I started playing poker in 9-handed games. I had underwent a coaching program for it. Then after a year or two, started playing 6-handed games. Then eventually, I started to play the form of the game that I thought I was weakest at -- heads up.
A lot has happened since then. Stopped playing poker for more than a year. Tried some other things. This year, I started to play poker again. When I got back to playing, I started playing 9-handed games again. Around this time, I thought I had come full circle in poker. From 9-handed to 6 max to heads up and now back to playing full ring. I thought, wow! This is something. I never thought I'd be back playing a boring game of a full handed table.
It wasn't full circle, yet.
I played a Tournament Leaderboard Series last month, this is something I haven't done in years. During this series, I reignited my love for tournaments. Poker tournaments is the form of poker that I was first exposed to. Watching the "imported" World Poker Tour (WPT) on TV up to the local version that was the Filipino Poker Tour (FPT). I dreamed of playing in both. I dreamed of doing that interview for TV. I even got to live 1/2 of those dreams. I got the chance to play for a TV table for the FPT. Unfortunately, for some reason, that season of the FPT didn't make it the TV.
After that TLB series, I started playing tournaments again. It was here when I realized I have come full circle. It was in tournaments where I started my career in poker. From playing a 50-peso winner-take-all tournament with friends to scoring my biggest career winning this year. From playing 9-handed online tournaments to live cash games. From full ring to six mas to heads up and then back again. From tourneys to cash games and now back to tourneys.
It feels good to know how far I've come. I am not done yet though. The goal for the year is to take down my first major live tournament!
Monday, August 31, 2015
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Road to PLO
This week, I decided to play purely PLO. And for the first time I took learning it seriously.
PLO or Pot Limit Omaha is a fun game where the swings are sick and variance is twice as fun than No Limit Hold Em. For PLO basics click here.
For a more detailed post about my PLO quest and discussions about it, I started a thread here in PokerManila and here in Asia Poker Academy.
PLO or Pot Limit Omaha is a fun game where the swings are sick and variance is twice as fun than No Limit Hold Em. For PLO basics click here.
For a more detailed post about my PLO quest and discussions about it, I started a thread here in PokerManila and here in Asia Poker Academy.
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Biggest Buy-in Tourney To Date
Last Hand:
CO: 9,203.00
BTN: 2,085.00
SB: 3,577.00
Hero (BB): 4,392.00
UTG: 5,182.00
UTG+1: 12,029.00
MP: 3,324.00
MP+1: 5,515.00
CO posts ante 20.00, BTN posts ante 20.00, SB posts ante 20.00, Hero posts ante 20.00, UTG posts ante 20.00, UTG+1 posts ante 20.00, MP posts ante 20.00, MP+1 posts ante 20.00, SB posts SB 75.00, Hero posts BB 150.00
Pre Flop: (385.00) Hero has 5c 5s
fold, UTG+1 raises to 300.00, fold, fold, fold, fold, SB calls 225.00, Hero calls 150.00
Flop: (1060.00, 3 players) 4h 9s 5h
SB bets 300.00, Hero raises to 1,200.00, UTG+1 raises to 11,709.00 and is all-in, fold, Hero calls 2,872.00 and is all-in
Turn: (9504.00, 2 players) Kh
River: (9504.00, 2 players) 2h
Hero shows 5c 5s (Three of a Kind, Fives) (Pre 51%, Flop 74%, Turn 23%)
UTG+1 shows Ah Qh (Flush, Ace High) (Pre 49%, Flop 26%, Turn 77%)
UTG+1 wins 9,504.00
Thursday, September 6, 2012
HU SNGs
Today I will officially start grind the Hyper Heads-up Sit-N-Go at Poker Stars under the tutelage of OPIUMWAR7. I hope this turns out well and improve my overall game in the process.
Heads-up and Sit-N-Go's are two of the weakest parts of my game. Good luck to me.
Heads-up and Sit-N-Go's are two of the weakest parts of my game. Good luck to me.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Every Hand Revealed (sort of, LOL)
Here's my shot at Gus Hansen's book. :) An overview of my MIDT 2012 run.
