The $2/$4 tables on Party Poker are crazy. There are sooooo many guys making crazy raises and so many others grinding away. It's a stark contrast and watching the two extremes meet is rather interesting to watch. I like to think that I fall somewhere in the middle.
I played for about 90 minutes on a 6-man $2/$4 table. At one point, I was up nearly $75, but I ended up losing $38. I went on a horrible streak near the end of my session and I decided to quit before things got too ugly. I'm going to make money this month, and there's no reason to end it with a bitter taste in my mouth.
Daily Sketch: Down $38
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $513.28
May 27, 2006: Golfing at the Fairways
I joined Sean, Jared, and Rusty at the Fairways of Woodside today. The weather was beautiful, but my game was pretty pathetic.
After nine holes, I had a score of 47. That's not terrible - epsecially when you consider that I took a '10' on the 7th hole.
I golfed horribly during the next nine holes. I took a pair of 10's and had a 9. All told, I shot a 63 on the back nine and limped to the finish line with a very ugly 110.
As a result of my poor performance, I coughed up $7 to the boys. So, that's the Sketchbook entry for the day.
Daily Sketch: Down $7
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $551.28
After nine holes, I had a score of 47. That's not terrible - epsecially when you consider that I took a '10' on the 7th hole.
I golfed horribly during the next nine holes. I took a pair of 10's and had a 9. All told, I shot a 63 on the back nine and limped to the finish line with a very ugly 110.
As a result of my poor performance, I coughed up $7 to the boys. So, that's the Sketchbook entry for the day.
Daily Sketch: Down $7
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $551.28
May 26, 2006: Two Happy Minutes
This evening, we visited one of Theresa's friends. Bonding with the friend and her family, we enjoyed a night of Mama Mia's pizza, numerous bottles of beer, and good conversation while sitting in the family's West Allis backyard. We didn't do any gambling.
Theresa and I must have gotten home around midnight. With 9 beers swimming around in my tummy, I decided to visit Party Poker for a quick look. It's probably never a good time to start gambling when you've had that much to drink, but I was feeling adventurous.
Logging into the software, I found $116 in my account. My recent losses have really decimated the balance in my account. In fact, one week ago, I had over $300. Ugh!
I wasn't in the mood to play long (I was sleepy!), so I decided to sit down at an expensive 6-man $10/$20 table to see how quickly I burn through the money in my account. Knowing that my small stack of cash wasn't significant at these stakes, I was determined to play aggressively when dealt my first decent hand. After that, I'd simply pray for the best.
When the big blind came around to me, I folded an ugly 6♣ 8♥. Just like that, I was down $10 and my account was down to $106.
Sitting in the small blind ($5), I was dealt Q♠ 7♠ on my next hand. One player limped into the pot, and I raised the bet to $20 - hoping to get the big blind out of the hand. It didn't work, 'cuz he called my bet and three of us witnessed the flop. There was already $60 in the pot.
The flop came Q◊ Q♣ 7♣. Just like that, I had flopped a full house. Woo hoo!!
The betting progressed. Eventually, I found myself "all in" while my opponents continued to play the hand. Each of my opponents was sitting at the table with over $1,000, so my measly $100 wasn't overly intimidating to either of them.
After all was said and done, I scooped a pot that amounted to $272 and - just like that - I was up $156. For one quick second, I thought about the hundreds of dollars I might win in a drunken frenzy, but those thoughts didn't last long.
Immediately after scooping the $272 pot, I logged out of the software. I didn't even bother to see the next few "free" hands (while I waited for the blinds to come back around to me). Simply put, I was up and happy with my performance and happy to have won the hand with 9 tasty beers in my tummy.
According to Party Poker, I sat at the table for two minutes. Most of that time was spent waiting for the initial blinds to come around to me. Regardless, it was a happy two minutes - as I nearly won all the money back that I lost earlier this week. It took several hours to lose that money - and I won most of it back in one hand. Yikes!
So, my Party Poker account is back up to $272.
Ahhhh . . . I feel better!
Daily Sketch: Up $156
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $558.28
Theresa and I must have gotten home around midnight. With 9 beers swimming around in my tummy, I decided to visit Party Poker for a quick look. It's probably never a good time to start gambling when you've had that much to drink, but I was feeling adventurous.
Logging into the software, I found $116 in my account. My recent losses have really decimated the balance in my account. In fact, one week ago, I had over $300. Ugh!
I wasn't in the mood to play long (I was sleepy!), so I decided to sit down at an expensive 6-man $10/$20 table to see how quickly I burn through the money in my account. Knowing that my small stack of cash wasn't significant at these stakes, I was determined to play aggressively when dealt my first decent hand. After that, I'd simply pray for the best.
When the big blind came around to me, I folded an ugly 6♣ 8♥. Just like that, I was down $10 and my account was down to $106.
Sitting in the small blind ($5), I was dealt Q♠ 7♠ on my next hand. One player limped into the pot, and I raised the bet to $20 - hoping to get the big blind out of the hand. It didn't work, 'cuz he called my bet and three of us witnessed the flop. There was already $60 in the pot.
The flop came Q◊ Q♣ 7♣. Just like that, I had flopped a full house. Woo hoo!!
The betting progressed. Eventually, I found myself "all in" while my opponents continued to play the hand. Each of my opponents was sitting at the table with over $1,000, so my measly $100 wasn't overly intimidating to either of them.
After all was said and done, I scooped a pot that amounted to $272 and - just like that - I was up $156. For one quick second, I thought about the hundreds of dollars I might win in a drunken frenzy, but those thoughts didn't last long.
Immediately after scooping the $272 pot, I logged out of the software. I didn't even bother to see the next few "free" hands (while I waited for the blinds to come back around to me). Simply put, I was up and happy with my performance and happy to have won the hand with 9 tasty beers in my tummy.
According to Party Poker, I sat at the table for two minutes. Most of that time was spent waiting for the initial blinds to come around to me. Regardless, it was a happy two minutes - as I nearly won all the money back that I lost earlier this week. It took several hours to lose that money - and I won most of it back in one hand. Yikes!
So, my Party Poker account is back up to $272.
Ahhhh . . . I feel better!
Daily Sketch: Up $156
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $558.28
May 24, 2006: Running Bad
Hmmmm . . . the cards don't seem to be cooperating right now.
I played on a 6-man $2/$4 table for about 90 minutes this evening. It was a grind, and I couldn't seem to get over the hump. After all was said and done, I lost exactly $73.
Every time I got close to even, I'd lose a couple bad hands in a row. My cards are not running exceptionally well right now.
Daily Sketch: Down $73
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $402.28
I played on a 6-man $2/$4 table for about 90 minutes this evening. It was a grind, and I couldn't seem to get over the hump. After all was said and done, I lost exactly $73.
Every time I got close to even, I'd lose a couple bad hands in a row. My cards are not running exceptionally well right now.
Daily Sketch: Down $73
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $402.28
May 23, 2006: A Bad Night
I played poker for a couple hours tonight, and I couldn't find success. I jumped around from $1/$2 to $2/$4 to $3/$6 tables and ended up losing exactly $100. Ugh!
I just couldn't seem to catch the cards this evening. I guess that happens. I'd write about specific hands that mystified me, but what fun is that?
Daily Sketch: Down $100
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $475.28
I just couldn't seem to catch the cards this evening. I guess that happens. I'd write about specific hands that mystified me, but what fun is that?
Daily Sketch: Down $100
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $475.28
May 22, 2006: Back to the Party
After a few days away, I visited Party Poker and jumped on a 6-man $2/$4 table for about 45 minutes this evening. I didn't find particularly exciting cards, but I did win exactly $22 at the table. There was one particularly crazy player online, and I continued to wait for a good hand to play with him. His raise button must have been stuck on repeat, 'cuz that's all he kept doing - no matter what he had. In fact, I really wish I had caught some cards, 'cuz this crazy player was ripe for a beating. Unfortunately, he ran out of money ($100) before I really had a chance to capitalize on his poor play. Drat!
Once the crazy player went bankrupt, the action at the table was noticeably less exciting. So, I decided to take my profits elsewhere and joined a 20-man $20(2) Tournament. However, shortly after starting, I knew that my heart wasn't in it. I'm still a bit tired from the long weekend and I wasn't overly excited to concentrate in a tourney. Still, I trudged forward. Twenty-two bucks is twenty-two bucks, after all!
I limped my way to the final table. However, I finished in 10th place after flopping 2-pair. I went "all in" with my modest stack of chips and was called by another player who had flopped 4-to-a-flush. My opponent caught his 5th card on the turn and I lost to the flush. Oh, well. What can you do?
Daily Sketch: $0
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $575.28
Once the crazy player went bankrupt, the action at the table was noticeably less exciting. So, I decided to take my profits elsewhere and joined a 20-man $20(2) Tournament. However, shortly after starting, I knew that my heart wasn't in it. I'm still a bit tired from the long weekend and I wasn't overly excited to concentrate in a tourney. Still, I trudged forward. Twenty-two bucks is twenty-two bucks, after all!
