Now that summer is rolling around I need to decide what I'm going to be doing next year. I applied and was accepted to the Masters in Ancient History at CSULB, but I was mainly planning on completing that degree so that I could continue to postpone deciding what I want to do with my life. Obviously I have gotten much better in poker in the past year or so (my 2nd year playing) and although I could see making poker my career without the current blocks made by congress. I'm thinking that until that bill is overturned I don't want to consider making poker my lifelong job.
I have always wanted to work in games - specifically at Blizzard Entertainment, and when it comes down to choosing what I'm going to do in the future, I always arrive back at the same thing. I want to be a designer or producer on the RTS team at Blizzard. I've started working in the War3 Map Editior again and I'm going to devote about 1/2 my poker time to developing a map for the Level Design position they have open currently. They suggested I apply for this job last year, but having had very little experience working with the map editor, I decided that I was not going to be able to get it. I still worked on a map for about 4 months, and now having started in the past few weeks, hopefully I'll have a basic functional map up in the next couple weeks.
I am also looking at other companies as well. There are a lot of great companies out there, and having done some research, and been lucky to have a family connection to a few of them, I'm hoping that I find a job where I can dig in, work hard, and learn a lot.
----
In terms of poker I'm still throwing around the idea of playing on Stars vs Tilt. The FPP concept requires a lot of play, and due to my new focused job search I am not sure I will be able to put in enough points to earn supernova any time soon. Really the rewards only come at that level, and I want to maximize my time. That all being said, I find the games easier to beat on Stars, and have won on all 4 sessions I have played on there. Within this I have had 3-4 pretty nasty suckouts against me and I think this encourages me to continue to play on there, having won despite these losses.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Played a bit on Stars
I played a little on Stars last night and found the games to be pretty good. I bought in short at 8 tables and quickly trippled the 200$ I had on there when I started. The FPP VIP program seems pretty solid and I could easily see earning 50-100K FPP points per month once I get going.
They have all sorts of great FPP store items for sale including electronics, tournament entries, bonuses, and more. I could easily see ordering a big screen or $1500 bonus about once a month. This seems better than the $500 or so I get in rakeback per month at Full Tilt. For example, the $1500 bonus costs 100K FPPs, but with a earning rate of Supernova status you earn 3.5x as much FPPs, its reasonable to expect to earn 3000+ FPPs in a single session. That would mean that in about 30 sessions I could clear enough to purchase the $1500 bonus, and then in earning more points, I would complete the bonus. If I could somehow eventually get up to the 1/2 games again I could make even more points, and if I could make 1M in a year, I'd get the top status, giving a 5x FPP rate. With that high a rate I could see it very easy to earn more than 100k points per month, and that would mean a lot of free money and expensive items. :D
They have all sorts of great FPP store items for sale including electronics, tournament entries, bonuses, and more. I could easily see ordering a big screen or $1500 bonus about once a month. This seems better than the $500 or so I get in rakeback per month at Full Tilt. For example, the $1500 bonus costs 100K FPPs, but with a earning rate of Supernova status you earn 3.5x as much FPPs, its reasonable to expect to earn 3000+ FPPs in a single session. That would mean that in about 30 sessions I could clear enough to purchase the $1500 bonus, and then in earning more points, I would complete the bonus. If I could somehow eventually get up to the 1/2 games again I could make even more points, and if I could make 1M in a year, I'd get the top status, giving a 5x FPP rate. With that high a rate I could see it very easy to earn more than 100k points per month, and that would mean a lot of free money and expensive items. :D
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Last Chance at FTOPS IV!
FTOPS IV - Event #10 (Main Event)
3:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em (Super Stack)
Buyin: 500+35
1.5M Guarantee
Updates to follow.
3:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em (Super Stack)
Buyin: 500+35
1.5M Guarantee
Updates to follow.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Friday, May 18, 2007
FTOPS IV and Sunday Million!
I am playing in both of these tournaments this weekend.