Day 1a: I don't know why but I like playing day1a. I was assigned at table 19, seat 2. Most of the players on my table were familiar faces. More than half of them were 25/50 regs at The Metro. For day 1, we will play 10 levels. 40 minutes each, starting stack of 15,000 with starting blinds of 25/50. My kind of game. :) 300BB FTW!
First pot: I am not sure how the action pre-flop went down but I saw a flop with 24s vs 2 players. post-flop action was weak and I got to take down the pot with a nicely sized river bet.
Second pot: Right after I won my first pot, I got dealt with KK. This time it was raised to 225 (I think) and there were three callers. I raised to 1625 total. Everybody else folds except for the last player who called the 225 raise. He calls my 3bet and gives up on the flop.
After that hand the mood on my table was like this: 4x BB pre-flop raises with 2-3 callers.
I took down a couple of small pots then a couple of hands later I got dealt with AKo. An early position player raises to 225, 3 callers. I squeezed to 1525, all of them calls. Flop came QQJ or QJJ, took down the pot with a Cbet. From a starting stack of 15k, I was up to 29k. Almost doubling up my stack without showdowns. :)
Folded a couple of hands then I got dealt JJ. Mike Takayama raises at EP to around 3x BB. One player calls, I call at middle position, two other players come along. Flop comes J66, fullhouse on the flop. Mike didn't Cbet, player next to him checks, I check behind, player next to me stabs for 1500, Everbody else folds. Turn was a T. I check, villain checks behind. River was another T. I bet 2000 (yeah I should've checked again), villain folds. Boo. Break time and I now have around 32k, doubled-up without any showdowns.
I few hands after the break I was moved to a new table. This time, there was one player who I knew was going to give me a hard time: Mr. Michael Manlapaz. I played against him a couple of times in Metro's major tourneys. He was playing very loosely and I can tell he recently read Making The Final Table by Erick Lindgren.
Spewed a little and was down to 25k, but I got it back up to 30k in no time.
First big mistake: I had 77 and raised 3.5x BB, Mike M. on the blinds calls. He was calling me light in any position. Flop was J8x with two hearts (forgot about the other card but it was lower than my 7s). I Cbet and he check-calls. turn was a T. He checks, I barrel again and he calls. Before he calls he announces to the table that if he calls my turn bet, he'd shove river. River was another 8. He checks, I thought for a sec and said to myself "wala nagbago sa board" so I bet again (for value). Mike tanks. Ask for my remaining chips and shoves. I fold. LOL. While he was about to muck his hand he was acting like he wants to show, I call out his hand and says "busted flush draw ka?" He shows and I am right! Mental lapse. I was betting river for value and folded to a shove. Terrible fold. I was back to 15k after this hand.
Grinded steadily and I was adding chips to my stack. I was going up and down from 20k-15k.
I got moved to a new table. I got dealt TT at EP and raised to 4x BB. Martin Corpuz on my left flats and we see a flop of ATx. I Cbet, he raises, I shove, he calls. I double up to 30k+.
KQo, from around 30k, I went down to 19k. Raised pre-flop and two-barreled with overcards and got called down with pocket 7.
I got moved (again) to a new table. From 19k, I was grinded down to 16k. Tournament director announces that it was break time. Yatz Javier on the CO raises my big blind. I pretend to look down at my cards and shove. :) He tanks for the longest time. Break was 10 mins, 3 mins into breaktime he was still tanking. Then I opened my mouth. I said "magbreak na tayo Yatz." Yatz snapcalls. Haha! I show Q5o, he shows A9s. Flop Q5x. ;) I got lucky. Doubled up to 32k, and ended day1 with 33k.
Day 2: We were down to 120+ players and we're playing down to 40 players. Two hands into day 2, our table broke. I was moved to table 22 (I felt lucky). Folded my way to M=4. Then the hand that started it all!
