks, BB bets, UTG folds, Hero calls, SB calls.

Turn: (5.50 BB) 9d (3 players)
SB checks, BB bets, Hero calls, SB calls.

River: (8.50 BB) 3s (3 players)
SB checks, BB bets, Hero calls, SB folds.

I was quite close to raising this guy on the flop. He was pretty aggressive and I was trying to figure him out. I decided to take the more cautious showdown route instead of the more aggressive raising and folding route. He had 63 of hearts and caught me on the river.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Jh, Js. MP posts a blind of $0.25.
1 fold, MP (poster) checks, 2 folds, Hero raises, BB 3-bets, MP calls, Hero caps, BB calls, MP calls.

Flop: (12 SB) 8h, 7h, Jc (3 players)
Hero bets, BB raises, MP 3-bets, Hero caps, BB calls, MP calls.

Turn: (12 BB) 8c (3 players)
Hero bets, BB raises, MP 3-bets, Hero caps, MP raises, Hero calls.

River: (20.50 BB) 4c (3 players)
Hero bets, MP calls $0.30 (All-In).

This hand is being posted more for amusement value. The preflop 3-bettor had T6s and the unfortunate poster had J8s for the brutal cooler. One hand and busto is not a fun experience.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Ts, Tc.
1 fold, MP calls, CO calls, Hero raises, 2 folds, MP calls, CO calls.

Flop: (7.40 SB) 2d, 2h, 7s (3 players)
MP checks, CO checks, Hero bets, MP calls, CO calls.

Turn: (5.20 BB) Kc (3 players)
MP checks, CO checks, Hero bets, MP folds, CO calls.

River: (7.20 BB) 6c (2 players)
CO checks, Hero bets, CO calls.

This is a thin value betting spot that some players miss. It is possible that CO has Kx here because of a loose flop peel. However, he also often has Ax and will show it down, or has 7x or a pocket pair. I'm probably best about 2/3 of the time when he calls, which means about 1/3 of the time, I expect him to turn over Kx and win. But winning 2/3 of the time and losing 1/3 of time is still a profit.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (4 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 6h, 7c.
UTG calls, 1 fold, SB completes, Hero checks.

Flop: (3 SB) 8h, 5s, 6d (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG raises, SB folds, Hero calls.

Turn: (3.50 BB) 9c (2 players)
Hero bets, UTG raises, Hero 3-bets, UTG calls.

River: (9.50 BB) 5c (2 players)
Hero bets, UTG calls.

The flop bet is standard with an OESD and pair in a limped pot. When I hit my hand on the turn, I believe that leading is better than checking. Villain has lots of reasons to check behind. The turn is an overcard and there is a 4-straight on the board. His turn raise here is awful given that he has A6. But what is even worse is that he called down.

1563 Hands @ 10.64 BB/100

I have once again stumbled into the realm of running insanely hot. The actual session stats were 163 hands @ 42.45 BB/100. Most of the profit was from unusually aggressive players who lacked restraint.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Ad, As.
1 fold, Hero raises, Button 3-bets, 1 fold, BB caps, Hero calls, Button calls.

Flop: (12.40 SB) Qh, Qd, Th (3 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, Button folds, BB calls.

Turn: (7.20 BB) 8s (2 players)
BB checks, Hero checks.

River: (7.20 BB) 8c (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB raises, Hero calls.

I didn't have a lot to work with on BB this hand. Against all but the uber-tricky players, it's reasonably easy to conclude that AA is best here (but not strong enough to 3-bet because I may not get called and I can't fold to a cap). The flop check from BB is somewhat scary because slowplayed hands often start this way. It would take a very tricky player to do this with Qx or JJ because of the high probability that this is getting checked behind by all of my A-high hands. Therefore, betting is correct, as is calling the raise. In this hand, he held A2 of clubs for a really strange line with a weak hand.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Kd, Ah.
1 fold, MP raises, 1 fold, Button calls, Hero 3-bets, 1 fold, MP calls, Button calls.

Flop: (10 SB) As, 8s, 3s (3 players)
Hero bets, MP raises, Button calls, Hero 3-bets, MP folds, Button calls.

Turn: (9 BB) 8d (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

River: (11 BB) 9h (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks.

Some might argue that the river should be a value bet. However, I disagree that this is the best play except in the case where villain calls with a very very very wide range of hands. Most missed flush draws are going to fold. A hand like 8x might find a value raise because the flush didn't come in (and I would also call a raise because the flush didn't come in on the chance that villain is bluffing his missed flush draw -- but I wouldn't like it). A weaker ace may also try to value bet on the river once I check as well. There are many more things that go well when I check than when I bet. This makes checking and calling better than betting.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Ks, Kd.
1 fold, MP raises, 1 fold, SB 3-bets, Hero caps, MP calls, SB calls.

Flop: (12 SB) Ts, Jc, Kh (3 players)
SB bets, Hero raises, MP folds, SB calls.

Turn: (8 BB) Qd (2 players)
SB checks, Hero checks.

River: (8 BB) 4s (2 players)
SB bets, Hero calls.

Villain in this hand was a known aggressive player. This made the turn check even easier than usual. But in general, I don't want to put in too many bets with my hand because it's quite likely that I'm beat. Ideally, I would like to put in exactly one bet, but I'll settle for two if it happens. A check here dramatically alters villain's hand range and skews it so that it includes many many more bluffs. I'll also get a lot of value bets from worse hands such as smaller sets and two pairs.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Jh, Jd.
UTG raises, 2 folds, Button calls, Hero 3-bets, BB calls, UTG calls, Button calls.

