Last night was another tourney night for me. Played in 3 low buy in tourneys simultaneously. The $1K Guaranteed at Cake, the $2.5k Rebuy, and the $7.5k Guarantee at Full Tilt. All these tourneys start at around 7-8PM which was my preferred schedule.
Well, confidence seems to breed luck or maybe luck breeds confidence. In any case, I've been doing good in tourneys the past few days and this enabled me to play relaxed and loose which is the best mindset to be in when you play tournaments.
1. I finished 8th in the $1k guaranteed for practically peanuts. Just around 4x my buyin. But this was ok. I was low stacked from the middle of the tourney and I was glad just to reach the final table. So I pushed with the first decent hand I got (K9s) wherein I was first to act and was called quickly by BB who had Ace rag. Ace flops and that was it for me.
2. In the 2.5k Rebuy, I was slightly below average around middle of the tourney when the defining hand came up. Some random guy in early position raises. I see AQ suited and push all in. No Pause or thinking whatsoever. Nemo just insta-calls and show J9 off. Flop comes ragged at 4 5 7. Turn is a 6. And river is a .......you should be able to guess it after playing poker for this long. River was an 8 so that he makes his higher straight and busts me out. Hyuk.
3. Last is the 7.5k guarantee at FTP. I don't normally play this because of the number of people. I wanted a tourney that would end somewhere around midnight so I can still get a good night's sleep even if I reach the final table. When it started out, it only had around 400 something players. So I thought it looked manageable with a chance for an overlay. But once the late registration period ended. We ended up with 916 players. WTF. Should have known it looked too good to be true.
Anyway, I was already in it so griping doesn't help. I tried to play patient all throughout. Don't remember too much of the hands. Was in danger of busting out near the bubble with a low stack. But my luck was holding as nobody called my all-ins which allowed me to steal some blinds and survive. Bubble breaks at 90 people and I was still in it.
By the way, never be scared of pushing near the bubble. The chance of someone calling is quite small especially if you still have a decent stack. Before I used to wait around for the bubble to break before pushing when I'm low stacked which is safe and logical. But I always ended up busting out with peanuts as every other low stacked guy called your push. Now I just push whenever I was in position with a semi decent hand without any regard for ITM and it seems to be working.
Second lucky break. I was in SB with K6 suited. Folded to me. Had an M of around 8 or 9. So I quickly push. BB gives me a very long pause. Then finally calls and shows AAs. FUCKING SLOWROLLER. But fate has a unique way of fucking up the fuckers who do this. Flop shows a 6 and the other 6 comes up on the river and I double up.
Down to around 50 people I think when finally I get KKs. Standard 3x raise. Reraised by one player. Next player pushes all in. Thought for a while but couldn't really fold Kings. So we gamble on a 3 way. The reraiser shows Ace fucking Jack and the other shows 88s. My KKs hold up and I triple my stack. (I love KK, it always seems to carry me through)
This stack enables me to coast and then we're on the bubble of the final table. I had a healthy stack of around 100k at this point. I get 10 10. standard raise again. Pushed all in by somebody with a 60k stack. Fucker. I think this was a wrong move on my part but I call anyway and he shows AK. The K flops and I was now in danger of busting out just before the final table.
Again, as I emphasized before. Waiting is not really an option. Although this time, the jump from 10 to 9 is quite big so there is some logic to waiting it out. But the gap between 9th and 1st is bigger and I was in this to win it. I push a few hands with no callers and this keeps me above water and then finally two mid stacks collide and I reach the final table with an M of around 5.
And then I get hot. I get some AKs and JJs and ended up doubling each time. There was a maniac with a huge stack who was the ultimate luckbox and busted out everyone until we were down to 3. I had about 100K, other player had 200k and luckbox had a million something in chips.
And this is where my run ended. I flopped an open ended straight draw which I needed to push because calling with my stack was not really going to do it. Luckbox had top pair and I bust out at 3rd. It would have been nice to win this one, but I think that's asking too much from lady luck as I already copped a couple of wins prior.
Tourney ended at 1:30AM but was definitely worth it. One or two more ITMs like this and my Singapore budget will be all locked up. Heheh.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Repeat Performance
After taking down the $1k Guaranteed over at Cake a few days ago, I decided to try out my luck again. Wasn't really doing anything last night. Really planned to play the Sunday Million that Monday morning but I didn't wake up in time as usual, so this was the best tourney for my schedule after a long day with the family.
Right off the bat, it looks good. Only 82 people playing giving a $180 overlay. After a few hands, I doubled up with a well hidden straight against somebody's two pair. So I had some buffer to have a leisurely dinner while sitting out.
Came back, still had a good stack, and about a third of the field gone. Time to go aggressive. Stole some blinds, stayed patient. Then bingo. Got KK with 2 players coming along for the ride. And just played TAG the rest of the way and reached the final table comfortably. I actually didn't know that I had already reached the final table until somebody mentioned it in chat. I thought there were 2 tables left. Heheh.
Final table was just me using SNG strategy, stealing some blinds to stay afloat and picking off the small stacks. Unfortunately the big stacks were consolidating. And when we were 3 handed. I had about 35k left against the 2 other players who both had about 90k in chips.
Checked out both player's stats in Sharkscope and found out they weren't really that experienced and were negative profit players. So it gave me some confidence to try out some moves. But I wasn't really getting any cards and knew I'd be blinded out if I didn't make a stand. Finally, in one flop, I had a flush draw. I knew opponent had hit something (top or middle pair). When he led out, I just pushed all in hoping for the fold. But alas, I underestimated the fishiness as he instacalled and showed middle pair. Luckily, river gave me the out and doubled me up.
This tilted opponent 1 and he starts spewing his chips. Unfortunately for me, my other opponent gets the benefit as he flops a set and proceeds to clean up when fish again overplays his middle pair.
And then we were heads up. I had about 70k. Opponent 2 had about 150k. Long way to make up but the blinds were still manageable. So this time, I just raised everything. I wasn't even looking at the value of the cards. Just raised everytime when I was first to act. Folded a few to make it seem like I was honest. But eventually opponent 2 sensed that I was raising with crap and he started playing back. And then I got lucky again. I raised with crap. I think 7-5 or some shitty hand like that. He called. I then proceeded to get the straight on the turn and he was on a flush draw. So he just called me all the way down.
And now I had more chips than him. And this was where he lost his patience I think. So I went back to being hyper aggressive only folding when he obviously had something. Finally I got AQ, raised it up, got reraised, pushed all in, and got called with KJ. All low cards. And that was it.
Right off the bat, it looks good. Only 82 people playing giving a $180 overlay. After a few hands, I doubled up with a well hidden straight against somebody's two pair. So I had some buffer to have a leisurely dinner while sitting out.
Came back, still had a good stack, and about a third of the field gone. Time to go aggressive. Stole some blinds, stayed patient. Then bingo. Got KK with 2 players coming along for the ride. And just played TAG the rest of the way and reached the final table comfortably. I actually didn't know that I had already reached the final table until somebody mentioned it in chat. I thought there were 2 tables left. Heheh.