My big plans for FTOPS have not worked out so far, but I'm hoping to stop donking out in the middle stages and going deep in the last and largest tournament.
I also noticed that Poker Stars is having a deposit bonus and a cool promotion where they are ADDING 250K to the Sunday Million. I wouldn't be surprised to see a 2 million prize pool for this one, which is the largest online tournament I've seen in the past few months. I'm definately playing in this one, having qualified earlier in the week.
I'm adapting a new strategy for these tournaments, which is basically as follows:
Early Stage (Start - 1st Break):
The blinds are very small here so I like to play lots of flops in position. I usually limp with everything aside from AA, KK, or QQ. I try to trap my opponents when I am strong, and bluff them out when I think they will fold. If I'm lucky I'll grab a few lucky hands like a sneaky two pair, straight, flush, or set. I try not to get all-in at this stage without the nuts or near nuts. I won't move all-in preflop with KK or call an allin with AK - I don't see value in taking chances yet. I usually have 3000-6000 chips by the end of this stage.
Middle Stage 1 (1st Break - 2nd Break):
The blinds are getting larger here, but there are no antes yet, and its really not worth it to steal without some sort of hand or particularly tight/weak players in the blinds. I like to play very tight during this stage. Players are starting to feel pressure from the blinds, and there is no longer a huge amount of breathing room in terms of fancy plays and cheap bluffing opportunities. I stick to playing premium hands (AA-QQ, AK-AJ) with a raise and hands with a lot of potential (22-JJ, 65s-KQs, 97s-KJs, Axs) in position with a limp/call. I usually stay about even during this stage, gaining or losing a small quantity of chips, unless I get hit with the deck with lots of great cards.
Middle Stage 2 (2nd Break - 3rd Break):
The antes kick in during this period and the blinds start to become quite significant. Its usually during this stage that the bubble begins to become significant. Its often burst during this stage or early in the next stage so its important to steal a lot of blinds and antes to have a chance at winning. A steal here adds a significant amount of chips to an average player's stack, often one-tenth or more. Simply stealing ten pots during this stage, while hopefully also getting a few hands here will help to build up for the late stages. I think resteals with medium pairs and big aces become a very useful tactic during this stage. Targeting tight players with steals and loose players with resteals can be a great way to chip up without seeing flops. This stage requires a bit of luck, but if you get through it with an average stack, your chances at a signifcant cash are quite good.
Late Stage (3rd Break - Final Table):
I usually play this stage pretty aggressively, but I tend to not make plays without some sort of hand. I'll raise blinds if I can get away with it, but I'm often forced to move allin preflop due to the HUGE blinds. It has been a long time since I have gotten through this point in a large field tournament. It seems like this is where "getting lucky" comes into play. You will have to win coin flips and pair vs pair confrontations here. If those don't go in your favor, there isn't much you can do.
---
As usual I'll continue to update this post with my results as I go. Cheers. :D
My big plans for FTOPS have not worked out so far, but I'm hoping to stop donking out in the middle stages and going deep in the last and largest tournament.
I also noticed that Poker Stars is having a deposit bonus and a cool promotion where they are ADDING 250K to the Sunday Million. I wouldn't be surprised to see a 2 million prize pool for this one, which is the largest online tournament I've seen in the past few months. I'm definately playing in this one, having qualified earlier in the week.
I'm adapting a new strategy for these tournaments, which is basically as follows:
Early Stage (Start - 1st Break):
The blinds are very small here so I like to play lots of flops in position. I usually limp with everything aside from AA, KK, or QQ. I try to trap my opponents when I am strong, and bluff them out when I think they will fold. If I'm lucky I'll grab a few lucky hands like a sneaky two pair, straight, flush, or set. I try not to get all-in at this stage without the nuts or near nuts. I won't move all-in preflop with KK or call an allin with AK - I don't see value in taking chances yet. I usually have 3000-6000 chips by the end of this stage.
