Full Tilt $50NL FR after midnight EST is the place to be for some insane variance. I sat down on 3 tables at around 12:30 AM last night/this morning and picked up 75 points in about 40 minutes. It usually takes me about 1:15 to pick up 75 points or close to a point a minute. So saying that every pot was tremendous wasn't an overstatement.

Several players were over 50/20 or the like and sitting on 2 or even 3 stacks. It was just so sick.

Examples:
[Qc] OTB $46.50 - I open-raise to $2
BB is 93/14/38 and fairly aggressive too NO EFFIN JOKE and has $58 and calls.
[Kh][5c] Pot $4.25
BB checks, I bet $3, BB calls
Pot $10.25
I give up, he's not folding....check, check
Pot $10.25
BB bets $2.50, I gotta call to see [6c] - CHRIST! He's not folding anything.


Same opponent (93/14/38) this time he's OTB w/ $54
[Js] MP2 w/ $50
1 EP limper, I raise to $2.25, OTB maniac calls, SB calls, BB calls
[Qd][5c] Pot $9.50
Checked to OTB maniac who bets $2.50, blinds fold, I call
Pot $14.50
I check, OTB maniac bets $2.50, I raise to $7.50, he calls
Pot $29.50
I bet $15.50, OTB maniac folds


Same maniac this time he's UTG+1 w/ $109 - of course he's up a stack.
UTG [3c] w/ $65 - I limp, maniac limps, BB checks
[8c][3s] Pot $1.75
BB bets $1.35, I raise to $5.80, maniac calls, BB folds
Pot $14.70
I'm all-in for $58.75, maniac folds


Same maniac a 4th time, he's SB w/ $72
[Th] CO w/ $72
I open for $2, he of course calls from SB
[5d][Th] Pot $4.50
SB checks, I bet $3, SB calls
Pot $10.50
SB min-bets, I raise to $3, SB calls
Pot $16.50
SB min-bets, I raise to $3, SB calls
SB shows [9c] Q-hi???


Most interesting hand of maniac's that I wasn't involved in. He called a c/r with only 8-1 implied odds if he stacked the guy on a GSSD and hit it on the turn.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1399291
Full Tilt takes care of their rake growers.


Different table - different maniac: I thought I was bluffing this river!
OTB $175.65 - 70/20/33 for a VERY healthy profit
[6s] UTG+2 w/ $57
I limp, OTB maniac raises to $2, I call
[4c][9c] Pot $4.75
I check/call a $4.50 bet
Pot $13.75
Check/check
Pot $13.75
God knows why I decide to rep the flush here, but I bet $10 hoping he'd fold a bigger PP or 9,T,J here, but he actually called with A-hi!


Another maniac on the table dumped off a whole 100 BB (he started with 200 BB of course) with KQo vs KK after he entirely missed the Jack-hi flop.

More shady happenings

In a 50 minute 3-tabling FR session, there were 10 more instances in 58 opportunities where I was dealt the same hand at the same time on 2 of the 3 tables. This strange phenomenon continues to carry along at a rate of possibly a little more than once per orbit. It's been going on for quite a while now. It's mind boggling how often I am playing a hand on one table and the other table pops up and IT'S THE SAME HAND!

Here are the 10 instances tonight:
[4c] - [9c]
[4d] - [4s]
[5s] - [5s]
[9s] - [9d]
[4s] - [4c]
[Jd] - [Jc]
[7d] - [7s]
[3h] - [3s]
[5c] - [5s]
[8d] - [8d]

The most important thing though is that it doesn't seem to have any affect on my winning or losing, but just feels so wierd to continue for this long. Anybody else frequently 3-table on Full Tilt ever had this experience?


Took the past few days off before today. Went to the Mike and the Mad Dog radio show in Belmar, NJ yesterday afternoon. Had a good time, drank a lot, couldn't hear a damn word they were saying. A female friend was confused as to why we wanted to go when we didn't even like the hosts that much. Kind of hard to explain.

Gonna try to get to the Taj tomorrow, although I bold the word "try" because I've been trying and failing a lot lately. Sooo much effort for so little positive expectation after expenses.

