In my third heat I thought I played well again. I feel like I’ve been unlucky in all three of my heats thus far, and that’s put me in a bit of a pressure situation going into tomorrow’s final heat. It’s an 8 handed table, and I MUST finish 3rd or higher to advance to the next round. It’s that simple. 4th I’m out, 3rd I’m in.
I knew coming into my last two heats that I’d need at least a 3rd and a 4th, so I got the 4th, time to knock off a top three finish.
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I’ve been thinking a lot about poker recently. Watching it, learning, etc. Soooo much has changed it’s difficult to even know where to start.
When I started playing tournament poker, one of the absolute best in the game was T.J. Cloutier. I always did well against T.J. because I felt like I had a good understanding of what he was trying to do at the table. T.J. would play pretty solid, not get too crazy aggressive at all, and then sporadically he’d make a “play” by coming over the top before the flop with nothing. He’d use his tight image to build up what Phil Laak calls “Dormancy Vig,” meaning, that he’d get away with his random bluffs because his opponents would give him tons of credit.
So T.J., and to a lesser degree John Juanda, essentially looked for spots where they could push someone around. Often their reads were solely tell based. T.J. might wait for the young kid in the 5 seat to raise it with his left hand very quickly, and T.J. would know that meant the kid didn’t have it. When he had it, the kid would hum and haw, take his time, and then put in a soft raise with both hands.
When you spot stuff like that, and are good at it, this tournament strategy becomes very effective and that methodology was one of the key reasons T.J. put up such consistent results. He wasn’t playing the cards, he was always playing the man.
It was really just that simple in the old days. Most of the tournaments didn’t require you to play much deep stacked poker, so picking up pots before the flop became “enough” to be successful. You didn’t really need to understand how to break down a hand. You didn’t have to be all that good at post flop play. You could use this strategy, fire a strong continuation bet, and then kind of just give up from there.
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Well that strategy isn’t nearly as effective in deep stacked tournaments today for two reasons:
1) The average player is so much better and if they sense that you are coming over the top weak, they may 4-bet you even weaker. That stuff NEVER used to happen unless it was QQ KK AA or AK. You could 3-bet people all day, knowing that they’ll never 4-bet you unless they have one of those hands. Also, if this is your only weapon, you won’t get to use it enough to stay afloat in today’s game. Sure you’ll get away with it a lot, but you won’t win much when you do. If you push too hard, then it becomes less effective because you’ll lose credibility with your 3-bets.
2) The tournament structures are better. This is a VERY important reason. T.J. used to have a funny track record in the WSOP main event. He would bust out on day one about half the time, but when he made it through day one, he virtually ALWAYS made a deep run. That’s because his strengths lied in tournament knowledge and playing shallower stacks. His strategy simply worked much better when the antes and blinds were significant enough for him to ship it on people and increase his stack size enough to warrant it. It’s a foolish strategy when the blinds are 25-50 and you have 10,000 in chips, but when you have 40,000 in chips at 1000-2000 blinds then it’s an excellent weapon.
I have NEVER played that way. I was always a small baller, playing lots of little pots. Not many people played the way I did back then. People would laugh at my raise sizes. Back then it was considered normal to raise anywhere from 3-5 times the big blind when you were the first player in. I was making it 2.5 times the blind, and no one understood it. They thought it was just stupid. Today, it’s rare to find any successful tournament player who goes with raise sizes bigger than 2.5. The old “norm” of 3 times the blind is now 2.5…. so now I min raise 🙂
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The key reason “old school” isn’t effective anymore, is simply because players today are SO much better after the flop. It’s like night and day today from even how it was 5 years ago. A completely different form of poker.
Playing tight, and then waiting to make a play by coming over the top of someone just isn’t good enough anymore. You need to learn more about bet sizing, getting maximum value for your hands post flop, polarizing your range by bluffing more in certain spots… It’s a lot of fun, but you have to fight for every chip, whereas it used to be that you could sit there and wait for donations.
I watched a lot of poker on TV recently and I saw one player in particular looking like a fish out of water. Whether it was a cash game or a tournament, he habitually won the minimum on his big hands, got outplayed when he missed, and paid off when he was crushed. He made no successful high level bluffs because those plays are just not in his nature. Oh, and if you were thinking I was talking about myself, lol, you are wrong, although I could see how you might get that impression!
In studying this player, the differences between what worked in the old days compared to the game today, became a bit of an epiphany for me. It’s so obvious to me why that approach cannot defend against the players of today. It’s just too simplistic. I never would use that strategy myself anyway, but it was still something that dawned on me as to why players who used to have success don’t do quite as well anymore.
If you really want to learn how to improve your game, you can watch guys like Phil Ivey, Tom “Durr” Dwan, and Patrik Antonius. On the last season of HSP I feel like my game improved a ton simply from playing with them. I admire all three of their skill sets, and they all have very unique, and distinct styles that are all effective. Durr is the loosest of the three, but he also tends to get slightly more action which is a decent trade off I guess.
What you learn from them CAN teach you how to be a better tournament player too, even though they are playing cash poker. Early stages of tournaments today have plenty of play and often play similar to a cash game.
In the past, you could be a great tournament player without really having to understand cash games or deep stacked poker much at all. That’s not the case anymore. You should practice both tournaments and cash games even if all you want to do is be a tournament player.