Middle Stage 1 (1st Break - 2nd Break):
The blinds are getting larger here, but there are no antes yet, and its really not worth it to steal without some sort of hand or particularly tight/weak players in the blinds. I like to play very tight during this stage. Players are starting to feel pressure from the blinds, and there is no longer a huge amount of breathing room in terms of fancy plays and cheap bluffing opportunities. I stick to playing premium hands (AA-QQ, AK-AJ) with a raise and hands with a lot of potential (22-JJ, 65s-KQs, 97s-KJs, Axs) in position with a limp/call. I usually stay about even during this stage, gaining or losing a small quantity of chips, unless I get hit with the deck with lots of great cards.
Middle Stage 2 (2nd Break - 3rd Break):
The antes kick in during this period and the blinds start to become quite significant. Its usually during this stage that the bubble begins to become significant. Its often burst during this stage or early in the next stage so its important to steal a lot of blinds and antes to have a chance at winning. A steal here adds a significant amount of chips to an average player's stack, often one-tenth or more. Simply stealing ten pots during this stage, while hopefully also getting a few hands here will help to build up for the late stages. I think resteals with medium pairs and big aces become a very useful tactic during this stage. Targeting tight players with steals and loose players with resteals can be a great way to chip up without seeing flops. This stage requires a bit of luck, but if you get through it with an average stack, your chances at a signifcant cash are quite good.
Late Stage (3rd Break - Final Table):
I usually play this stage pretty aggressively, but I tend to not make plays without some sort of hand. I'll raise blinds if I can get away with it, but I'm often forced to move allin preflop due to the HUGE blinds. It has been a long time since I have gotten through this point in a large field tournament. It seems like this is where "getting lucky" comes into play. You will have to win coin flips and pair vs pair confrontations here. If those don't go in your favor, there isn't much you can do.
---
As usual I'll continue to update this post with my results as I go. Cheers. :D
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Ouch!
Full Tilt Poker Game #2449200248: Table Spanish Wells - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 21:43:57 ET - 2007/05/17
Seat 1: NateSpilker ($98.40)
Seat 2: TOMMI S ($101)
Seat 3: riskybiz2 ($46.80)
Seat 4: KNMPOKER ($124.25)
Seat 5: Tiltasauras ($42.45)
Seat 6: tk_foster ($100.90)
Seat 7: GTJazzFan ($209.60)
Seat 8: Kalbar8 ($128.80)
Seat 9: snooze1 ($93.35)
tk_foster posts the small blind of $0.50
GTJazzFan posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to KNMPOKER [Kd Kh]
Kalbar8 folds
snooze1 folds
NateSpilker raises to $4
TOMMI S has 15 seconds left to act
TOMMI S folds
riskybiz2 folds
KNMPOKER calls $4
Tiltasauras folds
tk_foster folds
GTJazzFan folds
*** FLOP *** [As Ks Qh]
NateSpilker bets $6
KNMPOKER raises to $18
NateSpilker calls $12
*** TURN *** [As Ks Qh] [Qs]
NateSpilker checks
KNMPOKER bets $20
NateSpilker raises to $50
KNMPOKER raises to $80
NateSpilker calls $26.40, and is all in
KNMPOKER shows [Kd Kh]
NateSpilker shows [Ad Qc]
Uncalled bet of $3.60 returned to KNMPOKER
*** RIVER *** [As Ks Qh Qs] [Qd]
KNMPOKER shows a full house, Kings full of Queens
NateSpilker shows four of a kind, Queens
NateSpilker wins the pot ($195.30) with four of a kind, Queens
KNMPOKER adds $74.15
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $198.30 Rake $3
Board: [As Ks Qh Qs Qd]
Seat 1: NateSpilker showed [Ad Qc] and won ($195.30) with four of a kind, Queens
Seat 2: TOMMI S didn't bet (folded)
Seat 3: riskybiz2 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 4: KNMPOKER showed [Kd Kh] and lost with a full house, Kings full of Queens
Seat 5: Tiltasauras (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: tk_foster (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 7: GTJazzFan (big blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 8: Kalbar8 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 9: snooze1 didn't bet (folded)
I'm not one for bad beats, but this was pretty sick.
