I’ve had some frustrating profit dips at both the end of January and the end of February. Then March had some poor sessions. This is placing a huge damper at my attempt to do this for a living and definitely is requiring that if I don’t make a strong run at the end of March, I’m going to have to start the job search up once again and throw away this dream. At least I’m giving it a real shot though and not just talking about it.

The tables were unveiled today and should be up and operational very soon, if not right now. If one is wondering why it took so much trouble just to reorder part of the room and add six new tables, I have the poor planning explanation for you. Apparently, the wiring set up of the room was permanently set up. Permanently in that the wiring was cemented in and part of it had to be jackhammered up before the new tables could be placed in the room.

Now, I am no expert in engineering, but it seems to me that in a poker room, you would definitely want to leave yourself the ability to move tables around and add new tables with the most ease. But then again, that’s why I am not in charge, as I might actually do things that make sense and are logical.

On Wednesday night around 10:00 I hit the casino. The poker room was packed, but none of the tables had very much action. Sadly, after 3 table changes, I was still unable to find a good table. At one of my tables, I made a questionable laydown of a non-nut flush when a donk shoved 90bb into me. Unfortunately, he showed me that he had a smaller flush than I. Anyway, another regular at the table was berating my play on the hand and told me that he is going to just push me around now. I kindly replied, “When you pay my bills, you can play my hand for me. If you think you can push me around, go ahead and try.” Well, two hands later I take about $40 from him with middle pair while he was “trying to push me around.” I just laughed at him while scooping the pot. I could tell at this point he was becoming tilted. It’s funny to me when people at the table or just in general try to tilt me by talking smack. I have been through a lot of sh*t in my life and some stranger at a table over a couple hundred dollars is about the last thing going to put me on tilt.

Anyway, on my last table change, the regular joins me. At that table, I am put in a position to exact my revenge on said regular. Now, let me note I don’t generally target those who berate me at the table, but if the opportunity presents itself to make money, I will take it, regardless of the person. And, when I win, the win is a bit sweeter if from one of the a**holes. The regular gets involved in a hand with me where I have K-J and the flop is 9-10-Q with two hearts. We end up gettting it all in on the turn and I think he was drawing. Long story short, the flush doesn’t hit and I stack him for a little over $150. I tell him when the hand is over, “Weren’t’ you supposed to be the one pushing me around, what happened to that?” I know that really set him off and he continued to buy-in another 3 times and lost a little over a grand total. Too bad I didn’t get more of it. At the end of his losing session he says “Well, I make more than anyone at this table, so it doesn’t matter to me anyway.” Good Riddance a-hole. The best line of the night comes from an older regular at the table who said to the a-hole, “Well, that is what we call redistribution of the wealth!”

I end the night up only $85, but it is worth it to see the donk a-hole burn.

Anyway, my memory lasts a long time and I will certainly remember most of the player’s styles I play with on a day in and day out basis. I know I am not the only one doing this though so I definitely have to always be changing my game. It’s funny though, because I ran into a player I used to play 2/5 with from time to time at Wheeling and we go to talking. I told him I have definitely changed my game around a lot and tightened up immensely. He then proceeded to tell me exactly how I used to play before and he was absolutely correct. I think it really goes to show that as a poker player if you want to be successful you have to be extremely focused on everything because if you aren’t, someone else is and definitely will use it to their advantage. The same goes for life. Just another similarity between poker and real life.

Speaking with a few of the players today, some of them mentioned they actually liked Matt as a dealer. He never made enough of an impression on me for me to really remember him, except for those chips he probably took out of my pots. I think one of the players I talked to today said it best. “If you aren’t going to score something for the rest of your life, why take the risk.” I can’t argue with that.

Here are some links:

Story One

Story Two

I then get involved in a hand with a fairly new gentleman to the table. I end up hitting a back door flush draw on him and make a tidy $160 profit on the hand. With my stack around $425, a few hands later, I get involved in the hand of the night. Allow me to say that the V in this hand was a total fish and was already in the game for $1200. He basically could not lay down a hand. To emphasize this point, I will tell you he flat called a $125 raise with 8-10 offsuit pre-flop. Even more intrestingly, the table had named him Jumanji for his resemblence to the guy in the movie.



Anyway, onto the hand. At this point I am about 3 hours into the table and have certainly built up an aggressive image for myself. II ‘m sure some will definitely not agree with my play on this hand, but here it is. The table has 5 limpers and I am in the small blind. I look down to find Q-Q and for whatever reason, I decide I am just going to call the $3. 99% of the time I am raising here, but this time I decided to just call. European guy is in the BB and decides to make it $25. His range is really wide here could really have ATC. It gets even more interesting when 3 of the limpers call the raise. Therefore, there is $100 in the pot when it gets back around to me. At this point, I am beginning to relish in the fact that I didn’t raise initially. I decide to put in a super large re-raise to steal the $100 and decide if anyone does call me, it is likely the best they are going to have is still going to be behind my Queens. I blow it away with a $200 raise. This is when everyone insta-mucks, except for Jumanji. Instead of pushing all-in, Jumanji decides to just call, leaving himself around $50 behind. Since it is a given that my money is going in, I put $70 out in the blind as the flop is coming out in order to get the rest of Jumanji’s money in. The flop is K-J-10 with two clubs. There could be worse flops for me, but this one wasn’t extremely great considering that Jumanji could have A-K or even a pair of Jacks.

