Sunday saw my belated 2^nd attempt at entering the Bodog $100k Sunday tournament.  As part of a 6 person syndicate we split any winnings and so far thanks to Chris B and Cravin , we are doing very nicely.  Not having cashed in my previous attempt I put myself under quite a bit of pressure feeling I had to cash.

I enter the Bodog 100k for two reasons:  First there is always a huge overlay ($38k this week!) and secondly the structure is good and doesn’t force you into risks too early.

So with 620 starters I joined 10 minutes late due to my internet connection crashing and needing to reboot my pc, which takes forever to find not a lot happening on my table and for the first hour very little happened.

I got myself up to around 4,000 chips and then with JJ in early position I was reraised by a regular player and I folded as the all-in risk against this player was too great.  The reraise amount meant they could not fold to a push from me.  So there I was down just below 3,000 chips with the blinds at 250 and a little later I then found JJ again and this time pushed only to be called by the same player holding 99 and my hand held up putting me to nearly 6,000.

I soon after moved tables and one a couple of blinds for a round or two and was at 6,000 when I had KQ in the cut-off and raised.  The big blind that had been loose raising called and the flop came down A44.  It was checked to me and I bet 1300 into the pot of 1800.  This was called and I checked the further streets down to find the villain was 55 taking the pot of over 4k.  This left me with just 4k and in dire need of a double up.

I picked spots to steal blinds but was card dead for a long while as the blinds rose and rose.  There were just around 140 left in the tournament by this stage with the top 90 cashing and at this point the table tightened up considerably except for a bigger stack to my right who kept stealing blinds.  His raises were such that I could not resteal as he was priced in to calling and unfortunately I had utter crap cards.  

I was getting very desperate when I had a run of cards and pushed all in 4 times in 6 hands and not once did I get a call. However the pots brought me a temporary rest bite and I managed to last awhile longer stealing wherever I could unless I had 72, 42, 82 etc which seemed to happen a lot!

As the bubble approached I was getting quite desperate but thankfully the table tightened even further with the player on my left pleading with the rest of us to slow down to allow “the short stacks” to survive into the money.  I promptly raised from the Small blind into his big blind!  I then also had AQ and was able to raise again just as the bubble burst and I was guaranteed $250.

Now was the time to get aggressive and on the button I had A6 suited and pushed into the blinds and was called by the short stack and another player.  They showed K9 and JT.  Amazingly my hand held, hitting a full house J and I was up to 14.5k.  The average stack was around 18k and I was close to the table chip lead.  Here was a good opportunity to go really deep, or so I thought.  With the blinds at 500/1000 with a 75 ante I received 99 under the gun and pushed all in for 13.7k and was called by mid position who had KK.  My hand did not improve and I was out 84^th.

Seventhsense also played in the tournament and was unlucky not getting nay decent cards and after his railing of me, we had a good initial discussion about the merits of my push with 99 or whether I could raise and then get away from my hand.  Something I will post on the forum later.

As it is I rarely got paid with any hands and given better timing might well have had a bigger stack early on to allow me to steal blinds easier.  This is a tournament that is worth playing again and again as there is money to be made!

Well it has been just over a week since I signed up for the free trial of Deuces Cracked and also bought Holdem Manager.

In that time I have played around 2.7k hands of HE 6 max at £20NL and $25Nl mainly.  I am running just about up at $25NL and at 35BB/100 at £20NL on Sun Poker.  

I am running slightly better than expected on showdowns, but the main reason I am doing so well is that I have learned so much from just a few videos on Deuces Cracked.  As a result I would say that I am playing much more aggressively in general as well as not being so wimpish when bet against.  However two aspects in their NL small stakes grinder series have sunk home which have been insanely profitable.

So what are they?

• Three betting loose raisers with a much wider range of hands
• Understanding that check raises on paired flops are nearly always weak as those with trips nearly always slow play

As a result I am forcing people to fold with more and picking up pots preflop more as well as taking down pots on the flop whether I have a PP or air when I am check raised having c-bet.

Helping me decide the best course of action has been Holdem manager and its Hud which I find fantastically useful for 6 max.  As well as the usual stats Voluntary put into pot % and % preflop raise etc using the %Check raises, the % 3bet is giving me a lot of information very quickly.  

I will share a couple of hands when I can get the icons for suits to show better – but one of my favourites was against a guy who in a dozen hands (small sample I know) had a VPIP of 95% and a preflop raise of 50%.  I want to isolate against him and it folds to him in the cutoff and of course he raises.  I 3 bet him with KT and he calls. The flop comes down 6 4 2 rainbow.  I bet 2/3 of the pot and he calls.  The turn comes down a Ten and I bet again and he pushes all-in.  I snap call, knowing I am ahead.

