Wednesday, August 31, 2005

To My Girls

I was waiting for 5 long tiring hours, I was about to go home because I thought you ditched me. It was around 2:30am, I kept my cool sat down, kept on looking at the time. I was about to leave but then you showed up. I didn't know if I was going to get mad or feel relieved, but I just told myself 'it's better now than never'. I know sometimes committing gives me the creeps, but I've waited for so long for you and there's no stopping me now. I had to do it.

I had to commit, it was now or never, I can't wait no longer. I raised the pot, look back down at my ladies. I get two callers, flop comes K-5-8 rainbow, guy before me checks to me, I bet 500. I was in two deep, I had to dodge the K, guy after me folds but the other one calls. Turn comes 5, he checks I set him all-in. He calls, showing pocket 7s.

One night, one hand, two ladies. Nothing beats that. I was in the right state of mind or maybe lucky, I committed myself to my girls. It was worth it.

Kudos to the FAPA group, for contributing more to the community. The Camp will be there to support your every endeavor.

Peace

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

Follow Up to the Follow Up

A follow up to the follow up by Mr. Grouch and a follow up to the original post by Mr. Fish. I haven't been playing lately, but I'm surprised you guys never once mentioned the word 'Position'. :D Sometimes, bad hands can be masked just by being on the button. You can sometimes get away with K9's if you bet good and know who's in the pot. Maybe the guy with the Kournikovas will think you landed a set or two pair if you reraise him. Position will always dictate how you play, so aside from choosing the PREMIUM hands, play your position and your opponent. I'd like to relate this to Chess and the Camp's new found online game, www.TacticsArena.com. I strongly recommend this brain-teasin' game!

=-=-=-=-=

I'm wondering what the M.O. in playing in a cash game with a dealer. Any thoughts out there on how much to tip the dealer, or if you even have to? I think this is a pretty good topic to talk about.

The War

I was suppose to write this as a comment to the post of my boi Fish regarding poker hands, but as I was writing it, it felt like I had to write a follow up post to that one.

I agree with my boi fish here. a couple of months ago, i would never fold my AKs no matter what. but as i play more, saw more hands, played with various playas, i learned to let it go. good hole cards bad flop. gotta accept that fact.

it's always a battle out there. you go on the offensive when you have those cards pre-flop, bombs away ladies and gents, nothing wrong with that, in fact, that's what you must do. But you also need to know when to give up that battle to eventually win the war. A pair of duece will destroy your Kournikovas.

Offense is the best defense, and defense is also the best offense, just got to learn what to use on a particular situation. Checking, betting, raising, and re-raising are part of the arsenal of any poker player, once you can add 'fold' to arsenal, you'll be a much more competitive, deadly, and profitable player. It's not about the battle, it's the war that you want to win. How long will the war be? It depends how long you wanna play poker.

For me, I don't think i'll be stopping anytime soon, so my 'war' will go on until the day I die. Pick the battles you can win, captitalize, destroy, and move on. Be ready to fire your guns, but always bring your flag just in case it's time to surrender.

Grouch's note: To the players who play cash games, remeber, you don't have to go all in coz you have to go, you can always cash out. it's not a tourney you know:)

grouch

Poker Hands

Poker hands are like relationships. You need to know what kind of relationship you have with one person, whether he/she is a lover, friend, enemy, colleage or fubu. There are hands that may look like potential friends to you and there are some that may look shady and you know you can't trust them. There are some hands look real damn good, you can easily fall in love with but the thing is you are risking far more than what you expect. Like what Uncle Nick said...It's just like a relationship, when you have a relationship, you are risking something of value or maybe even gambling. It is your choice to speculate and somewhat know what you are risking and what is capable of happening when you commit.

Let me cite an example, you peel your hole cards and see pocket KQs. In late position, when nobody has opened, you raise. You find yourself getting re-raised the minimum, you call. Flop comes out K-8-2 rainbow. It is checked to you, you bet and get called. Damnit, you think you're ahead so why do these guys call you? Anyway turn comes K, early position player bets half the pot, the other folds, its up to you. What do you do? call? raise all-in? lets say you raise all-in. He calls. You feel confident and show KQs, the mofo shows you AKo. Damn you're screwed.