Flop: (12 SB) 4d, 7d, 5c (4 players)
Hero bets, BB calls, UTG calls, Button folds.

Turn: (7.50 BB) 3d (3 players)
Hero bets, BB calls, UTG calls.

River: (10.50 BB) 7s (3 players)
Hero bets, BB raises, UTG folds, Hero calls.

I probably should not have bet this river, though calling the raise is right against this player. He has already shown down more than a few river bluffs, so I was intent on showing down my overpair. But the problem with betting is that this takes awaysome of his bluffing opportunities because sometimes he'll decide that he doesn't want to bluff and just fold. In this hand, he trapped me with KK.

Hand #5:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 5h, 7d.
UTG calls, 3 folds, SB completes, Hero checks.

Flop: (3 SB) 4d, Js, 5s (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG calls, SB calls.

Turn: (3 BB) 4s (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG calls, SB folds.

River: (5 BB) 7c (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets, Hero calls.

This hand was against the same opponent as the previous one. I got this one right. In this hand, he bluffed with QTo on the end, and I have no idea why he called the turn bet. But I don't really need to understand why he decides to play the way he does, I need to know how to take advantage of those situations. Check-calling instead of betting is one of those ways.

1400 Hands @ 6.94 BB/100

After taking a break in the afternoon and doing some other enjoyable activities, I sat down for another short session.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 2s, Td.
UTG calls, 1 fold, Button calls, SB completes, Hero checks.

Flop: (4 SB) 8h, 6s, 6c (4 players)
SB checks, Hero checks, UTG checks, Button checks.

Turn: (2 BB) 6h (4 players)
SB checks, Hero checks, UTG checks, Button checks.

River: (2 BB) Ts (4 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG folds, Button raises, SB folds, Hero calls.

In this hand, villain slowplayed his quads all the way until the end and milked an extra 2 BB out of me for his efforts. It happens sometimes, and it's not a big deal when it does unless you put in a 3rd bet on the river. Then you're spewing.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 9h, 9s.
1 fold, MP calls, 2 folds, Hero raises, BB calls, MP calls.

Flop: (6 SB) 2h, 3c, 3h (3 players)
Hero bets, BB calls, MP calls.

Turn: (4.50 BB) Qd (3 players)
Hero bets, BB folds, MP raises, Hero calls.

River: (8.50 BB) 4s (2 players)
Hero checks, MP checks.

I noticed that villain was a bit on the loose-aggro side, so I was prepared to show this down as long as another overcard did not fall. Instead, he gave me the pleasure of seeing the showdown. He had Q2o, which is an example of how loose he was.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 8s, 8h.
Hero raises, MP calls, CO calls, Button calls, SB calls, 1 fold.

Flop: (11 SB) 2s, 7c, 9c (5 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, MP calls, CO calls, Button folds, SB folds.

Turn: (7 BB) 5h (3 players)
Hero bets, MP calls, CO calls.

River: (10 BB) 9s (3 players)
Hero bets, MP calls, CO calls.

This is a standard value betting hand, especially when the river pairs the top card. I have to fold to a raise from anyone here because this table was quite loose-passive. At loose-passive tables, the value bet is the most important tool to have. I got called down by T7s and A2o here.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 6s, 7s.
1 fold, MP calls, Button calls, SB completes, Hero checks.

Flop: (4 SB) 3c, 5s, 4h (4 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, MP folds, Button calls, SB folds.

Turn: (3 BB) Ks (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

River: (5 BB) Ah (2 players)
Hero bets, Button raises, Hero 3-bets, Button calls.

Here is a slowplay gone wrong for villain. He limped AA from the button after two players were already in the pot instead of raising. That let me in for free, and I flopped the nuts. Fortunately for him, his passive play also saved him bets on the flop and turn.

1240 Hands @ 7.98 BB/100

I cut my session short this afternoon because my focus wasn't there. I made a couple really bad bets and a couple really stupid calls. I still picked up a few more BBs, but I could have done much better. Here's the hand that signaled the immediate end to my session:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Jc, Ac.
Hero raises, MP calls, 3 folds.

Flop: (5.40 SB) Qc, 9h, Kc (2 players)
Hero bets, MP calls.

Turn: (3.70 BB) 3d (2 players)
Hero bets, MP calls.

River: (5.70 BB) 6d (2 players)
Hero bets, MP raises, Hero calls.

1068 Hands @ 8.71 BB/100

Tonight's session features one of my favorite types of opponents to play against when you have position: The maniac. This is the type of player who players 80% or more of his hands, and 50% or more of those are for raises. I have to admit I only did a mediocre job. I wasn't aggressive enough postflop.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Ad, Td.
UTG raises, 3 folds, Hero 3-bets, UTG caps, Hero calls.

Flop: (8.40 SB) 3c, Kd, 7d (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (5.20 BB) 4h (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets, Hero calls.

River: (7.20 BB) 4s (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 9.20 BB

Now in general, ATs is a 3-betting hand in my book. Against this player, I would go significantly lower. How low? A2s seems pretty good to me. And I'm willing to simply check-call to the end unimproved out of position. He bets 100% of the time when checked to, especially if he has the lead. I lost in this hand to KJo. Loss of 4.5 BB. That's how it goes.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Kd, Qd.
1 fold, MP raises, Hero 3-bets, 1 fold, BB calls, MP caps, Hero calls, BB calls.

