From Zero To $10,000 on Pacific Poker

You Too Can Make Money From Pacific

2006-07-10T19:55:00.000-07:00

Start playing at Pacific Poker today and receive a 25% first deposit bonus, up to $100!

Deposit $400, you'll instantly get a free $100 -- and you'll be set to start building your own Pacific empire. Good luck!

So I Did It

2005-11-09T16:26:00.000-08:00

Crushing 5/10 Some More

2005-10-06T01:10:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah.

Current bankroll: $8,005.50

Killing 5/10

2005-09-26T22:32:00.000-07:00

I'm +262BB ($2,629.21) after 1,700 hands in 5/10 6-max.

10k is in sight.

Current bankroll: $6,489.42

Nearly Half Way There

2005-09-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

Current bankroll: $4,912.86

I Play 5/10 6-Max Now

2005-09-12T01:51:00.000-07:00

Where has this game been all my life? I'm up about $2,000 in 5/10 6-max after about 25 hours of play.

Current bankroll: $4,140.94

Running Hotter

2005-08-15T02:28:00.000-07:00

Current bankroll: $3,796.00

Update

2005-08-13T19:01:00.000-07:00

Wow, I've been on a roll. Details later.

Current bankroll: $3,405.05

Good News

2005-07-26T02:11:00.000-07:00

Well I've been working fulltime the past two weeks, so my poker time has been extremely limited. However, to compensate for playing less, I've been moving up in limits.

I have been playing $100NL ring games. With the exception of bluffing off $65 in one hand, I've been playing incredibly tight and I'm winning consistently.

"Tight aggressive" play is constantly referred to as optimal. However, I think that concentrating on playing "tight" is the most important element. Anyone can play aggressively, and there are hordes of aggressive players online, yet the vast majority of online players are horribly loose. Playing tight takes discipline; most players simply lack it. I also think you should learn to play tight before you learn to play aggressively -- simply because you have more room for error whilst learning.

I also played a $30 SNG (in contrast to my usual $10 SNGs), which I won for a cool $150.

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $2,724.25

Running Hot!

2005-07-07T07:08:00.000-07:00

I'm on a hot streak. Over the last couple of days, I'm up about $400.

Here are some juicy screenshots:

1. KK, $0.12/$0.25NL. I made pot-sized bets on the flop, turn and river -- all of which got called. Pot: $29.60.

2. T9o, $0.12/$0.25NL. There’s nothing like flopping the nuts! I check/called the flop and proceeded to whack my opponent over the head on the turn and river. Pot: $31.00.

3. 78s $2/$4LHE. I raised pre-flop from the BB, led out with my open-ender on the flop, and continued to do so when the turn gave me the nuts. I think this helped disguise my hand, which meant that I got lots of action on the turn and river. Pot: $52.00.

4. AKo, $0.12/$0.25NL. I pushed with AKo against a maniac pre-flop, who called with KQh. Pot: $47.47

5. A7c, $1/$2LHE. I got obscene action against my rivered full house. I’m pretty sure one of my opponents turned a flush (had I missed the boat, I would’ve check/called the river). Pot: $50.35

6. QQ, $0.25/$0.50NL. I pushed against a pre-flop raise and got called twice. Pot: $51.16

7. 55, $0.25/$0.50NL. I flopped a set of 5s. I bet the pot on the flop because there were six runners and two clubs showing. I got called by two players. The third club hits on the turn and one of my opponent (typical LAG) pushes with a roughly-pot-sized bet. I think “that’d be a weird way to play a flush” and put him on a queen or two pair that was nervous of the flush. I'm thrilled to see he has TT. Funnily enough my opponent berates me in chat for calling his bluff. Does anyone fold here on the turn? Pot: $64.25.

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $2,415.05

Updates

2005-06-29T21:28:00.000-07:00

After exams, I've been able to get back to my Pacific Poker 10k mission.

I've been playing a mixure of the following
- $10/$30 NL HU
- $10 NL SNGs, both 5 person and 10 person
- $8/$16 20-person SNGs
- $25/$50 NL ring game
- $0.50/$1 limit ring game
- $0.50/$1 7-card stud ring game (Stud's a new game for me)

It's going well. I'll be at 10k in no time!

Some interesting hands to be posted later.

Current bankroll: $1,922.50

No Poker Played

2005-04-11T16:32:00.000-07:00

I haven't had access to Pacific Poker. What a boring update.

A Little Bit Of HU

2005-04-05T03:56:00.000-07:00

I was able to fit in a few matches of headsup during halftime of the NCAA final this morning. I won two of three games of $10 HU and then won a $30 match.

In the $30 match, my opponent was incredibly aggressive and tended to make massive bets on the turn (which I could only assume were usually bluffs). This led to a fun hand. I made a minimum raise with 8s 9s on the button to 60. He called, the flop came Ah-Jc-2h. I checked and he bet 80. I called with the intention of check-raising the turn. The turn was the Ad, which was a nice card for me because I knew my opponent doesn't have an Ace (like all super-aggressive HU players, he would have re-raised before the flop with any Ace). I checked, he bet 212 and I instantly re-raised all-in for another 750-ish chips. He folds. Phew. Foolish? Probably.

I also dabbled in the $50 NL room where I bled a few blinds while trying to wait for a nice hand. I discovered the players on my table were fairly solid, so I decided to return to see Illinois make an admirable, but unsuccessful, comeback.