He shows J9 and doesn’t hit the river.  J  He leaves the table immediately.

Also people do not modify their behaviour.  If they start check raising almost every flop they continue to do so, allowing me to come over the top with air or to wait and catch them when I have a hand!  I am so enjoying 6 max at the moment.  The only shame is that I have paid off some people where I really know I am behind – these are usually where I have top pair and someone who is passive post flop suddenly pushes all in.  I t has cost me at least 200 big blinds – I really must stop my stupid calling.

Well the day got off ot a great start.  I arrived at the Studios at 2pm only to find out that it was a 4pm arrival not 2pm as previously – I had not received the email with the details, oh joy.  Anyway I busied myself with reading a poker magazine and semi-watching “The Cincinnati Kid” on TV.

Anyway things eventually got going with makeup, rehearsal etc Jag, RGJ and myself are all old hands now as this is was second time!  We decided to start as before with the £50NL and decide how we should go at half time.  My table is amazingly passive before I started I watched about 20 hands and we had 17 limped pots 2 all ins from a guy who seemed to do this with limpers in front and one raise.  I was looking forward to playing J

Quickly I found myself up to £65 winning a couple of small pots either through c bets or having top pair and I did bluff someone on the river.  Also I had bottom pair and nut flush draw and 3 bet all in on the flop which was not called.

The table then slightly changed and a couple of guys started playing position against me and I lost £25 over a series of pots before getting back to level.  I was up slightly and then just before the break I had AK and won a small pot and then with time just going out I had AA and stacked a short stack who hit top pair so there I was with £75.

At the half time we decided to stay at the current levels as we were all comfortable.  This soon paid off big time for me sitting in Cut off or button I raised a limper when I had JT suited.  I got called out of the BB and the flop gave me an up and down straight draw  Q 8 6 so any king or 9 gives me the nuts.  The big blind who was also well stacked checked and I bet out £3 which was min raised – so he must be strong.  However I have great odds to call.

The turn is an Ace and the big blind checks giving me a free card which I take.  A king on the river is bingo.  Now the big blind makes a pot sized bet.  I think he must be strong due to the min raise and bet on the end so its allinski from me and he calls – later I see he has a set of queens.

Soon after I lose a pot where I call a min raise from the button with KQ suited in the small blind only for the big blind to come in and hit two pair to my top pair good kicker and flush draw and initial raisers straight draw.  All the money goes in but I don’t hit and am down to £120.  I know I should have reraised preflop - I am far too passive in the blinds.

I make a few more pounds towards the end and as a team we make a good profit on the night but a small loss overall due to the disasters of the first appearance.

RGJ did well again and Jag had a nightmare table where he could not get any action either he raised and everyone folded or he folded and everyone limped.

Norman Pace and Jason Berrisford (think that is the correct spelling) were great fun and interesting to chat away to about poker.  I had a drink with them after filming and a good natter as they had to wait around for the 11pm live broadcast they were doing.  

Days 2 started off much quieter than Day 1 with many fewer people around it seemed that at Newcastle.  After breakfast and finding out that EMS had won the forum challenge and hearing about Seventhsense having a close encounter with a man in fishnet stockings and a pink dress, many of the EMS team reconvened at Dusk Till Dawn.

The 3 survivors from day 1 continued the long slog, with all seemingly short stacked the whole time, but somehow managing to cash, a great achievement for Crumble, 4TKnox and HarryB.  Crumble had his share of luck with 77 beating JJ, but you need luck to go deep in these tournies.

The SNG challenge did not go too well for EMS and personally I played way too loose aggressive in the Terminator tournament though I got a great read on someone who had played tight and then raised.  On the cut-off I re-raised him with A6 suited and took down the pot.

I then proceeded to donk off my chips.  Finally the tournament got down to the final table and Beth (Farse Bandit) had made it but was, as ever, short-stacked.  She then proceeded to pick her spots very nicely and down to 4 players she had a chance as 2 were very poor.

She then pushed in the small blind with K9 and was called by the big blind immediately holding Q2 of clubs.  He then proceeded to hit a runner runner flush.  Beth was out – if she had taken down that hand she would have been close to the chip lead.  However she played really well – and with a little more belief in herself, will run deep in a lot more tournaments.

All in all a good weekend, though not as enjoyable as Newcastle, even thought he poker playing conditions were fantastic.

It was great to meet up with old friends at Dusk Till Dawn and also meet some new  ones where 28 EMSers gathered amongst 259 starters for the Virgin Summer Festival.

