I was playing a $2.25 SNG in Full Tilt the other day while waiting for my wife to finish dressing so we could go to this baptismal party. Just for fun, I decided to sharkscope randomly 5 of the 8 players I was playing against. And here are the results (I changed the names, but I posted the results as they came out)
Player 1 = Skip
Games Played = 599
Ave ROI = -8%
Profit = -$ 1,121
Player 2 = Pinball
Games Played = 352
Ave ROI = -14%
Profit = -$271
Player 3 = Mack
Game Played = 163
Ave ROI = -42%
Profit = -$765
Player 4 = Silver
Games Played = 11
Ave ROI = 77%
Profit = $10
Player 5 = johnyboy
Games Played = 1,383
Ave ROI = -32%
Profit = -$3,949
Ok, observations
1. 4 out of 5 were losing money in SNGs. 2 had the fish symbol, one was in supertilt mode and the guy who had a winning record had 11 games and 10 dollars under his name. Hmmm..... Of course this is too small a sample to make a conclusion but it does go to show that majority of the players you play against in small stakes are fishy. And just to prove this or it could just be a coincidence, johnyboy, mack and pinball were the first ones to go out.
2. $3,939 dollars. Are you kidding me ? That's close to 200,000 pesos. You could feed 2 Filipino families for a year with that money. Of course, these are the players we love to play against, but sometimes I really cannot understand how Americans can waste that kind of money. I know it could just be a month's salary for some of them, but still that's a huge chunk of change. And the weird thing was, he was playing in 2 dollar stakes. The only thing I can assume is he probably lost majority of his money playing in higher stakes and went down to see if he could start winning. Or it could be all that he could afford now.
I am not laying judgement against these people. I am sure I had the fish symbol myself one time or another. But 1,383 games and losing close to $4,000 should be enough proof that maybe poker is not the game for you.
As for me, I busted out in 4th when I pushed AK against villain's K-10 for a dominant hand preflop, but obviously the 10 came out in the flop. Oh well, them are the breaks.
Ironically, the guy who busted me out was one of the ones I didn't scope ...... heheh. I wonder which result would have made me feel better. If I found out that he was a shark or a fish ?
But I'll certainly take that last hand anyday even if I'm up against Gus Hansen..... =)
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Top 10 things I've learned playing online poker
Since I just finished a short retrospective, I wanted to do a post on things that I've learned playing online poker.
In the short time that I have been playing, I have learned a lot and I wanted to take time to just put down some of the things I feel are important. Most of these you've probably heard before and some may be cliches, but personally these are the ones that have sticked with me so let me just list them down in no particular order.
1. A long pause before a call by an opponent is NOT a weak hand tell. It is not a sign of someone who is not sure if his hand is good. It is most often an opponent trying to disguise a very strong hand like a set.
2. Online poker is not rigged. Sometimes it may feel like it esp. after receiving bad beat after bad beat. But if you take time to analyze it, the poker sites make more money by keeping everything honest.
3. Taking a break when you're on a losing streak is the best way to break that streak
4. Your gut instinct is almost always correct. Learning to trust it is one of the more important lessons in online poker. If it screams fold, even if you have top pair top kicker, you should listen.
5. Poket Aces are not invincible. Having them cracked is one of the more common events in poker. You say 'nice hand' and walk away knowing you played the best hand and chances are next time they will hold up.
6. Playing Ace-rag (even if they are suited) at the beginning of tourneys or SNGs is the best way to lose majority of your chips. But the hand becomes your savior during the push/fold stage.
7. Suited connectors are overrated. Reading about their value in Super System doesn't make it gospel. I've lost more than won playing them. I'm not saying they are not playable, but as beginners, stay away. Your bankroll will thank you for it.
8. The value of position. All the books preach it but its hard to appreciate what they're talking about when you are just starting out. Read the lessons on position again after you've played a 100 games. Read them again when you reach 200. You will realize that it is one of the most important things in poker.