Current bankroll: $1,510.10

Poker News

2005-03-30T02:31:00.000-08:00

The good news is that I've been on a total roll recently. I've won my last 7 games of headsup and finished 1st/20 in a little $2 SNG (I meant to play in the $16 variation but accidentally misclicked due to inebriation). There are two hands I played recently that I think were very interesting.

The first hand occured in the SNG. With four players remaining, I was chip leader with 8,000 of the 16,000 chips in play. Blinds are 100/200. It's folded around to the SB (who is second biggest stack with slightly over 5,000) who limps. I make it 1,000 to go with AQo and the SB calls. The flop is Kh-Qh-6s. The SB checks, I bet 2,000 and the SB calls. At this point I'm sure that I'm ahead because the SB would have lead out on the flop with a pair of Kings and he would have raised with 66 pre-flop. I put him on a straight draw or a dominated Queen -- JT, QJ or QT. The turn is another King, which is a great card for me. The SB checks again and I put him in for his last 2,300. The SB calls, the river blanks off and I win a monster pot. He shows QJ. Sweet.

The second hand is in a $30 headsup match against an overly-aggressive player. It's more poker porn than anything resembling an analytical hand. Enjoy.

Sjay2k (720 chips, dealer): Kh Qc
Villain (880 chips): -- --

Sjay2k posts small blind (10), Villain posts big blind (20)

Preflop: Sjay2k raises (35) to 55, Villain calls

Flop: As-Jh-10d (Note: DING DING DING!)

Villain bets 73, Sjay2k calls.

Turn: Ad

Villain bets 200, Sjay2k calls.

River: 3s

Villain bets 552 (all-in), Sjay2k calls 392 (all-in).

Showdown: Villain has Js 9s (two pair, Aces and Jacks), Sjay2k has Kh Qc (a Straight, Ace high). Sjay2k wins 1,440.

The bad news is that I've had very limited access to Pacific Poker. I've been able to play while visiting friends, although this often means that I play whilst drunken and/or distracted. Just the way I like it.

Current bankroll: $1,488.56

Pacific Headsup

2005-03-23T09:19:00.000-08:00

$30+$1.50 headsup: ~~4 wins, 0 losses~~ 5 wins, 0 losses

$10+$0.50 headsup: ~~2 wins, 5 losses~~ 9 wins, 8 losses

Heh.

How To Win $10 in 10 seconds

2005-03-23T04:36:00.000-08:00

Playing $10 headsup SNG...

Why that's a nice first hand.

Oooh.

Next!

Foldem

2005-03-21T21:22:00.000-08:00

I'm playing a SNG at the moment. I just got dealt JJ twice in a row, only to fold both times before the flop against massive raises from tight players. The first hand the tight player had AA and the second hand the other player had QQ. I've been staying afloat by continually stealing pots off the chip leader. The chip leader bets hard every single flop, so I'm check-raising him nearly every time. I love playing against players that are too aggressive.

Another thing: I'm astounded how oblivious online players are to being milked for chips. If you're playing against me and you get check-raised the minimum on the turn, you have run up against the nuts.

Oh Ha Ha

2005-03-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

I was playing in a 400 person $20 no limit tournament. It was down to to 53 players; the top 50 paid. I was the third largest stack in the tourney. I held KJs, the flop came jack high and I got beaten by the big stack's bluff... that turned into a runner-runner straight. Ab-so-lutely fucking disgusting.

I also won a $10, 10 person SNG, but I'm on perma-tilt after that tournament loss. I must concentrate.

PS good luck to Utah. I hope they get to the Final Four.

Current bankroll: $1,290.30

Back on Pacific

2005-03-15T04:14:00.000-08:00

I lost a $30 / 5 person SNG after a spectacular lack of cards. I rectified this by winning five $2.50 / 5 person SNGs.

I've started playing looser pre-flop. I figure that I want to be seeing as many flops against weaker players who will let me draw for free and I will benefit more often from their bad play. The hard part is deciding when to let go of hands when I'm probably outkicked.

Current bankroll: $1,345.50

Short-Handed Play

2005-03-07T02:18:00.000-08:00

Last night I played against two ex-college friends in some $20 buy-in three-handed play. All three of us are strong poker players and consistent winners, which made for some good poker (a nice change from the flush-chasing-monkeys online).

The first hand I dealt myself KK. I limped in, the SB called and the BB checked. The BB flopped two-pair and bet a solid portion of my stack off on the flop, then the rest on the turn. The BB said that limping with Kings was too risky because neither of them would put all their chips in the middle after the flop with anything less than two pair. I agreed, and now I think that limping with monsters is only a good play in short-handed against bad players.

A few minutes later I played a big hand against the same player, where I was lucky enough to fold a huge hand on the river. I had 22, the flop was 4-2-J, which we both checked. The turn was an A, he bet, I made a strong re-raise and he called. (I was fairly sure that he had an Ace, although he didn't raise pre-flop, so I think it's a pretty low ace. He probably would have pushed all-in with two pair, so I think he has A3 or A5.) The river is a horrible, horrible 5, he pushes and I fold my set. He shows me A3. Phew.

I was lucky to only be down a little under $20 in the end. I'll be playing some online tonight though :-)

Playing The College Game

2005-03-06T02:28:00.000-08:00

I haven't been able to play online because I've moved back into college and Pacific Poker seems to be blocked by the university's firewall. After about a week of non-stop partying, we were able to play our first game of the year today.