I limped my way to the final table. However, I finished in 10th place after flopping 2-pair. I went "all in" with my modest stack of chips and was called by another player who had flopped 4-to-a-flush. My opponent caught his 5th card on the turn and I lost to the flush. Oh, well. What can you do?
Daily Sketch: $0
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $575.28
May 21, 2006: Golfing at the Oaks
At 9:04am, I found myself on the 1st tee at The Oaks Golf course in Cottage Grove. It was rather chilly - and windy - and I can't say I was overly excited about the arctic-like conditions. Nevertheless, I was joined by Jared, Angela, and Angela's father.
Not suprisingly, I didn't golf particularly well. Thankfully, Jared and I decided to stay away from our normal wagers, because my final score was rather ugly. I shot a rather unimpressive 54-49=103.
I did claim $1 from Angela, however, who shot something around 110. Personally, I think she made the wager to simply guarantee that her name would appear in this Sketchbook. It is an honor, after all!
I also won another buck from Jared while playing Poison on the 17th tee.
It's been a long weekend. It's time for a nap!!
Daily Sketch: Up $2
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $575.28
Not suprisingly, I didn't golf particularly well. Thankfully, Jared and I decided to stay away from our normal wagers, because my final score was rather ugly. I shot a rather unimpressive 54-49=103.
I did claim $1 from Angela, however, who shot something around 110. Personally, I think she made the wager to simply guarantee that her name would appear in this Sketchbook. It is an honor, after all!
I also won another buck from Jared while playing Poison on the 17th tee.
It's been a long weekend. It's time for a nap!!
Daily Sketch: Up $2
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $575.28
May 20, 2006: Jared & Angela's Engagement Party
I attended Jared & Angela's engagement party in Sun Prairie today. As a result, there wasn't much room for gambling.
The Preakness Stakes was run this afternoon, however, so that enabled me to do a little gambling. I already had a $10 wager placed on Barbaro, but the defending champion of the Kentucky Derby fractured his leg today and was never a factor. So, I lost my $10.
At the same time, Jared, Jon, and myself wagered $2 on the race. We each received 3 random horses, and Jared's horse won. Since it was his "special" day, I suppose it's appropriate that he won the bet.
Oh, yeah . . . I almost forgot about the buck I won from Jon. We decided to guess each other's weight, and the person to come closest won. I came within 3 pounds (I think) of guessing Jon's weight, and was (at least) 20 pounds off on my weight. So, I claimed a buck from him.
Boy, I sure bet on some weird things, don't I?
Daily Sketch: Down $11
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $573.28
The Preakness Stakes was run this afternoon, however, so that enabled me to do a little gambling. I already had a $10 wager placed on Barbaro, but the defending champion of the Kentucky Derby fractured his leg today and was never a factor. So, I lost my $10.
At the same time, Jared, Jon, and myself wagered $2 on the race. We each received 3 random horses, and Jared's horse won. Since it was his "special" day, I suppose it's appropriate that he won the bet.
Oh, yeah . . . I almost forgot about the buck I won from Jon. We decided to guess each other's weight, and the person to come closest won. I came within 3 pounds (I think) of guessing Jon's weight, and was (at least) 20 pounds off on my weight. So, I claimed a buck from him.
Boy, I sure bet on some weird things, don't I?
Daily Sketch: Down $11
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $573.28
May 19, 2006: A Long, Long, Long Day
I took a day of vacation from work today. I had a lot of activities planned, and it all started with a 7:16am tee time at Ironwood Golf Course in Sussex. Getting up at 5:30am is never easy, but when you're planning to golf, it always seems a bit easier. Funny how that works, ehh?
I lost a quick $2 on the practice putting green to Jared. Apparently, I'm not a very good putter when the sun has barely cleared the horizon!
The round started pretty well. I birdied the 2nd hole and shot a 43 on the opening nine holes. Jared was giving me a stroke on 7 of the holes (his handicap is 14 strokes better than mine), and my 43 proved good enough to win $6. So, I was up $4 when we hit the first turn. I was feeling pretty good about my game!
Unfortunately, the next nine holes didn't go nearly as well. After earning a 2nd birdie of the day on the 11th hole, my round fell apart. I had a 9, two 8's, and a 7 (on a par 3), and I proceeded to shoot a 54 - giving me an 18-hole score of 97. Along the way, I lost $8 on the back nine and found myself down $4 for the day.
It wasn't even noon yet, so Jared, Rusty, and myself decided to play the last 9 holes that the course had to offer. Similar to the first 18 holes, I played a buck-a-hole against Jared, but Rusty and I decided to bet $5 on our final 9-hole score.
I shot a semi-respectable 47, but Jared struggled with a 45. So, I won $4 back from him. At the same time, Rusty also shot a 47, and when he missed a clutch 5-foot putt on the final hole, we pushed and neither of us could claim the $5. So . . . sadly, my 27 holes of golf resulted in $0 gains or losses. That, my friends, is a boring entry when you're writing a Sketchbook!
After the long round of golf, we started making preparations for the Brewer game. A few beers were consumed, a few brats were devoured, and I found myself sitting in Section 121 at Miller Park with Jared, Jason, and Brian when the first pitch was thrown.
Our wagers were modest during the game. Each of us was assigned every 4th batter, and we were each awarded points based on the number of bases your batter earned. After all was said and done, I recorded a modest profit of $3. All of those profits came when Tony Batista (below) hit a grand slam in the 8th inning for the Twins. The game seemed already out of reach, so I wasn't overly disappointed when the Brewers' opponent hit the homer.
After the game ended, we planned on visiting Hartfest in Wauwatosa. By the time we got near the festivites, however, the festival was already winding down. Rather than going there, we simply decided to visit a local drinking emporium on State Street. However, before heading there, we found ourselves standing next to the local high school football stadium. Venturing inside, Jared, myself and Brian wagered $1 apiece on a 400-yard dash. Brian jumped out to the early lead, but I was able to reel him in and claimed the $2 profit. I probably ran the 400 yards in 90 seconds, but that was good enough to win the drunken late-night race. Woo Hoo!!
And so ended the night of gambling. Although a wide variety of drinks were consumed at the drinking emporium, no more wagers were placed that night. I finally went to bed 21 hours after getting up at 5:30am, so it was a long, long, long day! At the same time, the Sketchbook sees a wildly successful profit of $5 today. Yay!
Daily Sketch: Up $5
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $584.28
I lost a quick $2 on the practice putting green to Jared. Apparently, I'm not a very good putter when the sun has barely cleared the horizon!
The round started pretty well. I birdied the 2nd hole and shot a 43 on the opening nine holes. Jared was giving me a stroke on 7 of the holes (his handicap is 14 strokes better than mine), and my 43 proved good enough to win $6. So, I was up $4 when we hit the first turn. I was feeling pretty good about my game!
Unfortunately, the next nine holes didn't go nearly as well. After earning a 2nd birdie of the day on the 11th hole, my round fell apart. I had a 9, two 8's, and a 7 (on a par 3), and I proceeded to shoot a 54 - giving me an 18-hole score of 97. Along the way, I lost $8 on the back nine and found myself down $4 for the day.
It wasn't even noon yet, so Jared, Rusty, and myself decided to play the last 9 holes that the course had to offer. Similar to the first 18 holes, I played a buck-a-hole against Jared, but Rusty and I decided to bet $5 on our final 9-hole score.
I shot a semi-respectable 47, but Jared struggled with a 45. So, I won $4 back from him. At the same time, Rusty also shot a 47, and when he missed a clutch 5-foot putt on the final hole, we pushed and neither of us could claim the $5. So . . . sadly, my 27 holes of golf resulted in $0 gains or losses. That, my friends, is a boring entry when you're writing a Sketchbook!
After the long round of golf, we started making preparations for the Brewer game. A few beers were consumed, a few brats were devoured, and I found myself sitting in Section 121 at Miller Park with Jared, Jason, and Brian when the first pitch was thrown.
Our wagers were modest during the game. Each of us was assigned every 4th batter, and we were each awarded points based on the number of bases your batter earned. After all was said and done, I recorded a modest profit of $3. All of those profits came when Tony Batista (below) hit a grand slam in the 8th inning for the Twins. The game seemed already out of reach, so I wasn't overly disappointed when the Brewers' opponent hit the homer.
After the game ended, we planned on visiting Hartfest in Wauwatosa. By the time we got near the festivites, however, the festival was already winding down. Rather than going there, we simply decided to visit a local drinking emporium on State Street. However, before heading there, we found ourselves standing next to the local high school football stadium. Venturing inside, Jared, myself and Brian wagered $1 apiece on a 400-yard dash. Brian jumped out to the early lead, but I was able to reel him in and claimed the $2 profit. I probably ran the 400 yards in 90 seconds, but that was good enough to win the drunken late-night race. Woo Hoo!!
