School update, I got a 100% on my english midterm and 138% on comp sci midterm.  I am not playing a lot of poker lately, because of school.  I took a shot at the next limit up and my bankroll got pounded.  I played good, but variance killed me.  I feel really great about my game.  Even though I lost money, I was ahead when I put my money in the pot.

I read a blog from a popular poker coach who is a winner in 6max up to 400nl.  He expects his students to play 20k hands a week if they are serious about beating their limit and moving up.  That is about a million hands a year.  I went to pokertablelistngs.com and looked up who were the big winners at my limit.  The top 26 money winners since the beginning of this year are averaging 1850 hands a day.  They are on track to play 675k hands this year.  You should also note who these players are by color coding them or putting notes on your HUD.

If you are like me and you want to get better at the game, you can try video taping (using camtasia) 1hr of a 4-table session and review your session once a week.  On 2+2 you can even exchange videos with other players and review each other’s sessions and get advice.

I would also recommend that you use pokertracker or HEM and review your big hands that you won and lost for the session.  You should do this a couple times a week.  Look for leaks and post your hand on a poker forum.  This will help you develop better lines.

If I had the time, I would play 9 hours a day 4-tabling and two hours a day studying.  I would do this seven days a week.  Studying would consist of posting hands, watching videos, and reviewing sessions.  I think that is what it takes to beat this game.

Future posts will be on hand reading and 3 different levels of poker thinking.

Hi guys.  I have been busy.  I got a B in physics from last semester.  It took a lot of hustling, but I got it.  One of my favorite teachers gave me this advice.  “To get an A, you have to put in a little more than the next guy.”  You do not have to be perfect.  Just work harder than your peers.  That professor got straight A’s in his undergrad and masters at UVA, so I consider his advice to be credible.

Unfortunately, a B was the best I could do in this course.  Physics for engineers is harder than standard physics and there were a lot of braniacs in my class.

That brings me to poker.  You have to have high esteem regarding your poker playing.  This will lead to better sessions, it will make you want to play and study more.  In order to be good you have to study and play more than the guys across the table from you.  So, play tables and games that you can beat.

Secondly, study 20-30% of the time that you have dedicated for poker.  I have been playing online poker since Moneymaker won, but I have loved the game since I was a kid.  Because I loved the game and I never quit, I think I have recently made huge advances in my game.  I have read books, watched videos, listened to poker podcasts, and posted on forums.  I will post my graph at the end of summer, regardless if I do bad.  I am still in school and I need to put up 20k in hands to prove my skills.  This summer I will take PE so I can play more.

Anyways, even if I stink I will always play b/c I love the game.  You have to be a little ricky though if you cannot beat the 2NL through 25NL games.  I really believe that I can do better than most of the people online.  I have a high gpa, b/c I am willing to put in more work than my opponents.  My goal is to be a consistent winner in FR or 6max NLHE up to 200NL.  I have heard 400NL online is were there is a huge difference in talent and mostly filled w/ regs b/c of the UIGEA.   You probably make more money playing live.  Peace.

My poker game has been up and down.  I am happy that I decided to learn 6max and HU NL holdem.  I am also buying into more SNG’s more than average.  Learning about the different short handed NL games has helped my overall understanding of poker.  And, kept my desire to play poker fresh.

HU has helped me develop faster as a poker player.  You get to practice value betting and putting someone on a range many times more than you would in a 6max game.  You can also play hyper-aggressive which keeps it exciting.  The bankroll swings more in HU, but you can make more ptbb/100.  Me likey.  I barely play full ring cash anymore.

You also don’t have to deal with that guy who is  stealing your blinds from the button.  It is so hard to play back at that guy.  In HU there is no where for your enemy to hide.  The better player will win in the long run.  Ansky said he was a 55% favorite on average.  That is my goal.