Our college game is incredible. About eight of us played last year about five or six days a week in the common room. We're all Law or Engingeering students and we're all ultra-competitive. It's about the most aggressive game I've ever seen (and still somehow by far the most fun/social game).

To give you an idea of style of the game, here are a few interesting hands today. I had 2h-2c on the button and the flop was Jd-2s-3h. The BB and I both check. The turn is Ad: he checks, I bet $2 (currently a $1.50 pot) the BB check-raises to $6 and I go all-in. The BB has to call another $7.50 (there's about $21 in the pot). He thinks for a second and says, "Ooh you've got a small set, but my draw is live." He calls and flips over Kd-Qd. The river blanks off and I rake a nice pot.

A few hands before, it's folded around to the SB, who limps. I'm in the BB with Kd-8s and I triple the blinds. He calls. The flop is Qs-2s-9d. He checks, I bet roughly the pot ($1.50) and he calls. The turn in the 4s. He checks, I bet $3 (pot $4.50) and he calls. The river is 6s. He checks, I bet all in (another $12ish -- we always fire three bullets!) and he calls with the nut flush. He had As-6h and said he was only calling the flop because he planned on bluffing the river.

Fun stuff.

Bah

2005-03-01T20:53:00.000-08:00

Computer is unavailable.

$2.50 Sit-N-Goings

2005-02-23T00:36:00.000-08:00

I've been playing more $2.50, 5 persons SNGs to work on my short-handed play and boost my confidence, which has been down lately. I've been able to win five of the last six I've played (finishing second in the other).

I think the trick is becoming increasingly loose and aggressive as the number of players decrease and blinds become more important. For example, I fold A-9 five-handed, but I'll gladly go all-in headsup.

I've been told about a loose $1/$2 NL live game that plays locally. The standard buy-in is at least $100, which is more than I'm confident gambling with, but luckily I've got someone who's willing to back me for 50%. It won't count towards my 10k Poker Mission, but it could be quite profitable nonetheless.

Current bankroll: $1,356.45

Here's How I Like To Play HU

2005-02-21T06:40:00.000-08:00

I've been playing short-handed five person SNGs to work on my heads-up game. Here are my hands in heads up against a player who had been playing solid tight/aggressive in regular play. However, in HU I discovered that he was fairly tight/passive pre-flop, but very loose/aggressive post-flop. So I decided to push pre-flop with any ace, king or pocket pair, and to check-raise flops where I had a hand or he was obviously bluffing.

I aimed to steal enough blinds to cushion any losses when the other player actually did call.

Blinds: 50/100 (mostly boring play by me)

Chips: 1820(me)/2180(him). 62o, he folds, I win 50.
1870/2130. 82o, I fold, I lose 50.
1820/2180. 97s, he folds, I win 50.
1870/2130. Q5s, I raise to 200, he re-raises to 300 and I call. The flop is 9-3-J and I fold to a 100 bet. I lose 300.
1570/2430. T3o and he lets me limp. The flop is T-6-2, I check, he bets, I re-raise to 550 and he folds. I win 200.
1770/2230. QTo, I raise to 200 and he calls. The flop is 4-5-J and we both check. The turn is a 3, he bets 100 and I call. The river is a J and we both check. He wins with K2o. I lose 300.
1470/2530. ATo, he folds, I win 50.
1520/2480. 98o, I raise to 473, he folds, I win 100.
1620/2380. 42s and he lets me limp. The flop is 9-6-2, I bet 200 and he calls. The turn is a 8, he bets 200 and I fold. I lose 300.
1320/2680. KK and I let him limp. The flop is Q-9-4 (two clubs), he checks, I bet 200 and he folds. I win 100.
1420/2580. 96o, he folds, I win 50.
1470/2530. 62o, I fold, I lose 50.

Blinds: 75/150 (push it, push it real good!)

1420/2580. A5s, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1570/2430. 95o, I fold, I lose 75.
1495/2505. 96o and he lets me limp. The flop is K-J-2, I check, he bets 150 and I fold. I lose 150.
1345/2655. KQo, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1495/2505. T9o, he folds, I win 75.
1570/2430. AKo, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1720/2280. A9s, he calls, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1870/2130. J6o, I fold, I lose 75.
1795/2205. T2o and he lets me limp. The flop is K-8-5 (two hearts), I check, he bets 150 and I fold. I lose 150.
1645/2355. J9o, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1795/2205. K3s and he lets me limp. The flop is K-2-4 (two of my suit), I check, he bets 150, I re-raise all-in and he folds. I win 300.
2095/1905. K5o and I let him limp. The flop is T-5-2, I bet 500 and he folds. I win 150.
2245/1755. Q9o and he lets me limp. The flop is A-8-4, I check, he bets 150 and I fold. I lose 150.
2095/1905. K4o, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
2245/1755. Q2o, he folds, I win 75.