And so ended the night of gambling. Although a wide variety of drinks were consumed at the drinking emporium, no more wagers were placed that night. I finally went to bed 21 hours after getting up at 5:30am, so it was a long, long, long day! At the same time, the Sketchbook sees a wildly successful profit of $5 today. Yay!
Daily Sketch: Up $5
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $584.28
May 18, 2006: Chasing a $500k Entry
I'd like to play in another $500k Guaranteed Tournament on Party Poker. However, I'd rather not ante up the $215 it would otherwise cost to play. So, with that in mind, I'm going to try to win a smaller satellite into the tournament. That way, I'll feel better if I limp into the money, 'cuz I won't have invested as much money into the process.
With this new goal in mind, I sat down at a 6-man $2/$4 table for 30 minutes this evening. I found a little bit of success and eventually left the table with a profit of exactly $26. I won nearly a buck-a-minute . . . that's not bad!
I took the $26 and entered a 10-man qualifier for a $500k Tourney. First place gets an entry into the big tourney, and 2nd place gets $25. It costs exactly $26 to play in one of these qualifying tournaments, so that helps to explain why I left the $2/$4 table with that amount of profit tonight.
I found success relatively early. Dealt AA, another player holding 88 went "all in" ahead of me - allowing me to nearly double-up during the first round of hands.
For the longest hand, I simply hung on to my pile of chips. Slowly yet surely, player after player dropped out. When we got down to 4 players, I was the low stack.
I proceeded to catch a few good cards and eventually got down to the final 2 players. My luck ran out, however, and I finished in 2nd place. I won $25 back, but I would have much rather finished 1st and earned the $215 entry into a $500k qualifier.
Oh, well . . . I guess I'll try again another night. In the interim, I experienced a small profit tonight.
Daily Sketch: Up $25
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $579.28
With this new goal in mind, I sat down at a 6-man $2/$4 table for 30 minutes this evening. I found a little bit of success and eventually left the table with a profit of exactly $26. I won nearly a buck-a-minute . . . that's not bad!
I took the $26 and entered a 10-man qualifier for a $500k Tourney. First place gets an entry into the big tourney, and 2nd place gets $25. It costs exactly $26 to play in one of these qualifying tournaments, so that helps to explain why I left the $2/$4 table with that amount of profit tonight.
I found success relatively early. Dealt AA, another player holding 88 went "all in" ahead of me - allowing me to nearly double-up during the first round of hands.
For the longest hand, I simply hung on to my pile of chips. Slowly yet surely, player after player dropped out. When we got down to 4 players, I was the low stack.
I proceeded to catch a few good cards and eventually got down to the final 2 players. My luck ran out, however, and I finished in 2nd place. I won $25 back, but I would have much rather finished 1st and earned the $215 entry into a $500k qualifier.
Oh, well . . . I guess I'll try again another night. In the interim, I experienced a small profit tonight.
Daily Sketch: Up $25
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $579.28
May 17,2006: I Won't Give it Back!
I haven't played any poker the past few days. As part of her job, Theresa was given an IPOD and I've been spending a lot of my free time organizing the MP3 files we've got on our home computer. As a result, I've stayed away from the exciting world of online poker. Besides, I haven't won any money since my windfall two weekends ago, so I haven't been clammering to get back online.
Tonight, I ventured onto Party Poker, however, and joined a 10-man $20(2) tournament. I did pretty well and finished in 3rd place. I was the chip leader when we reached 3 players, but my cards COMPLETELY dried up and couldn't do any better than claiming the $40 3rd place prize.
I took the $40 to a 6-man $1/$2 table and my string of bad cards continued. It took 20 minutes, but I lost all $40. It's a good thing I didn't find such luck at a higher stakes table, 'cuz the $40 would have been MUCH more significant.
I'm determined to keep most of the money I won in the $500k Guaranteed Tournament. So, after losing the $40, I decided to retire for the night. After all was said and done, I lost $22 tonight.
Daily Sketch: Down $22
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $554.28
Tonight, I ventured onto Party Poker, however, and joined a 10-man $20(2) tournament. I did pretty well and finished in 3rd place. I was the chip leader when we reached 3 players, but my cards COMPLETELY dried up and couldn't do any better than claiming the $40 3rd place prize.
I took the $40 to a 6-man $1/$2 table and my string of bad cards continued. It took 20 minutes, but I lost all $40. It's a good thing I didn't find such luck at a higher stakes table, 'cuz the $40 would have been MUCH more significant.
I'm determined to keep most of the money I won in the $500k Guaranteed Tournament. So, after losing the $40, I decided to retire for the night. After all was said and done, I lost $22 tonight.
Daily Sketch: Down $22
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $554.28
May 13, 2006: $2/$4 Losses
I spent a frustrating 50 minutes on-line today. I decided to play at a 6-man $2/$4 table on Party Poker and couldn't get lucky. I was down a quick $20 and eventually ended my session down an ugly $100. I was never ahead.
The last hand typified my day. Down to my last $18, I was dealt J♥ J♣ and made a raise. I was called by one opponent. The flop came J◊ 10♥ A♠. I continued to bet and my opponent continued to call. The turn was a 2♣. The river was a K◊.
All the while the cards appeared on the board, I kept betting - until all of my $18 was in the middle. After all was said and done, my opponent flipped over Q♥ 2♠ and he claimed the pot with the straight. Ugh!
Daily Sketch: Down $100
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $576.28
The last hand typified my day. Down to my last $18, I was dealt J♥ J♣ and made a raise. I was called by one opponent. The flop came J◊ 10♥ A♠. I continued to bet and my opponent continued to call. The turn was a 2♣. The river was a K◊.
All the while the cards appeared on the board, I kept betting - until all of my $18 was in the middle. After all was said and done, my opponent flipped over Q♥ 2♠ and he claimed the pot with the straight. Ugh!
Daily Sketch: Down $100
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $576.28
May 12, 2006: Poker at Tom's
I played money at Tom's house this evening with Tom, Jared, Art, Chris, and Rob.
We began our night with your usual $5 hold 'em tournament. I did pretty well and finished in 2nd place - netting me a profit of $5. Art won the tournament and claimed the $20 first place prize.
Unfortunately, I didn't find much luck the rest of the night and proceeded to lose exactly $28.20 the rest of the night. Offsetting those losses against the $5 I made in the tourney, the Sketchbook sees a loss of $23.20.
Oh, well. That's cheap entertainment for a night of good times!
Daily Sketch: Down $23.20
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $676.28
We began our night with your usual $5 hold 'em tournament. I did pretty well and finished in 2nd place - netting me a profit of $5. Art won the tournament and claimed the $20 first place prize.
Unfortunately, I didn't find much luck the rest of the night and proceeded to lose exactly $28.20 the rest of the night. Offsetting those losses against the $5 I made in the tourney, the Sketchbook sees a loss of $23.20.
Oh, well. That's cheap entertainment for a night of good times!
Daily Sketch: Down $23.20
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $676.28
May 11, 2006: One Quick Tourney, One Quick Exit
Similar to last night, I played one 10-man $50(5) Tournament this evening. It's a good thing I'm up this month, or tonight's loss might have stung a bit more than it did.
We were down to 6 players and I was limping along with 1,270 chips. Sitting in the big blind, I'm dealt K♥ K♣. Everyone folds around to me and I go "all in" with my diminished stack. Usually, I'd make a modest raise at this point, but the big blind was the overwhelming chip leader (he had over 5,000 chips) and I thought he might call my bet regardless.
My hunch was correct. He called my bet and flipped over 2♣ 2◊. I was a big favorite.
The flop came 2♥ 5♣ A◊ and I eventually lost to his set. Ugh!
Daily Sketch: Down $55
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $699.98
We were down to 6 players and I was limping along with 1,270 chips. Sitting in the big blind, I'm dealt K♥ K♣. Everyone folds around to me and I go "all in" with my diminished stack. Usually, I'd make a modest raise at this point, but the big blind was the overwhelming chip leader (he had over 5,000 chips) and I thought he might call my bet regardless.
My hunch was correct. He called my bet and flipped over 2♣ 2◊. I was a big favorite.
The flop came 2♥ 5♣ A◊ and I eventually lost to his set. Ugh!
Daily Sketch: Down $55
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $699.98
May 10, 2006: One Sit 'n' Go
I didn't spend a lot of time online this evening. In fact, I only played one 10-man $30(3) Tournament tonight.
Unfortunately, things didn't go particularly well. I didn't seem to catch many good cards, and when I did - I lost. Eventually, my starting stack of 2,000 chips was reduced to 880 when I was dealt J♠ K♠. The blinds were 100/200 and I raised the bet to 400 chips. Only one person (the big blind) called my bet and we witnessed a flop of 2♥ 5♠ 6♠. Down to 480 chips, I went "all in" and my opponent called my bet. He flipped over A♣ 6◊.
I needed a spade, a jack, or a king to stay alive. None of those things happened and I was eliminated in 7th place. Ooops!