Final table was just me using SNG strategy, stealing some blinds to stay afloat and picking off the small stacks. Unfortunately the big stacks were consolidating. And when we were 3 handed. I had about 35k left against the 2 other players who both had about 90k in chips.
Checked out both player's stats in Sharkscope and found out they weren't really that experienced and were negative profit players. So it gave me some confidence to try out some moves. But I wasn't really getting any cards and knew I'd be blinded out if I didn't make a stand. Finally, in one flop, I had a flush draw. I knew opponent had hit something (top or middle pair). When he led out, I just pushed all in hoping for the fold. But alas, I underestimated the fishiness as he instacalled and showed middle pair. Luckily, river gave me the out and doubled me up.
This tilted opponent 1 and he starts spewing his chips. Unfortunately for me, my other opponent gets the benefit as he flops a set and proceeds to clean up when fish again overplays his middle pair.
And then we were heads up. I had about 70k. Opponent 2 had about 150k. Long way to make up but the blinds were still manageable. So this time, I just raised everything. I wasn't even looking at the value of the cards. Just raised everytime when I was first to act. Folded a few to make it seem like I was honest. But eventually opponent 2 sensed that I was raising with crap and he started playing back. And then I got lucky again. I raised with crap. I think 7-5 or some shitty hand like that. He called. I then proceeded to get the straight on the turn and he was on a flush draw. So he just called me all the way down.
And now I had more chips than him. And this was where he lost his patience I think. So I went back to being hyper aggressive only folding when he obviously had something. Finally I got AQ, raised it up, got reraised, pushed all in, and got called with KJ. All low cards. And that was it.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
What's Up, Dude?
Time for an update. I realized that I owe it to my countless and devoted group of less than 10 readers to give them a heads up on what's happening with my poker playing.
Well basically, I'm still alive and playing online. I pretty much just 4 table the $11+1 SNGs in Full Tilt. Around 2 sets every night. Doing relatively well, my bankroll is creeping up slowly these past few months. ROI hovering around 9%-10%. My objective is to win enough in the next few months to sponsor a Singapore trip for me and my family come next summer. Heheh.
My bankroll in FTP is actually more than enough to play the next level. But why bother with the extra stress. I get enough from work such that I want my poker playing to be as relaxed as possible. I can lose 8 games in a row at the 11s and it would just be a small blip in the bankroll. Don't get me wrong. I still go on tilt once in a while. But the low buy in combined with a large buffer keeps me stable as I really cannot do any big damage to the BR unless I suddenly decide that I'll play the nosebleed SNG stakes.
Tournament wise. Well, I do occasionally join some online tourneys mostly at Cake Poker. Haven't really hit any big scores lately. I would ITM once in a while but would then go on a long dry stretch. So my tournament playing is pretty much break even.
I don't know. Lately, I find that I don't really have the patience to sit down in long tourneys. This degrades my tournament placings as I find myself just pushing some semi marginal hands even though there is still a lot of play left.
I think its because poker up to a certain period of time desensitizes you. I've been playing online for around 4 years now if I'm not mistaken. And even though this game has been quite good to me. I've think I've lost some of the drive or the excitement of that one big score. You know, the feeling that you can win anything if you just stay patient and play your game properly.
I've accepted in my mind that the probabilities of playing against thousands of other players catches up to you and no matter how well you play. The suck outs and the bad beats really will happen with this many people in the fray. And you really need some luck to come up the victor.
So I just stay relaxed and take my time. I have a couple of $215 tickets good for the Sunday Million or the Sunday Warm Up which I won in the step SNGs. So I can easily play these if I was inclined to do so. But again, the drive is just not there. The thought of waking up at 5AM on a Monday morning and playing against thousands of people is too tiring.
There is a long weekend up ahead. The August 30 holiday. And if there ever was a right time to play these PS tourneys. This is it. Hohum. ... let's see. If I wake up, I play. If I don't, I sleep. Heheh
Oh and as I was writing and editing this blog post. I entered the $1K guaranteed over at Cake and waddya know. I take it down. Didn't really need luck in this one. Just stayed aggressive all throughout and waited for opponent's mistakes. I do not recall any one time where I had to go on a flip with somebody in this tournament to survive. Maybe its because I never got AK even once. If you notice, it was a 10 dollar tournament with 1k guaranteed. There were only 78 players. So easily $220 in overlay in a very manageable tourney with good structure. Pretty good deal.
Well basically, I'm still alive and playing online. I pretty much just 4 table the $11+1 SNGs in Full Tilt. Around 2 sets every night. Doing relatively well, my bankroll is creeping up slowly these past few months. ROI hovering around 9%-10%. My objective is to win enough in the next few months to sponsor a Singapore trip for me and my family come next summer. Heheh.
My bankroll in FTP is actually more than enough to play the next level. But why bother with the extra stress. I get enough from work such that I want my poker playing to be as relaxed as possible. I can lose 8 games in a row at the 11s and it would just be a small blip in the bankroll. Don't get me wrong. I still go on tilt once in a while. But the low buy in combined with a large buffer keeps me stable as I really cannot do any big damage to the BR unless I suddenly decide that I'll play the nosebleed SNG stakes.
Tournament wise. Well, I do occasionally join some online tourneys mostly at Cake Poker. Haven't really hit any big scores lately. I would ITM once in a while but would then go on a long dry stretch. So my tournament playing is pretty much break even.
I don't know. Lately, I find that I don't really have the patience to sit down in long tourneys. This degrades my tournament placings as I find myself just pushing some semi marginal hands even though there is still a lot of play left.
I think its because poker up to a certain period of time desensitizes you. I've been playing online for around 4 years now if I'm not mistaken. And even though this game has been quite good to me. I've think I've lost some of the drive or the excitement of that one big score. You know, the feeling that you can win anything if you just stay patient and play your game properly.
I've accepted in my mind that the probabilities of playing against thousands of other players catches up to you and no matter how well you play. The suck outs and the bad beats really will happen with this many people in the fray. And you really need some luck to come up the victor.
So I just stay relaxed and take my time. I have a couple of $215 tickets good for the Sunday Million or the Sunday Warm Up which I won in the step SNGs. So I can easily play these if I was inclined to do so. But again, the drive is just not there. The thought of waking up at 5AM on a Monday morning and playing against thousands of people is too tiring.
There is a long weekend up ahead. The August 30 holiday. And if there ever was a right time to play these PS tourneys. This is it. Hohum. ... let's see. If I wake up, I play. If I don't, I sleep. Heheh
Oh and as I was writing and editing this blog post. I entered the $1K guaranteed over at Cake and waddya know. I take it down. Didn't really need luck in this one. Just stayed aggressive all throughout and waited for opponent's mistakes. I do not recall any one time where I had to go on a flip with somebody in this tournament to survive. Maybe its because I never got AK even once. If you notice, it was a 10 dollar tournament with 1k guaranteed. There were only 78 players. So easily $220 in overlay in a very manageable tourney with good structure. Pretty good deal.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Further proof that Poker is not all about Luck
Truth be told, I am one of the unluckiest lucky persons I know. My mother and my wife will attest to this.