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I was goofing around with Phil Hellmuth today at the Premier League and he told me to read his blog, so I did. I was a bit surprised by what I read, but not entirely. Hellmuth believes that he had a bad year last year because his preparation wasn’t there and if he did his “PEMM” this year it would be enough to bounce back and have a big year. What’s missing from his blog, and I’ve told him this, is a little LTPB “Learn to Play Better.” You take that ego.. you swallow it, and you come to the realization that instead of fighting the truth, you should instead learn from the younger generation who have spent countless hours breaking down the game. They know stuff that no one knew years ago. Why NOT learn from them?
I’ve examined my own game again and again over the years. I think you have to do that or you get stuck in a rut. I’ve seen it happen to players for over 10 years now. They learn how to think about the game one way, and they never really allow themselves to think outside the box and realize that the game dynamics have changed so much, that they simply have to learn to adjust… or lose.
When he told me to read his blog I was hoping and expecting to read something a little bit different. Not that he isn’t winning because he’s not meditating or running laps, but that his skill set needs an upgrade. Something holds him back from admitting that for some reason and until he does, he’ll struggle. Until he starts to come to terms with the fact that publicly stating that he is the “Best NL hold’em player in the world BY FAR” makes him look foolish, then he is doomed to be ridiculed by his peers.
I really do like Phil Hellmuth. I like him a lot actually. When I was like 17 years old, I was a Hellmuth “fan” after watching old WSOP tapes of him winning the main event. I don’t want to see him lose. I don’t want to see him play badly. I’d like to see him win his 12th bracelet. It’s good for poker, whether you like him or not, it’s good for poker. Based on what I see from him lately, though, #12 may never come unless he learns to respect the fact that the younger kids have a broader knowledge base and that he needs to learn how to apply their “tricks” to his own game.
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I have a core group of young online guys I talk about hands with all the time. They think about things very differently than I do at times, and it can be really helpful to understand their perspective. It’s less about who’s right or wrong, and more about healthy discussion about the game. I think I often surprise them with my thoughts on hands, and I know I always learn a thing or two myself from listening to them.
Guys like Justin Bonomo or Isaac Haxton come from a completely different world than I do poker wise, and we don’t play the same way, but I have a great deal of respect for their knowledge base. They are smart guys.
Jason Somerville is a bit of a boy genius as well and is constantly thinking about poker. I’ll occasionally bounce hands off him and Vivek Rajkumar, or even add my two cents to hands they bring to me (I morphed Somerville into a small balling min raiser!). Then there’s Adam Junglen. Adam is another one of the young guys who thinks about the game differently than I do at times. I’ve talked to Shaun Deeb over dinner also, but man, oh man are we on a completely different planet when it comes to poker! We think nothing alike when it comes to tournament poker. He is an online phenom, but I think he needs to reexamine his approach to deep stacked tournaments.
Lastly, I have interesting conversations sometimes with PokerStars Team Pro Lex Veldius. We needle each other about the way we play, but I think there is a mutual respect there. He thinks small ball is complete crap, and I think he’s a bit of a reckless 9-betting nutcase at times, but there is definitely respect there. I learned a lot from him at EPT Barcelona earlier this year when we were at the same table on day 1. We both had great days. Mine was very slow, and very steady… his was, well, maniacal to say the least, but he ended up in good shape.
Poker is a beautiful game, and while it sounds like a cliche, you truly never stop learning. Once you stop learning, well, you better have some other form of income because you can’t hack it in this business if you don’t keep trying to improve your poker game.
If guys like Phil Ivey and Doyle Brunson tell you that they learn something new every time they play poker, what do you think makes you so different?
The motto is simple: Learn or go Busto. It’s your choice. I guess this is where I’m supposed to throw in the www.pokervt.com plug right? HAHAHA I couldn’t resist guys 🙂
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I had the day off in the Premier League today and will be playing in the final two heats and need to put together some points after a disappointing start. With 8 players left I didn’t have much of anything go right for me to start, until my AQ beat AK all in before the flop. I could have easily had a double goose egg! Instead, with 5 players left I grabbed the chip lead and looked poised to bounce back with a solid finish until…
I made it 48,000 with Ks Qs and Benyamine went all in from the small blind for about 200,000. I had close to a million in chips so it was an easy call for me. David showed A-8 off and then I hear two players at the table say that they folded an Ace. Well that’s good news! The flop came K-6-3, the turn was a 9, and so I was one card away from a monster chip lead and 2 more points with just one card that could kill me…. DOH! Ace hit the river.
Later I raised to 42k or 48k, I don’t remember, with the Qc 10c and Ian Frazer re-raised me from the big blind to 120k. I felt VERY strongly that it was a bluff and that I’d win this pot on the flop. I called the raise, and the flop came J-9-7. He checked and I went all in with my draw. He called… and showed 9-10 off suit! Ahhh, my instincts were spot on that he was making a move, but he outflopped me so I needed a K Q or an 8. Nope.