Daily Sketch: Down $33
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $754.98
Unfortunately, things didn't go particularly well. I didn't seem to catch many good cards, and when I did - I lost. Eventually, my starting stack of 2,000 chips was reduced to 880 when I was dealt J♠ K♠. The blinds were 100/200 and I raised the bet to 400 chips. Only one person (the big blind) called my bet and we witnessed a flop of 2♥ 5♠ 6♠. Down to 480 chips, I went "all in" and my opponent called my bet. He flipped over A♣ 6◊.
I needed a spade, a jack, or a king to stay alive. None of those things happened and I was eliminated in 7th place. Ooops!
Daily Sketch: Down $33
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $754.98
May 9, 2006: Party Poker Guaranteed $20k Tourney
Fresh off my success this past weekend, I decided to enter another Party Poker multi-table tournament this evening. The buy-in for tonight's event ($11) was significantly lower than Sunday's buy-in ($215) and the guaranteed payout for tonight's tournament ($20k) was also significantly less than Sunday's guaranteed payout ($500k).
Here's how it went:
7:30pm -> A grand total of 2,201 people have signed up to play. The top prize is $4,623 and the top 220 finishers will win money. Of course, 220th place is only going to get $15.40, so it won't be worth a lot of money if I simply limp into the Top 220. I'll hafta crack the top 30 ($116) to make any significant cash this evening.
8:00pm -> We're 30 minutes into the tournament and I've already won a couple nice pots. Starting with 3,000 chips, I'm currently sitting on 4,466 chips. Meanwhile, a player at my table was just eliminated. He finished in 1,645th place. In half-an-hour, nearly 25% of the field has already been eliminated. I had thought that this tournament would take 6 hours to play. My estimate may be high - especially if people keep falling out at this pace.
8:09pm -> The blinds are 50/100 and I've got 4,962 chips. I'm dealt A◊ Q◊ and limp into the pot. Three of us watch a flop of 7♥ Q♠ J◊. I'm done slow-playing this hand, so I bet 600 chips and one of my opponents calls my bet. The turn is a K♠. My opponent barely has 1,200 chips, so I decide to go "all in" and put him to the test. He quickly calls my bet and flips over Q♥ T♠. My ace kicker has the lead and I scoop a big pot when the river is an otherwise meaningless K♥. After this hand, I'm up to 7,412 chips and feeling pretty good about things.
8:30pm -> We've reached the 1-hour break and I've got 6,560 chips. We're down to 983 players already - which means that the average person has 6,758 chips. Despite the fact that I feel pretty good about my play thus far, I simply have an average stack. With such a tiny buy-in, it appears that people are playing rather loose. The chip leader already has 34,539 chips. Yikes! Remembering the lesson I learned on Sunday, I'm going to avoid going crazy with my stack.
8:50pm -> Ugh! I just gave away half my stack. With the blinds up to 150/300, I'm dealt A♠ J♣ and I raise the pot to 600 chips. I'm called by one player and the flop comes 8♣ 3♥ Q♣. We both check and the turn is a J♥. I bet 300 chips and my opponent calls. The river is a 9◊. I bet 300 chips and my opponent raises to 1,100 chips. I call the bet, my opponent flips over A♥ T♠, and he takes the pot with the straight. Ugh! I'm down to 3,185 chips. Needless to say, that hurt! We're down to 715 players, and the average stack is nearly 10,000 chips.
9:07pm -> After having won a small pot a couple minutes ago, I'm dealt 5♣ 5♥ while holding 4,370 chips. I limp into the pot (I'm the small blind) and three of us witness a flop. It comes 3♠ 3♥ 2◊. One of my opponents bets 1,200 chips and I decide to make a move. I go "all in" and breathe a sigh of relief when he folds. I'm up to 6,770 chips and we're down to 513 players.
9:35pm -> We've just reached the 2-hour break. To put it mildly, my cards stink! I seem to be getting 9-2 (unsuited) every hand. The blinds are 600/1200 and I'm down to 2,370 chips. I am inching towards the money (there are 324 players still alive), but I'll be surprised if I can duplicate Sunday's efforts and win anything of significance this evening. The overall chip leader is at my table. He has 84,298 chips.
9:42pm -> The big blind (1,200 chips) has come around to me and I've only got 2,220 chips. Two players raise the bet and I toss in my last 1,020 chips while holding 8◊ J♣. It's time to say goodbye. The flop comes T♠ K♣ Q♣. Hmmmm . . . I've flopped an open-ended straight. The turn is an A♠. Hmmmm . . . I've just hit my straight. The river is a 4♠. Thankfully, no one has a flush and I win 7,610 chips. Woo hoo!!
9:44pm -> Dealt Q♠ Q◊, I go "all in" with my 6,810 chips. I'm called by one player, who flips over 5♣ 5♥. The board comes 6♣ 7◊ 3◊ 8◊ 5◊. When I see that last five hit the board, I curse my fate. I thought I lost to the 3-of-a-kind, but my back door flush scoops the pot. Just like that, I'm up to 15,920 chips.
9:48pm -> Queens are suddenly attracted to me. Dealt Q♠ Q♣, an opponent acting ahead of me goes "all in" with his last 6,044 chips. I have him covered and eagerly match his bet. He flips over T◊ T♣ and I have a big lead. Unfortunately, the flop comes T♥ K♠ 8◊ and I'm suddenly way behind. I don't catch any help from the turn or river, and I lose the pot. Just as quickly as the poker gods gave me chips, they took a chunk of them away. I'm back down to 8,676 chips. Ugh! The swings of no-limit poker can be pretty wild, ehh?
10:05pm -> The 221st person has just been eliminated, which means I'm assured of a payout of $15.40. It's not a lot of money, but it feels pretty good to make the money nonetheless. Unfortunately, my cards have deteriorated again and I'm back down to 4,026 chips. The blinds are 800/1600 and racing around towards me. I need more Queens!
10:10pm -> The big blind is one spot away and I'm dealt 2◊ 2♣. I go "all in" and pray that only one person calls me. Answering my prayer, one opponent holding K◊ A♠ calls my bet and everyone else folds. It's a race! The flop comes J♠ A◊ T♠ and my fate is sealed. The turn and river are no help and I lose to the pair of aces.
After all is said and done, I finished in 198th place in Party Poker's Guaranteed $20k Tournament and I was awarded $15.40 for my efforts. That netted me a profit of a whopping $4.40 this evening. Woo hoo!!
Daily Sketch: Up $4.40
Month-to-Date Sketch: $787.98
Here's how it went:
7:30pm -> A grand total of 2,201 people have signed up to play. The top prize is $4,623 and the top 220 finishers will win money. Of course, 220th place is only going to get $15.40, so it won't be worth a lot of money if I simply limp into the Top 220. I'll hafta crack the top 30 ($116) to make any significant cash this evening.
8:00pm -> We're 30 minutes into the tournament and I've already won a couple nice pots. Starting with 3,000 chips, I'm currently sitting on 4,466 chips. Meanwhile, a player at my table was just eliminated. He finished in 1,645th place. In half-an-hour, nearly 25% of the field has already been eliminated. I had thought that this tournament would take 6 hours to play. My estimate may be high - especially if people keep falling out at this pace.
8:09pm -> The blinds are 50/100 and I've got 4,962 chips. I'm dealt A◊ Q◊ and limp into the pot. Three of us watch a flop of 7♥ Q♠ J◊. I'm done slow-playing this hand, so I bet 600 chips and one of my opponents calls my bet. The turn is a K♠. My opponent barely has 1,200 chips, so I decide to go "all in" and put him to the test. He quickly calls my bet and flips over Q♥ T♠. My ace kicker has the lead and I scoop a big pot when the river is an otherwise meaningless K♥. After this hand, I'm up to 7,412 chips and feeling pretty good about things.
8:30pm -> We've reached the 1-hour break and I've got 6,560 chips. We're down to 983 players already - which means that the average person has 6,758 chips. Despite the fact that I feel pretty good about my play thus far, I simply have an average stack. With such a tiny buy-in, it appears that people are playing rather loose. The chip leader already has 34,539 chips. Yikes! Remembering the lesson I learned on Sunday, I'm going to avoid going crazy with my stack.
8:50pm -> Ugh! I just gave away half my stack. With the blinds up to 150/300, I'm dealt A♠ J♣ and I raise the pot to 600 chips. I'm called by one player and the flop comes 8♣ 3♥ Q♣. We both check and the turn is a J♥. I bet 300 chips and my opponent calls. The river is a 9◊. I bet 300 chips and my opponent raises to 1,100 chips. I call the bet, my opponent flips over A♥ T♠, and he takes the pot with the straight. Ugh! I'm down to 3,185 chips. Needless to say, that hurt! We're down to 715 players, and the average stack is nearly 10,000 chips.
9:07pm -> After having won a small pot a couple minutes ago, I'm dealt 5♣ 5♥ while holding 4,370 chips. I limp into the pot (I'm the small blind) and three of us witness a flop. It comes 3♠ 3♥ 2◊. One of my opponents bets 1,200 chips and I decide to make a move. I go "all in" and breathe a sigh of relief when he folds. I'm up to 6,770 chips and we're down to 513 players.