Flop: (12.40 SB) 5d, Qs, As (3 players)
BB checks, MP bets, Hero calls, BB calls.

Turn: (7.70 BB) 4c (3 players)
BB checks, MP bets, Hero calls, BB calls.

River: (10.70 BB) 8h (3 players)
BB checks, MP bets, Hero calls, BB calls.

Final Pot: 13.70 BB

This was a more interesting hand because of the presence of the third player. Everybody is going to adjust to the maniac. Not everyone knows how to adjust. You raise more preflop to isolate when you can, and you call down more often with your mediocre hands, and you try to extract as much value as possible postflop with your made hands (top pair and above). This particular player seemed to be doing okay. I was more worried about being behind him than I was the maniac.

The seat to the left of the maniac is best because it gives you the first shot at his money, but what it also means is that you're going to have to make tougher decisions in multiway pots. In this case, my hand is strong enough to call and hope I beat the other player. The ace is very worrisome because lots of the hands that would call a 3-bet from the big blind contain aces. The rest of the range is something like pocket pairs and broadway (though I wouldn't generally recommend calling with the weaker offsuit broadway). We both lost in this hand to 54s. Another 4.5 BB gone.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is CO with Qh, Tc.
1 fold, MP raises, Hero 3-bets, 3 folds, MP caps, Hero calls.

Flop: (9.40 SB) 5s, Ad, Ks (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (5.70 BB) 2s (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

River: (7.70 BB) Td (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 9.70 BB

QTo looks like a weak hand, and it is. But against a player who is raising nearly 70% of his hands, it stands up quite well because I very often have two overcards to his hand, and even when I don't I have two overcards to his bottom card. Given position as well, this is worth playing. Postflop is a little more dicey in this case. I'm not quite as comfortable going to the end with Q-high as I am with A-high. On this board, given my draw, I would make a sort of "game-theoretic" calldown unimproved (because I do beat enough bluffs). I'll often lose to some random pair and sometimes I'll lose to a stronger hand, but that's how it goes. In this case, the river ten saved me from his 66. 4.5 BB coming my way.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 9c, Qc.
1 fold, MP raises, Hero 3-bets, 3 folds, MP calls.

Flop: (7.40 SB) 7d, 9s, Tc (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (4.70 BB) 6d (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

River: (6.70 BB) Ah (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 8.70 BB

Even though QTo is a hand I'm willing to play and Q9s is somewhat better than QTo, I don't think I would go much below Q8s. The reason is that the suitedness does not significantly help your hand. You will sometimes flop flush draws that you'll be forced to chase (and miss 65% of the time). So I'm really looking for hands that can help me get to showdown. This also means that hands like 98s also go down in value.

I lost to T5o. 4 BB going his way.

Hand #5:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 9d, 9s.
Hero raises, 4 folds, BB 3-bets, Hero calls.

Flop: (6.40 SB) Th, 9h, 6c (2 players)
BB bets, Hero raises, BB 3-bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (6.20 BB) 5h (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

River: (8.20 BB) Kd (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 10.20 BB

This hand is more interesting because I'm the first one to raise the pot. 99 would often be a value capping hand, but in this case, I simply call the 3-bet. The reason is that I'm already thinking about getting to showdown, and I would much rather have him take the lead and bet whatever garbage he has instead of trying to take his initiative away and be stuck with the question of whether to value bet. Also, if I cap and he still leads into me, this is more often a value bet than a pure bluff.

At this point, I had enough information to put in another raise on the turn and still call down. My failure to do so cost me at least 1 BB, but more likely 2 BB. One psychological aspect of playing a maniac is that you hate to put in extra bets with the worst hand and reward him for his screwy play. You don't mind calling down, but you hate when he gets in a value raise on you and you're still calling down. I would raise this turn almost all the time against a regular player, so why not do it with a very aggressive player? It's all in my head.

I won this one against KQo. I win 5 BB. Notice that I win more than I lose. This is one of the key elements of playing against a maniac. You will get more wins than losses because you're more selective. But when you win, you must make sure that you win at least as much (if not more) than you lose when you have a strong hand than when you have a weak hand.

Hand #6:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)


Preflop: Hero is UTG with 5d, 5h.
Hero raises, 2 folds, Button calls, 1 fold, BB calls.

Flop: (6.40 SB) Qs, 7d, 2h (3 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, Button folds, BB calls.

Turn: (4.20 BB) 3c (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB calls.

River: (6.20 BB) 2c (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 8.20 BB

This was somewhat earlier in the session. I already knew he was a maniac, but the rest of the table didn't know me. Their HUD stats were pretty tight, and I was taking advantage of that by raising this hand to try to get heads up with the maniac. It worked. This is a bad play in a setting where players are too willing to see flops with the maniac. You won't get the isolation and you won't be in good shape with your small pair.

This was one of the few hands where the maniac was on the passive side. I'm not sure why. There is no reason on the river donk to think he has trip 2s. However, what this means is that he is often bluffing and will not call if I raise. But he might 3-bet if I raise, and I don't want to put in 3 bets on the river with my tiny pair. So the call on the end is standard. Another line to take is to value check the turn and call a river bet blindly.

There were a few other hands, but they were all pretty straight-forward. I think these are the more interesting ones.