Now with about 280k and blinds at 15k-30k all folded to me in the small blind. I looked at A-6 and moved all in. Giovanni Safina called after looking at just one card, an Ace. His other card was a Q and I got no help. Out in 5th! Ouch that hurt, just 4 points after two heats. Here are the current point standings along with the number of heats each player is yet to play:
1. Phil Laak 48 (1) 3 straight wins!
2. David Benyamine 35 (1)
3. Giovanni Safina 21 (1)
4. J.C. Tran 17 (1)
5. Yevgeniy Timoshenko 16 (1)
6. Roland de Wolfe 14 (1)
7. Luke Schwartz 12 (2)
8. Vanessa Rousso 12 (1)
9. Ian Frazer 10 (1)
10. Phil Hellmuth 6 (2)
11. Tony Guoga 5 (2)
12. Daniel Negreanu 4 (2)
The key now for me is to crack the top 8 and have a shot at the final table. I think a 3rd and a 4th in my next two heats will do it. I’m guessing the Mendoza line is right around 16-17 points. Here is what you get for each spot:
1. 16
2. 11
3. 8
4. 6
5. 4
6. 3
7. 2
8. 0
I did commentary for today’s heat and was impressed by Benyamine and Schwartz. I thought both played really well. As for Laak and Safina? Lucksacks!!!! HAHA, but also playing well.
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Immediately after this event is the inaugural NAPT event at the Venetian on Feb 20-24. The event is going to be a monster! We are expecting about 850 players. It’s been a while since Vegas has hosted an event that big (outside of the WSOP). The NAPT has a lot of momentum and I’m excited to get started.
Not only that, but possibly one of the coolest new events to take place in quite some time will also be televised on a prime U.S. network. A bounty shootout! So fun, I can’t wait, and I love it! It’s an invitational event with a $25,000 buy in.
There are two unique aspects to this tournament:
1. For every player you knockout, you win $5000. If you are the bounty king, knocking out the most players, you get an additional $100,000! That money does NOT come out of the prize pool, it’s been ADDED to the prize pool
2. It’s a pure shootout. Win your first table and you’ll at least double your money. Make the final table, and while all of you are guaranteed a profit, the final table players will be playing for it ALL! That’s so much different strategy wise to a typical tournament where you look to climb up the pay scale. In this event, there is only one spot to strive for and everyone better be playing to win.
The field is going to be stacked with many of the big names you know, including some of the young internet superstars who are trying to make a name for themselves. I think this event is going to be a big hit with the players, but obviously at $25k this event isn’t for the low rollers… kiddie game is down the street 🙂
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I’m going to win some stuff soon. There is precisely zero doubt in my mind. I’ve played three events this year and was deep in all of them and put in a solid effort. I’m trying my best, and I know how poker works, when I do that… results come. I’m not one to dwell on bad luck at all, it happens to all of us who play this crazy game! I am wise enough now, though, to gauge when I’m on a bad run versus me not playing my best. I’ve been unlucky in key coin flip situations, but that’s out of my control and I’ll have my fair share of luck too. I feel like I’ve been lucky in other ways this year.
Overall, just a happy boy. I’ve been very busy with all kinds of poker related stuff, but I’m enjoying it. I’ve been playing poker, watching WSOPE and HSP, studying poker, and even grinding harder at my micro limit challenge. Oh, good news there… I FINALLY broke through the $0.10-$0.25 games! I’m now officially out of micro limits and am up to $0.25-$0.50 which are considered low limits. It’s kind of fun, similar to passing a level in a video game. I can’t wait to get started on passing this level and just hope it’s not as big of a grind as the last one.
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2. J.C Tran (RD)
3. Daniel Negreanu (RD)
4. Tony G. (DN)
5. Luke Schwartz (DN)
6. Roland de Wolfe (RD)
7. Vanessa Rousso (RD)
8. Phil Laak (DN)
9. Ian Fraser (DN)
10. David Benyamine (RD)
11. Phil Hellmuth (RD)
12. Online Qualifer (DN)
I went with a bit more obscure looking pics and Roland fancied that he had a big edge, so after drafting he laid me 5-4 on an additional bet and I accepted. I think Tony G. is really good at these formats and liked that pick, but I got laughed at when I took him and Luke Schwartz. I thought Phil Laak was a bit of a steal at #8, because again, this format suits him well and he’s done well in these types of events before.
I took Timoshenko first overall and I’m happy with that pick. He won’t make any big mathematical blunders and I think my team is better suited for this event, because I think they have a better grasp of the maths overall.
After Heat #1, thanks to a Phil Laak win (go horsey!) I have a nice lead with 30 points to Roland’s 21.
Roland picked me for his team, and while I tried my best, a cooler took me out first! I finished heat #1 with 0 points. There is just no way I could get away from my bust out hand and would do the same thing again if I had the chance:
Fraser raised to 11,000 and I called with 5h 6h, Laak called from the cut off and three of us took the flop. The flop was 10c 6c 5s. Fraser checked, I bet 25,000 and Laak made it 69,000. Laak looked very comfortable, and even told me he was super comfortable so it didn’t feel like a random bluff at all. I put him on one of the following hands, in no particular order:
A 10 with a good kicker
A striaght/flush draw combo
A hand like Ac 5c for a pair and a flush draw
I’m OK against all of those hands, and I ruled out 10-5 or 10-6, because I am absolutely certain he’s never call with that hand pre-flop. So my the only hands to fear are:
55
66
10-10
He “could have 10’s, but he may have re-raised pre-flop with that hand. It didn’t feel like he had 10’s to me pre-flop based on the way he called before the flop. I can’t say why obviously.
So that leaves me with only 55 or 66 that have me crushed. Since I have both a 5 and a 6 in my hand, it’s just absurd to give him credit for having a set there. I went all in for about 220,000 and got the bad news when he snap called with 66. Oh well. I felt like I had to re-raise in case he had a 10. My hand is very vulnerable against top pair, but I think Laak may have folded a hand like K-10 to my re-raise.