9:35pm -> We've just reached the 2-hour break. To put it mildly, my cards stink! I seem to be getting 9-2 (unsuited) every hand. The blinds are 600/1200 and I'm down to 2,370 chips. I am inching towards the money (there are 324 players still alive), but I'll be surprised if I can duplicate Sunday's efforts and win anything of significance this evening. The overall chip leader is at my table. He has 84,298 chips.
9:42pm -> The big blind (1,200 chips) has come around to me and I've only got 2,220 chips. Two players raise the bet and I toss in my last 1,020 chips while holding 8◊ J♣. It's time to say goodbye. The flop comes T♠ K♣ Q♣. Hmmmm . . . I've flopped an open-ended straight. The turn is an A♠. Hmmmm . . . I've just hit my straight. The river is a 4♠. Thankfully, no one has a flush and I win 7,610 chips. Woo hoo!!
9:44pm -> Dealt Q♠ Q◊, I go "all in" with my 6,810 chips. I'm called by one player, who flips over 5♣ 5♥. The board comes 6♣ 7◊ 3◊ 8◊ 5◊. When I see that last five hit the board, I curse my fate. I thought I lost to the 3-of-a-kind, but my back door flush scoops the pot. Just like that, I'm up to 15,920 chips.
9:48pm -> Queens are suddenly attracted to me. Dealt Q♠ Q♣, an opponent acting ahead of me goes "all in" with his last 6,044 chips. I have him covered and eagerly match his bet. He flips over T◊ T♣ and I have a big lead. Unfortunately, the flop comes T♥ K♠ 8◊ and I'm suddenly way behind. I don't catch any help from the turn or river, and I lose the pot. Just as quickly as the poker gods gave me chips, they took a chunk of them away. I'm back down to 8,676 chips. Ugh! The swings of no-limit poker can be pretty wild, ehh?
10:05pm -> The 221st person has just been eliminated, which means I'm assured of a payout of $15.40. It's not a lot of money, but it feels pretty good to make the money nonetheless. Unfortunately, my cards have deteriorated again and I'm back down to 4,026 chips. The blinds are 800/1600 and racing around towards me. I need more Queens!
10:10pm -> The big blind is one spot away and I'm dealt 2◊ 2♣. I go "all in" and pray that only one person calls me. Answering my prayer, one opponent holding K◊ A♠ calls my bet and everyone else folds. It's a race! The flop comes J♠ A◊ T♠ and my fate is sealed. The turn and river are no help and I lose to the pair of aces.
After all is said and done, I finished in 198th place in Party Poker's Guaranteed $20k Tournament and I was awarded $15.40 for my efforts. That netted me a profit of a whopping $4.40 this evening. Woo hoo!!
Daily Sketch: Up $4.40
Month-to-Date Sketch: $787.98
May 7, 2006: Party Poker Guaranteed $500k Tourney (Conclusion)
When last we left you, our hero (me!) had just made the money in Party Poker's Sunday Guaranteed $500k Tourney. Of the original 2,912 players that had ponied up $215, we were down to the final 400 players. With 3 1/2 hours of poker already under my belt and a guaranteed payout of $291.20 in my back pocket, I felt lucky to even make the money. After all, I had been previously reduced to 1,390 chips and felt very lucky to be up to 9,973 chips at this point in the tourney. Here's how the rest of the action went . . .
7:09pm -> The blinds are up to 1000/2000. A round of blinds has just passed through me and I'm down to 6,148 chips. If I want to make the next level of payouts, I'll need to last all the way to 340th place. Of course, the payout only increases to $302.84 at that point, so it's not a significant bump. In addition, with the blinds this large, I'll probably need to go "all in" the first time I get a decent hand. My chances of going much farther are pretty slim.
7:13pm -> Sitting in the big blind, I'm dealt A♥ J◊. Everyone folds to the small blind, who goes "all in" with a stack of chips significantly larger than my own. I'm forced to call, and my opponent flips over 4♥ K◊. Thankfully, an ace appears on the flop and I survive. Now I'm up to 13,896 chips. People are dropping out mighty quickly, so I think I'll survive to the next level.
7:25pm -> Another round of blinds has passed through me. I've been a folding machine, and I'm sitting with 11,071 chips. Despite the fact that I haven't won a hand in a while, I'm moving up the ladder. We're already down to 287 players. Amazingly, 113 people have fallen out of this tourney in the past 20 minutes. A lot of people aimed for 400th place and started going crazy once they knew they were in the money.
7:53pm -> The past 28 minutes have been rather uneventful. I've folded every hand I've seen and I'm down to 7,146 chips. At the same time, people are dropping faster than flies. A particular player at my table (Wiskid) begins the last hand with 39,269 chips but is eliminated when he goes all in (preflop) while holding J♣ J♥. Another player holding A♠ Q♠ calls the bet and wins the pot when another queen appears on the board. For his effort, Wiskid wins $349.44 for finishing in 195th place. My prospective payday continues to climb as I continue to fold these ugly cards.
7:59pm -> The blinds have increased to 2000/4000. Sitting in the big blind with a mere 6,846 chips, I'm going to hafta go "all in" no matter what's dealt to me. Miraculously, I'm dealt a beautiful A♠ K♠. One opponent goes "all in" ahead of me and flips over 4◊ 4♣. It's a race! The flop comes T♣ T♥ K◊ and I proceed to scoop the pot. Woo hoo!! After this hand, I'm back up to 20,492 chips and eagerly waiting for more people to drop out.
8:14pm -> My strategy is basic. I'm simply waiting for premiums hand to go "all in" with and praying for the best. With a tiny stack of chips, I really can't do anything else. Interestingly, I'm getting terrible cards - which is probably making me money. I've folded every hand the last 15 minutes and I'm down to 13,392 chips. At the same time, another player at my table who begins a hand with 35,940 chips is eliminated in 141st place ($372.73) when he goes "all in" (preflop) while holding A◊ K◊. He loses to another player who calls the bet while holding 8◊ 8♠. The pocket 8's hold up.
8:17pm -> The blinds are up to 3000/6000 and the big blind has just passed through me. In fact, I was just dealt 3s 6h while in the big blind and I had to fold - despite the fact that it cost me 6,000 chips to see those ugly cards. Now I'm sitting in the small blind and I'm down to a paltry 7,092 chips. Of the 140 players still alive, I am the low stack. With the small blind eating away nearly half my stack on this hand, I'm pot committed - no matter what I'm dealt. The cards go around and I'm staring at J♠ J♣. Everyone folds to me and I go "all in" with the last of my chips. My only opponent (the big blind) makes the tiny call and flips over T♥ K♠. He gets no help from the board and I scoop the pot. Suddenly, I've got 14,984 chips and I'm going to be able to survive a bit longer. I am getting VERY lucky! I seem to be catching cards at the most opportune time. Woo Hoo!!
8:24pm -> The big blind comes back around and I'm staring at an ugly T♠ 6◊. Everyone folds to me, however, and I'm going to survive another round. We are down to 125 players and the last guy eliminated won $465.92. My payout is starting to look nice - despite the fact that I'm winning very few hands.
8:34pm -> The blinds are up to 4000/8000. Once again, I've let the big blind pass thru me. At this point, I'm sitting with a pitiful 5,684 chips and I'm forced to throw in 4,000 chips as the small blind. Once again, I'm pot committed - no matter what's dealt to me. Everyone folds to me and I'm staring at K♥ 6♣. I go "all in" and watch the board intently. I don't have enough chips to cover the big blind, so the two of us watch the board. Thankfully, he's got a pitiful 8♣ 2♣. The board comes 3♥ T◊ T♠ K♣ 6♣ and I scoop another pot. I've got 12,968 chips.
8:42pm -> The blinds race back around to me. Holding 11,368 chips, I toss 8,000 chips into the middle as the big blind. I'm probably pot committed, but we'll never know. I'm dealt a disgusting 6♣ 2♣, but everyone folds to me and I survive another round of action. We're down to 90 players and the last player eliminated won $582.40. How am I still playing?!? I've been the low stack for the past 30 minutes, but I'm still alive.
8:55pm -> I'm dealt 9♠ 9◊ and go "all in" with my tiny pile of chips. Amazingly, this nice hand arrives before the small or big blind gets to me. A player with over 77,000 chips calls my bet and flips over A♠ J♠. I need to win another race! The flop comes 8♠ 3♣ 9♣ and my set of 9's eventually takes the pot. All of a sudden, I have 42,504 chips. I've been playing poker for over 5 hours, and this is the most chips I've held.
8:56pm -> The other players at the table have recognized that I've been on the edge of elimination for the past two hours. One player types "Stv, you, not the cockroach or twinkies, will be the only survivor of a nuclear war... :-)" Without doubt, I have gotten very lucky to get this far. Still, for every 10 players that get eliminated, the pay increases - so I'm not complaining. In fact, the last player eliminated finished in 78th place and won a healthy $752.30.