Ever since I was a kid, I've been involved in numerous situations where I have had some kind of misfortune dealt to me.
When I was 8, I had to have stitches sewn above my left eye. This was the result of a misguided game where numerous kids in my neighborhood were kicking around this open can of sardines with razor sharp edges and I was the unlucky recipient of the can's trajectory. A few inches more and I would be blind in one eye.
When I was 10, I slipped and fell down this long flight of concrete stairs and broke my nose. My mom was saying she thought I broke my neck as I was not moving when I finally stopped on the bottom landing and copious amounts of blood was gushing out my nose.
During my college years, I was waiting for the light to change in a street corner when this deranged man came out of nowhere and stabbed me in the chest with a freaking kitchen knife. This is a whole story by itself which I will blog about in the future. But rest assured that I had no idea who this man was and I was not even getting robbed. It was just me being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He could have stabbed anybody who was standing there beside me but noooo .... obviously my powers were too much for him to resist. I almost died then and there and had to stay in the hospital for close to 2 months to recover.
My girlfriend (who is my wife now) and I were on a date and visited a friend's house to pick up something. The friend had a huge chow chow dog tied near their door. When we passed by the dog, the dog just lunged up for no apparent reason and chomped down on my left arm. Seriously man, I did not provoke that dog in any way. I was just walking by minding my own business.
I attended a wedding reception once and I developed a very severe case of food poisoning immediately after. I had to be hospitalized for 2 days. Oh and guess what. It was a buffet but nobody else got food poisoning. It was just me. Think of that weird possibility for a bit so you can appreciate the way fate always smiles on me.
My wife fondly calls me a walking human disaster just waiting to happen. There are various more cases that have happened through the years. Too many to mention but I assure you that everything I have stated is true. No exaggeration or made up stories here. I think I must be secreting some kind of pheromone which attracts the worst kind of misfortunes. Or the goddess of luck was feeling frisky one day and just decided that I should be his boy toy .
With all these seemingly unlucky things happening to me, there is one thing that I do know. I know that I am a winning online poker player. I may not have won anything really really big but I consistently make money playing poker year after year. My stats are all in the black from every site that I play in. I do not confess to be a great poker player. But I am a student of the game and play with the correct math and the concepts that I have learned through the years.
And this is your incontrovertible proof that poker is not all about luck. If it is, and knowing my special kind of luck, then I should be bleeding money and bitching about how I always get drawn out or sucked out. And how I can never seem to catch a break.
But I don't. And that is why it is easy for me to believe that if you work on your game and play correctly, you will make money. Because poker is really more about learned skill than luck.
Of course, the next time I play, the LCD screen might suddenly explode in my face for no apparent reason just when I was about to win the Sunday Million by calling with Aces when my heads up opponent pushed all in with crap. When that happens, then we can talk again.
Ever since I was a kid, I've been involved in numerous situations where I have had some kind of misfortune dealt to me.
When I was 8, I had to have stitches sewn above my left eye. This was the result of a misguided game where numerous kids in my neighborhood were kicking around this open can of sardines with razor sharp edges and I was the unlucky recipient of the can's trajectory. A few inches more and I would be blind in one eye.
When I was 10, I slipped and fell down this long flight of concrete stairs and broke my nose. My mom was saying she thought I broke my neck as I was not moving when I finally stopped on the bottom landing and copious amounts of blood was gushing out my nose.
During my college years, I was waiting for the light to change in a street corner when this deranged man came out of nowhere and stabbed me in the chest with a freaking kitchen knife. This is a whole story by itself which I will blog about in the future. But rest assured that I had no idea who this man was and I was not even getting robbed. It was just me being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He could have stabbed anybody who was standing there beside me but noooo .... obviously my powers were too much for him to resist. I almost died then and there and had to stay in the hospital for close to 2 months to recover.
My girlfriend (who is my wife now) and I were on a date and visited a friend's house to pick up something. The friend had a huge chow chow dog tied near their door. When we passed by the dog, the dog just lunged up for no apparent reason and chomped down on my left arm. Seriously man, I did not provoke that dog in any way. I was just walking by minding my own business.
I attended a wedding reception once and I developed a very severe case of food poisoning immediately after. I had to be hospitalized for 2 days. Oh and guess what. It was a buffet but nobody else got food poisoning. It was just me. Think of that weird possibility for a bit so you can appreciate the way fate always smiles on me.
My wife fondly calls me a walking human disaster just waiting to happen. There are various more cases that have happened through the years. Too many to mention but I assure you that everything I have stated is true. No exaggeration or made up stories here. I think I must be secreting some kind of pheromone which attracts the worst kind of misfortunes. Or the goddess of luck was feeling frisky one day and just decided that I should be his boy toy .
With all these seemingly unlucky things happening to me, there is one thing that I do know. I know that I am a winning online poker player. I may not have won anything really really big but I consistently make money playing poker year after year. My stats are all in the black from every site that I play in. I do not confess to be a great poker player. But I am a student of the game and play with the correct math and the concepts that I have learned through the years.
And this is your incontrovertible proof that poker is not all about luck. If it is, and knowing my special kind of luck, then I should be bleeding money and bitching about how I always get drawn out or sucked out. And how I can never seem to catch a break.
But I don't. And that is why it is easy for me to believe that if you work on your game and play correctly, you will make money. Because poker is really more about learned skill than luck.
Of course, the next time I play, the LCD screen might suddenly explode in my face for no apparent reason just when I was about to win the Sunday Million by calling with Aces when my heads up opponent pushed all in with crap. When that happens, then we can talk again.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Feeding the Donkeys
Just a few minutes ago, I was playing a bunch of 11 dollar SNGs over at Full Tilt. And in one sequence of events, I made 3 pushes against 3 different opponents in 3 different SNGs and I was in total shock when all 3 called and all 3 of them won when I was ahead in all 3 pushes.
It wasn't the calls that got me as obviously you'd get random calls in the span of an SNG. It wasn't even the bad beat as that happens all the time. It was the sheer awful play that these players exhibited. They had sufficient stacks to fold but they just called with only semi decent hands.
I was shaking my head in wonder at this surreal turn of events. And here I was thinking that the sit and go games are getting tougher and tougher and the skill level of online players have exponentially improved these past few years. Then I get bombarded with 3 dumb moves right on top of each other. And at one of the supposedly toughest sites to play in. (FTP)
I made a bet to myself right then and there. I will sharkscope these 3 guys and I will fucking eat my grimy mousepad if any of these 3 turns out to be a winning online player. That was how upset I was and how sure I was that these players couldn't be making these kinds of moves and winning, right ? The poker gods can't be that cruel.