Luckily for me there are three heats left and I have a chance to rebound. Obviously not the start I was looking for, so my primary focus now shifts a little bit. Instead of worrying about cracking the top 4, I have to readjust my goals and look to crack the top 8. A top 3 finish in my next heat would be a big deal.
I have a day off on Saturday as I’m not scheduled to play in heat #2, and then I go at it again on Sunday in heat #3. I’ve been following the hands online as the coverage has been pretty good with most of the hands being covered. Not only that, the coverage is including hole card information which is only fair since some the players also do commentary and can see the hole cards every hand.
I plan of vegging mostly until my next match. Eat well, watch some TV, play a little online at PokerStars, and workout most likely. Lots of good TV to catch up on and my Tivo is kind of jammed. I’ve got Heroes, 24, Lost, Survivor, Nip/Tuck, Real World, 60 Minutes, 20/20, HBO Real Sports, Saturday Night Live, and of course, American Idol all on the agenda. On that note, I’m going to go check on Jack Bauer…
P.S. My Bankroll Challenge Update:
Starting Bankroll $10 at $0.01-$0.02
Hands Played 786 Money Won $15.26
Starting Bankroll $25.26 at $0.02-$0.05
Hands Played 252 Money Won $25.42
Starting Bankroll $50.86 at $0.05-$0.10
Hands Played 1267 Money Won $75.90
Starting Bankroll $126.58 at $0.10-$0.25
Hands Played 2226 Money Won $61.20
Current Bankroll: $177.78
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Or, I could have the guy CRUSHED! I called, and he showed Jd 8d. Turn an 8 and a 120k pot went his way. Ugh. Then on my small blind I moved all in with A-9 and the big blind woke up with 10-10. Bu-bye. I got back $299.28 for the effort for 2653rd place.
2:30pm $530 Sunday 500- 1567 runners, and I was cruising in this tournament for most of the way. Then I raise with JJ from the cut off, the small blind re-raises, I go all in, and he decides to call me. He has A-Q. Good flop, good turn, Queen on the river. Yum. I later went all in from the cutoff with 3s 6s and got called by the big blind who held AK. The flop came K-4-5-Q-3. Out in 912th place.
3:30pm $215 Second Chance- 1801 players and once again I got hold of some chips and looked like I was going to make the money again. I called a raise from the small blind with Ac 8c versus an early position raiser with a good stack of chips. The flop came Qd 8s 8d. It looked like a good flop, especially since my opponent had 8-9 off suit. The turn was a 9, and I finished in 234th place. It paid 216.
4:00pm $109 $80,000 Guarantee- I never got too much going in this tournament, and eventually moved all in against a late position raiser with 55. He had 66, and I finished 723rd out of 1620 players.
4:30pm $109 with Rebuys- By the time this tournament started I was already in four other tournaments. As you may know, I find anything more than one table to be difficult, but was managing pretty well with 3 or 4 and was looking forward to the challenge of a 5th table. Well, the very first hand a guy goes all in. I have 1500 in chips and called it with AK. Another player behind me also called with AK, and we were up against JJ. I lost that pot, and decided NOT to rebuy at all since I had four tourneys already going.
5:00pm $215 with Rebuys- My last tournament, and since I was playing so many I decided once again that I would not rebuy. I made it through the rebuy period with decent chips and by that time I was down to just two screens, so I did the $200 add on for 2000 in chips. Seems really stupid not to take that add-on because you get an extra 500 in chips.
It looked like I was a genius for a second. I raised in late position with KK. The small blind re-raised me, and the big blind went all in. I went all in also, and it was heads up. Me with KK, the BB with Ac 10c. Flop 10-3-3-5…. and whaddya know, Ace on the river. The hand didn’t break me, but later, short stacked now I went broke with A-10 to A-Q.
I played 7 events with just 1 cash. I invested $1808 and got back $299.28. That’s not the result I was hoping for, but I’ve been playing poker long enough to know that results just aren’t all that important. I know when it was me playing poorly, and when it was just bad luck. So far this year I’m running well below expectation in the tournaments I’ve played. I’m putting myself in position consistently, but I’ve been losing those key pots that either propel me into the top tier chip stacks, or leave me crippled.
I’m not disappointed in the least. I was proud of the way that I grinded and actually tried to take it seriously. I’ve had problems with that online in the past, but I took all the events seriously and feel like I was able to manage four tables pretty comfortably. I never came close to timing out or anything like that. In fact I think I rush myself TOO much and actually have way more time than I take. I just need to get used to it I guess.
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I’ll probably still be in LA next Sunday so I don’t think I’ll do the grind. I’ve never really gone to LA as a vacation before so this will be a first. It’s always been either for a poker tournament or some other poker related work, and I’m excited to see what LA has to offer when you are away from downtown, or the Commerce area.
My next tournament will take place at the M Casino. It’s just a 12 person field with a fun format, and I’m a sucker for fun formats. It’s the Premier Leauge IV and I’ll be playing with Phil Hellmuth, Doyle Brunson, David Benyamine, Luke Schwartz, JC Tran, Vanessa Rousso, and a few others I can’t name off the top of my head. It’s a $100,000 buy in event.