9. Quality over quantity. Just because we read about these foreign guys who play 8 games simultaneously doesn't mean they win more. Try to concentrate on every game. Sometimes a good read of an opponent is the difference between ITM and 4th.
10. Satellites are valuable to a small stakes player. Play them to try and get into big tournaments. You never know what will happen. You may get lucky and once is all you need..
OK. Disclaimer time. I do not pretend to be an expert. I have not even approached half of the games of the other bloggers. These are just my personal ramblings. So heed them at your own peril. Remember that this is my own blog and I can pretty much write whatever I want..... =D
In the short time that I have been playing, I have learned a lot and I wanted to take time to just put down some of the things I feel are important. Most of these you've probably heard before and some may be cliches, but personally these are the ones that have sticked with me so let me just list them down in no particular order.
1. A long pause before a call by an opponent is NOT a weak hand tell. It is not a sign of someone who is not sure if his hand is good. It is most often an opponent trying to disguise a very strong hand like a set.
2. Online poker is not rigged. Sometimes it may feel like it esp. after receiving bad beat after bad beat. But if you take time to analyze it, the poker sites make more money by keeping everything honest.
3. Taking a break when you're on a losing streak is the best way to break that streak
4. Your gut instinct is almost always correct. Learning to trust it is one of the more important lessons in online poker. If it screams fold, even if you have top pair top kicker, you should listen.
5. Poket Aces are not invincible. Having them cracked is one of the more common events in poker. You say 'nice hand' and walk away knowing you played the best hand and chances are next time they will hold up.
6. Playing Ace-rag (even if they are suited) at the beginning of tourneys or SNGs is the best way to lose majority of your chips. But the hand becomes your savior during the push/fold stage.
7. Suited connectors are overrated. Reading about their value in Super System doesn't make it gospel. I've lost more than won playing them. I'm not saying they are not playable, but as beginners, stay away. Your bankroll will thank you for it.
8. The value of position. All the books preach it but its hard to appreciate what they're talking about when you are just starting out. Read the lessons on position again after you've played a 100 games. Read them again when you reach 200. You will realize that it is one of the most important things in poker.
9. Quality over quantity. Just because we read about these foreign guys who play 8 games simultaneously doesn't mean they win more. Try to concentrate on every game. Sometimes a good read of an opponent is the difference between ITM and 4th.
10. Satellites are valuable to a small stakes player. Play them to try and get into big tournaments. You never know what will happen. You may get lucky and once is all you need..
OK. Disclaimer time. I do not pretend to be an expert. I have not even approached half of the games of the other bloggers. These are just my personal ramblings. So heed them at your own peril. Remember that this is my own blog and I can pretty much write whatever I want..... =D
Saturday, February 17, 2007
My Poker Retrospective
Since its Chinese New Year and I'm chinese in origin. I thought it was time to do some kind of poker retrospective wherein I chronicle some of my results so far. Mind you, it's very informal as I don't really use any kind of poker tracking software, so I think it's time that I begin using one to further analyze my game and see how it can be improved. If you guys have any suggestion on what is the best one to use with instructions on how to use it, I would very much appreciate it. Also, where can you download this software or do you have to buy it ? Thanks in advance.
Alias : novagalaxy
Sites that I play in : Pokerroom, Full Tilt, Poker.com, Ultimate Bet
Online poker player since August 2006.
Initial bankroll - US$150
SNG Games played - approx 500
This is an estimate, but I think its fairly accurate considering the time I started playing and the fact that I only have time to play a couple of SNGs a night.
Playing Limits - $2 + 0.25, $5 + 0.50, $6 + 0.50 and $ 10 + 1 NL Holdem
Notable Events
13 th place in Pokerroom Grand Tourney
2nd place in Poker.com $2000 Guaranteed Tourney
Have ITM also in some small tourneys and freerolls but not really significant to list.