And this was the result ....
Ahhh .... there is still justice in this crazy poker world of ours. I am now happy because I have done my part in feeding the donkeys every once in a while to make sure that they do not become extinct. =)
It wasn't the calls that got me as obviously you'd get random calls in the span of an SNG. It wasn't even the bad beat as that happens all the time. It was the sheer awful play that these players exhibited. They had sufficient stacks to fold but they just called with only semi decent hands.
I was shaking my head in wonder at this surreal turn of events. And here I was thinking that the sit and go games are getting tougher and tougher and the skill level of online players have exponentially improved these past few years. Then I get bombarded with 3 dumb moves right on top of each other. And at one of the supposedly toughest sites to play in. (FTP)
I made a bet to myself right then and there. I will sharkscope these 3 guys and I will fucking eat my grimy mousepad if any of these 3 turns out to be a winning online player. That was how upset I was and how sure I was that these players couldn't be making these kinds of moves and winning, right ? The poker gods can't be that cruel.
And this was the result ....
Ahhh .... there is still justice in this crazy poker world of ours. I am now happy because I have done my part in feeding the donkeys every once in a while to make sure that they do not become extinct. =)
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Watch U Want
I have a confession to make. I have not worn a wristwatch for close to 10 years now. I used to wear watches. But for some reason or the other, I just stopped wearing them. I tried to think about the reason why I did this. And I really couldn't come up with anything specific .
I think it was because as cellphones kept evolving, they eventually managed to displace the functions of the watch which was essentially to tell me the time and the date. And since we carry our cellphones every single second anyway. There was no compelling reason to keep on wearing watches except as a fashion accessory.
I also went on kind of a minimalist phase where I shunned anything not really essential in what I wore. I used to wear a necklace and a bracelet. But got rid of them the same time as I stopped wearing watches. I just didn't feel comfortable anymore with things dangling or attached to my body.
My last watch was a Tudor Submarine Something watch. It was actually quite expensive with a retail price close to 100k if I am not mistaken. When I decided to forgo watches, I gave it to my father in law as a gift. When my father in law passed away a couple of years ago, it was returned to me and I eventually sold it to a friend for around 40K. I realized eventually that this selling price was actually a bargain, as another friend who was into watches told me that the model that I had could have fetched a higher price even though it was second hand because it was considered a classic, blah blah blah.
Anyway, I never really felt that I got the raw end of the deal as the watch was quite old and wasn't in good shape with dings and scratches everywhere. So I was quite happy with the amount that I got considering that I had no use for it anyway.
Fast forward to today. And guess what? I am again wearing a watch. A few days ago, I just decided at the spur of the moment that I wanted to wear watches again. I have no idea where the urge came from. I don't know how it came about. I just woke up one day and thought to myself that I wanted to wear a watch.
And so after a little bit of looking around, I bought one. Are you curious to know what watch I got ? It's not a Rolex. It's not an Omega or a Breitling. It's not even a Tag or a Technomarine. My wife was shocked to see me wearing a Casio G-Shock. (pun on words deliberate).
It is the essential everyday watch. It was tough. It was water resistant to 200 meters. It runs on solar energy. It had different date formats, world time, alarm, stopwatch and a bunch of other features that I can use when I travel. I can drop it from a building or bang it against a wall. I can do all these things and it would keep on working. I can even tell the ambient temperature if I wanted to.
It is the ultimate anti-rolex. It was designed to work and last forever but it is relatively cheap. As I grow older, I realized that I don't really care about expensive brands anymore. It isn't even about saving money. I could have easily purchased a much more expensive watch. But it just didn't feel right.
In some ways, it is like a big fat middle finger to all the people who look at your watch and judge you for how expensive it is. The ultimate fuck you to the establishment. It was perfect. Well, perfectly geeky maybe. Heheh...
I can just imagine the jaws of my officemates dropping and their eyebrows raised when they see me wearing this watch. With their rolexes and omegas tucked neatly in their sleeves and then they'll see this big black chunky thing on my wrist. Classic.
I think it was because as cellphones kept evolving, they eventually managed to displace the functions of the watch which was essentially to tell me the time and the date. And since we carry our cellphones every single second anyway. There was no compelling reason to keep on wearing watches except as a fashion accessory.
I also went on kind of a minimalist phase where I shunned anything not really essential in what I wore. I used to wear a necklace and a bracelet. But got rid of them the same time as I stopped wearing watches. I just didn't feel comfortable anymore with things dangling or attached to my body.
My last watch was a Tudor Submarine Something watch. It was actually quite expensive with a retail price close to 100k if I am not mistaken. When I decided to forgo watches, I gave it to my father in law as a gift. When my father in law passed away a couple of years ago, it was returned to me and I eventually sold it to a friend for around 40K. I realized eventually that this selling price was actually a bargain, as another friend who was into watches told me that the model that I had could have fetched a higher price even though it was second hand because it was considered a classic, blah blah blah.
Anyway, I never really felt that I got the raw end of the deal as the watch was quite old and wasn't in good shape with dings and scratches everywhere. So I was quite happy with the amount that I got considering that I had no use for it anyway.
Fast forward to today. And guess what? I am again wearing a watch. A few days ago, I just decided at the spur of the moment that I wanted to wear watches again. I have no idea where the urge came from. I don't know how it came about. I just woke up one day and thought to myself that I wanted to wear a watch.
And so after a little bit of looking around, I bought one. Are you curious to know what watch I got ? It's not a Rolex. It's not an Omega or a Breitling. It's not even a Tag or a Technomarine. My wife was shocked to see me wearing a Casio G-Shock. (pun on words deliberate).
It is the essential everyday watch. It was tough. It was water resistant to 200 meters. It runs on solar energy. It had different date formats, world time, alarm, stopwatch and a bunch of other features that I can use when I travel. I can drop it from a building or bang it against a wall. I can do all these things and it would keep on working. I can even tell the ambient temperature if I wanted to.
It is the ultimate anti-rolex. It was designed to work and last forever but it is relatively cheap. As I grow older, I realized that I don't really care about expensive brands anymore. It isn't even about saving money. I could have easily purchased a much more expensive watch. But it just didn't feel right.
In some ways, it is like a big fat middle finger to all the people who look at your watch and judge you for how expensive it is. The ultimate fuck you to the establishment. It was perfect. Well, perfectly geeky maybe. Heheh...
I can just imagine the jaws of my officemates dropping and their eyebrows raised when they see me wearing this watch. With their rolexes and omegas tucked neatly in their sleeves and then they'll see this big black chunky thing on my wrist. Classic.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Heard it Through the Grapevine
1. Set vs Trips. Not the same. Set is when you have a pair and there is a similar card on the board. Trips is one in your hand and two in the board.
2. Slowplay vs Slowroll. Slowplay is when you have the nuts or close to the nuts and you play passively to induce calls or bets from your opponent. Slowroll is when you act like a moron and pretend you lost the hand even though you have the better hand.
