VIRTUAL POKERROOM

I'm having no trouble getting to the top 20% of finalists in my recent tournaments, but the problem is that only the top 10% get paid. I am showing better consistancy overall, and I expect to be in there fighting for a spot even if the cards come cold for long stretches. I'm improving my game overall at a small cost, which is generally reimbursed whenever I manage a high finish. It is frustrating to make no real profits during the short term, but if all the hours of grinding leads to one $150,000 payout each year or two, then I can't say it wasn't al worth it.

Friday night, I stayed up way too late playing poker and watching TV. I didn't want to get into a new tournament at midnight, so I checked out the new heads-up tables at PokerRoom. I was worried that I wouldn't find any takers if I opened a table, because people see my name so much at that site they might be intimidated. Then I thought, why not, maybe it will work in my favor if some giant-killer contests me. Ever since reading Harrington V2, I am a heads-up machine. I can usually chip away at the other guy's stack and then get him to commit to an inferior hand. Every now and again, I run into a really good player, but I'm generally no worse than 50/50 in those matchups.

I got a taker for a $50 match, and I found this guy to be no match. I dispatched him with minimal effort, then I sat at another $50 table. This guy was much tougher. He was being aggressive and also getting better cards, which is a death sentence to me. My stack was getting whittled away. Starting with $1500, I was down under $1000, holding K8 when the flop came three diamonds. My king was a diamond, so I made a stab at the pot. He countered all in. I could have folded and had $800 or so, but I decided to gamble, so I called on the draw. I knew I had to hit a diamond which was a 3:1 shot, assuming he didn't hold the ace of diamonds. Hitting a king would probably be enough as well. Sure enough, he had top pair, no diamond. He was correct to go all in, and he did not expect the venerable dudeseeg to call on a draw. But as I said, the way the match was going, I thought this play was justified. If I missed, then I'm out instantly rather than eventually, but if I hit, the match is mine. I hit the diamond, which upset him greatly. He cursed a little and was beat a few minutes later. I realize I got lucky, but it wasn't blind luck - I was able to put myself into a position for luck to help. Up to that point, I felt I didn't have much of a shot at winning, but one friendly turn all but ensured victory. That's poker baby.

With my $100 profit, I played a $100 heads-up match, and won that too. I was three-for-three and playing well, and not yet sleepy, so I sat down at a $200 single table, which was my first time, as I usually play $50 and occasionally $100. Anything over $50 starts you off with $2500 rather than the usual $1500, so luck plays less of a factor as good play. The top three spots pay $1000/$600/$400 and fourth place gets nothing. I played great and got some chips early. The player to my left knocked two guys out at once with his AA, which gave him a monster stack in the middle stages. I really had to tighted up, since I always had to act just before the juggernaut. Luckily, I had built enough of a stack early that I could afford to tighten up and let some other players hit the rail while I waited for a monster.

Ultimately, it got down to four-handed and my stack was shrinking fast. I really wanted to make the money, so I was determined not to gamble and play for third place, then see what happens. The juggernaut let me steal his big blind a few times rather than risk doubling me up, which put some pressure on the other short stack to find some chips of his own. Finally, the other short stack got involved in a battle he did not win, and I snuck into the money. Now, I could get aggressive and see if I could get back into this race. I was fortunate enough to hit some flops while on the attack and I was getting some good footing. I knocked out the third guy when I hit a set, and now I was heads up against the juggernaut. He was still playing very conservatively, protecting his stack, and I came after him. I actually got to a point where I was ahead in chips, and I was sure I was going to close it soon. Death came when we got all our money in with me leading A9 to A8 and he hit four hearts to make a flush. So close - but still 2nd place and $600. It's not like real money, it's more like getting a ton of tokens which will enable me to play at the arcade longer.

Last night I was doing well in the $50 8PM event. I doubled up with AK v QQ but with 45 players remaining and 30 paid, I decided to attempt another double up with 88 v AK and this time I lost. The guy had raised from first position, and I reraised since the odds suggested he had AK or AQ. If I had called, I could have gotten off the hand when the king flopped, but I've been calling off too many chips lately with middle pairs that don't flop. I wanted to give myself a chance to win before the flop. I tripled his bet, wanting to give him a chance to get off of AQ or JJ/TT/99. He countered all in, which basically told me he had AK. I didn't figure he had aces or kings, because he likely would have limped with those hands. I figured he had AK, AQ, or a slightly higher pair. When he came back all in, I was sure he had AK, and now the only question was do I gamble with him? I had the better hand, so my response was yes. We were roughly even in chips, so I was looking at a 53% chance at a double up, which would have enabled me to coast to the final table. I think I've got to make that play. If he hits, I'm out, but if he misses, I've given myself a solid shot at making some real money. I missed this time, but I'm not kicking myself too much.