836 Hands @ 10.23 BB/100

Another video attempt was aborted due to a horseament invitation. This one was going better than the previous one, but I still need to do a lot of practice with the simultaneous talking, playing, and observing. My brain processes words faster than I can say them, so I find I'm sometimes stumbling around with my words because I have so much going on at once. I think I need to take more time in general with my actions (even if I know precisely what I'm going to do) so that I can say what I want to say and not feel rushed.

798 Hands @ 9.71 BB/100

I played a short one-tabling session as I was practicing making a video about developing reads. The video wasn't going that well and the session was interrupted with an invitation to play a horseament. So I abandoned the practice video and went to play and win the tournament.

I'm not going to post any hands from the session because none were all that interesting.

761 Hands @ 9.97 BB/100

I'm keeping on the 100 hands/day pace, which is nice. Tonight's session featured a lot more donking and random aggression from my opponents than in my previous few sessions. It was also the first session for which I had my HUD running the way I wanted to, so that I could spend more mental energy paying attention to the action.

Hand #1

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with As, Kd.
UTG calls, MP raises, Hero 3-bets, 2 folds, UTG calls, MP calls.

Flop: (10.40 SB) Ah, Jd, 7d (3 players)
UTG checks, MP bets, Hero calls, UTG folds.

Turn: (6.20 BB) 9s (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

River: (8.20 BB) 3c (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Part of me thinks I played this hand right and part of me thinks I played it wrong. The reason I think I played this right is because from villain's flop donk onward, I think a raise lets him get away from his worse hands and that a call allows him to keep firing with whatever he has. In this case, he had TT and a raise at any point would probably have made him fold. But looking at the board texture, it's possible that there are enough worse hands that would get stuck calling at least the flop and turn raise, as KQ/KJ/AQ and whatever suited diamond hands he might raise preflop would be stuck. Also, a raise is a more effective way to shut out UTG from the pot in case he's chasing a 5-outer. Sometimes I think there is too much weight put on knocking out other hands in short-handed pots.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Ad, Qc.
UTG raises, MP calls, 1 fold, Button 3-bets, 2 folds, UTG caps, MP calls, Hero calls.

Flop: (13.40 SB) 3s, Ac, 9c (3 players)
UTG bets, MP folds, Hero calls.

Turn: (7.70 BB) Jc (2 players)
UTG bets, Hero calls.

River: (9.70 BB) Ks (2 players)
UTG bets, Hero calls.

At the time this hand went down, I didn't have any relevant stats on villain. But this is a standard WA/WB line that I take very often when I'm against aggressive players (or players who might tip towards being aggressive) that I don't have a decent read on. Just as in the previous hand, raises may allow villain to get away from his hand if its worse. In this case, villain had QTs of the wrong suit and caught the runner-runner straight.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)


Preflop: Hero is BB with As, Jc.
1 fold, MP calls, 2 folds, BB raises, MP calls.

Flop: (4.40 SB) 4d, 6c, 7s (2 players)
Hero bets, MP calls.

Turn: (3.20 BB) 3d (2 players)
Hero bets, MP calls.

River: (5.20 BB) Jh (2 players)
Hero bets, MP calls.

To me, the turn bet here with ace-high is pretty standard. Even though the board is very connected, it's also very low and unlikely to have hit MP's hand range very well. The low flop is also a good opportunity for worse hands like Q9 to peel one off. This makes my bet a value bet against a lot of hands. Rivering top pair turns this into a value bet on the end. I would often just check-fold UI here, but in some spots a check-call is better if I think villain is the type to bluff K/Q-high. This hand, villain limped in with the mighty 84s and I was actually chasing all the way to the end.

Hand #4

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Ac, Td.
2 folds, CO raises, Hero 3-bets, 1 fold, BB calls, CO calls.

Flop: (9.40 SB) Th, 9c, 2s (3 players)
BB checks, CO bets, Hero calls, BB calls.

Turn: (6.20 BB) 7c (3 players)
BB checks, CO bets, Hero calls, BB calls.

River: (9.20 BB) Qs (3 players)
BB checks, CO bets, Hero calls, BB folds.

Some players are a little hesitant to 3-bet with ATo. I think ATo is a very close 3-bet, as A9o is not a 3-betting hand. I messed up on the flop in this hand. Unlike the other top pair hands that came before this one, I have a vulnerable top pair hand. I would really like to see a hand like KQ go away. A flop donk here is much less likely to represent an overpair due to the lack of a preflop cap. Sometiems QQ/JJ might play timidly like this, but that's probably the exception. I took this hand down against KTo.

Hand #5

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Th, Ad.
UTG calls, Hero raises, 2 folds, SB calls, BB calls, UTG calls.

Flop: (8 SB) Jh, 6d, 3c (4 players)
SB bets, BB folds, UTG calls, Hero calls.

Turn: (5.50 BB) Td (3 players)
SB checks, UTG bets, Hero calls, SB calls.

River: (8.50 BB) Js (3 players)
SB bets, UTG calls, Hero calls.

This hand was played at one of the more aggressive tables I was at. Aggressive tables are harder because you will often be stuck making lots of marginal decisions.

The flop peel getting 10:1 is a tiny bit on the loose side, but based on the table read at the time, SB's donk didn't necessarily mean a J, nor did UTG's call. Having position on everyone is a helpful part of this hand as I wouldn't be able to check-call this if I were somehow in SB's position postflop.