Blinds: 100/200 (changing gears to somewhere between above two styles of play)

2320/1680. 64s, I fold, I lose 100.
2220/1780. T6o, he raises to 400, I fold, I lose 200.
2020/1980. 95o, I fold, I lose 100.
1920/2080. 72o, he folds, I win 100.
2020/1980. 83s, I fold, I lose 100.
1920/2080. 95o and he lets me limp. The flop is K-K-4, I check, he bets 200, I re-raise all-in and he folds. I win 400.
2320/1680. 93s, I fold, I lose 100.
2220/1780. K3o, he folds, I win 100.
2320/1880. T4s and I let him limp. The flop is 8-6-3 and we both check. The turn is a T, he bets 200, I re-raise to 400 and he calls. The river is a J and we both check. He has 76o. I win 600.
2920/1080. T4s, he folds, I win 100.
3020/980. 94o, I fold, I lose 100.
2920/1080.J3o, he folds, I win 100.
3020/980. Q2o, I fold, I lose 100.
2920/1080. T6o, he raises to 400, I fold, I lose 200.
2720/1280. 32s, I fold, I lose 100.

Blinds: 150/300

2620/1380. ATs, he folds, I win 150.
2770/1230. 84o, I fold, I lose 150.
2620/1380. 93o and he lets me limp. The flop is 9-4-J, I go all-in and he folds. I win 300.
2920/1080. TT, he calls, I raise all-in, he folds. I win 300.
3220/780. T8s, I call, he raises all-in, I fold, I lose 300.
2920/1080. A9o, he calls, I raise all-in, he folds. I win 300.
3220/780. 72o, I raise all-in and he calls. The board is 9-Q-5-4-7 (four clubs) and I win with my 7 of clubs.

Like I said in my last post, 72o is a great hand for me. I think my hyper-aggressive pre-flop strategy was working because not only was I stealing his big blinds, but he began folding lots of small blinds to avoid a possible all-in raise by me.

Current bankroll: $1,340.30

Interesting Stat

2005-02-19T07:41:00.000-08:00

I've had AA twelve times in 1/2 and 2/4. Overall on these 12 hands, I'm down $124.

Frickin' hell. Give me 72o anyday.

Another reason to stick to no-limit.

Current bankroll: $1,313.24.

I'm So Proud

2005-02-16T23:31:00.000-08:00

I folded pocket Tens pre-flop against pocket Jacks, which saved my tournament life.

Current bankroll: $1,326.34

Back On My Feet?

2005-02-15T22:00:00.000-08:00

After about two weeks of consistent losing, I have achieved what is (hopefully) my comeback win, by placing 1st/20 in a $16 sit-n-go. Prize money was a (very much needed) $160.

Here are what I think are they key hands. I'm interested in your comments.

1. Blinds 10/20, I have AKo in the BB. Someone raises from late position to 50. I call, as do two others. Flop: A-Q-5 (two hearts). I check, the button bets the minimum 20, I check-raise to 175. Everyone folds, except the button who calls. Turn is the Jack of diamonds. I bet 200 and the button calls. River is the Jack of spades. I check, he bets all in and I call. He has A8o. (I put him on A9 or AT, so I'm fairly happy with this read. Although perhaps I should have pushed all in on the turn?)

2. Blinds still 10/20, I have AKo in early position. I make a minimum raise of 20 and three people call. Flop is K-9-4 (two hearts). I bet the pot (170) and get one caller. Turn is a 9 and I bet 300 and get called. River is a blank. I check, he goes all-in and I call. He has KJ. (I put him on bluffing a flush draw, although for a second I thought he might have 9s full of something, but this player made a stupid play the hand before, so I didn't think he'd be tricky enough to smooth call with a full house).

3. Blinds 50/100, I have AKo from early/mid position. I make it 275 to go and only the SB calls. Flop is K-2-7 with no flush draw. He checks and I check. Turn is a Jack. He bets 150, I re-raise to 375, he pushes all-in and I call. River is a blank and he mucks. (I was almost certain he had AJ or QJ.)

4. Blinds 50/100, I have A4 of hearts in the BB. Two players limp and I check. Flop is K-2-3 with no flush draw and it gets checked around. Turn is an ace. I check, late position player bets 200, I call. River is a 3, he bets 200 more and I call. He has AJ and it's a split pot. (I think this was a bad call by me on the turn. Although the 3 on the river made it an easy call.)

5. Blinds 50/100, I have AK of hearts in mid position (5-handed at this stage) and raise to 275. The SB calls. Flop is 2-2-5. SB bets 100, I raise to 375 and he calls. Turn is a Queen, SB bets 100 and I call. The river is a 4 and I call a 100 bet. He has pocket 3s. (Bad play. I should have either pushed all-in when the Queen turned or folded on the flop. Playing it weakly like this, I lose a 1,800 pot.)

6. Blinds 50/100, I have pocket 10s in the SB. Two players limp and one raises to 550. I, and another player, call. The flop is 4-5-7. I bet 900 which is half the pot and enough to put both players all in. They both call. They have KK and JJ and I lose a monster pot. (Maybe I should have thrown away the 10s pre-flop when someone bets 550 of 900 chips.)

7. Blinds 75/150, I have pocket 7s in the BB. Four players limp and I check. Flop is 7-J-4 with two diamonds. I check, next player bets 300. Everyone else folds. I call. The turn is the 6 of spades. I check. He bets 300 again, I check-raise the minimum to 600. He calls. The river is the fourth 7 and I push my final 827 chips in, which is roughly a quarter of the pot, and get called down. (I love the way I played this to extract every chip he had. He probably only had AJ.)

8. Blinds 150/300 (6 players remaining), I have J8 of clubs in the SB. Four of us see the flop, which is 8-T-3 rainbow. I bet 500, get re-raised another 500 and call. It gets checked to the river and he has KT. (Horrible play by me. I should have checked/folded the flop.)