I watched the WSOP Caesar’s Cup event tonight and I thought it was an entertaining show. Would be nice to have more play next time, but what you guys need to understand is that we only had one day to do it, so the structure had to be fast. Our team just didn’t adjust well enough to the pace of the structure. With what should be absolutely automatic plays, our team actually made bad blunders. Ivey actually made a couple. This format doesn’t exactly allow him to show off his talents. Hellmuth just butchered several hands. Back to back KJ plays were just really bad for this structure. Limping with KJ to “trap snap call” when you are the short stack just isn’t good poker at all. He says, “That’s the way I play,” and that’s also one of the reasons the kids on the forum make fun of him so often.
The next KJ was just shocking. Our team couldn’t believe that he folded away 6000 in the big blind with KJ. Online players understand those situations and know that it’s just impossible for it to be correct to fold against the button’s raising range. We saw the amateur re-raise with K-10 out of position earlier in the match, so there is no reason to think he couldn’t have K-10 again. Besides, even if he turns A-9 face up, based on our chip stack, the correct play would still have been to call.
At that stage it’s not really “poker” anymore and there are plays that are clearly correct, and clearly incorrect. There isn’t much room for imagination or psychology at that point. Guys like Bill Chen, Chris Ferguson, and Andy Bloch would simply never make a mistake in those situations. It’s all math. Nothing more, nothing less.
I played one hand that Annette seemed to wonder about, but it was the right play with such a quick structure. It was raised and re-raised before the flop and I had 8-9 off suit on the button. If you didn’t watch the show you may not understand the format. Hellmuth played pre-flop and min-raised with the 8-9. The amateur re-raised from the big blind. Then Phil told Elky and the other team exactly what we had essentially. I thought, he has to be lying. We have QQ or KK for sure.
In this format, I get the hand on the flop in position against Elky. There is 20,000 in the pot pre-flop and Elky bet 13,000 on the 10-8-6 flop. I only have two choices. Call or raise. No one would ever fold on that flop. We had a bit of a chip lead, and we only start with 100,000 total in chips. If I call the flop, we can’t really risk giving away a free card when we are ahead, and with the pot getting that big by the turn, we can’t really fold either. Calling could also get us bluffed off the pot in some cases.
I decide to raise to 41,000 which is essentially the same as going all in. Elky moved all in, and it was actually a bit of a cooler. They had K-10 and flopped top pair. Doesn’t seem like a cooler in the traditional sense when you are deep stacked, but that shallow, it’s pretty unlucky to flop middle pair and a straight draw against top pair. You can’t profitably get away from 8-9 there with those stack sizes. Ask Bill Chen 🙂
Wow, did I just write a blog about poker hands and stuff? I can’t remember the last time I did that..
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10:00am $215 Sunday Warmup ($750,000 guaranteed)
1:30pm $215 Sunday Million Special Edition ($2M guaranteed)
2:30pm $530 Sunday 500 ($500,000 guaranteed)
3:30pm $215 Sunday Second Chance ($200k guaranteed)
4:00pm $109 NL Hold’em ($80,000 guaranteed)
4:30pm $109+R NL Hold’em ($150,000 guaranteed)
5:00pm $215+R NL Hold’em ($150,000 guaranteed)
I know all the young guys usually play all of these and more and it’s a typical day for them, but it’s like a monster challenge for me and I’m kind of excited about it. My biggest problem when I play online is that I always end up doing other things. Sweating the hockey scores, checking out the forums, watching TV, texting, or whatever. I never really take them as seriously as I would if I was playing in a live tournament. I’m going to try tomorrow and see how I do.
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I had a great time in Biloxi, strangely enough, and even stayed a couple extra days after I busted. I found one good restaurant at Beau Rivage that had a decent dish for me, and I got my friends totally hooked on the Tofu lettuce wraps there. I also checked out Imperial Palace, and was totally shocked! The Imperial Palace in Las Vegas is an absolute dump, while the Bellagio is beautiful. Down in Biloxi, I swear the Imperial Palace is totally modern and really nice! We ate at the asian restaurant there too and had another great meal.
Aside from that, I sweated Hoyt Corkins who won his second WPT title. We were on the same flight together from Vegas and then he rode with me to the hotel. I was pleasantly surprised to hear that I’m not the only WPT stats geek out there. Hoyt was really hoping to top the 4000 WPT points mark for final table finishes to join me, Phil Ivey, and Gus Hansen as the only others that have crossed that mark. He certainly did that! Congrats Hoyt! He is truly one of the good guys in poker. I’ve never heard anyone say a bad word about him, and he never has anything bad to say about anyone else. That is extremely rare in the poker world, we are mostly a bunch of beauty salon gossipers 🙂
Since I’ve been home I’ve spent the majority of my time online catching up on e-mails. There is so much to do this month in terms of preparation for some exciting PokerStars projects, including, of course, the NAPT event at the Venetian which occurs on Feb 20-24, just before the LAPC main event on Feb 26th. I’ll bet we get OVER 750 players for that event, if anyone is interesting in making a wager. We are qualifying tons of players everyday for that event on PokerStars. If you haven’t yet qualified, you need to go to PokerStars.com right now and jump into some satellites.
After a full day of e-mails and stuff I took a break to workout. Last year I was looking to bulk up a bit, and I gained 15 lbs. This year I’m less interested in any of that, and instead I’ve decided that the David Beckham body just make better sense! Haha, easy peasy right? We shall see, but it means more cardio which I enjoy anyway, and also lighter weights and more reps. My trainer never let me used to do any cardio since she said it was counter productive to gaining weight, but I am done gaining weight. I’m 158 lbs now and I can’t get to 170 lbs or I’ll lose a prop bet to Ted Forrest that I made about 10 years ago. I laid him 20-1 odds that I’d never weight 170 lbs ever in my life… and the next day I went vegetarian!