The turn check by SB made me think he was on some sort of medium pocket pair, but then UTG's lead had me thinking for a while. There simply aren't a lot of Tx hands that UTG is likely to hold here. Running the hand through my head, it was conceivable that UTG was playing against SB's weakness. I was running low on time and decided that if I could get to showdown for two bets, I would do so.

The lead by SB didn't bother me at all. And when UTG flat called instead of raising, I knew I likely had the best hand, but probably not enough of a hand to raise for value. The reason is that a value raise here doesn't always get called, especially if villains are holding pocket pairs or hands of similar strength.

The results are really wacky as it was 64s and 54o against my ATo at showdown. Those hands would be in the bottom 99% of hands I was anticipating here.

Hand #6:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (4 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Ac, 7d.
Hero raises, 2 folds, BB 3-bets, Hero calls.

Flop: (6.40 SB) Jh, As, 6s (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (4.20 BB) 9c (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

River: (6.20 BB) 6h (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

This was early in the session, and I had a tentative read that BB was a bit of a random-LAG. He seemed to put in bets in odd spots and his lines often didn't seem to add up to anything rational. Even at the point of the preflop call, I was considering whether I should just call down. I decided that my read wasn't strong enough that blindly calling down would be appropriate, but I did decide that any pair was getting to showdown, including if the board were paired. BB showed a mighty 82o and my random-LAG read was confirmed.

Hand #7:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Ks, Kh.
UTG calls, 1 fold, CO calls, 1 fold, Hero raises, 1 fold, UTG calls, CO calls.

Flop: (7 SB) 3h, 5d, Ah (3 players)
Hero bets, UTG calls, CO folds.

Turn: (4.50 BB) 9s (2 players)
Hero bets, UTG raises, Hero calls.

River: (8.50 BB) 8d (2 players)
Hero checks, UTG bets, Hero calls.

This was a bad calldown. In general, the flop call/turn raise line is scary and implies strong hands unless there is a read that would suggest otherwise. No such read existed, so I should have folded my not-top-pair hand to the turn raise. But instead, I called down and lost to a set of 5s.

Hand #8:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Kc, Qd.
1 fold, MP raises, Hero 3-bets, 2 folds, MP calls.

Flop: (7.40 SB) Jh, Th, 3h (2 players)
MP bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (4.70 BB) 9s (2 players)
MP bets, Button raises, MP calls.

River: (8.70 BB) 7h (2 players)
MP checks, Hero checks.

The river check is very standard here. MP's flop lead and turn bet-call is usually an indication of some sort of high heart. The ace of hearts is often found playing this way, though sometimes it's the K or Q of hearts. I would have value bet any non-heart. Villain surprised me this time around with QTo, which was the first loose raise I saw from him at this point in the session. I am inclined to believe that he would have called a river bet.

Hand #9:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Qh, Kc.
Hero raises, 1 fold, CO calls, Button calls, SB calls, BB calls.

Flop: (10 SB) 4d, Ks, As (5 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets, CO folds, Button raises, SB folds, BB folds, Hero calls.

Turn: (7 BB) Qc (2 players)
Hero bets, Button raises, Hero 3-bets, Button calls.

River: (13 BB) 5h (2 players)
Hero bets, Button calls.

I don't often donk the turn like this, but it is a good spot for a bet/3-bet as there are many Ax hands who will think their hand is still good and raise, then be unable to fold. The turn check-raise line is also acceptable, but if you think you can squeeze a bet/3-bet you should go for it.

Hand #10:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Jh, Kd.
1 fold, MP calls, CO calls, Hero raises, 2 folds, MP calls, CO calls.

Flop: (7.40 SB) 6d, 9h, 9c (3 players)
MP checks, CO checks, Hero bets, MP folds, CO calls.

Turn: (4.70 BB) Qs (2 players)
CO checks, Hero bets, CO calls.

River: (6.70 BB) Th (2 players)
CO checks, Hero bets, CO calls.

The more I think about this hand, the more I think that this should have been a turn check, but it's close. It is often the case that A-high hands and medium pairs that call the flop are looking to show down. Also, the 99x flop does hit a moderate amount of the limping ranges, so I think a check-raise happens here somewhat often. I was ahead of KTo the whole time in this hand, and that was probably the best case scenario for me.

Hand #11:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is CO with Qs, Jh.
2 folds, Hero raises, 1 fold, SB calls, BB calls.


Flop: (6 SB) 2d, 7s, 3d (3 players)

SB checks, BB checks, Hero checks.

Turn: (3 BB) 4c (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero checks.

River: (3 BB) 2h (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero checks.

I have to admit that I probably c-bet too often. But I found a good spot for a check behind because in order for me to win this, I would likely have to bet twice, and sometimes I would have to bet three times to fold out the wide range of A-high and K-high hands that would call to chase. So I decided to just check behind and give up UI. Strangely enough, I won against two Q6o hands here.

Hand #12:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 9h, Jh.
UTG calls, 1 fold, Hero calls, 1 fold, SB completes, BB checks.

Flop: (4 SB) 4c, Th, 2h (4 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG bets, Hero calls, SB calls, BB folds.

Turn: (3.50 BB) 4d (3 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, Hero checks.

River: (3.50 BB) Qh (3 players)
SB bets, UTG folds, Hero raises, SB 3-bets, Hero caps, SB calls.