3. I'll call even though I know I'm behind or I'll call even though I know you have the better hand. DUH ..... this is like totally illogical but you hear it all the time from dumb opponents. If you know you're behind, why would you call ? It's primarily a defense mechanism that one makes so as not to look stupid in front of other players. It's like he's saying that all the signs say that you're ahead. But I can't help my stupidity so let me just qualify my call by saying the term to minimize the damage to my ego just in case.
4. Paying tuition. I think this is probably only used in the Philippines. Players use the term loosely to describe the amount that they lost when they play poker. It is like saying that losing is part of the process of learning poker and it is necessary for you to pay a certain amount to learn poker which is actually not true. It is another human defense mechanism to massage one's ego from bad decisions. Personally, I find the term totally illogical. I think it stems from the fact that you pay tuition to learn in schools. But in poker, you gain experience and knowledge from both winning hands and losing hands. So when you win, do you also pay tuition? But you get money when you win. So are you refunding your tuition ?
There are tons of other examples, but these are the ones that I can think of right now. Sorry, I know I'm probably inadvertently bashing other people. But I can't help it. It's like an itch that I can't scratch when I hear people say these things.
2. Slowplay vs Slowroll. Slowplay is when you have the nuts or close to the nuts and you play passively to induce calls or bets from your opponent. Slowroll is when you act like a moron and pretend you lost the hand even though you have the better hand.
3. I'll call even though I know I'm behind or I'll call even though I know you have the better hand. DUH ..... this is like totally illogical but you hear it all the time from dumb opponents. If you know you're behind, why would you call ? It's primarily a defense mechanism that one makes so as not to look stupid in front of other players. It's like he's saying that all the signs say that you're ahead. But I can't help my stupidity so let me just qualify my call by saying the term to minimize the damage to my ego just in case.
4. Paying tuition. I think this is probably only used in the Philippines. Players use the term loosely to describe the amount that they lost when they play poker. It is like saying that losing is part of the process of learning poker and it is necessary for you to pay a certain amount to learn poker which is actually not true. It is another human defense mechanism to massage one's ego from bad decisions. Personally, I find the term totally illogical. I think it stems from the fact that you pay tuition to learn in schools. But in poker, you gain experience and knowledge from both winning hands and losing hands. So when you win, do you also pay tuition? But you get money when you win. So are you refunding your tuition ?
There are tons of other examples, but these are the ones that I can think of right now. Sorry, I know I'm probably inadvertently bashing other people. But I can't help it. It's like an itch that I can't scratch when I hear people say these things.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Much to everyone's surprise ...
No matter how much negative comments and bashing they got from the media and those last minute flash card snafus. In all fairness, one has to admit that the Comelec did a good job in the country's first automated election. Even with long lines and isolated failures, the PCOS machines did their job and for the first time in the country's history, we are enjoying credible results a day after the election.
From my observation, solving the long queues for the next election should be quite simple. They just need to add more machines and increase the number of voting precints. The process was actually already ok, there was just too many voters for the number of machines allocated.
My own personal experience was pretty positive. I was up in Clark with the family for the long weekend. So I arrived in Manila at around 4PM already and I immediately went to cast my vote in my old high school. And there was absolutely no line. I sauntered up to the desk, got my ballot, shaded my choices, placed it in the PCOS machine, and got my finger inked. I was done in about 15 minutes. My brother went in the morning and he said that he waited 2 hours in line.
So if you think about it, it was just a matter of too many people wanting to vote in the morning, at least in my area.
If you care any iota about the Philippines and its economy, then we can all heave a sigh of relief. Who wins is actually much less important than the fact that we had a fairly successful credible automated election. The worst case scenario of an election failure would have been a big blow to our country's already reeling state .
The successful staging of the election should now allow our country to move on and focus on the bigger problems. One side comment. You really cannot underestimate the charisma of Erap. Even with all the things that he did last time. Filipinos are still voting for him. Everyone thought it was going to be an Aquino-Villar battle, but he is a surprisingly strong 2nd place with Villar a far third. I don't think he's going to win. But his numbers are amazing considering all past events. Hindi mo tuloy alam kung he's really that popular and charismatic or that our masa is really that stupid. No offense. But seriously, that's the only conclusion you can make.
From my observation, solving the long queues for the next election should be quite simple. They just need to add more machines and increase the number of voting precints. The process was actually already ok, there was just too many voters for the number of machines allocated.
My own personal experience was pretty positive. I was up in Clark with the family for the long weekend. So I arrived in Manila at around 4PM already and I immediately went to cast my vote in my old high school. And there was absolutely no line. I sauntered up to the desk, got my ballot, shaded my choices, placed it in the PCOS machine, and got my finger inked. I was done in about 15 minutes. My brother went in the morning and he said that he waited 2 hours in line.
So if you think about it, it was just a matter of too many people wanting to vote in the morning, at least in my area.
If you care any iota about the Philippines and its economy, then we can all heave a sigh of relief. Who wins is actually much less important than the fact that we had a fairly successful credible automated election. The worst case scenario of an election failure would have been a big blow to our country's already reeling state .
The successful staging of the election should now allow our country to move on and focus on the bigger problems. One side comment. You really cannot underestimate the charisma of Erap. Even with all the things that he did last time. Filipinos are still voting for him. Everyone thought it was going to be an Aquino-Villar battle, but he is a surprisingly strong 2nd place with Villar a far third. I don't think he's going to win. But his numbers are amazing considering all past events. Hindi mo tuloy alam kung he's really that popular and charismatic or that our masa is really that stupid. No offense. But seriously, that's the only conclusion you can make.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Still Got the Mojo
Over the labor day weekend, I had some free time. So I decided to play in some online tournaments.
First try, played a super turbo satellite for the $5k guaranteed bounty in Cake. Top 4 gets a ticket. Played well, finished 3rd in chips, got the ticket. Proceeded to then play the bounty tourney. Busted out somewhere in the middle. My pocket pair (88) push was beaten by an A2 dumbass call by chip leader in our table. Ace flops and sayonara for me.
Second Try, played in a $12+1 and $24+2 90 man Turbo Knockout Tourney simultaneously in Full Tilt. Made the final table in both tourneys. After the smoke cleared, I finished 4th in the first one and 2nd in the other.
3rd Try. $2.5K Guaranteed Rebuy in Cake. Joined right before the rebuy period ended. Just playing tight as a lot of jokers play these rebuys. I get AK in early position with about half of the players eliminated. Had about 12 BBs left but blinds and antes was a fifth of my stack. So easy push. A guy with roughly about the same stack tanks but proceeds to call and shows AQ.
If you've been playing poker a long time. You will come to realize that there is always this one time in a tourney where the situation makes or breaks you. You know that if you double up then you can make the final table for a good payday. If you lose, then a good chance wasted. Sometimes its hard to recognize when this critical point happens. But in this case, I knew that this was it. I was playing well and was confident in my decisions. With a good enough stack, I knew I could easily make it to the final table. AK vs AQ. Dominated hand. What more could you ask for ?