9. Blinds 200/400, I have AKo and push my 1,600 chips from first position. I get called by KTs win 3,900 chips. (I like this play because if I let him see a flop, he would have got scared off when an Ace hit.)

10. With the blinds at 200/400, I raise my neighbour's blind (who seems to play very tightly) from the SB three times in a row with marginal hands (J9, A2, Q7) and steal it all three times. The next orbit, it gets folded around to me again and I raise his blind with A8s. He re-raises the minimum and I fold. (Is this a good move to avoid what appears to be an invitation to call?)

11. I raise someone else's blind from 500 to 1000 with ATs and get re-raised all in (they have me covered). I fold. (I'm thinking it's almost certainly they have pocket 10s or better, or AK/AQ)

12. Blind at 250/500, I get dealt KK in first position. I limp, knowing the aggressive BB will raise me. He puts me all in for my last 1,100 and my computer re-boots for some reason before I can press "call." I return to see myself with 210 chips (less than half a BB!!!). Somehow I win the next three hands and have 2,000 chips.

13. Blinds 300/600, I have KTs in the SB. Everyone limps/checks until the turn, when someone bets 600 into a 1,200 pot. I call with my King-high flush draw, which I hit on the river. I push my last 1,000 chips and get called. (600 to call for a net gain of roughly 2,500 if I hit my flush. I also had two overcards, so I think this was the right call.)

14. Blinds 300/600, I have AKs and push all-in against my neighbour (who I've been bullying). He calls, I river a King and he mucks. (I was counting on him calling out of frustration.)

15. Headsup blinds 400/800, I'm raising every blind and he's folding about 60% of the time. On the final hand I have KJs. He limps and I make a standard raise to 1,600 (we both have about 10,000). He re-raises and I call. Flop is Q-10-K. I push, he calls, the turn and river are blanks and he mucks. (I think constantly raising his blind was putting him on furious tilt. I would have thrown away my hand if I didn't hit at least top pair on the flop.)

Feedback is requested on any of these plays.

Current bankroll: $1,306.00

How To Lose 4 SNGs in 30 Minutes

2005-02-14T07:10:00.000-08:00

1. With pocket 10s, raise to 150 from mid position (blinds 10/20), get called by two players. The flop is 3-6-7 with two diamonds -- go all-in and get called by J-8 of diamonds who turns a flush.

2. Again with pocket 10s, raise to 185 from late position and again get called by two players. The flop is 2-4-5 with no flush draw -- go all-in and get called by pocket 6s -- turn is a 8, river is a 7.

3. You get dealt two black Kings in the small blind. The BB has red Aces.

4. Call the guy that goes all-in every single hand with AK of hearts. He has pocket 3s and it's all over.

So frustrating. I did finish 3rd / 20 in a $20 SNG, which paid $64, but otherwise I've been in quite a funk. I have convinced myself that my recent run has been more caused by bad beats than bad play. However, I think my dabbling in limit has adversely affected my no-limit game. I think I've become too passive. I'm going to stick exclusively to $2.50 / 5 person games until I'm winning consistently again.

Current bankroll: $1,1890

Eh

2005-02-12T06:42:00.000-08:00

I've come to the realisation that KQ and KJ are bad no-limit hands. In a regular 8-10 person game, they are to be used for limping purposes only. In short-handed play at the end of SNGs (generally against decent players), I'm confused as to how to play KQ/KJ. I've tended to call raises, and subsequently been burned a lot by ace-high hands. Conversely, I think I need to raise pre-flop more often with Ax hands in short handed play.

I tried a limit multi-table tournament. I finished 23rd / 184, which was annoying considering that the top 20 places paid. I made the rookie mistake of trying to bluff a calling station.

I've had some moderate success in NL SNGs, despite a lack of fortune. For example, I tried to slow play pocket aces from the BB one hand when only the small blind called pre-flop. The flop comes and the small blind pre-emptively folds. Greatest fold ever.

My SNG results have been solid, despite finishing on the bubble way too much. My new rule: no more bluffing on the bubble.

Current bankroll: $1,285.45

Ouch

2005-02-09T23:03:00.000-08:00

You know when I said I wouldn't play any more 2/4? Well, I played more 2/4 and got pounded again. I won one pot over two hours. I got pocket rockets twice and got snapped both times by J-10s (turned a flush) and 7-8o (rivered a gutshot straight).

I'm going back to no limit SNGs.

Current bankroll: $1,320.34

Cool Screenshot

2005-02-08T03:16:00.000-08:00

Yes folks, that's a $60 pot in 1/2. Can anyone guess what my opponents had (hint: they capped the turn)?

Current bankroll: $1421.34

Getting Destroyed In 2/4

2005-02-06T22:06:00.000-08:00

Over 75 minutes in 2/4, my best hands have been AK (twice) and pocket 6s -- none of which I won. The second time I had AK, I hit a great flop of A-K-2, only to get called down to the river by QJ, who (of course) rivered a 10. *shudder*

I'm down $65. Remind me never to play 2/4 again.

Current bankroll: $1350.50

Check It Out

2005-02-06T04:53:00.000-08:00

For anyone interested, my buddy made a poker spreadsheet, which helps me track my play. Check out my stats here. Click on the "poker earnings" workbook to see the overall stuff.