Also going to Philly to see a Mets game Tuesday with about a group of 12 close friends and family and gonna try to get down to the Jersey shore again at least once (Saturday?) before the summer ends. So poker may be played sparingly during this last week of August. This damn summer went sooooo fast.

Couple of things I forgot about the ballgame last night.....
- The security in Philly is not like going to a game in NY at all. They don't harrass you at all from roaming around the park and moving down to empty seats. However, they do admonish you for cursing and "Jesus Christ!" is a curse in Philadelphia according to an old woman who works as a seating attendant/usher. She almost called security on me and I thought she was kidding almost the whole time.
- The NJ turnpike rest areas are a great place to pick up hookers at 2am. In fact, they are the people inhabiting the rest areas at that time. The strangest thing is that they aren't even really bad looking at all.

Back to poker and and a lot has changed in the close to a week that I haven't played online:
- I seem to be getting the same hand at 2 different tables quite often tonight. Like around once every orbit. That has never happened to me before (Sarcasm)
- There were several players that had VP$IP's over 40% who just cleaned up. One sat down with $12 and walked away with close to $150 after 100 hands. He joked that he was going to play like an idiot and followed through. He flopped quads against my TPTK, a set against my TP2K, and then he got it all in way behind and rivered a 2 outter.
In fact, of the 4 players with VP$IP's over 40% tonight and more than 90 hands, 3 (75%) walked away winners. 2 of them were BIG winners and the 1 loser just lost $9.
- Full Tilt justly punished me for taking almost a week off from supplying them rake. I correctly folded or just called a lot of hands where I should have gone broke or at least lost a lot more, including a boat against a very strangely slowplayed bigger boat from another above said 40+ VP$IP big winner.

Also tried out the AP Jackpot .50/1 FR limit tables. In 52 hands:
KK < A2o > QQ, A8s in a preflop capped pot
KK < AA
AK < everything else
However, AP has not yet credited me the jackpot for the bad beats suffered today.

Here's a bunch of photos from my 3 hour marathon tonight on Full Tilt

1 - Here's a picture of what happens whenever I start to build up a big chip stack in a tourny getting it in on the flop with the best hand, improving to 2nd best on the turn, and then even 3rd best by the river:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432741 (This is why you make ridiculous calls with JTs

2 - Here's me with a VP$IP of about 20% in MTT's, but a run into Aces or Kings of about 15%:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432746

3 - Here's a picture of a pretty much standard event when I flop a set:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432753 (Only get it in as a 97% favorite here)

4 - Here's a picture of me going fishing and catching a big one:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432759

5 - Here's a picture of me flopping trips, rivering a straight, and falling from the ole river check raise from the 40% VP$IP with an AF of infinity. They just always win. Guess I should be glad that he decided to slow play cause we both had double stacks.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432760

6 - Here's me gettin ready to c/r all-in on a stealer playing 54/24, but then the rock at the table comes alive and pots into the raiser, then pots the turn when I flop a big draw:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432766

7 - Lastly here's a bunch of pictures of me getting dealt the same hands at the same tables 3 out of 4 hands and going absolutely bat shit because it's still happening at a rate of over 10%!

Pocket 7's at the same time:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432770
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432771

Very next hand - [4d] at both tables:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432773
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432778 (SAME FUCKIN SUITS!)

2 hands later - [5d] at both tables:
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432781
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1432782 (SAME FUCKIN SUIT AGAIN)

It would be soooo great if Full Tilt weren't rigged

Back down to $25NL for a while. I'm getting crushed this past week. I think I'm going to start going under the assumption that everytime I have top pair/two pair or a 10+ outter that I'm up against a set. It saved me at least a 2 buy-ins the past 2 days. I'm being run over by either the table rock or the table maniac whenever I flop a good hand that can't take much heat though.

And oh yeah, shocker, still catching the same hands at 2 tables about once per orbit. Actually had 87o at all 3 tables today too. It's driving me effin nuts!

Today's ridiculousness:
[9d] in SB (7-handed)
UTG+1 (41/11) limps, button limps, I call, BB checks
BB and I both have full stacks, UTG+1 with the big VP$IP has the biggest stack of course

[3c][4s] Pot $1.90
I bet $1.50, BB (13/6 over 150 hands) bets $3.50, UTG+1 calls, But folds, I call
Tough spot because it's been the same story everytime I bet top pair over the past week. BB should be respected, UTG+1 should not.