Seat 1: NateSpilker ($98.40)
Seat 2: TOMMI S ($101)
Seat 3: riskybiz2 ($46.80)
Seat 4: KNMPOKER ($124.25)
Seat 5: Tiltasauras ($42.45)
Seat 6: tk_foster ($100.90)
Seat 7: GTJazzFan ($209.60)
Seat 8: Kalbar8 ($128.80)
Seat 9: snooze1 ($93.35)
tk_foster posts the small blind of $0.50
GTJazzFan posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to KNMPOKER [Kd Kh]
Kalbar8 folds
snooze1 folds
NateSpilker raises to $4
TOMMI S has 15 seconds left to act
TOMMI S folds
riskybiz2 folds
KNMPOKER calls $4
Tiltasauras folds
tk_foster folds
GTJazzFan folds
*** FLOP *** [As Ks Qh]
NateSpilker bets $6
KNMPOKER raises to $18
NateSpilker calls $12
*** TURN *** [As Ks Qh] [Qs]
NateSpilker checks
KNMPOKER bets $20
NateSpilker raises to $50
KNMPOKER raises to $80
NateSpilker calls $26.40, and is all in
KNMPOKER shows [Kd Kh]
NateSpilker shows [Ad Qc]
Uncalled bet of $3.60 returned to KNMPOKER
*** RIVER *** [As Ks Qh Qs] [Qd]
KNMPOKER shows a full house, Kings full of Queens
NateSpilker shows four of a kind, Queens
NateSpilker wins the pot ($195.30) with four of a kind, Queens
KNMPOKER adds $74.15
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $198.30 Rake $3
Board: [As Ks Qh Qs Qd]
Seat 1: NateSpilker showed [Ad Qc] and won ($195.30) with four of a kind, Queens
Seat 2: TOMMI S didn't bet (folded)
Seat 3: riskybiz2 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 4: KNMPOKER showed [Kd Kh] and lost with a full house, Kings full of Queens
Seat 5: Tiltasauras (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: tk_foster (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 7: GTJazzFan (big blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 8: Kalbar8 didn't bet (folded)
Seat 9: snooze1 didn't bet (folded)
I'm not one for bad beats, but this was pretty sick.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Rested and ready to play!
FTOPS IV - Event #6
6:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em (6-Max)
Buyin: 200+16
400k Guarantee
Updates to Follow.
6:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em (6-Max)
Buyin: 200+16
400k Guarantee
Updates to Follow.
Monday, May 14, 2007
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Here we go again!
FTOPS IV - Event #3
3:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em
Buyin: 300+22
750k Gurantee
Updates to follow.
3:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em
Buyin: 300+22
750k Gurantee
Updates to follow.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Let the deck smacking begin!
FTOPS IV - Event #1
6:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em
Buyin: 200+16
300k Guarantee
Updates to follow.
6:00 PM PST
NL Hold'em
Buyin: 200+16
300k Guarantee
Updates to follow.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Running into a luckbox...
The past two nights I ran into "JoeyLion." This guy is a LAG player who is solely responsible for me being a negative result player at these limits. A couple nights ago, he called my reraise with AsKh with 8s5s, only to get a board of 4h6s2s. This guy was loose and I felt like I was representing an overpair preflop, so when I bet him nearly all in on the flop, and he pushed, I felt I had to call, getting nearly 3:1 odds. He hit a 5 on the turn to take the pot. Goodie.