The format was the same as for Newcastle with a main event starting with a deep stack 10,000 chips.  Unlike Newcastle play seemed tighter early on with no one going out in the first few hands.  My table was especially tight with little movement.  The table was also quiet to begin with but eventually it chilled and became more fun with “Poker Punk” leading the way on that score.

I decided that after a couple of levels with everyone playing quite tight apart from Poker punk and a DTD regular, who I have seen before I would target those two with my good hands and try and steal from the others.  This had mixed results however and I seemed unable to really grow a stack as I did not get hands against the two looser players.

I was up to around 12,000 chips when I finally got my chance with KK and the loosest player called my raise.  The flop came down T9 of clubs 4 of spades.  I bet and then the loose player who was short on chips pushed and it was an easy call. He had 78 of clubs and was thus a favourite to win, a 6 came on the turn and I was down to 6,000 chips.

I managed later to get back up to 10,000 or so partly from raising once more and one of the tight players re-raising me.  However I had aces this time.  As I had been loose and as he had put down a hand earlier to a re-raise I pushed thinking he would call.  After an age, my opponent folded so I just picked up around 1,800 chips.

Just before one o the breaks the loose player was to play and I thought “You have raised every time we have gone to a break, go on do it again.”  He of course did and so I in the big blind with everyone else getting up re-raised.   He called and I bet the flop with my Q5 having missed and he folded.  This was a nice 15% addition to my stack. J

Crumble joined 2 to my left just after an interesting hand.  I had Ace Ten suited and raised into the loose 2 players again who both called.  The flop came down A A J.  The two loose players checked to me and I decided to check.  A four came on the turn giving two hearts and after it was checked to me I bet out just under the pot.  I was called quickly by the SB but the other player took an age deciding to call – an almost sure sign he had a heart draw from what I saw. 

The river brought a King and again it was checked to me.  I decided to check as I was losing to slow played AJ and AK.  I also could not beat any other Ace.  As it was Poker Punk had A8 and I am not sure I could have bet him off the hand.

A local was moved between Crumble and me and he constantly chatted about how bad some of the play was yet gave wonderful drawing odds when betting into a pot he was in with Crumble.  He played a lot of pots and was leaking chips.  He then min raised yet again and I re-raised with AJ offsuit.  This was Half my stack in the pot.  He called and the flop was all low.  I pushed and after an age he called with 77 in his hand.  I hit an Ace on the river to double up and cripple him!

There was not much movement after that though I did call with AJ to a raise preflop by Crumble when I should have re-raised.  I then eventually pushed with 17k left with blinds at 1k/2k and I was out when my 98 did not beat AK.

I thought Crumble played really well and his game has improved a great deal over the last year.  He fully deserved reaching day 2 along with other EMSers HarryB and 4TKnox, who also took out Lucy Rokash.  When he found out she was to be at his table Seventhsense and I had a quick chat with him, suggesting how he might play against her to get at her – fairly early on he managed to have QQ with a ten high board and suddenly she was out and 4TKnox had a bounty! Well played that man J

Unfortunately it was just the 3 who managed to make day 2 and the last 54 but still great to spend time with the rest of the guys.  Overall think I played okay but not great, with probably being way too loose at some points and possibly putting my chips all in when I could have waited a circuit for a better spot.

Okay well sort of.  On Tuesday Jag, RGJ and myself appeared on “Stacked Up” poker show, a cash event pitting 6 teams of 3 against each other, trying to grow there stacks by the greatest amount.

The format is actually quite intensive with each member of the team putting up the same starting amount.  Play would be over 2 50 minute segments only and those playing against you, knowing the rules as well.  This is a particular disadvantage as the villains then know that the studio guests (us) are under pressure to try and win big quickly.

An added constraint was that we were only allow to put half our stack in play during the first session to prevent us from busting 5 minutes into the show – They must have seen us play before!  

Before going to Sky, RGJ, Jag and I agreed to put up £200 each for a group starting stack of £600.  We would start at £50NL leaving us each with a rebuy in the first half.  We would decide what to do for the second half after we saw our progress during that first half.

On arriving before 2pm we were shown to the green room and were there for the best part of an hour, just chatting and watching Casper Berry from the previous night on Sky Poker. We also met and chatted briefly with the producer and Andy who had set up our appearance.  Andy knows his stuff and is undoubtedly a better player than me.

Just after 3pm we were called one by one into makeup. There is no truth in the rumour that we were there for 3 hours J It literally was just a few minutes each, making us more attractive than we already are!

We then were called in for a rehearsal where we met Richard Alford and properly met Dave Compton, who had wandered into the green room while we were there.  The dress rehearsal really allowed Richard and Dave to run through the start of the program, and show how it would work.