That KQ bit you in the ass, burned your roll, stabbed you at the back. Why? Because it can easily be dominated by a nasty big slick. Let's say you have K8s or Q10s, what are you going to do when you're up against AKo and AQo? Nothing. Calling that raise was a dead end, unless you were thinking, 'maybe i'd get lucky and flop two pair or a boat'. Well, too bad because those hands just stabbed you at the back.

Another example, see yourself at early position holding AKs. You raise 100, there's two callers. Flop comes, 2-3-5 with one suit same as your AK. What do you do? Bet! and see that they both call you. Next card comes J, you check, other guy checks it to the button. Button bets, you call. River comes out, BLANK! You're beat brotha, that AKs just got robbed you of your chips and gave it to somebody with J9 off.

Lesson here is you shouldn't be attached to your AKs or AQs, I don't need to tell you that you should even call a raise with your K10/9/8/7. It's just me, I don't want to go in a hand dominated, that's my two cents. Once again, it's like having relationships, don't get to attached or you'll get burn in the end.

Monday, August 29, 2005

and they say it's impossible

i'll just keep this one short, remember my previous post regarding the quad ace that I had? well, I got another quads earlier, quad 6. Can someone bitchslap me so I can wake up from this dream?

it was a 5 handed game, was playing uber aggressive, then my favorite hand came, the BOMBAY ULTRA SPECIAL DELUXE. I raised with pre-flop had two callers, can't remeber what happened but the flop ahd two 6s, then the turn card was the other 6. yahoo


heaven.....

grouch

Poker Is Life

It's Monday again folks, and you know what that means.

No, you don't. It was supposed to be a Monday night at Penalosa or at the regular spot, but I went to a friend's birthday lunch, brought out a deck and played, just for kicks. I had a couple of brews, well it wasn't a couple. After happy hour was done, I was in no condition to play cards.

As for you guys that don't know, I played poker the entire week last week. Months back, I remember telling myself I play too much (around 3 times a week) that was then guys. Now I'm putting in hours at the table, freakin' grindin', but hey I love the game and I'm happy with what I'm doing now. I meet new people at the table, learning more about the game, making good friends, and you're doing this while taking other peoples chips! how awesome is that?

Playin' long hours of poker does take a tole on your system. I do get tired - mentally and physically drained. Plus, add the smoke and the alcohol. Damn... When bad cards fall, you just can't do shit against calling stations and loose gambOOlers. That's how the game works, gotta learn to accept it cause shit does happen. Don't forget the bad beats and river beats, that shit really hurts.

No worries, cause i know, it's all about the long term boys and girls. I may sound like a broken record but it's a fact and it beats any cosmic law in the universe. That's the light at the end of the tunnel as they say or the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow or whatever. As long as I'm knowledgable enough and sober, I know I can get chips.

Poker is a lot like life, it's a game you need to beat. But the truth is, it can't be beat. All you can do is make the right (profitable) decisions at the right time. Capitalize. Use the friggin' EDGE, as Nick would say. Live with the EDGE, use it to win. It also has ups and downs, you gotta know why you're up and stay that way but when the tide comes you got to know when to settle down and control yourself.

Lastly, discipline and control in hand selection. It's like looking at different cars, you have to know which is the best in utility, durability and performance. A premium hand is what you want, cut the marginal crap and go with the premium stuff. Also, Patience. Patience is a virtue, and it's goddamn hard to keep cool and wait while you have a freakin' short stack right in front of you. Wait and you will be rewarded, that's what I believe.

That's it for today.

Sunday, August 28, 2005

can you smell it?

can you smell it? it's cooking alright, our local poker scene is getting bigger and bigger. thank god i'm always in that state of mind. it's the only time where i feel alive and dead at the same time. that's how good it is, picture perfect.

we should conitinue playing, trying to elevate our games to the next level. heard of the word globalization? the creation of the PAPF is the thing that we need to achieve whatever it is we want to achieve.

shuffle up and deal boys and girls, it will be a wild ride from here!


that's it for now...

grouch

Euphoria

My buddy Nino and I wrote this for a class once, just wanted to post this coz I know a lot of people can relate to this, especially pokuh addicts who can't wait to deal the cards and play.