Alas, the poker gods again decided to fuck me over as the Q came out on the turn. Bugger!!
Anyways, it was a good run after a long period of inactivity. All my eliminations were 3 outer bad beats and I netted close to $500 over the weekend. So quite satisfied and ended up thinking that I still got the cojones to play and beat this game.
First try, played a super turbo satellite for the $5k guaranteed bounty in Cake. Top 4 gets a ticket. Played well, finished 3rd in chips, got the ticket. Proceeded to then play the bounty tourney. Busted out somewhere in the middle. My pocket pair (88) push was beaten by an A2 dumbass call by chip leader in our table. Ace flops and sayonara for me.
Second Try, played in a $12+1 and $24+2 90 man Turbo Knockout Tourney simultaneously in Full Tilt. Made the final table in both tourneys. After the smoke cleared, I finished 4th in the first one and 2nd in the other.
3rd Try. $2.5K Guaranteed Rebuy in Cake. Joined right before the rebuy period ended. Just playing tight as a lot of jokers play these rebuys. I get AK in early position with about half of the players eliminated. Had about 12 BBs left but blinds and antes was a fifth of my stack. So easy push. A guy with roughly about the same stack tanks but proceeds to call and shows AQ.
If you've been playing poker a long time. You will come to realize that there is always this one time in a tourney where the situation makes or breaks you. You know that if you double up then you can make the final table for a good payday. If you lose, then a good chance wasted. Sometimes its hard to recognize when this critical point happens. But in this case, I knew that this was it. I was playing well and was confident in my decisions. With a good enough stack, I knew I could easily make it to the final table. AK vs AQ. Dominated hand. What more could you ask for ?
Alas, the poker gods again decided to fuck me over as the Q came out on the turn. Bugger!!
Anyways, it was a good run after a long period of inactivity. All my eliminations were 3 outer bad beats and I netted close to $500 over the weekend. So quite satisfied and ended up thinking that I still got the cojones to play and beat this game.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Sex in Video Games
I know it may be an old topic, but I never realized just how far sex in mainstream video games have evolved until I got to play a game called Dragon Age Origins in my PC recently. I haven't been playing PC games that much for the past few years, but I read a review of the game and a friend also heartily recommended it, so I decided to try it out.
For you PC gamer addicts, I'm sure you're familiar with the game. For everybody else, its basically a role playing game where you assume the role of like a warrior, mage or rogue and battle evil beings.
So I played the first few nights and before long I was hooked. It was the same old dungeons and dragons stuff that I used to play back in the days. So nothing new there except for the really good graphics. But the main difference was that there was a lot of interaction with the characters in the game. Such that you can actually get a character to fall in love with your character and then they have video sex.
The first time this happened, I was shocked. What the heck! I mean it was quite funny and the woman character was in bra and panties. But there was no mistaking the scenes that were being portrayed. Man on top, woman on top. The shock factor was not because of any moral indignation on my part, but more because it was totally unexpected in a mainstream RPG.
So now, you're wondering. Can you do it with another character ? So I buttered up one of the other female characters to make her fall in love. And waddya know, she also agrees to have sex. And then the 2 computer characters you had sex with are now fighting because your character wooed both of them and they are asking you to choose between them.
The dialogues were hysterically funny and as a self confessed morally depraved human being. I have to admit it made the game much more compelling. I am certainly not going into the issue of the morality of portraying sex in video games that can be accessed by kids. I mean, half of the movies that are being shown now have sex scenes in one way or another and they are certainly much more graphic and revealing. But my curiosity was piqued so I surfed the net and read some of the comments made on the game and I find out that you can actually do sexy time between same sex characters in the right circumstance. Yep! So gay sex and lesbian sex is also included. So as not to alienate certain portions of society. Heheh.
I'm guessing its just a normal evolution. As video game graphics get more realistic, then I'm guessing the designers have to make the scenarios more realistic also. I am sure that the addition of sex no matter how awkwardly handled has made the games sell better as the people who play these kinds of games probably get a big kick out of fulfilling their fantasies in whatever form they can get it.
Now if I can just find a hack to remove the bra and panty ........... ;)
UPDATE 05/04/10
Attached sample pic from the net just so you have an idea what I am talking about
For you PC gamer addicts, I'm sure you're familiar with the game. For everybody else, its basically a role playing game where you assume the role of like a warrior, mage or rogue and battle evil beings.
So I played the first few nights and before long I was hooked. It was the same old dungeons and dragons stuff that I used to play back in the days. So nothing new there except for the really good graphics. But the main difference was that there was a lot of interaction with the characters in the game. Such that you can actually get a character to fall in love with your character and then they have video sex.
The first time this happened, I was shocked. What the heck! I mean it was quite funny and the woman character was in bra and panties. But there was no mistaking the scenes that were being portrayed. Man on top, woman on top. The shock factor was not because of any moral indignation on my part, but more because it was totally unexpected in a mainstream RPG.
So now, you're wondering. Can you do it with another character ? So I buttered up one of the other female characters to make her fall in love. And waddya know, she also agrees to have sex. And then the 2 computer characters you had sex with are now fighting because your character wooed both of them and they are asking you to choose between them.
The dialogues were hysterically funny and as a self confessed morally depraved human being. I have to admit it made the game much more compelling. I am certainly not going into the issue of the morality of portraying sex in video games that can be accessed by kids. I mean, half of the movies that are being shown now have sex scenes in one way or another and they are certainly much more graphic and revealing. But my curiosity was piqued so I surfed the net and read some of the comments made on the game and I find out that you can actually do sexy time between same sex characters in the right circumstance. Yep! So gay sex and lesbian sex is also included. So as not to alienate certain portions of society. Heheh.
I'm guessing its just a normal evolution. As video game graphics get more realistic, then I'm guessing the designers have to make the scenarios more realistic also. I am sure that the addition of sex no matter how awkwardly handled has made the games sell better as the people who play these kinds of games probably get a big kick out of fulfilling their fantasies in whatever form they can get it.
Now if I can just find a hack to remove the bra and panty ........... ;)
UPDATE 05/04/10
Attached sample pic from the net just so you have an idea what I am talking about
Monday, April 26, 2010
Hoping for Thunder
We're right smack in the middle of the first round of the NBA playoffs and everything appears to be going as expected except for two matches. The Mavs and the Spurs where the Spurs are currently beating the tar out of the Mavs and leading the series 3-1. I can't really say this is unexpected as the Spurs are a tried and tested playoff team with the trio of Duncan, Parker and Ginobli anchoring them. Although they are getting old, the emergence of George Hill and the addition of Jefferson has been enough to keep the team in the playoff race with an outside chance of getting to the finals.