Ok, here is where it gets hazy. My ROI is probably very high if you count the big MTT ITMs since my bankroll was relatively small when I placed in the Grand Tourney. But if you take that out and consider only SNGs and small tourneys, I think its just average.
If we don't consider the 2 Tourney ITMs I listed. In terms of amounts from the time I started in the respective sites. I'm up a few hundred dollars in Pokerroom, up a few in Fulltilt, down around $80 in Poker.com and down around $95 in Ultimate Bet courtesy of Blackjack.
In terms of live play, I've played in the first 1M holdem championship at ACF and 2 other ACF tourneys by PBT. I final tabled one and busted out in all the others.
Cash Games/Ring - I don't really play cash games. In the few games that I've tried online, I probably lost around $40.
And that in a nutshell is my game so far. My objectives this year going forward is pretty simple, continue playing $5 and $10 SNGs and try to make a small profit every month, play as many qualifying satellites for the big tourneys as I can, and hopefully get an ITM in one of these tourneys.
Wachathink ? Another option is to increase my SNG limit to $20 and try to make the moolah from there. I've tried $20+2 and $30+3 SNGs a couple of times and so far the results have been positive. I'm just too scaredy cat to completely plunge into these stakes.
Because then its kind of serious money and it might not be healthy in the long run since I still consider this as just some form of past-time/hobby.
Alias : novagalaxy
Sites that I play in : Pokerroom, Full Tilt, Poker.com, Ultimate Bet
Online poker player since August 2006.
Initial bankroll - US$150
SNG Games played - approx 500
This is an estimate, but I think its fairly accurate considering the time I started playing and the fact that I only have time to play a couple of SNGs a night.
Playing Limits - $2 + 0.25, $5 + 0.50, $6 + 0.50 and $ 10 + 1 NL Holdem
Notable Events
13 th place in Pokerroom Grand Tourney
2nd place in Poker.com $2000 Guaranteed Tourney
Have ITM also in some small tourneys and freerolls but not really significant to list.
Ok, here is where it gets hazy. My ROI is probably very high if you count the big MTT ITMs since my bankroll was relatively small when I placed in the Grand Tourney. But if you take that out and consider only SNGs and small tourneys, I think its just average.
If we don't consider the 2 Tourney ITMs I listed. In terms of amounts from the time I started in the respective sites. I'm up a few hundred dollars in Pokerroom, up a few in Fulltilt, down around $80 in Poker.com and down around $95 in Ultimate Bet courtesy of Blackjack.
In terms of live play, I've played in the first 1M holdem championship at ACF and 2 other ACF tourneys by PBT. I final tabled one and busted out in all the others.
Cash Games/Ring - I don't really play cash games. In the few games that I've tried online, I probably lost around $40.
And that in a nutshell is my game so far. My objectives this year going forward is pretty simple, continue playing $5 and $10 SNGs and try to make a small profit every month, play as many qualifying satellites for the big tourneys as I can, and hopefully get an ITM in one of these tourneys.
Wachathink ? Another option is to increase my SNG limit to $20 and try to make the moolah from there. I've tried $20+2 and $30+3 SNGs a couple of times and so far the results have been positive. I'm just too scaredy cat to completely plunge into these stakes.
Because then its kind of serious money and it might not be healthy in the long run since I still consider this as just some form of past-time/hobby.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Lying about your results
I just read in the net somewhere about this one poker blogger who got caught lying about the results of a game he had. He was bragging about schooling this other poker player who slow played a KK and basically allowed him to catch up with his gutshot draw.
What he didn't know was that the other poker player posted the actual hand histroy in his blog and somebody saw both blogs and reported it and it was fairly obvious to anyone who knows poker that the hand was not slow played. It was raised preflop and bet aggressively thru the flop and turn. The other guy was donkey calling and got lucky in the river. He also exaggerated about the stakes they were playing in.
So when this farce was exposed, guess what the 1st blogger did. He erased the post. Yep, which is basically the same as admitting your guilt.