Last night I sit down at my typical 8, 1-2 NL tables and look who it is - JoeyLion. Within ten minutes of sitting there, I see him take down AA when he shoves preflop with QQ and hits his third queen on the river. He then went on to hit about 4-5 hands in a row and quickly was up to $600. Its at this point I pick up As8s on the button. There are many callers, including JoeyLion, and I call. The flop comes Ad9s8c. Everyone checks to JoeyLion who bets the pot. I figure he's got an ace, and I want to finally get this guy so I call. The turn is the 7c. JoeyLion bets about 2/3 the pot and I raise to 3.5x his raise. He calls. On the river, a 2h hits and he pushes all in. I feel sick, but decide he might be making a play at me with a flush draw or a straight draw - I call. He shows JcTc for the nuts.
On other tables I manage to recover my losses. I get up to even when I'm about to log off when Joey raises my button from the cutoff to $7. I have AdQc. I reraise to $26. The blinds fold and Joey calls. The flop comes Jc8d2d. Joey checks, I bet $50, and Joey calls. The turn is a 9s. Joey checks and figuring if I put any more chips in I'm moving in, I decide to check and slow down. The river is a Qd. Joey bets $35, again I'm sick, but I have to call with the Ad and finally having hit my hand. Joey shows Ts8s for a Q-high straight.
Now at first I was thinking - wow this guy is lucky. What can I do if he hits his hands every time I'm in the pot with him? After thinking about it a bit more, I've decided he's not lucky. He's just outplaying me.
Most of the time, Joey gets people - including me, to put their chips in AFTER he hits his hand. I have noticed that he's willing to take the worst of it preflop - and then is willing to call off a lot of chips if he "thinks you don't have it." So the key to beating a player like Joey is to make pots large preflop and then only bet/raise/call when you have a hand. Bluffing him isn't worth doing because Joey wants to think you missed the flop. In addition, when Joey puts in his chips, he's got it. He isn't bluffing. So, if he moves in, just lay it down, its not worth keeping Joey "honest."
So, I'm currently down ~$400. Just two buyins - so its really not a HUGE swing, but still not a positive thing. But its all Joey. If I took the hands I played with him out of the equation, I'm up about $400. Pretty disgusting.
Now that I know what Joey is up to, I'm gonna make sure he stops getting lucky against me.
Last night I sit down at my typical 8, 1-2 NL tables and look who it is - JoeyLion. Within ten minutes of sitting there, I see him take down AA when he shoves preflop with QQ and hits his third queen on the river. He then went on to hit about 4-5 hands in a row and quickly was up to $600. Its at this point I pick up As8s on the button. There are many callers, including JoeyLion, and I call. The flop comes Ad9s8c. Everyone checks to JoeyLion who bets the pot. I figure he's got an ace, and I want to finally get this guy so I call. The turn is the 7c. JoeyLion bets about 2/3 the pot and I raise to 3.5x his raise. He calls. On the river, a 2h hits and he pushes all in. I feel sick, but decide he might be making a play at me with a flush draw or a straight draw - I call. He shows JcTc for the nuts.
On other tables I manage to recover my losses. I get up to even when I'm about to log off when Joey raises my button from the cutoff to $7. I have AdQc. I reraise to $26. The blinds fold and Joey calls. The flop comes Jc8d2d. Joey checks, I bet $50, and Joey calls. The turn is a 9s. Joey checks and figuring if I put any more chips in I'm moving in, I decide to check and slow down. The river is a Qd. Joey bets $35, again I'm sick, but I have to call with the Ad and finally having hit my hand. Joey shows Ts8s for a Q-high straight.
Now at first I was thinking - wow this guy is lucky. What can I do if he hits his hands every time I'm in the pot with him? After thinking about it a bit more, I've decided he's not lucky. He's just outplaying me.
Most of the time, Joey gets people - including me, to put their chips in AFTER he hits his hand. I have noticed that he's willing to take the worst of it preflop - and then is willing to call off a lot of chips if he "thinks you don't have it." So the key to beating a player like Joey is to make pots large preflop and then only bet/raise/call when you have a hand. Bluffing him isn't worth doing because Joey wants to think you missed the flop. In addition, when Joey puts in his chips, he's got it. He isn't bluffing. So, if he moves in, just lay it down, its not worth keeping Joey "honest."