Finally at around 4.30pm we got under way.  It was quite intense trying to play on a site with the time pressure while talking to Richard and Dave about our hands we were either playing live or ones that we had played 10 minutes previously.  There was a good bit of banter and I was pleased when Dave looked over and said well played to me off camera regarding one hand.

In the second half we moved up to play £100NL higher than I have played full ring, never mind 6 max! The standard of play on my table was better than at £50NL but not fantastic.  There was some short stack play which complicated matters – but you can see that on tele next week.

As the programme hasn’t been shown yet, I won’t go into detail about any of the major hands, though unfortunately we aren’t going to win, with us just not getting lucky and being forced to play too many hands due to the time pressure involved.

We finally left at around 8pm, the pub called; I think we all needed a drink by then.  Richard and Dave had to hang around as they were doing the 11pm show live for an hour!

All in all it was good fun and Richard and Dave were great.   Some of the play was very poor to say the least and I would definitely recommend people go and play on the cash tables as it will be profitable for anyone who is solid.  It also looks as if some of the tournaments now have longer blind levels which will make them more attractive to people wanting to play poker rather than crapshoots.

Anyway if you want to have a laugh at how we look and play go watch Sky Poker on channel 846 on Tuesday 24^th June at 9pm, and repeated at times after that.

Coming back from the festival I found that after the first week I was playing MTTs really poorly without any patience and donking off my chips.  Also with working and attending interviews alot I decided that I needed to try and only play when not tired.  As a result I really cut down the amount I was playing, though I found time to play a few Virgin qualifiers and the new Festival league without much success.

The EMS qualifier last week provided 2 seats from 12 players and I started off playing really well with very few cards, picking up pots through timely reraises and calls from Ramchip who was in one of his raise every pot moods when we were 6 handed at the start.  I hwoever didn’t progress until I thought Buffybegood was stealing my BB and I reraised all in with AJ.  He had KK and luckily I hit an Ace to knock him out.

I then proceeded to move up and go really well until we got down to the last 4 whereupon I started spewing chips and getting involved when i shouldn’t.  4tKnox and Addick played pretty well but I got lucky and Addick missed out on qualifying.  I need to sort my MTT game out now prior to the festival.

With the Virgin festival in Newcastle coming up I have decided to play a few tournaments as i have been concentrating on cash play, So on Sunday I played in a €2 entry tournament on the 24h network as well as the eatmystack league.

There were 219 entrants on the €2 event and play was very suspect.  Early on with AQ suited I was min raised and I had the odds to call.  The flop came down AQQ and so I checked on the assumption that the villain would have to bet having reraised me.  He pushed all in and I called.  He had JJ and was out.  From then on I always had chips and was able to time my steals/resteals.

I only once had a little trouble when a limper reraised me all in after my raise on the button with AQ.  I called to find him with QQ.  Luckily I flopped trip aces and won the hand.  I had him covered so I would not have been out but it would have dented my chances of winning.

As we got short handed with 2 tables to go and then on the final table one person was very aggressive in rerasing me but he went out pushing his luck and I managed to start heads-up play around even in chips.

It was hardly a fair contest as i seemed to win every hand either through his preflop folds or by betting into him or by spotting his bluff bets on rivers and calling quite light.  Fairly soon I had nearly all the chips and he had 8 BBs.  At this point I just started open shoving and 2 hands later he called but my 85 beat his QJ for a nice win of €112.

Although I have not played many tournaments recently I feel my cash play has helped develop tells against villains and spot bets that do not make sense. 

Later in the evening I played the eatmystack freezeout league.  The play has gotten more aggressive and loose recently with huge over bets and all-ins early on from some players.  This is fine as it more mirrors other tournaments.  The play however is still higher than you get in equivalent buy-in tournaments.

I believe I played really well and had the right mix of patience, aggression and discipline.  I put down some decent hands to reraises and called down some bets I did not believe. Down to 6or 7 left however I was crippled when I called a reraise from a player when I had 99.  I felt he was weak as he had reraised light frequently and he showed K7 suited.  Obviously he hit a K (sending a third player out) but I somehow survived a little further to take third place.

So tournaments and 2 top 3 finishes - my game appears to be coming back.  I intend to ramp up the number of MTTs I play over the next 2 weeks playing the odd higher value tournament as well as continuing at relatively small stakes.

On the cash games I have had a couple of breakeven sessions on PKR to halt my rise.  I also played some full ring  poker for the first time in 3 weeks.  However I had a miserable 2 sessions at $50NL losing $150 over 950 hands where I seemed unable to win a pot no matter what I did.  Hopefully it is just variance and will come back - though I played at least a couple of hands poorly.