I’ve also been looking into Bikram yoga. Jennifer Aniston’s body looked awesome at the latest awards show. Super strong and toned, and it’s all from yoga. I’ve read, and heard great things about it and how it helps strengthen your core and I’m really excited to get started. I’ve never been, but I have a friend who goes so they’ll take me. Weird going alone for my first time I think. I have no clue what to do.
From sitting at a poker table all these years I have VERY tight lower back and hamstring muscles. So bad that it hurts too much for me to do standard crunches. I think yoga is going to help tremendously. I hear Bikram is super tough, they do it in 105 degree heat, but luckily I absolutely love the heat. I think I’ll be able to get through a 90 minute class without puking.
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Today I have no serious plans. Sunday, I’ll be doing the grind, and then on Monday I have an early morning meeting on the strip that I’m looking forward to, then later that night a dinner with some of the people from the meeting.
On Tuesday, I’m going to try and make the early morning Outlast the Pros tournament on PokerStars, because later that night I’m doing a paid appearance on the strip. I haven’t one of those in quite a while… maybe a sign that the economy is headed in the right direction? We shall see.
On Wednesday or Thursday I’m headed to LA to have some fun. I got tickets to go see the PeeWee Herman show! For real. I know, sounds weird, but I think it might be pretty funny and my friends are big PeeWee fans.
After that I’ll be free for a few days before I take part in the Premier League event. 12 invited players, including Doyle Brunson and Phil Hellmuth, with a $100,000 buy in and a $400,000 first prize. You play in heats before the finals and prize money is awarded in each heat as well. It’s poker, and I’m excited to get ready for a long and action packed poker schedule from Feb 12-May 1st. Lots on the schedule:
Feb 12-18 Premiere League
Feb 20-24 NAPT Ventetian
Feb 26-Mar 3 LAPC
Mar 5-7 NBC Heads Up
Mar 8-12 Bay 101
Mar 14-19 Commentary work in London or Vegas
Mar 21-26 EPT SnowFest
Mar 28-Apri 4th Poker TBA
Apr 7-11 NAPT Mohegan Sun
Apr 12-17 Commercial Shoot in London
Apr 18-24 WPT Championship
Apr 25-Apr 30 EPT Grand Final Monte Carlo
That’s going to “hopefully” be my busiest stretch of the year. It will be a grind on the body and mind and I’m already thinking of ways I need to prepare for it. I don’t want to burnout along the way. May will be a month of peace, although I most likely will have to play in one additional tournament in the middle of May. After that… oh my word, its WSOP time again! Rolls around so soon.
TV schedule: WSOPE coverage starts tomorrow night on ESPN2 I believe. First episode features Caesars Cup action.
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I actually enjoy being busy, but I also love to spend time catching up on TV and vegging in between. A healthy balance is key. My level of happiness is very good in most all areas of my life. I feel like I’ve dealt with the loss of my mother and that she is definitely in a better place. Cliche I know, but I do believe that.
Poker: I’m trying REALLY hard every tournament and I think I’m playing well
Poker Related Work: Feeling great about where my head is at from that perspective
Health: Energized to get my body into good shape
Personal Life: Excellent.
On that note, I’m going to put some brain food in my body, go do some cardio, then probably grind in the 0.10-0.25 cent games on PokerStars. I’ve been stuck on that level for a while now. I’ve played 1798 hands and have profited $33.60 at that limit. My bankroll is $160.18 (started with $10) and in total I’ve played 4859 hands. I need to get to $250 to jump to the next level, but it’s been tough.
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So in 2010 the goal is to complain less, and prepare better. On that note, I called the Beau Rivage last week to ask what their room service menu looked like. I’d been to Tunica several times and am aware that the south isn’t exactly vegan friendly. Much of the food is prepared with lard, butter, cream sauces, and is often deep fried. That’s caused me a lot of problems on previous trips to Tunica.
I called room service and told them I was a vegan, and they told me not to worry, they have a turkey burger on the menu. Um… ya, thanks for the effort! I don’t bother with the restaurants usually, because when you play a long tournament, I think it’s best to relax in the room on breaks and whenever you can.
Patty hooked me up with some dry foods that I can prepare in the room while there. I brought a big bag, mostly food options: beans, hummus, oatmeal, nuts, miso soups, etc. I’ll survive. Also, the people at the Beau Rivage told me they’d do what they could to help me out, and I was very thankful for that. I get that “I” am the outsider in this case, and they don’t have a major demand for vegan options in the region, so I was very appreciative that they making the effort.
This will be one of the more grueling events I’ve played in quite some time. In fact, I believe it is the only 4-day event on the WPT schedule. Most events these days go with a 5-day event, playing from 12pm-9pm on the first three days with no dinner break. Bellagio was the innovator of that schedule, and most places copied it since the players all seem to absolutely love it.
Finishing a 10k buy in event in 4 days is quite a task. Obviously it’s going to mean really long days, and day 2 specifically could be a nightmare depending on the number of entries. You see, day 4 is set aside for the final table, and day 3 is all about playing down from 27 to 6. That means on day 2, we’ll have to play down to 27 players! I’m not sure how many they are expecting, as it’s very difficult to gauge with just so many events happening right now. The L.A.P.C. is off and running, as is the Aussie Millions.