Euphoria
OJ vs. GT
Creativo Escritura

The thrill of the night keeps me alive
Churning waves pound my heart
The wisps of euphoria creep as I drive

Into the ocean of tranquility I dive
Each reverberation pierces like a dart
The thrill of the night keeps me alive

A change in tempo boosts my jive
Sound and spirit never to part
The wisps of euphoria creep as I drive

I yearn for visions of ecstasy to arrive
Music transforms to abstract art
The thrill of the night keeps me alive

Dark fantasies vivid and live
The scent of summer night sweet as tart
The wisps of euphoria creep as I drive

Slowly reaching the ultimate vibe
The state of nirvana about to start
The thrill of the night keeps me alive
The wisps of euphoria creep as I drive

Saturday, August 27, 2005

Duty Bet

The Duty Bet is an important strategy when playing SNG's and MTT's. Simply, a duty bet is calling your shortstacked opponents pre-flop all-in or turn/river all-in. It is your duty to call the bet since you can have the opportunity to knock one or two players out of the tournament. Thus, making your stack bigger by eliminating the short stacks and closely reaching to that number one spot.

These are the general rules of Duty Betting.

Rule 1 - If you have an ace, call the duty bet.

Rule 2 - When a UTG short stack goes all-in, everybody folds to you the Big Blind, what do you do? call it, because it's a duty bet.

Rule 3 - Do the duty bet if you think you have a good hand and when you think what you have is going to come out on the board.

Rule 4 - When you want the short stack out.

Rule 5 - Follow rule number 1.

I'm hoping to see duty bets at the tables tonight!

Fish-out!

I Had a Lucid Dream Last Night

I was there shuffling looking down at my short stack. I look at my hole cards and see A8 off, the dead man's hand, I call the re-raise. I wasn't playing my game at all, making stupid calls, playing marginal hands, giving people loose passive action. My bad moves cost me a whole lot of money, I was left only with one chip. 'A chip and a chair they say...' I slowly move my one chip on to the felt. I knew I was dead at that time, sharks at the table were smelling blood a mile a away. They were going to call me with no hesitation, but then everything stopped, everyone at the table froze. Then a blinding white light flashed, I was there again looking down at my short stack, I look at my hole and see A8 off, 'deja vu'. I look at my chips, thinking of calling but I stopped for a while and closed my eyes. It took me a few seconds to clear my head, then I was there... I was at a clearer state of mind. I fold.

I end up going home with 10k.

Reach that state of mind.

Friday, August 26, 2005

Highroller

I finally got to watch Highroller, The Stu Ungar Story. (thanks to Jardine for lending me the dvd.)

A lil info on Stuey,
Stu Ungar is a card playing prodigy. He started playing cards at a young age, gin rummy was his game. In fact, he mastered it and a couple of other card games, including poker. He had the skill, experience and gift. That's why he's the world champ three times. The story revolved around his superstar/rockstar lifestyle - sex, drugs, alcohol, gambling. He wanted the action, betting big on horse races, sports live odds even on the fairway. He was a heavy drinker&smoker, which lead to his coke addiction. He was crazy, people might think he's a loser but he was a genius at the table. His life was all about action, but he didn't care about the fame or the money. What a guy...

If I was Stuey, I'd stick to poker...

And for you folks out there who want action, you know where it's at.

Peace.

Fish-OUT!!!

Waiting for my rocket to come, well, it did

Played the JG last Saturday at the BBC, it was a 12 player tourney with the regular JG crew. I was kinda nervous coz at that moment, I didn't trust my tourney play. Well, there was no cash game at that time so I decided to play.

And to my surprise, I played that tournament pretty good. Final table included Nick, Che, Jaz, Jardine, Gail, and Miguel. There was two hands that made that night spectacular.

Che raised from early position, everone folds to me, took a look at my starting hand, wow... pocket aces. Put a lil' acting to it, then I went all in, che quckly calls. She shows pocket9s and was pretty devastated to see my AA.

Was praying really hard thay my baby rockets would stand up and give me victory, was shouting no 9s!

Pitboss floppped with suspense, the first card we saw was a 3, then he slided the cards to reveal the flop...... ACE ACE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I GOT A QUAD!!!!! AND NOT JUST ANY QUAD, QUAD ACES!!!!!!!!

Wow, it felt really good!!!! Then the final showdown against nick. It was played with mind bullets I tell you! We saw the flop twice, and the final hand went something like this.