So, I'm currently down ~$400. Just two buyins - so its really not a HUGE swing, but still not a positive thing. But its all Joey. If I took the hands I played with him out of the equation, I'm up about $400. Pretty disgusting.
Now that I know what Joey is up to, I'm gonna make sure he stops getting lucky against me.
Monday, May 07, 2007
Stakes and Donkaments...
I've been having a good run lately on Full Tilt, beating the $0.50/$1.00 games consistently. I made a bankroll mark of $3000 to move up to $1.00/$2.00, which I am happy to report I have reached. Yesterday was my first day eight tabling the 1/2 games on FT and I think they are a bit more difficult, but still very beatable. I ended up down about $40 after having a pretty good run and then blowing all of it in a single hand.
The hand went something like:
I had AhKs in the SB. A player in middle position raises it to 3.5x BB ($7). I reraise the pot to $22. My opponent calls. The flop comes down Ad, 9d, 6d. I bet the pot - $60. My opponent moves all in for $100 more. I stupidly call and he shows 9s9h for a set, which became a full house on the river. After thinking about it, this was a stupid call by me. I had thought that he could have a hand like AxKd or KxKd or QxQd, which means he has 10 outs or I'm reverse freerolling. And in a terrible scenario he has the flush or a set and I'm drawing dead. I should have checked the flop, and either called or folded to his bet - then the 4th diamond on the turn would have saved me the rest of my stack for sure. Ah well, next time I will be more careful.
Anyway, I was up on nearly every table when I quit, and even though I had reloaded on more than a couple of them, I view the session as a very positive one. I never really had very big hands, and never had a double up of my own.
---
In addition to FTOPS IV, which I'm quite excited about, I moved $500 over to Poker Stars, where I plan on starting to mine the FPP, $3R, and $39R satellites for tournament dollars and Sunday Million entries.
My goal for this year is $100k. Moving over to stars for a second chance at a big score every sunday seems like the best way to give myself a chance at a HUGE cash.
---
On a last note, I had the worst poker day I've had in a long time yesterday. I lost about 20 tournaments. Although I didn't buyin directly into almost any of them (used $26 tokens I had won), it still was an enormous hit to my confidence and BR and I'm hoping to turn things around tonight. Until next time...
The hand went something like:
I had AhKs in the SB. A player in middle position raises it to 3.5x BB ($7). I reraise the pot to $22. My opponent calls. The flop comes down Ad, 9d, 6d. I bet the pot - $60. My opponent moves all in for $100 more. I stupidly call and he shows 9s9h for a set, which became a full house on the river. After thinking about it, this was a stupid call by me. I had thought that he could have a hand like AxKd or KxKd or QxQd, which means he has 10 outs or I'm reverse freerolling. And in a terrible scenario he has the flush or a set and I'm drawing dead. I should have checked the flop, and either called or folded to his bet - then the 4th diamond on the turn would have saved me the rest of my stack for sure. Ah well, next time I will be more careful.
Anyway, I was up on nearly every table when I quit, and even though I had reloaded on more than a couple of them, I view the session as a very positive one. I never really had very big hands, and never had a double up of my own.
---
In addition to FTOPS IV, which I'm quite excited about, I moved $500 over to Poker Stars, where I plan on starting to mine the FPP, $3R, and $39R satellites for tournament dollars and Sunday Million entries.
My goal for this year is $100k. Moving over to stars for a second chance at a big score every sunday seems like the best way to give myself a chance at a HUGE cash.
---
On a last note, I had the worst poker day I've had in a long time yesterday. I lost about 20 tournaments. Although I didn't buyin directly into almost any of them (used $26 tokens I had won), it still was an enormous hit to my confidence and BR and I'm hoping to turn things around tonight. Until next time...
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