I tried the $50 no limit room. I had A-K of spades on the button, and raised to $5 (blinds were only .25/.50!) Three people called! The winning hand was A-8 offsuit. Another guy called a $20 all-in bet into a $15 pot on the turn with a queen-high flush draw (no pair), and was lucky enough to hit it. Where do people learn to play like this?

/on furious tilt.

Current bankroll: $1,388.80

Getting There

2005-02-05T05:36:00.000-08:00

Current bankroll: $1,286.00

Trying Limit

2005-02-03T01:45:00.000-08:00

I'm learning to play limit. I find it so much more infuriating than NL. I can't stand my AK losing to 10-5. Or flopping top two pair and having five people draw against you.

I've been able to win consistently at 0.50/1 (about $10/hr). However, I'm getting creamed in my first session of 1/2. The players are even worse than in the lower limits. They'll re-raise on the flop with gut shot draws, chase with ace-high to the river and play any two suited cards.

In conclusion I HATE YOU 1/2 LIMIT PLAYERS!!

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $1,003.45 (cracked the 1k mark!)

WOOHOO

2005-01-31T22:26:00.000-08:00

I just won my first $16 / 20 person SNG. Only the top three got paid, so the first prize was a huge (for my bankroll anyway) $160. I was playing headsup with the most loose and aggressive player I've ever seen. If he had king high at the flop in headsup, he'd bet all in and call all in.

I had to convince myself not to bluff under any circumstances whatsoever. Very difficult.

Due to holidays, I've been able to play lots of poker. Unfortunately during the uni semester, I'll have limited time for my 10k poker mission. So I've got to make hay while the sun shines (i.e. now!).

That $10,000 will be mine shortly!

Current bankroll: $899.94

Me, Mr Funny Guy

2005-01-29T23:47:00.000-08:00

me: I had the queens

flava59: I was bluffing with pocket hooks

me: well I swallowed line and sinker

Me so funny.

I've been playing lots of $8 SNGs. I'm averaging about a 100% return on investment, which is the investment equivalent of "freakin' sweet."

That $10,000 will be mine in an acceptably soon time!

Current bankroll: $586.79

Poker Heaven Is...

2005-01-27T21:15:00.000-08:00

Poker heaven is when you have K-J and you see a flop of K-K-J. It's even better when your opponent is holding K-5. He's drawing dead and going to pay you off. This is why you never play crap like K-5.

Anyway the other night my friend and I were pretty drunk and he entered me in a $100+9 SNG. I didn't have time to un-join and so I had to play the damn thing. In my somewhat inebriated state I finished one place outside the money. The play was definitely at a higher standard than the $8 SNGs that I'm used to, although it certainly made folding a heckuva lot easier. Still, $109 is quite a setback for me.

No more drunk poker, and that $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $418.35

I CRUSH YOU $8 SNGs!!!

2005-01-26T01:37:00.000-08:00

RARR!!!

Current bankroll: $513.54

Wow These $8 SNGs Are Crazy

2005-01-22T07:18:00.000-08:00

These $8 SNGs are just bat-shit crazy. For example on the first hand, someone raised to 175 (blinds were only 20) and five players called. I guess at least the last guy had pot odds. Even crazier, the first player to act on the flop bet the minimum of 20 and three people folded!

To combat such seemingly random play, I try not to go all-in unless it's absolutely necessary (i.e. chronically short-stacked) or if I'm holding the nuts (no more bluff check-raising all in). Today I went all-in with suited A-Q for about 750 in chips when the BB was 100. Some guy called off half his chips with 10-6 and outdrew me. Although pushing all-in here with A-Q is probably a positive EV play, I'm going to get busted an awful lot. Thus I think my survival rate (and tourney results) will improve from not going all-in so often, especially pre-flop with speculative hands such as A-K or A-Q. Your thoughts?

My $8 / 20 person SNG results over the past couple of days: 7th, 7th, 2nd, 14th, 7th, 1st, 12th (top 5 pay $56, $40, $32, $24 and $8 respectively). Net cash result: up about $41. Hopefully my results will improve (no more finishing 7th when top 5 pay!) if I'm more selective with my all-ins.

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $404.90

This and That

2005-01-21T02:29:00.000-08:00

How to put someone on serious tilt: with 7-4 offsuit, try to bluff before the flop, on the flop and the turn. Then check-raise all-in on the river when you hit your runner-runner nut straight.

How to put yourself on furious tilt: go all-in on the flop with top pair and the nut flush draw, and get called by someone with king high (and no flush draw). Then pound your keyboard when you lose to a runner-runner straight that also avoids the flush.

Not a whole lot of poker to report. Although I have come to the conclusion that A-Q is a horrible hand that should be avoided at all costs. In fact it should be folded out of turn if possible. It's trash and don't let me catch any of you playing it ever.

That $10,000 will be mine before A-Q ever wins a pot!

Current bankroll: $363.50

Ya-Friggin-Hoo!!

2005-01-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

After quickly busting out of an $8 SNG, I decided to enter a $10 multi-table tournament, which drew about 100 players. And I won! I even capped it off in style, with the patented limping-with-aces move in heads-up. I won slightly under $200 for my efforts.

I was lucky enough to get an incredible run of cards over three hands -- KK, AK, KK -- but managed to get snapped each time and lost most of my stack in the process. Funny how that works.