Pot $12
Now I'm really not sure what to do, but I'm probably going to go for a c/r, except BB and UTG+1 checks. So now I think he was on the straight draw or was afraid of the Q.

Pot $12
I know I shouldn't be afraid of this card, but for some reason I didn't like it. Who the hell has a gutshot here the way this hand was played? Answer: the way this past week has gone - somebody!
I check, BB checks, UTG+1 bets 1/2 pot, I call. He has 76o for the gutshot.
Instincts, intuition, paranoia, whatever saves me from losing a big one.


-----------------------

[9d] MP (6-handed)
CO has posted, UTG folds, I raise to $2.25, CO folds, OTB re-raises to $4, blinds fold, I call
I had been raising a lot of hands at this table, missing, getting check-raised and folding. Button was a TAG (22/8 - fairly aggressive) and could be 3-betting me light. He only has $18 left.

[4h][4s] $9
Sick of being run over post-flop I decide to c/r him all-in here. Then he makes a pot sized bet and I'm in another tough spot. Fold another good/not great hand that really can't take much heat, or finally take a stand?
I put him in for another $9 and he has JJ. Who's folding in this situation? I might have, but I was just sick of the check-raises and re-raises. I guess they do have a hand every time.

-------------------------
I get another shot though: [9h] UTG+2 (9-handed)
I open-limp, Button limps, SB folds, BB checks
Both are calling stations with VP$IP's over 50 and WTSD around 50. Neither is particularly aggressive. I have a full stack and have both covered.

[3d][6d] Pot $1.70
BB checks, I bet $1.50, But folds, BB calls

Pot $4.50
BB checks, I check
I figure that card hits just about everything he's calling with unless he already has a 6 so I check to keep it small.

Pot $4.50
BB bets $2.50, I call and he has [3c] for the flopped boat. Yay! I lost just about the minimum by keeping the pot small.

----------------------------------

[4c] UTG+1 (7-handed)
I open-limp, But limps, SB calls, BB checks
BB is a TAG short stack (18/8 w/ $15), But is very loose (44/11 w/ $32)

[2c][6h] Pot $1.90
Yay! I flopped a 12 outter. Now it's time to find out who has the set.
Blinds check, I bet $1, But calls, SB calls, BB raises to $5 ($10 left), AHA! I call, But is all-in for $32.15 WTF?!, but standard
I'm now praying that BB will call with a set too -
1 - to pad the pot now that I know I'm drawing and have to call
2 - if he has a set too, there are 2 less redraw outs if I hit on the turn.
But the BB folds.

$27 to win $45 with at least 11 outs, getting almost 2-1 on my money. If he has a set I'm a 2-1 dog, if he has just a Queen I'm only about a 3-2 dog (and this guy could have a Queen the way he was playing, but the way I've been running I knew someone had a set from the start) I gotta call here, don't I?

Anyway, he has a set of 2's, board pairs on the turn, I'm drawing dead on the river.

I'm running at -35.30 BB/100 over the past week (1,112 hands)

Dropped back down to $25NL 6-max to straight out cause I've been gettin crushed lately. Got in over 800 hands today, but unfortunately it didn't really get any better.

It was pretty much play every hand and pound me when I have nothing or a marginal hand like top pair or 2 pair (I got crushed with 2 pair today) and fold when I actually hit a set (with 1 exception where I didn't even really need it).

So seriously, I might need some help here. Am I overplaying 2 pair and big draws vs certified maniacs?

Hand 1: Opp. is certifiable. You'll see that when you see his hand. He's been limping into EVERY pot and pot betting the flop and/or turn. He's been won some lost, some and is just about even. His VP$IP is 86%, with the other 14% accounting for hands in the BB where he doesn't have to contribute and the occasional misclicked fold. His Aggression Factor is infinite.

[3h] BB $26.45
CO ($27.40) open limps, folded to me - check

[Jc][6s] Pot $0.60
I check, maniac bets pot - like he always does, I call

Pot $1.80
I check, maniac bets pot, I raise to $5, he makes it $16.80, I push, he calls
He has [6c] and I hit my 2 pair on the river just as an insult.