I had 10c6h big blind, he called, I gladly checked.....Really cant remember the board, but I had flush with my 6 of hearts, he went all in I called. He showed me a 4 of hearts, I won the tournament.

Yehey for me! Yehey for nick! Yehey to the JG people!

Many thanks again to the JG poker tour for helping promote the local poker scene by guesting on rx93.1 and promoting our blog and the pokerfilipinas blog as well. To our new readers, please fell free to leave a comment or something to get in touch with us, and we'll hook you up with the best games in town.

out for now

grouch

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

How Mikee got his groove back

Been thinking about my game lately, last week wasn't a good week for me and Fish. My roll took a nasty beating, but i decided this will not stop me from playing and tyring to improve my game. Attended the 'meet the neighbors' party we had, tyring to figure out who shut me down form hosting the Camp's weekly games. Then I finally made up my mind, I have to play. Drove down to the coolest place in town, the Baltimora Boys Club (that sounded gay, but you guys know what I'm talking about). To my surprise, there was only a Limit table open, said to myself, what the hell, poker is poker.

Sat down, got my chips, started to roll with the big guns Then finally got what I was waiting for, my premium hand, cowboys.

I raised, everyone folds, Big Wally calls.

Flop: AA2

He bets, I raise, he re-raise, I re-re-raise, he calls

Turn: 7

He bets, I raise, he re-raise, I re-re-raise, he calls

River: King

He bets, I call.

Wally: Anu merun ka?
Grouch: Full house...
Wally: Full house ba?

I was thinking, I'm definitely screwed.... He shows me an ace..... and a freaking 2!!!

Was down, 1500 at that point so I decided to play the No limt game. Bought in another 500, my last 500. First hand I got was 77, naturaly, I raise. Skip calls.

Flop: 89Jos

I bet 100, he raises me another 200, I went all in.

Skip: KK

river was a 10.

doubled up pretty good, then Big Wally sat down to my right. Uh-oh, he's here to beat me again. He was beating everyone at the table. Damn he played wiht my mind big time. Then the miracle hand arrived.

I got A5os, Big wally was dealer and raised 50, everyone folded. I was sb, I called.

Flop: 2h, 4h, 3c

I flopped the straight! I checked, he bets 50, I raised him another 50, he calls

Turn: Ah

Was saying to myself, 'god, he's gonna fuck me again with a flush!' I got nervous so I checked. He bets 280 and said

Big Wally: If you raise me, I'll go all in. Alam ko may ace ka...

I lit up a cigarette, thought about it and said

Grouch: Sige, Big Wally, all in
Big Wally: call
Grouch: wala Big Wally, straight lang

He shows me Kh and another black card, he was still drawing for a flush. River was a 2d. whew...

had around 880 in chips, he doubled me up, and it felt good.

Just had to share those two wonderful hands. Gave me back some of my dignity. was up a lil bit that night, and it felt good. played the jg game last night and finished 2nd. regaining some of the lost confidence, slowly rebuilding my game. no way but up baby.

grouch

Saturday, August 20, 2005

The Friday 500

Friday night, 21 players, 2 tables NL SNG yo!
A very tight aggressive field, the game lasted for 5 hours.

Taaaaaaangeeeeeenaaaa Goma a.k.a. Podium Boy/Cold Face Killer took it down and won vs Joey Bleach. GG to both guys, Joey Bleach was one of the short stacks at the final table, good job to make it heads-up.

Hopefully this becomes a weekly event, looking forward to the next BBC 500 (has a nice ring to it eh?)


FISH-OUT!!!

Have a KitKat

I've been playing for 2 weeks now at my regular joint and things aren't looking so good. Let me break it down...

First coupla days, I had to adjust my play to ring games. Obviously folks, ring game play is quite different from tourney play. Patience is the key, wait for a big monster and raise the mofo. I was playing 6-7 hours in the ring. I surprised myself because, I can't stay that long if it were a SNG, I would be losing my cool after 4 hours.

The next ring game sessions, I was unfortunate to have a loose low-limit no fold'em game. UTG would raise 50, and you have 6 callers. WTF yo!? The solution to this was reading about Izmet Fekali's strategy towards LLNFE games. It will work for sure, but it didn't work for me that night because it will take a lot of time for it to work, again it's the long run.