Can't say the same for the Mavs who have a reputation of being soft and playoff chokers. Nowitzki got some support this year with the addition of Marion and Butler. But they just can't seem to get over the hump. Even though they finished 2nd in the regular season, they are in danger of getting eliminated again. I think Mark Cuban is scratching his head trying to figure out what the heck is wrong with this team. He has poured millions of dollars into getting complementary players to no avail. My opinion is that it lies directly with your star player. Some players can kick it up a notch during playoffs and carry their team (Lebron, Kobe). Nowitzki cannot seem to do it.
The other more interesting match-up is between the Lakers and Thunder. The Thunder behind a run and gun hustling game are making the Lakers look old and have currently tied the series at 2-2. Everyone predicted this to be a sweep and although the Lakers are probably still going to win this one. I am secretly hoping for the Thunder upset. Durant has shown his huge potential this season and together with Westbrook, Green, Harden and Ibaka are giving Phil Jackson and Kobe all that they can handle. If they can just continue this energy thru the last 3 games, then they have a good chance of stealing this one in 7 games. Kobe appears to be somewhat bothered by his injuries and the Laker point guards Fisher and Farmar cannot guard the speedy Westbrook. Durant has actually been off his game (guarded by Artest) and the Thunder can still win comfortably. So if he figures this out and gets his groove, the Lakers might find themselves eliminated in the first round.
I know there are a lot of Laker fans here in the Philippines especially Kobe fans. I for one have always rooted for the Lakers since the Magic Johnson days. But you can't help rooting for the young Thunder team who are the underdogs but have shown great resiliency. If they steal this one, I don't think David Stern would be that disappointed. Even though there won't be a Lakers-Celtics or Lakers-Cavs possibility. The idea of a young team with only 20+ wins last season possibly taking it all the way is also a good story line and will be milked for what its worth. Durant vs Lebron doesn't sound so bad. Heheh.
Can't say the same for the Mavs who have a reputation of being soft and playoff chokers. Nowitzki got some support this year with the addition of Marion and Butler. But they just can't seem to get over the hump. Even though they finished 2nd in the regular season, they are in danger of getting eliminated again. I think Mark Cuban is scratching his head trying to figure out what the heck is wrong with this team. He has poured millions of dollars into getting complementary players to no avail. My opinion is that it lies directly with your star player. Some players can kick it up a notch during playoffs and carry their team (Lebron, Kobe). Nowitzki cannot seem to do it.
The other more interesting match-up is between the Lakers and Thunder. The Thunder behind a run and gun hustling game are making the Lakers look old and have currently tied the series at 2-2. Everyone predicted this to be a sweep and although the Lakers are probably still going to win this one. I am secretly hoping for the Thunder upset. Durant has shown his huge potential this season and together with Westbrook, Green, Harden and Ibaka are giving Phil Jackson and Kobe all that they can handle. If they can just continue this energy thru the last 3 games, then they have a good chance of stealing this one in 7 games. Kobe appears to be somewhat bothered by his injuries and the Laker point guards Fisher and Farmar cannot guard the speedy Westbrook. Durant has actually been off his game (guarded by Artest) and the Thunder can still win comfortably. So if he figures this out and gets his groove, the Lakers might find themselves eliminated in the first round.
I know there are a lot of Laker fans here in the Philippines especially Kobe fans. I for one have always rooted for the Lakers since the Magic Johnson days. But you can't help rooting for the young Thunder team who are the underdogs but have shown great resiliency. If they steal this one, I don't think David Stern would be that disappointed. Even though there won't be a Lakers-Celtics or Lakers-Cavs possibility. The idea of a young team with only 20+ wins last season possibly taking it all the way is also a good story line and will be milked for what its worth. Durant vs Lebron doesn't sound so bad. Heheh.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Still No Poker but Turning Japanese
As the title suggests, poker is still taking a back seat to my everyday life. Not really playing that much. Just came back from a trip to Osaka Japan though. And it was one of the coolest countries I've visited. People are so polite, it is relatively clean and the food is awesome. I always had the impression that the food is expensive in Japan, but the opposite is true. There are lots of small places that you can go to where the price is reasonable and the food is delicious. Curry, Ramen, Udon, Huge Beef Bowls, Tempura. YUM.
Places to visit are of course Universal Studios, the Kaiyukan Aquarium, Den Den Town for electronics and Osaka Castle. Just make sure to cop one of those cheap flights from Cebu Pacific and the total cost for the trip is surprisingly only slightly higher than a Hongkong visit and you get to experience a totally different and unique culture. Hongkong is already too common as everybody has been there including their maids.
The only negative during a March visit to Japan is the weather. The average was around 6 to 8 degrees and for us warm blooded filipinos. Way too cold.
Notables from the trip include (1) seeing so many pretty Japanese ladies in their ubershort skirts. My wife had to turn my head back a couple of times or else I would bump into something. Heheh. (2) Getting a shirt from Uniqlo with a Mazinger Z design. OK. For those who are not familiar. UNIQLO is a clothing store that originated from Japan which now has many branches in Asia including China, Singapore and Hongkong. It is like the GAP of Asia. It offers fashionable and good quality clothes for men and women at very reasonable prices. Be sure to visit their stores whenever you see them around Asia. Mazinger Z is a cartoon about a robot. Together with Voltes 5, it was one of the mainstay programs that I watched during my childhood. Seeing a shirt with Mazinger Z on it. My geeky side couldn't resist. (3) Heated toilet seats with automatic bidets and dryers. This may sound totally weird and out of this world. But after having experienced this in cold weather. I have become a convert. I want one here in the Philippines if I can get one. Heheh. (4) Eat all you can sushi in a rotating sushi conveyor. My cousin and I finished 45 plates between the 2 of us. BURP (5) 100 Yen Stores like Daiso. I know we already have them here. But the Japanese stores have tons more stuff in them. I got a set of earphones for 100 yen. Also a nice pair of boxer shorts. Of course you can't expect high quality but still that's just 50 pesos. (6) Japanese chocolates. Lots of different kinds to choose from. From high quality fresh chocolates to Kit Kat Green Tea Flavor.
Some people might have a problem with the language as almost all Japanese people cannot speak English. Even the hotel staff have a hard time communicating. But the people are so helpful and polite that it is still easy to get around. Just be ready to make silly hand gestures and lots of finger pointing and bowing. Their subways and trains are very well organized with accurate schedules. If they say it arrives at 9, then it arrives at 9. I don't think I took a train or bus that was late during my whole stay there. Just get one of their subway maps and you should be able to roam around at your leisure.
What else can I say ? Great place for a vacation. I am definitely going back when I get the chance.
Places to visit are of course Universal Studios, the Kaiyukan Aquarium, Den Den Town for electronics and Osaka Castle. Just make sure to cop one of those cheap flights from Cebu Pacific and the total cost for the trip is surprisingly only slightly higher than a Hongkong visit and you get to experience a totally different and unique culture. Hongkong is already too common as everybody has been there including their maids.
The only negative during a March visit to Japan is the weather. The average was around 6 to 8 degrees and for us warm blooded filipinos. Way too cold.