9:09pm -> The blinds are up to 6000/12000 and I've been whittled back down to 22,504 chips. By way of comparison, the next lowest stack at my table has 97,188 chips. I'm one hand away from seeing the big blind, and I'm dealt K♠ A◊. Naturally, I go "all in" with my chips. Everyone folds to the big blind, who only needs to throw 10,504 more chips into the pot to match my bet. Despite the fact that he's holding 9♣ 6♠, he makes the call. The flop comes 9◊ 7♣ T♥ and I'm in trouble. My opponent has flopped a pair. The turn is a 4♥. I'm in REALLY BIG trouble. The river is a 4◊ and I'm finally eliminated from the tournament. Ugh!!
After all was said and done, I finished the tournament in 67th place - which means that I beat 2,845 players. For my efforts, I was awarded a prize of $990.08 - which means that I netted a profit of exactly $775.08 while playing Party Poker's Guaranteed $500k Tournament.
For all the luck I experienced today, it's ironic that I was eliminated by an ugly 9♣ 6♠. Oh, well. What can you do? I still feel fortunate to have finished as well as I did. I really wish, however, that I had gotten some better cards during the last 90 minutes I treaded water. I might have enjoyed playing poker, rather than simply playing the waiting game. However, as I wrote earlier, my ugly cards probably kept me from going bust and allowed me to experience the healthy payday.
I got lucky that I joined this tournament a scant 3 minutes before it began, so I really don't have any right to complain. Instead, I'll simply take the money and run!! It's nice to see the Sketchbook with a healthy profit.
Daily Sketch: Up $775.08
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $783.58
7:09pm -> The blinds are up to 1000/2000. A round of blinds has just passed through me and I'm down to 6,148 chips. If I want to make the next level of payouts, I'll need to last all the way to 340th place. Of course, the payout only increases to $302.84 at that point, so it's not a significant bump. In addition, with the blinds this large, I'll probably need to go "all in" the first time I get a decent hand. My chances of going much farther are pretty slim.
7:13pm -> Sitting in the big blind, I'm dealt A♥ J◊. Everyone folds to the small blind, who goes "all in" with a stack of chips significantly larger than my own. I'm forced to call, and my opponent flips over 4♥ K◊. Thankfully, an ace appears on the flop and I survive. Now I'm up to 13,896 chips. People are dropping out mighty quickly, so I think I'll survive to the next level.
7:25pm -> Another round of blinds has passed through me. I've been a folding machine, and I'm sitting with 11,071 chips. Despite the fact that I haven't won a hand in a while, I'm moving up the ladder. We're already down to 287 players. Amazingly, 113 people have fallen out of this tourney in the past 20 minutes. A lot of people aimed for 400th place and started going crazy once they knew they were in the money.
7:53pm -> The past 28 minutes have been rather uneventful. I've folded every hand I've seen and I'm down to 7,146 chips. At the same time, people are dropping faster than flies. A particular player at my table (Wiskid) begins the last hand with 39,269 chips but is eliminated when he goes all in (preflop) while holding J♣ J♥. Another player holding A♠ Q♠ calls the bet and wins the pot when another queen appears on the board. For his effort, Wiskid wins $349.44 for finishing in 195th place. My prospective payday continues to climb as I continue to fold these ugly cards.
7:59pm -> The blinds have increased to 2000/4000. Sitting in the big blind with a mere 6,846 chips, I'm going to hafta go "all in" no matter what's dealt to me. Miraculously, I'm dealt a beautiful A♠ K♠. One opponent goes "all in" ahead of me and flips over 4◊ 4♣. It's a race! The flop comes T♣ T♥ K◊ and I proceed to scoop the pot. Woo hoo!! After this hand, I'm back up to 20,492 chips and eagerly waiting for more people to drop out.
8:14pm -> My strategy is basic. I'm simply waiting for premiums hand to go "all in" with and praying for the best. With a tiny stack of chips, I really can't do anything else. Interestingly, I'm getting terrible cards - which is probably making me money. I've folded every hand the last 15 minutes and I'm down to 13,392 chips. At the same time, another player at my table who begins a hand with 35,940 chips is eliminated in 141st place ($372.73) when he goes "all in" (preflop) while holding A◊ K◊. He loses to another player who calls the bet while holding 8◊ 8♠. The pocket 8's hold up.
8:17pm -> The blinds are up to 3000/6000 and the big blind has just passed through me. In fact, I was just dealt 3s 6h while in the big blind and I had to fold - despite the fact that it cost me 6,000 chips to see those ugly cards. Now I'm sitting in the small blind and I'm down to a paltry 7,092 chips. Of the 140 players still alive, I am the low stack. With the small blind eating away nearly half my stack on this hand, I'm pot committed - no matter what I'm dealt. The cards go around and I'm staring at J♠ J♣. Everyone folds to me and I go "all in" with the last of my chips. My only opponent (the big blind) makes the tiny call and flips over T♥ K♠. He gets no help from the board and I scoop the pot. Suddenly, I've got 14,984 chips and I'm going to be able to survive a bit longer. I am getting VERY lucky! I seem to be catching cards at the most opportune time. Woo Hoo!!
8:24pm -> The big blind comes back around and I'm staring at an ugly T♠ 6◊. Everyone folds to me, however, and I'm going to survive another round. We are down to 125 players and the last guy eliminated won $465.92. My payout is starting to look nice - despite the fact that I'm winning very few hands.
8:34pm -> The blinds are up to 4000/8000. Once again, I've let the big blind pass thru me. At this point, I'm sitting with a pitiful 5,684 chips and I'm forced to throw in 4,000 chips as the small blind. Once again, I'm pot committed - no matter what's dealt to me. Everyone folds to me and I'm staring at K♥ 6♣. I go "all in" and watch the board intently. I don't have enough chips to cover the big blind, so the two of us watch the board. Thankfully, he's got a pitiful 8♣ 2♣. The board comes 3♥ T◊ T♠ K♣ 6♣ and I scoop another pot. I've got 12,968 chips.
8:42pm -> The blinds race back around to me. Holding 11,368 chips, I toss 8,000 chips into the middle as the big blind. I'm probably pot committed, but we'll never know. I'm dealt a disgusting 6♣ 2♣, but everyone folds to me and I survive another round of action. We're down to 90 players and the last player eliminated won $582.40. How am I still playing?!? I've been the low stack for the past 30 minutes, but I'm still alive.
8:55pm -> I'm dealt 9♠ 9◊ and go "all in" with my tiny pile of chips. Amazingly, this nice hand arrives before the small or big blind gets to me. A player with over 77,000 chips calls my bet and flips over A♠ J♠. I need to win another race! The flop comes 8♠ 3♣ 9♣ and my set of 9's eventually takes the pot. All of a sudden, I have 42,504 chips. I've been playing poker for over 5 hours, and this is the most chips I've held.
8:56pm -> The other players at the table have recognized that I've been on the edge of elimination for the past two hours. One player types "Stv, you, not the cockroach or twinkies, will be the only survivor of a nuclear war... :-)" Without doubt, I have gotten very lucky to get this far. Still, for every 10 players that get eliminated, the pay increases - so I'm not complaining. In fact, the last player eliminated finished in 78th place and won a healthy $752.30.
9:09pm -> The blinds are up to 6000/12000 and I've been whittled back down to 22,504 chips. By way of comparison, the next lowest stack at my table has 97,188 chips. I'm one hand away from seeing the big blind, and I'm dealt K♠ A◊. Naturally, I go "all in" with my chips. Everyone folds to the big blind, who only needs to throw 10,504 more chips into the pot to match my bet. Despite the fact that he's holding 9♣ 6♠, he makes the call. The flop comes 9◊ 7♣ T♥ and I'm in trouble. My opponent has flopped a pair. The turn is a 4♥. I'm in REALLY BIG trouble. The river is a 4◊ and I'm finally eliminated from the tournament. Ugh!!
After all was said and done, I finished the tournament in 67th place - which means that I beat 2,845 players. For my efforts, I was awarded a prize of $990.08 - which means that I netted a profit of exactly $775.08 while playing Party Poker's Guaranteed $500k Tournament.
For all the luck I experienced today, it's ironic that I was eliminated by an ugly 9♣ 6♠. Oh, well. What can you do? I still feel fortunate to have finished as well as I did. I really wish, however, that I had gotten some better cards during the last 90 minutes I treaded water. I might have enjoyed playing poker, rather than simply playing the waiting game. However, as I wrote earlier, my ugly cards probably kept me from going bust and allowed me to experience the healthy payday.
I got lucky that I joined this tournament a scant 3 minutes before it began, so I really don't have any right to complain. Instead, I'll simply take the money and run!! It's nice to see the Sketchbook with a healthy profit.
Daily Sketch: Up $775.08
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $783.58
May 7, 2006: Party Poker Guaranteed $500k Tourney
I hadn't planned on playing poker today. In fact, I had planned on spending a quiet afternoon in the apartment watching the Brewers play the Dodgers on TV while simultaneously checking into the NBA playoffs. Theresa was going to a friend's birthday party, and I was going to be all alone. I was looking forward to a relaxing day!