I haven't seen so many straight draws and flush draws that night. Wally brought his vaccuum with him and started stacking greens on the racetrack, damn boy. Everytime you'd raise him, he would draw out on ya, 8 out of 10 times he's going to get the gutshot on the turn or river. Luck? ...I don't wanna b*tch about it anymore. btw, Wally is a limit player.

Oh yeah, I'm also drinking while playing which makes it really hard for me to control and be patient. Sometimes you reraise me, and the beer would call you with A8os. Damn that stupid.

Guys, sorry to sound bitter about the ring games. It's just that, I wanted to enter the ring game scene because of the idea that it's going to be hardcore serious poker, no fluffy tv tourney bonanza right? Well, it's just the start, its just been two weeks, I'm looking forward to the future of the rings here, I know that some of the players now experience these kinds of things but they are steps ahead of the game and they will be deadly at the table but for now, I guess Nemo's going to have more good times on the felt.

After burning mah ninoys, I finally decided to take a break from playing. A week or two would be good. Like buddy Ace said, when you lose, take a break and regroup.

I'll see you guys when I see ya, later.

ooooooohhhhhhhhhhhhhh

I've been really tryin , baby
Tryin to hold back these feelings for so long
And if you feel, like I feel baby
Come on, oh come on,

Let's get it on

We're all sensitive people
With so much love to give, understand me sugar
Since we got to be
Lets say, I love you

There's nothin wrong with me
Lovin you
And givin yourself to me can never be wrong
If the love is true

Don't you know how sweet and wonderful, life can be
I'm askin you baby, to get it on with me
I aint gonna worry, I aint gonna push
So come on, come on, come on, come on baby
Stop beatin round the bush....

Let's get it on


whaaat!?!?!?!?!!!?!?! this is how much i love poker.... kinda asking the good ol' game to be nice to me once more. got show it some lovin' know what i'm saying?

pocket queens were very good to me last night during the BBC Friday500. I got it 4 times, won with it 3 times, lost with it big time with my trio queens vs the flush of brian. dang! nonethelss, pretty solid game for me. i'm happy to regain back some of my confidence after the beating i took this week.

no way but up baby

lets get it on

blogging people's asses since 2005...

grouch

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Bluff of the Month

Skip raises 100, early pos. Goma calls, I call with QJo, everyone folds.

Flop comes out J-J-10, two hearts. Skip bets 100, Goma raises to 400, I call.

Turn comes out blank, Skip bets Goma raises again. Now I'm shakin', I look down at my QJo and fear of what Goma has AJ's were the first thing that came to mind. I think about it, I fold.

River comes an As, now I give a sigh of relief, I sense a monster coming out. Skip checks, Goma Raises All-in. Skip folds.

Skip shows KK
Goma shows K6s (hearts)

Never felt so dumb in my life.

But nice play, awesome bluff Goma. Bluffed me good. That's why you've got this month's Bluff of the Month Award hehe.


Fish-OUT!!!

It's the Long Run

Played last night at my regular place, 10 playah ring action. I was ready, coming off from a good tourney game, bubbled at monday's game, it was time to do good in my ring games (spreadsheets say I suck at ring games)

First hours in, the tone at the table was tight aggressive, with two loose players - my buddies. It was obvious they both had the stacks. Draws, straights, two pairs, or just plain lucky. Not to sound bitter or anything but luck indeed is in the game.

I was fine with buying in again. All it needs is a couple more hours of table time but it didn't happen. I was playing good but it started to blur when I got bluffed off a big ass pot then getting beat by draws. The oh so tight table, became extremely loose, players would call the UTG's 150 raise, you'll see 7 handed action with that raise. Damn. Obviously, it wasn't my night.

Let me quote the "Professor", "I also want you to be PATIENT...stick with the strategies and realize that you're not going to win every night... it's the long run."

Words of wisdom when you are lost at the table. This is true and I will stick wit it, cause pokah is no overnight thing fellaz!!!

Fish-OUT!!!

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

Monday Night at Penalosa

Alabang game 1200 buy with proggressive pot. 11 handed SNG action.