Notables from the trip include (1) seeing so many pretty Japanese ladies in their ubershort skirts. My wife had to turn my head back a couple of times or else I would bump into something. Heheh. (2) Getting a shirt from Uniqlo with a Mazinger Z design. OK. For those who are not familiar. UNIQLO is a clothing store that originated from Japan which now has many branches in Asia including China, Singapore and Hongkong. It is like the GAP of Asia. It offers fashionable and good quality clothes for men and women at very reasonable prices. Be sure to visit their stores whenever you see them around Asia. Mazinger Z is a cartoon about a robot. Together with Voltes 5, it was one of the mainstay programs that I watched during my childhood. Seeing a shirt with Mazinger Z on it. My geeky side couldn't resist. (3) Heated toilet seats with automatic bidets and dryers. This may sound totally weird and out of this world. But after having experienced this in cold weather. I have become a convert. I want one here in the Philippines if I can get one. Heheh. (4) Eat all you can sushi in a rotating sushi conveyor. My cousin and I finished 45 plates between the 2 of us. BURP (5) 100 Yen Stores like Daiso. I know we already have them here. But the Japanese stores have tons more stuff in them. I got a set of earphones for 100 yen. Also a nice pair of boxer shorts. Of course you can't expect high quality but still that's just 50 pesos. (6) Japanese chocolates. Lots of different kinds to choose from. From high quality fresh chocolates to Kit Kat Green Tea Flavor.
Some people might have a problem with the language as almost all Japanese people cannot speak English. Even the hotel staff have a hard time communicating. But the people are so helpful and polite that it is still easy to get around. Just be ready to make silly hand gestures and lots of finger pointing and bowing. Their subways and trains are very well organized with accurate schedules. If they say it arrives at 9, then it arrives at 9. I don't think I took a train or bus that was late during my whole stay there. Just get one of their subway maps and you should be able to roam around at your leisure.
What else can I say ? Great place for a vacation. I am definitely going back when I get the chance.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Anybody Home ?
I decided to check my blog today and saw that its been more than a month from my last post and even last January, I actually only made 1 tiny entry about the blogger tourney which I never got to play by the way.
Some of my friends who read my blog regularly (all 4 of them) have bugged me about this. But what can I say, its the same answer. No poker, no post.
Actually, to be honest, I have been playing some poker lately. More than the previous months, but still not back to original levels.
Am I winning ? Errr ..... I would probably say break even. Not winning much, not losing much either. As I've indicated before, playing only low buy in SNGs and MTTs doesn't really result in big swings in my bankroll. A two hundred dollar swing in one day is already quite big.
At this point in my poker playing, my ROI in SNGs would usually be in the plus 8% to 12% range. A little bit more if I play less tables and a little bit less if I play more tables in one go. This is then balanced by my MTT playing which of course eats up any small winnings from the SNGs. The only time that my bankroll really moves is if I score in the top 3 in the MTTs that I play. This would usually happen once or twice every few months.
And that in a nutshell is how my poker goes. Kind of boring, but almost zero risk at this point with slow positive returns. And I think that is the reason why my poker playing has waned lately. The excitement has been replaced by a kind of bored indifference. I play because I know I will earn a little bit if I just keep at it. But the dream of a big score is way back somewhere in the depths of my consciousness.
I know that I should be working on my game. But now, I'm so lazy to read a poker book or go to the forums. So I pretty much just rely on my current knowledge and experience which is acceptable but nothing great. In short, I haven't really made the next leap to advance my skills.
I keep telling myself to snap out of this funk and get my ass moving. And sometimes I feel the old excitement coming back. But real life then interferes in so many ways. Company needs you to go to China, daughter needs homework help, etc. Just recently, my brother in law was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He's only in his early thirties and it came as a big shock to everyone. With all these things going on, poker just sort of fades in the background.
The good thing about poker is its always there waiting for you. Unlike other sports, age is not really an issue. As long as you keep your mind active and you don't get any weird disease like Parkinson's or Alzheimer's, then you're pretty much good to go even up to your fifties or even sixties.
Some people say that it's become a young man's game. But just when you're about to believe the bullshit. You still see old geezers like Cloutier make final tables and what about that 96 year old guy (Jack Ury) who played in the WSOP. He has bad eyesight and hearing but still plays year after year. Never cashed but that didn't stop him from playing the game that he loves.
Poker will always be there. We just have to find the time to play.
Some of my friends who read my blog regularly (all 4 of them) have bugged me about this. But what can I say, its the same answer. No poker, no post.
Actually, to be honest, I have been playing some poker lately. More than the previous months, but still not back to original levels.
Am I winning ? Errr ..... I would probably say break even. Not winning much, not losing much either. As I've indicated before, playing only low buy in SNGs and MTTs doesn't really result in big swings in my bankroll. A two hundred dollar swing in one day is already quite big.
At this point in my poker playing, my ROI in SNGs would usually be in the plus 8% to 12% range. A little bit more if I play less tables and a little bit less if I play more tables in one go. This is then balanced by my MTT playing which of course eats up any small winnings from the SNGs. The only time that my bankroll really moves is if I score in the top 3 in the MTTs that I play. This would usually happen once or twice every few months.
And that in a nutshell is how my poker goes. Kind of boring, but almost zero risk at this point with slow positive returns. And I think that is the reason why my poker playing has waned lately. The excitement has been replaced by a kind of bored indifference. I play because I know I will earn a little bit if I just keep at it. But the dream of a big score is way back somewhere in the depths of my consciousness.
I know that I should be working on my game. But now, I'm so lazy to read a poker book or go to the forums. So I pretty much just rely on my current knowledge and experience which is acceptable but nothing great. In short, I haven't really made the next leap to advance my skills.
I keep telling myself to snap out of this funk and get my ass moving. And sometimes I feel the old excitement coming back. But real life then interferes in so many ways. Company needs you to go to China, daughter needs homework help, etc. Just recently, my brother in law was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He's only in his early thirties and it came as a big shock to everyone. With all these things going on, poker just sort of fades in the background.
The good thing about poker is its always there waiting for you. Unlike other sports, age is not really an issue. As long as you keep your mind active and you don't get any weird disease like Parkinson's or Alzheimer's, then you're pretty much good to go even up to your fifties or even sixties.
Some people say that it's become a young man's game. But just when you're about to believe the bullshit. You still see old geezers like Cloutier make final tables and what about that 96 year old guy (Jack Ury) who played in the WSOP. He has bad eyesight and hearing but still plays year after year. Never cashed but that didn't stop him from playing the game that he loves.
Poker will always be there. We just have to find the time to play.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
It's Baaaaack
As you can see from the ad near the top of this page, the Pokerstars Bloggers Championship of Online Poker (WBCOOP) is back. Last year, I managed to qualify for the main event but was not lucky enough to ITM. I think one or two other Pinoy bloggers qualified and one of them got deep.
So calling all Pinoy online players with blogs. It's that time of the year again.
So calling all Pinoy online players with blogs. It's that time of the year again.
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