Sometimes I raise this preflop when the blinds are tight, but in this case they were too loose for me to isolate against a player with lots of dead money in the pot. At higher level games, I probably don't cap the river, but at this level players very often overvalue their hands and put in too many bets with strong hands despite scary boards. He lost with K4o in this hand.

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 6h, 6c.
Hero raises, 1 fold, Button 3-bets, SB calls, 1 fold, Hero calls.

Flop: (10 SB) 5s, 3c, Th (3 players)
SB checks, Hero checks, Button bets, SB calls, Hero calls.

Turn: (6.50 BB) 6s (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, Button calls, SB calls.

River: (9.50 BB) Qd (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, Button calls, SB folds.

If SB had not called the flop, I would have check-raised. I'm ahead of overcards most of the time here, but when the third player comes along I need to treat carefully. When the good turn card fell, I went for a bet/3-bet because a hand like AK is often going to check through and I lose too much value. Even if I just get called, it's better than not getting any bets at all. This hand is a pretty easy win, but I was surprised by what I beat. Button 3-bet me with A5s.

468 hands @ 2.46 BB/100

I played a one hour session this evening. I spent a little more time trying to customize my HUD and I think I've finally gotten everything the way I want it... almost... I'm still have some issues getting PAHUD to do the preferred seating correctly, and I'm not sure what the deal is. I think I'll have to one-table for a while and mess around with the settings to see if I can get it right. I feel like it should be straight-forward, so maybe I'm just overlooking something obvious.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Qc, Ac.

UTG calls, MP calls, 2 folds, SB raises, Hero 3-bets, UTG calls, MP folds, SB calls.

Flop: (10 SB) Jd, Qd, Th (3 players)
SB bets, Hero calls, UTG calls.

Turn: (6.50 BB) 7s (3 players)
SB bets, Hero calls, UTG calls.

River: (9.50 BB) 7h (3 players)
SB bets, Hero calls, UTG folds.

Final Pot: 11.50 BB

This is a pretty awful flop for me even though I have TPTK. The calldown is in the desperate hope to see KQ or 99 or maybe AJ/KJ. Since it went for 3 bets preflop, the pot is large enough that folding TPTK is essentially out of the question. I lost to JJ in this hand.

Hand #2:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Js, Ac.
2 folds, CO raises, 2 folds, Hero 3-bets, CO calls.

Flop: (6.40 SB) Jc, 3h, Ts (2 players)
Hero bets, CO calls.

Turn: (4.20 BB) 5h (2 players)
Hero bets, CO calls.

River: (6.20 BB) 8d (2 players)
Hero bets, CO calls.

Final Pot: 8.20 BB

This is a pretty standard 3-bet preflop, and postflop play is obvious. What is more intersting in this hand is that I got called down by K9s. This isn't the first K-high calldown that I've seen at this level, which is an indication of just how soft the games are at these stakes. It also means that I need to be aware of who is calling down light, so that I don't try to bet them out of the pot and so that I make sure to value bet a little lighter.

Hand #3:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is CO with Ts, Ah.
UTG calls, MP calls, CO raises, 1 fold, SB calls, 1 fold, UTG calls, MP calls.

Flop: (9 SB) Th, 2d, 5c (4 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, MP checks, Hero bets, SB calls, UTG calls, MP folds.

Turn: (6 BB) Jd (3 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets, SB calls, UTG calls.

River: (9 BB) Kc (3 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, Hero checks.

Final Pot: 9 BB

This hand stands as an example of the types of loose flop peels I've been seeing a lot of at this level. The villain who won the pot had J6s. The other player flopped middle pair with A5o.

Hand #4:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with Ad, Ts.
UTG calls, 2 folds, Hero raises, SB calls, BB calls, UTG calls.

Flop: (8 SB) 7c, Jh, 6h (4 players)
SB bets, BB folds, UTG calls, Hero raises, SB calls, UTG folds.

Turn: (6.50 BB) 6d (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, SB folds.

Final Pot: 6.50 BB

This hand was a misclick that went well for me (for a change). I thought the action was checked to me, and I was suprised and a bit annoyed to see that I had just raised a bet. When it was heads up on the turn, I decided to go ahead and treat this hand like a pure bluff, betting the turn and the river. But wait! Didn't I just say that I was getting called down somewhat lightly? Yes. But I also said that not every player was playing that way.

Hand #5:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with 7d, Ad.
2 folds, CO raises, 2 folds, Hero calls.

Flop: (4.40 SB) Ks, 8d, 6d (2 players)

Hero checks, CO bets, Hero raises, CO 3-bets, Hero calls.

Turn: (5.20 BB) Qs (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks.

River: (5.20 BB) Ah (2 players)
Hero bets, CO calls.

Final Pot: 7.20 BB

Here is a bit of hand reading. When a player who generally aggressive player goes for 3 bets on the flop but then checks behind on the turn, he was either playing a draw or playing a medium-strength hand and wants to showdown for one bet. I believe it is more often the medium-strength hands because an aggressive player will hope to bluff you off your hand by betting the turn. So on the end, you shouldn't be bluffing very often, but you should be value betting anything from flopped middle pair with a strong kicker and up. In this hand, he had 98o.

Hand #6:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 6d, As.
UTG calls, MP calls, 1 fold, Hero calls, 1 fold, BB checks.

Flop: (4.40 SB) Qs, Ah, 8c (4 players)
BB checks, UTG checks, MP checks, Hero bets, BB raises, UTG folds, MP folds, Hero calls.