The hand I enjoyed the most though was against a player who I sat next to for nearly the entire tournament. I noticed that he raised exactly five times the big blind every time he had AK (He raised exactly five times the big blind about half a dozen times, always with AK). I held JJ in the big blind. It's folded round to my buddy in the small blind, who raises exactly five times the big blind. I'd normally go all-in with the jacks, although I call since I figured I could save some money if an ace or king hits. The flop is Q-J-10. He checked, and I resisted the urge to bet my set and tried to convince myself that I was behind. The turn is a beautiful queen. See ya later mate!

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $332.45

LOL

2005-01-18T02:12:00.000-08:00

I was dealt the following disgusting cards in a $8 SNG (playable hands highlighted):

J-9, 8-3, 5-4, 9-5, 7-6, 8-7, Q-9, 6-4, 5-4, Q-7, 4-2, 8-7, Q-5, K-6, K-6, K-2, A-3, J-5, 4-2, 6-3, 8-7, 8-3, 9-3, 10-2, 7-5, 7-5, 5-3, 5-3, 9-3, J-6, 8-4, 4-3, 8-6, 6-5, 9-6, A-2, Q-4, 10-6, 10-5, 3-2, 7-2, K-7, J-5, 10-3, J-5, A-J, Q-7, 9-6, 6-5, Q-8, 6-3, A-J, 8-5, 7-2, J-7, J-6, 6-4, 10-7, 10-6, 10-4, Q-4, K-6, K-5, 8-3, 5-2, J-6, K-9, 9-3, A-10, 5-4, A-6, K-8, K-9, 4-4, 9-5, A-8, 7-3, 10-2, K-8, K-Q, Q-8, Q-7, Q-9, A-6, J-2, 10-2, 8-2, Q-8, 9-2, Q-2

Somehow I was able to finish 5th / 20, which was enough to get my $8 back. For those counting at home, I was dealt only one pocket pair over 90 hands. And nothing above A-J. I must have pissed off the poker gods with my excessive check-raising.

With some decent cards, that $10,000 shall be mine!

Current bankroll $154.20

Lazy Monday

2005-01-17T20:30:00.000-08:00

First of all, the greatest online poker handle of all time: JackKingOff. Hee hee.

Today I crashed out of a couple of $5 / 10 person SNGs. So I decided to do the only logical thing and play in the $8 / 20 person SNG. For some reason, I found it the easiest game so far because the players were actually willing to lay down a hand or a draw once in a while (although they're still incredibly loose).

I played two of these SNGs and finished 2nd ($40) and 4th ($24). I was fairly pleased with my play, except for two crucial errors in the second $8 SNG. I called a super-tight player's all-in when I had top pair on the flop. He, of course, had a set. Luckily, I was left with enough chips to remain competitive. Later on, I got sucked out on and went up against the same player on the next hand (a recipe for disaster). I had A9. The flop came A92, with two spades. He checked and I bet 600 into the 400 pot. He used up most of his time to call and I could just tell he was looking for a spade. The next card was the 6 of spades, and I went all-in out of pure, unrestrained frustration. He called, the river blanked off and he flipped up J-10 of spades. Poorly played by both us, especially me.

I'm liking these $8 / 20 person tourneys.

I'll have that $10,000 before you know it!

Current bankroll: $155

I Hate Pocket Aces

2005-01-16T05:02:00.000-08:00

I went back to the $5 / 10 person SNGs today. Results were 1st, 8th, 2nd and 3rd; steamrolling my bankroll past the $100 milestone (woohoo). There were a couple of interesting hands today.

Firstly, here's a fun one. With five players remaining in the first game, I call a decent raise in the small blind with AJ of hearts. Flop comes QJ5, with one heart (the 5). I bet a decent amount, the original raiser folds and the button calls quickly. A straight draw? The turn is the 10 of hearts, which gives me draws to both the nut flush and straight, although it's entirely possible that it also made my opponent's straight. I bet out for the same amount again to see where I'm at and again get smooth called, which just confuses me. The river is the best possible card -- the 9 of hearts -- which gives me the absolute nuts, whilst my opponent quite probably has a straight. I bet the same amount again, which is now modest in comparison to the pot and just screaming for a re-raise. My opponent goes all-in and I win a gigantic pot (5000 of 8000 chips in play).

And now a painful hand. Like all bad hands, it begins with getting dealt red aces (I prefer black aces for some reason). It's early in the tourney, so instead of just picking up the blinds, I raise to 150 (blinds are 15/30) and get two callers. The flop is A-3-8 with two clubs. I bet 200, get re-raised all-in and call. Clubs come on the turn and river, my AA loses to AT of clubs and I'm out. Damn aces, they always find a way to bust you.

I'm also finding myself confused with what to with AK when someone goes all-in before the flop. I seem to fold it most of the time. Any ideas?

I'll have that $10,000 before you know it!

Current bankroll: $119.26

Moving On Up (A Little Bit)

2005-01-15T01:33:00.000-08:00

I've started playing some multi-table tournaments. Firstly I played in a $5 tourney with about 250 entrants. I crashed out in 111th place when I got busted check-raising with ace-high. I bluff-check-raise too often, especially in the loose low-limit that I'm playing right now.

I entered another tourney straight after, this one with a $2.50 entry and about 400 entrants. I finished 9th, which was fun although it only paid about $20. I was chipleader for about an hour, until I doubled up the third biggest stack. I had 99, the flop was J92 and my opponent had JJ. That is the poker equivalent of getting kicked square in the balls.