Now this got me to thinking. How many poker bloggers out there are lying about their results? It is pretty easy to do even with programs like Sharkscope. I guess its just human nature to report only your wins and keep quiet about your losses. But it is totally different to lie and openly manufacture something.
I read quite a few blogs both local and foreign and now its gotten me wondering because sometimes you can't help but envy some of these foreign players who play in high stakes and seemingly win most of the time. If you listen to some of their exploits, it sounds like they're either blessed by the poker gods or they're really really good. Is it all true ? Maybe these people are just like the rest of us suckers, grinding along and trying to make a small profit month by month.
I know the local players are pretty honest, because most of us are just beginning and there is really no sense in lying. Because that's how you get better. Analyzing your losses and asking other's opinion of your play is common. If you hide your losses and pretend you're a winner, then I don't think you'll go very far in this fickle game we all play.
On another issue, I've decided to stop the UBE experiment. A close friend of mine who reads my blog was talking to me the other day and he had a good point. He said why waste my time playing $1.10 games to try and hit my objective when I can probably make the $100 in a much shorter period by playing my normal limits at the other sites. Then just transfer the $100 back to Ultimate Bet.
DUH .......
That's not the point, it's an exercise in bankroll management .... it was supposed to be a lesson to other beginners about the value of one dollar in the game of poker ............ It is about poker honor and standing up for your values against other rigged games like Blackjack .... ; )
And so ... the UBE officially ends at $6.49.
What he didn't know was that the other poker player posted the actual hand histroy in his blog and somebody saw both blogs and reported it and it was fairly obvious to anyone who knows poker that the hand was not slow played. It was raised preflop and bet aggressively thru the flop and turn. The other guy was donkey calling and got lucky in the river. He also exaggerated about the stakes they were playing in.
So when this farce was exposed, guess what the 1st blogger did. He erased the post. Yep, which is basically the same as admitting your guilt.
Now this got me to thinking. How many poker bloggers out there are lying about their results? It is pretty easy to do even with programs like Sharkscope. I guess its just human nature to report only your wins and keep quiet about your losses. But it is totally different to lie and openly manufacture something.
I read quite a few blogs both local and foreign and now its gotten me wondering because sometimes you can't help but envy some of these foreign players who play in high stakes and seemingly win most of the time. If you listen to some of their exploits, it sounds like they're either blessed by the poker gods or they're really really good. Is it all true ? Maybe these people are just like the rest of us suckers, grinding along and trying to make a small profit month by month.
I know the local players are pretty honest, because most of us are just beginning and there is really no sense in lying. Because that's how you get better. Analyzing your losses and asking other's opinion of your play is common. If you hide your losses and pretend you're a winner, then I don't think you'll go very far in this fickle game we all play.
On another issue, I've decided to stop the UBE experiment. A close friend of mine who reads my blog was talking to me the other day and he had a good point. He said why waste my time playing $1.10 games to try and hit my objective when I can probably make the $100 in a much shorter period by playing my normal limits at the other sites. Then just transfer the $100 back to Ultimate Bet.
DUH .......
That's not the point, it's an exercise in bankroll management .... it was supposed to be a lesson to other beginners about the value of one dollar in the game of poker ............ It is about poker honor and standing up for your values against other rigged games like Blackjack .... ; )
And so ... the UBE officially ends at $6.49.
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Quick UBE Update
OK. I managed to play five $1.10 SNGs under the UBE last night. Results were 3-2-B-B-1. The first one was really scary because if I had not made it ITM, then I would have been crippled with 40 cents.
So far so good. My temporary goal is to reach 3o dollars so that I can maybe start playing $5.50 SNGs and reach my goal faster or bust out faster for that matter. Ultimate Bet doesn't have $2.20 SNGs so that's gonna be a bitch jumping from $1.10 to $5.50 with a do or die bankroll.