First hand, I had KQo at late position, JR calls my 3x BB raise. Flop comes out.
K-Q-blank. He check I bet pot-size, he calls. River comes 10, he bets minimum amt, I raise to double his bet, he calls. River comes out 9, he goes all in, I fold and show him my KQ, he shows me J4s.

Third hand, I get pocket 6s, Mike raises to 100, I call. Flop paired, Mike checks, I check. Turn came J, Mike bets, I raise. River, checked it down. He shows me J10o.

I was short 15 mins in. UTG, I see pocket As. I just call, Joey's min raise, Kermit, reraises. I reraise all-in he calls, Joey folds. AA vs 99. I win back my starting amt of chips.

Well, I bubbled out 4th. My A8o got ran over by AKo. That's the night, I was hoping to notch a win at the Penalosa. Well, back to the BBC tom, no regrets tonight. Hope the Grouch gets his groove back. GG to all you guys.

BBC Peace!

FISH-OUT!!!

Sunday, August 14, 2005

Skyland Tourney Highlights

Two great tourneys brought to you by the A55 & TPCM group. Good job, you guys! The tournies nowadays get bigger and better - All-you-can-eat buffet, drinks, music and Holy Kettle Corn popcorn.

I made it to the final table with 5k in chips, Goma also made it with 5k in chips, Jun "Iron Man" Uy was also there. The final table last night was an example of TV poker, the play was either All-in or Fold. blinds started at 400-800 and lasted until 4000-8000, if i remember correctly.

Amazing hands were shown at the final table and one of them was a three way all-in by goma, chris and myself. Chris shows AKs, Goma shows Pocket Qs, I show.... Pocket Qs.
Next highlight reel hand was when I was forced all-in by the big blind, JR goes all-in, I peel at my cards, Pocket As, I call. Showdown went AA vs AQs. I'm still in.

I forgot about the last hand I played so I cannot post it yet, I told my dad about it and he said it was wrong I shouldn't have moved in with a flush draw. I though, it was a good gamble to take chips lead and use play to win.

I'm glad that I made it that far (3rd), so did Goma (4th). Congratulations to the "Iron Man", dammit I should've stopped you when I had the chance...until the next tourney! Next week its back to the BBC again. I will post my last hand soon as I remember what happened. hehe

That popcorn was kick ass...

Fish-OUT!!!

You are what you think

Alright, it's now official, I'm the only gay eskimo in my camp.

I knew it, I shoudn't be seeing that damn song. ( for those of you who wanna know, try downloading Tenacious D - I'm the only gay eskimo in your favorite file sharing software)

I busted out first! My tournament play sucks right now, tried to regain my self-worth playing the cash game, guess what, I busted my whole roll. Not a good night for the grouch. definitely not a good night.

Well, my boys kicked ass last night! Fish got the rockets at the moment he needed it the most! Goma had a strong showing, being a part of the final table at the tourney and finishing 4th last night. I promised my self I wouldn't cry.....

It's bound to happen when you go pseudo pro poker player. I'm actually happy that I busted my roll when it was still kinda small. I won't be happy if I bust a 40k roll, know what I'm saying?

blogging my ass right now coz i suck last night...

grouch

Saturday, August 13, 2005

something to keep you guys happy

im the only gay eskimo
im the only one i know
im the only gay eskimo in my tribe

i go out seal hunting with my best friend tarka
but all i wanna do is get into his parka
im the only gay eskimo in my tribe

well me and NUCK fluck chuck buck we both like blubber
but me i got this crazy fetish for rubber
im the only gay eskimo in my tribe

i make the wish on the northern lights
that i could find a decent pair of whale skin tights
im the only gay eskimo in my tribe

and the seals the sing now(seal noises)

these cold winter nights are taking their toll
i even get excited when i see the north pole
see the north pole

im the only gay eskimo
only gay eskimo
im the only one i know
im the only one i know
im the only gay eskimo
in my tribe

Super Siize!

I can't even imagine our local poker scene right now. Wow, wow, and another wow! The game we love playing just keeps getting bigger and bigger.

There's a big tourney every single week, tons of home games being set up in every baranggay possible, plus the fact that most of the players are now appreciating the cash games. The latter is a real factor for me to increase the popularity of the game in our town.