When I first heard it was a 4-day event, the first thing I did was look at a copy of the structure. I assumed that they’d need to speed up the pace of the event, otherwise they’d never get done in 4 days. I was right, the structure is fast paced. So the event will be grueling in terms of the number of hours you’ll have to play leading up to the final table, but there will also be a very different dynamic to the late stages of the event. It is simply impossible for it to be deep stacked poker with say, 27 players left. I predict that from 45 players until the final table, the play will resemble an online tournament in the late stages, where the average stack has no choice but to either re-raise all in before the flop, or fold. It’s going to be tough to call raises in position, because the blinds will be so high.
The key missing levels include:
500-1000
1200-2400
2500-5000
5000-10,000
25,000-50,000
50,000-100,000
Outside of these levels, the structure is pretty standard with the appropriate ante ratios at all limits. I like all of that. However, taking out 6 levels will have a drastic impact on the structure. That’s a full 9 hours of play, or in other words, more than a FULL day of play as compared to most events. A day and a bit has been taken out of the event to accommodate it being a 4-day event.
I assume the casino just didn’t think it was feasible to run a 5 day event, and that’s their prerogative. I appreciate the fact that I could find the structure online so that I could at least make an informed decision as to whether I’m going to make the trip. Also, at least now I know exactly what I’m in for, so there is no sense complaining when I got there. I got my food, I’m prepared for a marathon, and I’m prepared to play pre-flop poker in the late stages. I don’t “like it,” but I’m capable of adapting and that’s what I plan on doing.
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I’m actually very excited about this tournament for a number of reasons. I liked the way I focused and played at the PCA, and feel like, from that perspective, I have momentum going into this event. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it once again, I plan on having the best year of my life on all fronts. I’m happier than I’ve ever been, and still feel like I can handle the changing face of tournament poker and come out on top.
I feel good physically, although, a one-day flu had me off schedule work out wise, but mentally I feel VERY strong. It helps when things in your personal life are going well, and that part of my life has been great.
Despite my dietary issues with the south in the past, the region has treated me very good historically. In past years in Tunica I’ve had a 3rd, a 1st, and a 2nd. Who knows, maybe when I’m hungry, it makes me… um, hungry?
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My schedule has been changing a decent amount over the last little bit. EPT Copenhagen is out unfortunately due to me playing the NAPT at the Venetian on February 20th. By the way, you can start qualifying for that event now on PokerStars.com.
With that time frame open, I also agreed to take part in the 12 person Premier League event at the M Casino February 12th-18th.
Other than that, on the lighter side of things, I’m actually going to see Pee Wee Herman perform in L.A. the first week of February. That just seems so bizarre to me that I thought I’d throw that in there!
Time for bed, I have an early flight to catch. No Delta though!!! Ugh, I love Delta sooooo much! Internet on planes is too cool. Good night Delta, I’m sure our paths will cross sometime soon, sweet dreams.
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How cool is it that I blogged from an airplane! YES! The future is here, and Daniel is a very happy boy :-)]]>
I had some fun two nights in a row. We had the elevator debacle and then last night PokerStars threw another patented, sick party. PokerStars parties are legendary. The one at the WSOP every year is off the hook, and last nights party was awesome. At the pre-party all the WCOOP winners got bracelets for their wins. Also, Kenneth Cole, fashion designer and chairman of AMFAR spoke to the audience about the research that AMFAR is doing in regards to HIV/AIDS research.
From there the party got moved to the ballroom where there was a large spread of food for all those attending, and of course there was a free bar which costs a pretty penny! The entertainment for the evening, was none other than Kelly Rowland and she rocked the house with a 30 minute set.
I didn’t drink TOO much on the second night after nursing a bit of a hangover from the previous nights festivities. I had a beer or two, then just took it easy drinking some white wine. I packed it in pretty early, knowing that today would be a day of rest in preparation for the high roller event tomorrow.
I’m excited to play, and we are introducing a nice little tweak to the structure of the event and we’ve gotten tons of positive feedback on the changes. You start with 50,000 in chips, but instead of wasting time at the 50-100 level the tournament will start at the 150-300 level and stay there for four hours. The first two hours sans an ante, and for the second two hours we’ll play it with a 25 ante.
I think a push to playing higher in the early stages of the event is going to catch on with more events that are geared towards high rollers. I don’t think you’ll have to worry about this change affecting the smaller buy in tournaments, because in those events you do have a good number of recreational players who want more play early. High rollers want more MEANINGFUL play early, and this move will give them that.
After the four hours, the tournament will proceed as normal with one hour levels. My plan is to listen to my music, and take the event seriously. I’m really looking forward to what I expect to be tough competition.
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There was a bit of controversy as to whether or not I shot an angle at the PCA by asking for a floorman to make a decision at the table, and while there were a few people that believed it to be an “angle” not one reputable tournament director or respected poker player thinks I did anything unethical at all. Not one. To think I did something unethical is beyond preposterous. Anytime you are in a tournament and it appears that a rule may have been broken, it’s in yours, and everyone’s best interest to call a floor person to the table and let them handle it. Leave it in their hands, since there may be house rules you are unaware of.
Matt Savage echoed that sentiment, because when he runs a tournament he wants to make sure that the correct ruling is made. Often players take it in their own hands, assuming they know the right ruling, only to find out later that the rule is different from what they’d thought it was.