By the way, if you guys haven't tried out Ultimate Bet. They have a feature called the mini view. It allows you to play 3 games at one time and it all fits exactly into a 15 inch monitor. Yep. No animations and such but all the info you need is crammed into that 1/3 of a screen. No overlaps, no minimizing and maximizing screens. Real nifty.
UBE as of 02/07/07 - $6.49
So far so good. My temporary goal is to reach 3o dollars so that I can maybe start playing $5.50 SNGs and reach my goal faster or bust out faster for that matter. Ultimate Bet doesn't have $2.20 SNGs so that's gonna be a bitch jumping from $1.10 to $5.50 with a do or die bankroll.
By the way, if you guys haven't tried out Ultimate Bet. They have a feature called the mini view. It allows you to play 3 games at one time and it all fits exactly into a 15 inch monitor. Yep. No animations and such but all the info you need is crammed into that 1/3 of a screen. No overlaps, no minimizing and maximizing screens. Real nifty.
UBE as of 02/07/07 - $6.49
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Ultimate Bet Experiment
I deposited $100 in Ultimate Bet a couple of weeks ago to try and avail of a sign-up bonus. But due to a one time Blackjack session wherein I was inebriated and where I played a modified Martingale method invented on the spot. I managed to successfully piss away the whole $100 in less than 20 hands.
Which brings me to my topic for today. Right now, I have exactly $1.50 left in my ultimate bet account. I have decided to conduct an experiment wherein I will see how far I can go with this small amount playing hold-em poker. I will either play SNGs, ring or hopefully some tourneys if I can raise it high enough. I will not do any withdrawals or redeposits to the account.
I will stop the experiement when either of 2 conditions are reached : (1) I go bankrupt or (2) I win enough to reach my original deposit of $100.
What is my purpose in doing this ? Wala lang, it sounds like fun. It should exorcise the ghost of that stupid Blackjack session. And I heard in the internet about something similar done by Jesus Ferguson. I think he started with $1 or $10 if I'm not mistaken and managed to grow it to thousands. So something along the same line.
Of course I do not delude myself into thinking that I am in the same skill level as Jesus. But I pretty much play low stakes where the players are much fishier. And I have a pretty modest target. If I do reach this target, it should be a good poker story to tell.
So from here on out. Whenever I post a new topic in this blog, I will include an addendum at the bottom showing how much the account has and if anything significant has happened. Of course, the experiment could easily end tomorrow. Or go on for a long time since I only play a couple of games per night. Heheh ..... let's see what happens. I'll call it the Ultimate Bet Experiment or UBE for short.
UBE as of 02/06/07 - $1.50
Which brings me to my topic for today. Right now, I have exactly $1.50 left in my ultimate bet account. I have decided to conduct an experiment wherein I will see how far I can go with this small amount playing hold-em poker. I will either play SNGs, ring or hopefully some tourneys if I can raise it high enough. I will not do any withdrawals or redeposits to the account.
I will stop the experiement when either of 2 conditions are reached : (1) I go bankrupt or (2) I win enough to reach my original deposit of $100.
What is my purpose in doing this ? Wala lang, it sounds like fun. It should exorcise the ghost of that stupid Blackjack session. And I heard in the internet about something similar done by Jesus Ferguson. I think he started with $1 or $10 if I'm not mistaken and managed to grow it to thousands. So something along the same line.
Of course I do not delude myself into thinking that I am in the same skill level as Jesus. But I pretty much play low stakes where the players are much fishier. And I have a pretty modest target. If I do reach this target, it should be a good poker story to tell.
So from here on out. Whenever I post a new topic in this blog, I will include an addendum at the bottom showing how much the account has and if anything significant has happened. Of course, the experiment could easily end tomorrow. Or go on for a long time since I only play a couple of games per night. Heheh ..... let's see what happens. I'll call it the Ultimate Bet Experiment or UBE for short.
UBE as of 02/06/07 - $1.50
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