At 3:25pm, however, I was already bored. The Brewers were losing and the Pistons were blowing out the Cleveland Cavaliers. So, I decided to check into Party Poker to see if anyone I knew was logged into the software. If nothing else, I thought I'd watch a buddy play.
Unfortunately, no one was logged into the system. So, I started exploring the site and noticed that Party's $500k Guaranteed Tournament was about to begin. This is one of the biggest poker tournaments on the entire internet, and over 2,900 people had already registered to play. Throwing caution into the wind, I decided to ante up the $215 buy-in and joined the fun. So much for staying away from poker, ehhh?
Officially, I registered at 3:27pm - or just three minutes before the tournament began. Here's how it went:
3:30pm -> I've been seated at my table. Exactly 2,912 people have signed up to play. The top 400 people will receive money, and first place is guaranteed to take home $116,480.84. At the same time, 400th place will win $291.20. I've crossed my fingers and it's time start the adventure . . .
4:06pm -> Things are not going particularly well. I've won a couple very tiny pots, but my starting stack of 5,000 chips has already been bled down to 3,615 chips. I've been dealt pocket 4's, pocket 9's, and pocket 10's already - but I haven't been able to win any of those pots. This isn't the start I was hoping for.
4:15pm -> I've just lost a sizeable pot while holding 6♥ 6◊. As it turns out, my two opponents in the hand are holding Q♥ Q♣ and T◊ T♥. Ouch! The player with the pocket 10's sees another 10 appear on the board and he scoops the pot. I'm down to 2,720 chips. I've lost nearly 50% of my chips in the first 45 minutes. Ugh!
4:30pm -> We've hit the 1-hour mark. I've got 2,920 chips. There are 2,195 people still alive and the average person has 6,633 chips. I'm well below average. But . . . I'm still alive, right?
4:47pm -> I'm down to 1,920 chips and I'm dealt 9♣ 9♥. The blinds are 100/200 and a player ahead of me raises to 700 chips. I call the bet, but another player behind me reraises to 1,200 chips. I reluctantly make the call and three of us see a flop of 2♥ 8◊ 3♥. As the first person to act, I go "all in" with my last 720 chips and (sadly) both players call my bet. At this point, I figure that one of my opponents has a bigger pocket pair and that I'm in BIG TROUBLE. As I see it, my other opponent probably has a flush draw. The odds of me winning this hand seem minimal. The turn, however, is a magical 9◊. The river is a 3◊ and I scoop a big pot with the full house. As it turns out, one of my opponents is holding Q♠ Q◊. The turn card saved me and I've got 5,860 chips. Woo hoo!! I probably should have been eliminated on this hand.
4:58pm -> The blinds are up to 150/300 and I'm dealt J◊ K◊. I limp into the pot, but the big blind raises 769 chips. I make the call and the flop comes 8♣ J♥ 4◊. Almost immediately, my opponent goes "all in" and I'm left with a tough decision. After mulling over it a short time, I call his bet (he's got me covered - so I'm risking it all) and he flips over A♠ K♣. I've got the lead! The turn is a 5◊ and the river is a K♠. I take the pot with 2 pair. Just like that, I'm up to 11,670 chips and feeling pretty good about things.
5:03pm -> The average person has a little over 8,000 chips. I'm dealt A♣ Q◊ and make a modest raise that's called by one opponent. The flop comes 6♣ 5♠ Q♣. I make a very healthy bet (2,000 chips) and my opponent calls. The turn is a 9♠ and I make another healthy bet (2,500 chips). At this point, my opponent raises me another 5,600 chips. Uh oh. What's he got? I think about it for a quick second and go "all in" with the last of my chips. My opponent makes the call (he's got me covered) and he flips over Q♥ J♠. My ace kicker has the lead! The river is a meaningless 3♥ and I scoop a monster pot. Suddenly, I've got 23,040 chips. The last 16 minutes have been very kind to me!
5:40pm -> We've reached the 2-hour mark. After getting up to 23,040 chips, the last 30 minutes has been rather uneventful. I'm trying to act like the table bully, but people keep calling my bets. Entering the 2-hour break, I'm sitting on 19,091 chips and we're down to 1,015 players. The average person, meanwhile, has 14,345 chips. I'm still above average, but I'm not happy about the 5,000 chips I've lost in the past 30 minutes.
5:49pm -> Holding A◊ K◊, I lose my first really big pot. A player with 4,650 chips goes "all in" before the flop and I call the bet. My opponent flips over 7♥ 7♠. I don't get any help and I'm down to 15,291 chips. Big Slick stinks if you don't get any help!
5:50pm -> On the very next hand, I'm dealt A♥ K♠. The same opponent who won the last hand goes "all in" ahead of me and I (again) call his bet. He flips over Q♥ Q♠. For a 2nd consecutive hand, I don't get any help and my stack of chips is crippled. Just like that, I'm down to 1,391 chips and, to put it mildly, I'm on life support. There are still 875 people playing in the tournament, and my chances of finishing in the top 400 have nearly evaporated with this pair of back-to-back Big Slicks. My lucky opponent suddenly has 29,300 chips. Ugh!! Like I just said, Big Slick stinks if you don't get any help!
5:53pm -> The blinds are 300/600 and I'm dealt A◊ J◊. I have no choice but to go "all in" and pray for the best. I'm called by one opponent and he flips over A♣ T♣. Neither of us gets any help (thank goodness!) and I scoop the pot with the better kicker. I'm up to 3,682 chips. It's not much - but it's something!!
6:01pm -> The blinds are up to 400/800 and I'm dealt 6♣ 6♥. I go "all in" and I'm called by an opponent holding A♠ J♣. The board comes Q◊ K♥ 4◊ 2♣ 5♥ and my pair of 6's hold on. Whew! Just like that, I'm up to a semi-respectable 8,664 chips. There are 832 players still alive. I feel a twinge of hope!
6:45pm -> We've reached the 3-hour break and (somehow) I'm still alive. For the past 45 minutes, I've been hovering near the same level - as I'm stealing blinds every once in a while. I've got 7,256 chips and we're down to 471 players. The average person has 28,493 chips. I'm praying that I can survive the next hour. If so, I could sneak into the money. Meanwhile, Theresa has just gotten home and is watching my progress. I've been playing for over 3 hours. I'm going to be pretty disappointed if I don't make the money.
6:49pm -> The blinds are up to 800/1600 and I'm sitting in the big blind. I'm holding 4♥ 8♣ and I'm ready to hit the fold button to any raise. Thankfully, no one raises, two of my opponents limp into the pot, and the three of us witness a flop of 7♣ 4♣ 7◊. We all check (thankfully) and the turn is a 4♥. Again, we all check and the river is an A◊. At this point, I go "all in" and pray that one of my opponents has an ace. Sure enough, an opponent holding A♣ J◊ calls my bet and I scoop the monster pot. Just like that, I've got 18,048 chips and we're down to 452 players. Only 52 spots to go until I'm in the money. Hope springs eternal!
7:04pm -> Without doubt, this is the hand of the day. We're down to 407 players. My stack of chips has been whittled down to 14,048 and I'm dealt K♥ K♣. I bet 4,000 chips and I'm called by one opponent. The flop comes 5◊ J♥ 2♠ and my opponent immediately goes "all in" with a stack bigger than my own. Now I hafta decide what to do. I'm only 7 spots away from claiming $291.20. If I call this bet and lose, I will finish just outside the money. That would be bad!! On the other hand, I'm holding a monster hand and this pot will be HUGE if I can scoop it. What would you do?
Against every instinct I have, I fold the pocket kings. Yes, indeed, I fold!! I gave up this pot but I guaranteed myself some cash. A few minutes later, the 401st player was eliminated and I let out a sigh of relief. Considering the fact that I was down to 1,390 chips a little over an hour ago, I feel very good to finish in the money. Still, I have a feeling that my pocket kings were good, but I couldn't take the chance.
When we get down to 400 players, I have 9,973 chips. The average stack has 36,400 chips. I'm near the bottom of the totem pole, but it's time to start playing poker! I'm guaranteed to make a little under $100, so I definitely feel pretty good about my performance.
To find out where I ultimately finished, you'll hafta check the Sketchbook tomorrow. I'm getting tired and I don't want to skimp on what happens next . . .
Good night!!
May 6, 2006: The Kentucky Derby
A friend of mine visited Kentucky today and placed a $10 wager on my behalf at the Kentucky Derby. I had asked that he put the full $10 on Lawyer Ron to win the race. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.
A horse by the name of Barbaro (above) ran away from the field and won the race by 7 lengths. Lawyer Ron, meanwhile, finished in 12th place - well out of the money. At least he beat 8 other horses, right?
Daily Sketch: Down $10
Mnth-to-Date Sketch: Up $8.50
May 5, 2006: Golfing on Wednesday
This past Wednesday, I took a day off from work and golfed at Geneva National with Jared, Ty, and Rusty. I forgot to write about it in the Sketchbook, so here goes . . .