It wasn’t the first time I’d called the floor for a decision in the tournament. Earlier I limped in from the cut off position and everyone folded, including the big blind who assumed I raised. He threw his hand in, but the dealer just left it there. I don’t want to argue with her, but she did push the hand back to the player and he then quickly grabbed it back. I called to the floor to ask if the hand was live or not. I felt like the player folded, but the floor ruled that because the hand didn’t hit the muck, the hand was live. If anything, it was a dealer error and I can live with that. She was supposed to simply muck the hand. Not a situation that comes up too often, but clearly the dealer wasn’t supposed to tell the guy he doesn’t have to fold AFTER he’d already done so. No big deal, but I called the floor and they ruled against me.
The second time I called the floor it wasn’t a big deal either, but clearly an infraction of the rules took place when my opponent tabled his hand with action remaining. The video doesn’t show it, but the players at my table all saw his hand, I saw the Ad and only half of the other card, which looked like the 4s or 5s. I was wrong, it was the 10s. I told the truth about what I thought I saw. I said to him, “I saw your hand,” which is true. I saw the Ad clearly, and the other card as well, but didn’t have it exactly right. The players seated next to me did.
It was all very confusing as to what should happen here, so I gave up trying to figure it out, and I handed it over to the floor. That’s EXACTLY the right thing to do and any competent tournament player knows that.
It does boggle my mind a little bit that anyone can honestly believe I was shooting an angle there. It’s just complete nonsense and pretty out of line to be honest. I’ve been playing tournament poker for many years now, and no one has EVER questioned my integrity in terms of cheating, or shooting angles at the table. Never. To call me out for that silly hand is both classless and uncalled for, especially since the first half of the hand was not shown on the video.
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A few words about Amir Vahedi:
I’d played many tournaments with Amir over the years and we often did business together. I trusted him, and admired his work ethic. He was a dedicated father and worked very hard to try and support his family, hustling in all kinds of tournaments with buy ins as big as $10,000, and even as low as $100.
When he put his mind to it, he was also a very dangerous tournament player to have at your table. He wasn’t afraid to play a big pot, and he certainly wasn’t afraid to run a big bluff!
I feel bad for his family. The road ahead for them is going to be tough in more ways than one.
Amir was always a loud advocate for players rights and early on spent lots of time and energy trying to form some kind of poker players union, so the players as a group could obtain benefits, like health care, and what have you.
He was one of the early “personalities” in poker, always joking, always laughing, and he never took himself too seriously.
I was shocked to hear that he’d passed, and I’m saddened for his family. Poker lost a good guy yesterday, Amir Vahedi will be missed by many.
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I busted out of the tournament after trying to grind the short stack for a level. With blinds at 2000-4000 and a 400 ante I moved in with A-9 and the player right next to me called my 35,000 bet with 3-3. There were 5 people left to act behind him, and I was really surprised he called. It is clearly the wrong play. There isn’t much of a debate on that, and this guy was a decent player so I was surprised to see such a mistake from him.
Since I was out I was able to take part in the AMFAR charity event. AMFAR is a solid organization that raises money for HIV and AIDS research. Lots of very cool people showed up to play. I ended up sitting next to Mats Sundin, and as usual, we talked hockey for hours. He says I should totally be a GM! We agree completely on the best way to build a team in today’s NHL. If I ever get crazy money someday, I’m going to hire him to work with my team. He’s a smart hockey guy.
I busted from that tournament, Jayde Nichol crippled me, then we decided to the comedy show, and later have some drinks and go to the club. I drank lots on a totally empty stomach.
We left the club and there was also a group of like 15 Euro dudes leaving at the same time. My friend Ted the Idiot looks a LOT like Lloyd from Entourage. I don’t know how, but somehow Ted was laying on the floor and the Euro dudes were trying to boink him from behind. It was just way too funny. Then we all got in the elevator.
All of a sudden they all start jumping up and down, screaming at the top of their lungs, chanting some Euro song. It was nuts. Right when we hit about the 6th floor, the elevator stopped working and before we knew it we were somewhere between the 3rd and 4th floors. They just jumped and screamed even more. The elevator was stuck, and we couldn’t get out. I have no idea how long we were in there. Eventually we say some light. We got the door to open, but it was in between floors. We needed to be pulled out of a crack near the top of the elevator. The dudes helped me up, and the workers helped pull me up.
We jumped in another elevator, and all those dudes were on the same floor. I opened the door to my suite and all of a sudden these dudes, screaming at the top of their lungs thought it was an invitation and barged in! We got them out eventually. Christian, who is staying with me heard the noise and was seriously afraid. He thought the Bohemian army was coming to kidnap me!
I was pretty drunk and ended up doing some drunk dialing. Then, before bed I posted a totally incoherent tweet that started “Drunjky. Very.” That says it all I guess.
I’m hungover today, but not too bad, Going to rest up for the party tonight. Kelly Rowland is performing and I’m supposed to say a few words. We are also doing an awards ceremony for WCOOP winners at 7pm. There will be no drinking for me tonight! I have the High Roller event coming up on the 11th.
Oh, and in other news, I just booked a flight to Biloxi for the WPT event there on the 24th-27th. I’ve never been to Biloxi, but I have the poker bug and really want to play a lot. I’m really enjoying the game right now. It’s so fun.
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