Hand 2: Different certifiable OTB this hand. 76/27 with the same deal with post-flop aggression. Pot, pot, pot. He has a 1/2 stack here.

[5c] CO (5-handed)
UTG raises to $0.85, I call, OTB calls

[5h][6c]
UTG bets $2.50, I raise to $7.50, OTB pushes $12.30, UTG folds, I call.
He has [4c], completes his straight on the turn.


Hand 3: OTB is 29/23 and loves to raise OTB. I've 3-bet him a few times (QQ+) and he's folded. Naturally he fights back vs. my weakest holding. Both of us full stack.

[Jd] SB
OTB raises to $0.85, I re-raise to $2.80, OTB calls

[Jh][5h] Pot $5.85
I bet $4, OTB pushes for $23.10 ($18 more into a $33 pot), I call.
He has [Qh] and hits his flush on the turn, ironically AGAIN with the card that makes me 2 pair


Hand 4: Opp is 28/8. We are both full stacked.

[Th] OTB
MP limps, I raise to $1.20, MP calls

[Ts][6c] Pot $2.85
MP checks, I bet $2, MP calls

Pot $6.85
MP checks, I bet $5, MP min-raises, I call.

Pot $26.85
MP is all-in for last $12+, I call.
Ironically, yet again, my 2 pair gave him the gutshot broadway straight with [Js]


2 pair is DEATH!



Only 2 positive moments of the day:
-I flop a set of Kings and get a 1/2 stack maniac to push when the board pairs on the turn (32K2). He has an OESD (54o) and is drawing dead.
-I flopped an OESFD w/ a pair in a blind vs blind battle. I completely the SF on the river and get min-raised on a [7d][8d][Tc][4d] board. He calls my push with [5c]


Poker EV - My SB's have me +2.5 stacks from where I ended up on the day.

Now at -20.57 BB/100 over 1,394 hands the past 2 days since returning to the dungeons of Full Tilt ($25NL 6-max) I've dumped off 1/4 of my online bankroll (1/8th overall) in the past week. I've now lost 8 out of my last 9 sessions, all for almost a stack or more. Fortunately, no single session has been for much more than a stack.

There is seriously no reason to ever bet/raise in these games. All it does is kill your action. They'll pot bet everything....EVERY FUCKIN THING! And even if they check the river, it's only for a c/r. These players are SICK, SICK, SICK and AGGRESSIVE......and LUCKY.

I think I'm going to be posting a lot of hands in the NL section tonight, but here are some of the ones that make me want to puke that have little educational value.

Hand 1: Opponent 59/15 - Call a raise with T8o, flop a draw, get it all-in. This is pretty much the microcosm (sp?) of every time I catch 2 pair and every hand against a maniac. Never freakin fails. I'm not saying he played it horribly post-flop, but it NEVER freakin fails with 2 pair.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1442218

Hand 2: Opponent is 60/25. Just clueless. That's it, show K8o like you're proud of that raise calling hand.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1442511

Hand 3: Yet another standard top 2 pair hand. Glad the Ace scared him off his set a bit.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1442519

Honestly, there is no reason to ever be aggressive in these games. They'll get their stack in for you. Opponent is nittish 13/9, but lost his mind with A5. This insanity is the 1 good hand all night.

http://www.pokerhand.org/?1442435

I suck cont'd......
forum/viewtopic.php?p=263603#263603

Only positive was that I was running so bad that I almost started to tilt and then when I got it in preflop with KK vs TT and was outflopped it actually calmed me. I figured if Full Tilt wants me to lose all my money, there's nothing I can do about it. I just have to try to play as well as I can. So at least I'm not really tiltling and still probably losing less than I probably should.

To paraphrase everyone's favorite player: "I can (almost) dodge bullets baby."

God, I finally had a good one tonight. A real good one. It wasn't so much that it was the worst run of cards ever, but jesus christ it was $25NL games that were tougher and more aggressive than $50NL games. I moved down to tougher games? WTF?