That is when the highly unlikely happens, Jumanji looks at his cards and without much further thought, folds instead of sticking his remaining $50 in!!!!!! The whole table’s jaws dropped, including mine. I’ve just never seen it before. I scoop a very nice pot and after a few more hands, the table finally asks him what he had. He says he had A-9 or A-10, but isn’t really sure. I find this extremely unlikely as I don’t see him folding here if he had a gutter and even more so if he had a pair and a straight draw. Either way, I take down a very nice pot. Jumanji reloads two other times but I run card dead and am unable to score any more from him.

So, I stayed and worked my stack to $600 profit then hit a rough streak of cold cards. It started when I had A-4 hearts on a board of Ks-2h-5h and got it all in on the flop against a nit who I had on A-K. I miss my draws and drop about $250 on the hand. Eventually the cold streak eats away most of my profit and I am down $100. However, the shenanigans lasted at the table for a good three hours longer, so I was able to work my stack up to a $170 profit before leaving around 11 in the morning.

As for those shenanigans. Well, there was a guy who just had no care for money, but loved his gutshots. I watched him call a $200 bet into a $250 pot so he could chase a gutshot….and he hit it. His 4 outer was the only way he could win. And he did. If that wasn’t bad enough he chased another gutshot for $200 on the flop and peeled it on the turn. By this time he had his stack worked up to $1500. But what goes around comes around. When you are chasing 4 out hands, your stack will not last long. By the time I left the table he had a measly $300. Good riddance.

Also, my table had a legitimate shot at a nice bad beat jackpot and there was also a $1700ish pot involved. Both V’s flopped sets on an extremely dry board of Q-8-3. They got it all in and one V had the set of 8′s and the other had top set. Mr. 8′s turns quads and things get interesting. However, the board shows a poor 10 on the river. The guy who had the Queens goes on mega tilt and just starts blowing buy-ins. At one time he pushed $50 in pre-flop blind for about 10 hands in a row. Also, my favoriate drink of the night. The mega tilt maniac ordered a jack and vodka at about 9 in the morning when they started serving. Haha.

Anyway, the only reason I mention it is because I grew up in a family business and always have that entrepreneurial spirit bugging me inside.  I just can’t pull the trigger though on putting my own business into the works.  It’s frustrating.  I can risk X amount on a bankroll trying to make it as a player at the table yet I can’t just put some seed money into a business field that has proven success (my family as evidence) on my own.  I think the educational background of my previous three years has made me truly risk-adverse where I wasn’t before.  Additionally, that same question made me begin to question who was truly in control of my decisions, my heart or mind.

I just need to get back that not give a fu** attitude that I used to have and risk it all once again.  Then I can quell the jealousy and regret I feel when I talk to others at the table who took the extra step that I was unable to.  Well, before, I get too damn personal for shit that no one even cares to hear I will cut this short.

Hero was down to about $160.  He couldn’t hit a flop and/or draw.  Everything was looking dim for him but he remained patient.  All of a sudden he starts hitting.  He is winning small ball pots left and right.  He has won about 7 of 10 of the last pots.  His stack is a little over $300 now and he is feeling good.  He finds A-7 off in early position and decides to see a flop.  He doesn’t usually play weak aces but hey, he has been running well.  There is a raise to $11 from late position and 6 take the flop.  The running well continues with a flop of A-Q-7 rainbow.  The hero decides his image is pretty aggressive and shitty since the recent run he has been on.

He decides to lead for $60.  Hero reels in the perfect bait.  Villain is a tight player who loves to pick off bluffs and has about $600 in front of him.  Villain hasn’t lost what seems a hand all night.  Villain either raises if he has a strong hand or calls if he is looking to break off a well timed bluff.  Villain flats the $60.  The turn is a pretty 4 completing the rainbow.  Hero decides based on the player he is facing, maximum value can be achieved here by overbetting the pot.  Hero pushes.  Villain immediately tanks and flounders in the tank for about 5 minutes.  Hero then holds his cards out like he is ready to toss them in to Villain’s fold.  Villain doesn’t like this.  He decides he has had enough of Hero’s theatrics.  Villain is going to make the Hero call.  Yay Hero is thinking until a dirty Queen peels off on the River.  Hero knows before Villain even shows his cards.  Hero tables his hand in disgust and begins to get up to leave while Villain tables A-9 off for the 6 out River winner.  Puke.

Sorry for the bad beat story.  Just tough to handle tonight after a long and frustrating 6 hr session.

I wanted to play the Meadows tournament, but I didn’t have as profitable of a week as I would have preferred, so it is better I protect my bankroll right now rather than take a tourney shot with 1/5 of my bankroll.  Hopefully I can keep building the roll though and be taking some shots at some larger buy-in tournaments down the road.  Best of luck to those that do play though.