After all was said and done, I didn't golf particularly well and shot a 53-53=106. Playing $1/hole with Ty, I lost $6. I was up a buck at the turn, but Ty shot an impressive 41 on the back nine and that was good enough to win 7 of the 9 holes against me.
At the same time, the four of us played Wolf throughout the round and I lost another $4. Oh, well. We received a pretty good deal to golf so early in the year, so the $10 losses weren't too bad.
Daily Sketch: Down $10
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $18.50
After all was said and done, I didn't golf particularly well and shot a 53-53=106. Playing $1/hole with Ty, I lost $6. I was up a buck at the turn, but Ty shot an impressive 41 on the back nine and that was good enough to win 7 of the 9 holes against me.
At the same time, the four of us played Wolf throughout the round and I lost another $4. Oh, well. We received a pretty good deal to golf so early in the year, so the $10 losses weren't too bad.
Daily Sketch: Down $10
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $18.50
May 4, 2006: Multi-Table Action
Tonight I decided to try something new.
A few weeks ago, Party Poker introduced new 50-man multi-table tournaments. I haven't played many multi-table tournaments on Party Poker - primarily because every multi-table tournament seemed to always have 2,000 players signed up. Needless to say, it takes quite some time to play those tournaments and I wasn't ready to dedicate 5 hours of my life in the pursuit of a somewhat respectable payday. As I see it, those tourney are crapshoots.
However, now that Party Poker has introduced 50-man tourneys, my playing habits may change a bit. Tonight, I joined a $20(2) 50-man tournament and took my chances. Here's how it went:
The tournament started at 7:11pm. Exactly 22 minutes after it started, I won my first hand. Sitting in the big blind, I was dealt 6◊ 8♣. After watching the small blind limp into the hand, the flop came K♣ 8♥ 2♠. I proceeded to make modest bets after the turn (4♣) and river (5◊) and won the small pot when my only opponent folded after the river bet.
After that hand, I was back to even. Unfortunately, I didn't win another hand for 16 minutes - until I doubled my stack when my A♥ K♥ beat an opponent's A♣ T♠. Thankfully, my opponent went "all in" before the flop and my better hand held up.
When we hit the 1-hour mark, I was sitting with 3,040 chips. There were 21 players alive, and I felt relatively good about my chances. I wasn't catching great cards, but I thought I was playing pretty well.
Shortly after the 1-hour break, I won a couple small hands and scooped a monster pot while holding K♣ K♠. The flop came T♥ 9♥ Q♥. I went "all in" and was called by someone holding A♠ Q♠. My pocket cowboys held up and I suddenly found myself with a little over 10,000 chips. The chip leader had 16,000 chips and I felt REALLY good about my chances.
When we got down to the final table of ten players, I was 4th in chips. Payouts went down to 7th place ($40), but I had my sites set on the top prize ($320 - I think). I continued to feel good about my chances.
For the longest time, we remained stuck on 10 players. Every time someone went "all in" with the last of their chips, the low stack won and everyone else groaned. This continued for a good 15 minutes - which is an eternity when you're chasing the money in a multi-table tournament.
Eventually, we got down to 9 players (2 spots from the money) when I was dealt A♣ K♠. I was sitting with 7,980 chips (5th in chps) and went "all in". I was called by another player with 11,119 chips - so my tourney life was on the line. He flipped over A◊ Q◊. I had the lead!
The flop came J◊ K◊ 7◊. Ugh! Just like that, my opponent had flopped the nut flush and things were looking bad. The turn (8♥) and river (9♥) were no help, and I was rudely eliminated from the tournament in 9th place - two spots from the money. Sigh . . .
Daily Sketch: Down $22
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $28.50
A few weeks ago, Party Poker introduced new 50-man multi-table tournaments. I haven't played many multi-table tournaments on Party Poker - primarily because every multi-table tournament seemed to always have 2,000 players signed up. Needless to say, it takes quite some time to play those tournaments and I wasn't ready to dedicate 5 hours of my life in the pursuit of a somewhat respectable payday. As I see it, those tourney are crapshoots.
However, now that Party Poker has introduced 50-man tourneys, my playing habits may change a bit. Tonight, I joined a $20(2) 50-man tournament and took my chances. Here's how it went:
The tournament started at 7:11pm. Exactly 22 minutes after it started, I won my first hand. Sitting in the big blind, I was dealt 6◊ 8♣. After watching the small blind limp into the hand, the flop came K♣ 8♥ 2♠. I proceeded to make modest bets after the turn (4♣) and river (5◊) and won the small pot when my only opponent folded after the river bet.
After that hand, I was back to even. Unfortunately, I didn't win another hand for 16 minutes - until I doubled my stack when my A♥ K♥ beat an opponent's A♣ T♠. Thankfully, my opponent went "all in" before the flop and my better hand held up.
When we hit the 1-hour mark, I was sitting with 3,040 chips. There were 21 players alive, and I felt relatively good about my chances. I wasn't catching great cards, but I thought I was playing pretty well.
Shortly after the 1-hour break, I won a couple small hands and scooped a monster pot while holding K♣ K♠. The flop came T♥ 9♥ Q♥. I went "all in" and was called by someone holding A♠ Q♠. My pocket cowboys held up and I suddenly found myself with a little over 10,000 chips. The chip leader had 16,000 chips and I felt REALLY good about my chances.
When we got down to the final table of ten players, I was 4th in chips. Payouts went down to 7th place ($40), but I had my sites set on the top prize ($320 - I think). I continued to feel good about my chances.
For the longest time, we remained stuck on 10 players. Every time someone went "all in" with the last of their chips, the low stack won and everyone else groaned. This continued for a good 15 minutes - which is an eternity when you're chasing the money in a multi-table tournament.
Eventually, we got down to 9 players (2 spots from the money) when I was dealt A♣ K♠. I was sitting with 7,980 chips (5th in chps) and went "all in". I was called by another player with 11,119 chips - so my tourney life was on the line. He flipped over A◊ Q◊. I had the lead!
The flop came J◊ K◊ 7◊. Ugh! Just like that, my opponent had flopped the nut flush and things were looking bad. The turn (8♥) and river (9♥) were no help, and I was rudely eliminated from the tournament in 9th place - two spots from the money. Sigh . . .
Daily Sketch: Down $22
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $28.50
May 2, 2006: A Fresh Start
Ahhhh . . . a new month begins. I'm going to shake off last month's doldrums and win some money this month, ok?
My first May night of Party Poker started on a rather promising note. Using my $6 Mini-Step #1 Freeroll, I won the first tournament I played. Woo hoo!! As a result, I advanced to a Mini-Step #2 Tournament.
Unfortunately, things didn't go nearly as well at the next level. Seated at a very tight table, I didn't catch any cards for the first 20 hands I played. Finally, I was dealt 5♣ 5◊ - which was way better than any hand I had seen up to that point - and I made a big raise. I was quickly reraised and (foolishly) decided to call the bet. As it turned out, my opponent was holding pocket Aces, and I was rudely eliminated in 10th place. So much for my run up the steps, I guess. I know better than throwing all my chips into a pot while holding pocket 5's.
Following that debacle, I jumped onto a regular 6-man $2/$4 table. I played for a little over an hour and won a tidy $50.50. Interestingly, I won most of that money in the first 25 minutes that I played. Then, when I realized that I had basically broken even the past 40 minutes, I decided that it was time to quit.
I wanna start the new month on a good note - and I did that tonight. In fact, I almost paid for the round of golf I'll be enjoing while taking a day of vacation from work tomorrow.
Now that May has begun, it's time to start watching the cash rolling in!
Daily Sketch: Up $50.50
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $50.50
My first May night of Party Poker started on a rather promising note. Using my $6 Mini-Step #1 Freeroll, I won the first tournament I played. Woo hoo!! As a result, I advanced to a Mini-Step #2 Tournament.
Unfortunately, things didn't go nearly as well at the next level. Seated at a very tight table, I didn't catch any cards for the first 20 hands I played. Finally, I was dealt 5♣ 5◊ - which was way better than any hand I had seen up to that point - and I made a big raise. I was quickly reraised and (foolishly) decided to call the bet. As it turned out, my opponent was holding pocket Aces, and I was rudely eliminated in 10th place. So much for my run up the steps, I guess. I know better than throwing all my chips into a pot while holding pocket 5's.
Following that debacle, I jumped onto a regular 6-man $2/$4 table. I played for a little over an hour and won a tidy $50.50. Interestingly, I won most of that money in the first 25 minutes that I played. Then, when I realized that I had basically broken even the past 40 minutes, I decided that it was time to quit.
I wanna start the new month on a good note - and I did that tonight. In fact, I almost paid for the round of golf I'll be enjoing while taking a day of vacation from work tomorrow.
Now that May has begun, it's time to start watching the cash rolling in!
Daily Sketch: Up $50.50
Month-to-Date Sketch: Up $50.50
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