However, the highlight of the tournament was in the early stages when I put the (then) chipleader ("shark72") on egregious tilt. I slow-played a full house against him, which was followed by the following baiting in chat...

Shark72: oh *** u

Shark72: do you think ur some kind of smart AS5? Well *** this tourney, I have BIGGER FISH TO FRY

Sjay2k: really? I love fish

Sjay2k: brim is my favourite

Shark72: *** im going to destroy you

The next hand I call this guy's bluff on the river with my two pair, doubling up again.

Sjay2k: i also like codd.

Shark72: *** bitch

Hee hee. That's enough for today.

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $91.26

Spik'd!

2005-01-13T21:06:00.000-08:00

Very hung over this morning (funny story actually), so of course it was a perfect time to continue the 10k Poker Mission.

I started off by playing a $5 / 10 person SNG. One interesting hand came up against a player who was incredibly weak/passive before the flop. He limps for 30 from early position, I make a standard raise with JT suited on the button. The limper re-raises. "Aces!" I think to myself, and call because JT suited is a great hand to crack aces with and they'll nearly always pay you off. The flop is J4T. He has aces and I double up. I manage to win the SNG despite nearly squandering a sickingly large chip lead in heads up (7100 to 900 became 3000 to 5000).

I entered another $5 SNG but crashed out early when someone called my all-in bet before the flop with A6 offsuit, viciously snapping my pocket kings. Chumps!

That $10,000 shall be mine!

Current bankroll: $72.75

SNG Madness

2005-01-12T20:46:00.000-08:00

I've been playing a whole bunch of $2.50 and $5 SNGs. The good part about these tourneys is that players will pay you off when they have middle pair. The bad part is that they will also suckout on you with middle pair. Of course in the long run, you want them to call with middle pair.

I'm learning the best way to handle sticky situations. For example, a common one is when the flop is rags when I've made a strong pre-flop raise with AKs. What to do at the flop if you're in first position? Going all-in is too risky -- you'll get busted about one in three times. Likewise, checking is an invitation for the other player to raise or go all-in, and you don't want that either. What I've found more successful is to make a disproportionately small raise. For example if you raised 250 pre-flop, and the pot is 600, try betting 50 at the flop. If they have a hand, they'll re-raise you and you fold. However, most of the low limit players will call the small raise, which usually means they haven't made their hand. If they only call the small bet, I'll make a huge raise on the turn and usually the other player will fold.

SNG Results for today:

$2.50 / 5 person: 2nd, 2nd, 1st, 5th, 2nd (I think I need to work on my heads up...)

$5 / 10 person: 6th, 1st, 2nd

$10,000 here I come!

Current bankroll: $58.75

Alright!

2005-01-12T02:38:00.000-08:00

I decided to enter a $5 / 10 person SNG, which represented more than half of my bankroll. I lost a good portion of my stack on the first hand, when I raised 200 with QQ. Two people call, the flop is A29. Of course, both players had ace-rag and I had to fold my queens. I've noticed that online players simply do not fold ace-anything before the flop. Chumps!

Anyway, I'm able to eek my way to headsup with a 3:1 chip disadvantage. After a few uneventful hands, I win a coin toss and we're nearly dead even. I am dealt pocket spikes in the small blind. My opponent is far too aggressive, so I merely call with my black aces, and he of course goes all in. Game over! I collect a juicy $25 payout.

I also tried 0.25/0.5 hold'em. I made a couple of dollars, but I think limit hold'em sucks because bluffing is virtually impossible.

I can smell that $10,000!

Current bankroll: $31.50

First Post

2005-01-11T20:11:00.000-08:00

This blog will chronicle my efforts to build a US$10,000 bankroll starting from nothing on Pacific Poker.

I learned to play poker about a year ago at college, where I've played hundreds of hours of no-limit. Although we play for relatively low stakes ($10 buy in usually), although the standard is pretty damn high. I tried reading a poker book once, but I thought it was load of crap.

I began to look at online poker, where I discovered the quality of play to be very low. I saw players calling all-in with gut shot draws, letting people draw for free and generally making wacky calls, folds and raises.

I wanted in. Unfortunately though I don't own a credit card and cannot deposit money at any of the major poker sites. So I decided, screw it, I'll build my bankroll from scratch. My friend and I were debating the issue, and we agreed to a $100 bet whether or not I could earn $10,000 from scratch via online poker by the end of 2005. I realise that winning the bet would be insignificant if (when) I win $10,000 -- but I'm more interested in the challenge itself.

Pacific Poker runs a few freeroll tournaments per day, where the top 10 finishers in a field of 1,000 win between $5 and $30. I decided this was my best chance to start a bankroll. After about half a dozen unsuccessful attempts, I managed to place 7th and earned $5. I was proud that I summoned the willpower to fold KK pre-flop when (with 16 players remaining) three of the eight players on my table went all-in in front of me. I figured at least one had to have AA; which one did, the others holding JJ and AKs.

With my newfound fortunes, I decided to hit the small sit-n-go tables. I played in four quick $2.50 / 5 person SNGs -- placing 1st, 3rd, 4th and 1st. These low-limit players are pretty bad. One guy called my all-in with KcQd when the flop came 7s-8s-9s (I had 10c, Js).

Let it begin! $10,000 here I come!

Current bankroll: $9