Anyway, tonight I finally:

1 - Caught some cards
Opponent AF = 6+. Finally made a 2 pair hand good.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446643

Opponent 18/10 but they just all wanna get it in. Doesn't he realize that I pretty much pot committed myself with the PFRR? And the TAG still wants to get it in with AJ?
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446671

This was my favorite hand of the night. Opp 17/6 so I had him on a pretty small 3-bet range AA-QQ/AK and thought about getting it in on the flop since the only had that I didn't have pot odds against was the set of Aces. Even vs AK I have 12 outs 2x unless he had . Perfect catch on the river, better than the flush.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446679

2 - Made some good laydowns (I think)
53/14 - but killing the table (#2 vs him)
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446658

Same guy - christ I came so close to pushing here, still not sure (#3 vs him)
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446666
(I pretty much tried to play some small pots with him in position with marginal to good hands vs him and wait for a big one to pop him and it worked out pretty well as I ended up taking 3 or 4 small ones off him before he quit.

3 - Made some good pushes/calls
This guy was 53/14, but just like most other very LAGgy players - killing the table. I just didn't think he had a set here. He actually had a great hand for me - 2 outs. (#1 vs him)
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446653

Pretty good call vs a maniac (56/27) who was tilting a bit. I figured there was a good chance that I had up to 10 outs on the flop (correct) and that either I was probably actually ahead + had 9 outs most likely on the turn if not.
http://www.pokerhand.org/?1446695

And picked up 3 stacks to make up for the past 2 days at least.

Don't think there was anything I could do with this one.

[Kc] AK CO $32.80
SB is loose aggressive yada yada yada 41/19 3+ AF, but only 13% WTSD so he could get away.

I raise $0.85, SB calls

[6h][Ks] Pot $1.90
SB checks, I bet $1.50, SB calls

Pot $4.75
SB checks, I bet $3.50, SB calls

Pot $11.50
SB bets $5, I insta-call

The fact that he was check/calling instead of bet or raising had me thinking that he was on a flush draw with undercards. This last bet looked like a missed flush bet, but I didn't have him for the straight [Ts]. Wonder why he played an OERoyal/StraightFD so weakly? I mean I had TPTK w/ AK on the flop and his monster draw was still 53% to win.

Only other hand of interest, I got it all-in w/ [Js] on [2c][5c] board vs [8c] and held up. I could have easily lost a lot in both of these hands, but feel pretty damn good about the results.

Got in exactly 500 hands tonight and I think I just about turned it around. In fact, I was just 1 stack away from returning to $50NL when AA < Q9s. Can't really complain though because my AA stats have been tremendous lately. I was probably due to lose a stack with them.

Key hands:

1 - A HUGE suck-out vs a maniac (57/14) - We both have $25 to start
[Kc] UTG (5 - handed)
I raise to $0.85, OTB calls

[Ks][5s] Pot $2
I bet $1.25 because I know he's raising like he's done almost ever hand and he complies, raising to $5.80. I call, with the intention to c/r all-in.

Pot $13.65
I check, he bets $10.50, I'm all-in for $10 more, he calls.
[5d] of course. Run into another nut with a set....what a shock.

Actually, here's the real shock...... on the river gets there with the running flush.


2 - Same opponent - he's sitting with $7.30 now. Told someone that's alll he had left in the account, so I felt bad and decided to double him up.
[3h] CO (5 - handed)
I raise to $0.85, SB calls

[Qh][Jh] Pot $1.90
SB bets $1.95, I push, he calls his last $4.60

He has [Tc] - I was right, it was a coinflip. on the turn takes away my 3 Ace outs on the river and that's exactly what hit - - to give him the straight.

3 - Dropped a 1/2 stack to someone with an 81 VP$IP and 3 AF when I was lucky enough to flop top pair of Queens vs his pocket pair of Queens. Yup. case Q does me in against another nutjob.

4 - [Ad] is good for 1/2 stack vs [Js] on [3h][Qh] flop.

5 - [Ac] is no good for a 132 BB vs [9h] on [9s][6d] flop. His flop c/r was $7.50 vs a $1.75 c-bet. It kinda looked like he didn't want to be called so I pushed. He took up almost all his time before calling too. Strange.


How can I really bitch about that though. 9,689 hands at $25NL 6-max:
AA 60x 95% Win +11.19 BB/Hand - Pretty damn awesome