Poker is poker, that's the way I see it. I'll play a tournament or a cash game with the same approach because I like playing poker. I can understand why tournament stlye is more popular here, it'sw because of the tv exposure it got. Let's face it, most of us learned about the game by watching the WPT events being aired by Sports Plus. People started trying to do a 'Gus Hansen' with their home games, tyring to do some crazy plays and the whole shebang, I enjoy doing this especially when playing for fun with friends. Unfortunately, the ol' cash game got a bad image for some unkown reason. Myabe because most of us viewed it as gambling and not playing the game anymore.

At first I shared the same view, but as I kept on playing, slowly realizing that poker is indeed a skill game. So I give it a shot, and guess what, it's exactly the same. At the end of the day, the better player will end up with most of the chips, the guys who has tremendous amount of self control will come out on top, and the fu@#*&$ gambler will lose all his money.

Yeah, to some extent it is gambling, but so are house games. Right now, our town has house games with buy ins ranging from 100 - 2000 pseos, you can spend that much money on cash games, have the chance to play as long or as short, and lose or win more as a house game. My point is, it's the same guys. If you dont' like playing cash games, it alright, i just hope no one bad mouths the cash games, coz it's still poker.

If your approach to poker is sound and good, you'll be ok i guarantee it. However, if your approach to poker is similar to your apporach to lotto or any other chance game, you'll lose your money.

Please feel free to leave a comment or suggestion.

Blogging people's asses since 2005...

the grouch

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

The Milestone

For some, it was a dream or even a wet dream. :D

The feeling is like a kid seeing Disneyland for the first time.

Let us all contribute to the community by helping each other be where we ought to be.

Hats off to the guys that made it all possible.



[Mike's McDERMOTT's girlfriend has just left him over his broken promise not to play poker]

Worm: You know what always cheers me up?
Mike McDermott: No, what's that?
Worm: Rolled up aces over kings. Check-raising stupid tourists and taking huge pots off of them. Playing all-night high-limit Hold'em at the Taj, "where the sand turns to gold." Stacks and towers of checks I can't even see over.
Mike McDermott: Fuck it, let's go.
Worm: Don't tease me.
Mike McDermott:
Let's play some cards.
Worm: Yes!


Fish it, let's go.

Sunday, August 07, 2005

Which Type of Villain Are You?!

http://www.liquidgeneration.com/quiz/villain_quiz.asp

Thursday, August 04, 2005

Back in Business

Played tonight down the street at Chin's house, a JG official game.

2 table tourney of 12 players, I'm back in the groove again, played a good game. Hopefully, I can continue this all week. Grouch has his share of wins as well, I'm right behind you buddy boy.

After the conversation I had with Eggs Ben, I started thinking about quality over quantity and vice versa. He tells me, I should go quality, meaning play less with higher buys rolling with the big guys. I tell him, I prefer quantity, play more lower buys (100-300) depending on my bankroll. He pointed out to me, my winnings considering the tong that I give I should be up now but since I lost big last week my roll got hit so I better take note of my wins and losses. Now, I'm using the cardplayer Poker Analyst to keep track of the games I play and at the end of a month or two, we'll see if my choice of quantity games would show good results.

Fish-OUT!!!

Monday, August 01, 2005

Quality Over Quantity?

Here we are, our dreams being fulfilled by countless games sprouting left and right. It's hard to resist to play everyday and sniff out the fishies. We all know we have to have a bankroll and play only the games that your roll can handle. But with the amount of games one can play, playing one huge game a week that will hurt your bankroll is almost the same as playing five small games. How is this so? Just play the percentage game, as well as consider getting burnt out. If you play one big game a week, you won't need to play as much, but the payoff or the losses would be the same. Or course, there is no subsitute for experience, but if you've played over a thousand hands already, it wouldn't make that big a difference, especially if your small games are against fishies. My advice to the crew: choose your games well. Playing fishies is just as tough as playing pros, maybe tougher. Fishies with huge bankrolls are very dangerous. Just keep that in mind bros.

Look at Tiger Woods. He plays the minimum number of tournaments each season, but his winning percentage is unfathomable. He picks his spots well, and when he decides to play, he goes out with guns blazin'. Over-exposure and getting burnt out is always a danger, especially in mental games like golf and poker.

A friendly reminder from Eggs Ben, formerly known as The Chairman, formerly known as Tipsy Tilter. :D