Now about the smartphone.  I purchased the Samsung Omnia.  You can play Cake Poker on your MS windows smartphone for real money.  They also gave me $15 for beta testing.  The smartphone software needs to be tweaked a little more for my liking.  The desktop software is like Party Poker, which I like b/c it reminds me of the good old days of Party Poker. You can get 33% rake and the competition is mediocre.  I can also tether my smartphone to my laptop.  Tethering turns your phone into a WIFI  modem.  This allows me to play poker on my laptop when I am on the road.

One last thing, I like to Tivo Ansky’s show on G4.  Not too bad.

I just got out of court. The “Man” tried to throw me behind bars. My lawyer was cool and cut me a deal w/ the prosecutor. After the judge accepted the deal, the arresting officer tried to interject. He said that I had two previous charges, and they shouldn’t had dropped one of the two charges against me. The judge told the officer to talk about it with the prosecutor. I went into the side room to pay my DUI charge, and waited for my lawyer who went to talk to the officer and the prosecutor. I waited for a few minutes, which seemed like an eternity. When the lawyer got back, he said that the prosecutor basically told the officer to go back and sit down.

I definitely learned my lesson and will never drink that much again. I had blacked out and tried to drive home. I am such a donkey.

My lawyer was awesome, and he also likes to play poker. I hope that poker will be legalized by the end of next year. Obama is a poker player and I hear that there is a local game in DC where the politicians and well connected people play.

These crazy religious groups and soccer moms need to mind their own business. I have signed up for the PPA and I plan on writing my politicians. It is easy. Go to the PPA website and they have everything you need to make your voice heard on legalizing poker.

I am going to study physics this week and play a lot of ssnl poker!

I have heard EB talk about mass multi-tabling, and recently I read about WCGRider wagering on the fact that he could make 10k in one month playing 25NL MMT.  He lost on the wager, but it got me thinking.  I am going to test it out using an AHK script.  I need to make some paper to put me through college.  Working as an intern gives me the “gas face”.  Anyways if this works out, I will try and walk you guys through the process.

By the way, I got back from Las Vegas a few weeks ago.  I won almost $160 playing 1-2 NL Holdem.  I saw Doyle, Johnnie Chan, Phil Ivey, John Juanda, Eli Elezra, Todd Brunson, and Tom Dwan playing 2000-4000.  One table was playing Chinese poker and I couldn’t tell what everyone else was doing.  The dealer sitting beside me at the Bellagio said that they tend to play more around the WSOP tourneys.  WSOP brings a lot of action to the cash games.  It was so cool.  My table was right by the window just a couple of yards away from Johnnie.

I have been mostly loosing as of late.  Since I decided to start playing more poker, I have started reading two plus two’s forums. I am reading the stickied posts first about the full ring games. I also joined Card runners this weekend. I think I am going to try 6max now. I have been playing to many hands. Around 30-40 according to PT. I am going to try and keep it around 17-25. And, when I do play pots I will raise it 3x BB in late position, and 4x BB if I am early position in unopened pots. I really like the Verneer videos. He explains his idea well. I will be playing NL5-NL50.

Play good hands in late position. Use Harrington or Sklansky hand guide for choosing playable hands. Everyone once in awhile if you havn’t played many hands and the person you are attacking is weak tight, go ahead and bluff w/ ATC. Look to play alot of hands cheap. Go for two pairs, straights, flushes, sets and full houses against raised hands. At 25NL against players w/ deep stacks you can felt them. I like to call raised hands. When they raise you, they are playing premium hands. I like to play hands that are likely to not be dominated by these premium hands. Value bet flops against these calling stations. I prefer to tangle with players that have deeper stacks and VPIP’s more than 30. Play everyone else with basic strategy. If a player is betting strong on 4th and 5th street give them credit unless VPIP is very high and you have a good read. I prefer to check/call against maniacs. If I have a very strong hand. I play fast. Most importantly, the majority of the time play strong hands from late position! Do not bluff against weak players. Players with less than 15 VPIP or higher than 35 are more likely to fold to a bluff in OOP. This is my basic strategy.