Turn: (4.20 BB) 7h (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

River: (6.20 BB) 7c (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 8.20 BB

This table was playing pretty loose preflop and pretty bad postflop, so I decided to go ahead and take a flop with a weak ace. Against one limper, I would decide between raising and folding.

In this hand, BB had Q8o for flopped two pair and played it pretty badly. You should be leading your strong hands out of position because check-raising minimizes the amount you can win from weaker hands when the bet comes from late position. And in a 4-person pot, there's no particular reason to believe that someone will even bet it for you.

And yes, I sucked out.

Hand #7:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with 6s, 6d.
Hero raises, MP calls, 1 fold, Button 3-bets, 1 fold, BB calls, Hero calls, MP caps, Button calls, BB calls, Hero calls.

Flop: (16.40 SB) 8s, 8h, 9d (4 players)
BB checks, Hero checks, MP bets, Button calls, BB folds, Hero calls.

Turn: (9.70 BB) 3c (3 players)
Hero checks, MP bets, Button calls, Hero calls.

River: (12.70 BB) 9c (3 players)
Hero checks, MP checks, Button checks.

Final Pot: 12.70 BB

Here's a big pot that I nearly won, but the board didn't cooperate with me. The preflop 3 bet was far more worrisome than the preflop cap. The cap comes from a player who plays a lot of hands, and could be capping for no reason other than he wants to cap. Usually, coldcall cap hands are not strong hands, but those medium-strength drawing hands and pocket pairs.

Looking at the flop size and texture, I felt there was a pretty reasonable chance I was ahead, plus I had a couple outs for which I was almost getting immediate odds to chase. On the turn, there was no reason to think that anyone's hands changed, so I called another bet, looking for the river to tell me what to do. I would check-fold to an A or K on the river and I would often check-fold if it were bet and called in front of me. I lost to ATo (3-bettor) and A3s (capper).

I would post a couple more, but it's getting late and I should go to bed.

Hands from March 1

I'm going to try to get back in the habit of posting hands that I find interesting giving some commentaries on them.

Hand #1:

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (4 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with As, 6s.
UTG calls, Button calls, SB completes, Hero checks.

Flop: (4 SB) 3c, Ac, Tc (4 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG calls, Button folds, SB calls.

Turn: (3.50 BB) Kc (3 players)
SB checks, Hero checks...

When I see this flop 4 handed, I assume that someone is holding a club. If it were 2 handed, I think such an assumption would be irrational, and if it were 3-handed, I think it's dicey, but I don't think you should assume that you're automatically beat by a club. If you assume that there's a 25% chance of each of villain's hole card being a club (a false assumption because you already know 3 clubs out, plus 2 non-clubs), you'll find the following probabilities for there being a club against you:

1 villain: 44%
2 villains: 68%
3 villains: 82%

The assumptions here tend to overestimate the chances of being against a club, but I think for 2 and 3 villains, getting called on the flop generally skews the probabilities towards clubs (medium clubs, usually), so I think they're pretty safe numbers to be using.

Ironically, after I checked, this got checked through and the river was a 5th club. Nobody bet at it, and nobody had a club and it got chopped 3-ways.

Hand #2:
PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 3c, As. MP posts a blind of $0.25.
UTG calls, MP (poster) checks, 2 folds, Hero completes, BB checks.

Flop: (4 SB) Kd, Ah, 4c (4 players)
Hero checks, BB checks, UTG checks, MP checks.

Turn: (2 BB) 6c (4 players)
Hero bets, BB folds, UTG calls, MP folds.

River: (4 BB) Ac (2 players)
Hero bets, UTG calls.

Final Pot: 6 BB

This is a classic spot to "check and see" when out of position with a medium-strength hand. I could be persuaded to bet here, but I think checking is correct. I might end up writing a short article for the 2+2 micros, so I don't want to spend a lot of time now typing out my thoughts. Here are the considerations when deciding between betting and checking:

* How many other players are in the pot?
* What are the chances of this being bet by worse hands?
* What are the chances of getting raised by worse hands?
* What draws are available?
* What are the chances that a free card would sink your hand?

As these variables change, you should become more or less inclined to lead out instead of checking.

Hand #3

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is UTG with Kd, Ks. MP posts a blind of $0.25.
Hero raises, MP (poster) calls, Button calls, SB calls, BB calls.

Flop: (10 SB) Jd, 9s, 5d (5 players)
SB bets, BB folds, Hero raises, MP folds, Button calls, SB calls.

Turn: (8 BB) Kc (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, Button raises, SB calls, Hero 3-bets, Button calls, SB calls.

River: (17 BB) 7s (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, Button calls, SB folds.

Final Pot: 19 BB

This is more of a brag hand. Button ended up here with KT, and his turn raise is very very bad given the action. I'm not sure what SB had here, but my best guess is something like QJ.

Hand #4

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Ks, Qs.
1 fold, MP raises, 2 folds, BB calls.

Flop: (4.40 SB) Ac, 2s, 4h (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB calls.

Turn: (3.20 BB) Qd (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

River: (5.20 BB) 2c (2 players)
BB bets, Hero calls.

Calling down from the turn donk is standard. I lost to Ax, but I think folding the turn or river without a good read is a bit too weak, especially because if he were an aggressive villain, he may well be betting a worse Q there. A more interesting problem is how to respond to a check-raise on the turn if I bet the turn. I would like to say that I would fold, but I'm not sure that's entirely true.

Hand #5

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is MP with Jc, Ks.
1 fold, MP raises, 2 folds, SB calls, BB calls.

Flop: (6 SB) 8h, 2c, 2h (3 players)
SB checks, BB checks, Hero bets, SB folds, BB calls.

Turn: (4 BB) Js (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, BB calls.

River: (6 BB) 6h (2 players)
BB checks, MP bets, BB raises, Hero calls.

Final Pot: 10 BB

Results:
BB has 7h Kh (flush, king high).
Hero has Jc Ks (two pair, jacks and twos).
Outcome: BB wins 10 BB.

I have to admit that I'm not thrilled with paying off this river raise. It's a flush very often, followed by a very slowplayed trips, and then 66. Worse jacks would normally have raised on the turn. I think this is a spot where folding top pair second kicker is probably the correct play, despite the pot size. Villain would have to be incredibly bold to check-raise a worse hand on the end.

Hand #6

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with Kc, Qs.
UTG calls, 1 fold, CO calls, Button calls, Hero raises, BB calls, UTG calls, CO calls, Button calls.

Flop: (10 SB) Jc, 2s, 5c (5 players)
Hero bets, BB folds, UTG folds, CO calls, Button calls.

Turn: (6.50 BB) 4c (3 players)
Hero checks, CO bets, Button calls, Hero calls.

River: (9.50 BB) Qd (3 players)
Hero bets, CO folds, Button calls.

The flop bet here is probably wrong. Too many players, not enough chance of getting them all to fold, and not enough chance of getting them to fold the turn the 85% of the time I do not improve to a pair.

The turn check-call should be standard. Betting again will not make hands with a single club fold, and I don't often have the best hand anyway.

The river donk is standard because an overcard to the board will tend to freeze up players from making value bets on the end, especially when a check will often get them to showdown for free.

Hand #7

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (5 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Js, Qs.
UTG calls, 2 folds, SB completes, Hero raises, UTG calls, SB calls.

Flop: (6 SB) Kh, 4s, 2s (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG calls, SB calls.

Turn: (4.50 BB) Qc (3 players)
SB checks, Hero bets, UTG calls, SB calls.

River: (7.50 BB) 9c (3 players)
SB checks, Hero checks, UTG checks.

The preflop raise with QJs is something I didn't do for a while, but now I think it's standard. QJs flopping top pair in a shorthanded pot is usually best, and flopping flushes and straight draws are also very good.

The turn bet here seems standard to me because the flop calls don't mean much of anything at this level, but when they both call me, I have to reconsider the value of my hand on the river. The spade draw missed, meaning that I'm not likely to pick up any bets from them unless they have the 9 of spades. I could be against a weaker king, which is bad for me. But besides that, because the second and third cards on the flop were so small, I don't think I gain a lot from a bet. I probably do check-call this because of the chances of a missed draw trying to pick up the pot, plus potentially worse queens like QT or Q8 might think their hand is good. (There are more hands might bet than hands that might call, which is generally a recipe for check-calling.)

Hand #8

PokerStars 0.25/0.50 Hold'em (6 handed) Poker Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com (Format: HTML)

Preflop: Hero is SB with 9c, Tc.
1 fold, MP calls, 1 fold, Button calls, Hero completes, BB checks.

Flop: (4 SB) 6c, 9s, Qs (4 players)
Hero bets, BB calls, MP raises, Button folds, Hero calls, BB calls.

Turn: (5 BB) 7d (3 players)
Hero checks, BB checks, MP bets, Hero calls, BB calls.

River: (8 BB) 8c (3 players)
SB bets, BB folds, MP calls.

This is another standard river donk like in the above hand. The board has gotten scary, and the chances of the bettor wimping out on the end is quite large. To add to the problem (something I didn't mention above), a check-raise here almost certainly drives out BB, whereas he is more likely to call one bet if I lead.

Project for the month of March

Totals: 198 hands, $4.95 profit

This blog is coming back again, but I'm starting something new. I've played very little online poker over the last few months, but I would like to get back into it. So I've set up a little project to encourage myself to play more online. I have four tasks I want to accomplish in March:

1) 3100 hands playing 1-3 6-max tables @ .25/.50
2) 30 minute one-tabling video on the first 30 minutes at a new table: Establishing initial reads quickly
3) 30 minute one-tabling video with general hand commentary
4) 45 minute two-tabling video with no audio

I started off this afternoon by just playing a short 3-tabling session to get PAHUD and PT working properly on my new computer. I played for about 40 minutes and got in 200 hands, which is more hands than I was anticipating. Today's session went at a rate of 300 hands/hour or 100 hands/table-hour, but I was only expecting about 75 hands/hour when I was figuring out how much time it would take. If I were more ambitious, I'd increase the number of hands to 5000. But I'm not.

A couple of general observations from today:

1) .25/.50 6-max tables look quite soft. There's a lot of open-limping going on, and a lot of players who do not properly value their hands postflop.
2) There is still a wide range of players. I saw some very aggressive and some very passive players. This should keep things interesting.
3) I feel like I've forgotten how to multi-table. A couple times I got lost in a hand and couldn't even remember the previous action. I blame part of this on messing around with the PAHUD/PT/Stars settings to get it the way I wanted it.
4) I've been playing too much HUHU because a couple times I opened with extremely marginal holdings from the button that I normally wouldn't have opened.