QJs: UTG limps (I saw this player limp at early position with KTs) so I knew this was weak. Another player limps, also not the type to limp with a monster. SB completes. I was on the BB, I shove. Both limpers fold. SB tanks then finally declares call. He shows AKo. Board ran TT89x. I double up to M=9, SB got crippled.
JJ: Early position I raise to 3.5x BB. Player next to me calls. Everybody folds to a very tight player who shoves his short stack. I asked the dealer to count the chips and if he was able to min-raise me. He did, I shove. Player next to me tanks. He folds. Short stack player shows KK! Flop JACK! The rest is history. The player who folded says he had TT, flop was JTx. I thought should I have flatted? My problem with flatting is he might shove over me. And I will be put on the a difficult spot. I was definitely calling a shove if I flatted so I just went ahead and shoved and gave him the difficult decision. Went up to 64k with an M of 12.
From 64k went up to around 90k. Bled some chips, went back to 64k then got it back up to 80k and eventually crossed the 100k mark. I think this was the part where I was abusing the all-in button. :)
From 100k, went as high as 150k. I got grinded down 120k then the flip happened. Two players to ITM, it was blind vs blind. SB raises to 20k (I think). I look down and see KJo, I shove. He calls. He had 99 which held up. I was down to around 70k. Next hand after that, same players busts out with AKo vs KK. Haha!
Finished day 2 with 72900.
Day 3: Rollback! M=8.
I raped the all-in button. That's all I can say. from 72k, grinded it up to around 200k, without showdowns. Just well-timed shoves.
First showdown: I was on the BB, blinds 10k/20k with ante of 1k. Player on the middle position had around 160k, he looks at me, looks at my stack and declares all-in. Action was folded to me, I looked down and see an ace, I almost snapcalled with just looking at one card. Look at the other card and it was A3 soooooted! I call. Villain had QTo. I think I called this one because of my big mistake in day 1. What good is a read if you're not going to act on it?
Second showdown: KK < 88. I'm going to quote this one from my post in Poker Manila.
"may story yun why chris ramayrat called with 88. natilt sakin. and i knew na this time he was gonna call.
chris was on my right. di ako nagreresteal/play sa kanya. pag raise nya, wala ako. fold!
until i saw him limp with K6o blind vs blind... yung next time na naglimp sya blind vs blind, nagraise na ko i had QJo, he had A3 daw, fold sya. tpos medyo natilt na bakit ako nagraise QJ lang...
i told him na pag may hand sya, raise nya na kasi autofold ako... LOL
so he started raising... tpos nanotice ko he was raising light na... then first time i 3bet shoved him with 44. LOL. he tanks, and folds tpos he showed an ace. i didnt show, medyo lalong natilt. LOL.
sabi ko nxt na 3bet shove ko sa raise nito, cacall na. then THE hand happened. bubble time to final table he raises under the gun. i look down and see KK, i insta shove. he tanks for the longest time and then says "370k lng ako this cant survived the final table" sabi ko ayos cacall na. kumall nga.. he shows 88. window card 8, pag spread isa pang 8. naku po. hahahahahaha! i was left with 50k with blinds 15k/30k."
I was left with 50k with blinds of 15k/30k ante 3k. That's all she wrote. :)
Day 1a: I don't know why but I like playing day1a. I was assigned at table 19, seat 2. Most of the players on my table were familiar faces. More than half of them were 25/50 regs at The Metro. For day 1, we will play 10 levels. 40 minutes each, starting stack of 15,000 with starting blinds of 25/50. My kind of game. :) 300BB FTW!
First pot: I am not sure how the action pre-flop went down but I saw a flop with 24s vs 2 players. post-flop action was weak and I got to take down the pot with a nicely sized river bet.
Second pot: Right after I won my first pot, I got dealt with KK. This time it was raised to 225 (I think) and there were three callers. I raised to 1625 total. Everybody else folds except for the last player who called the 225 raise. He calls my 3bet and gives up on the flop.
After that hand the mood on my table was like this: 4x BB pre-flop raises with 2-3 callers.
I took down a couple of small pots then a couple of hands later I got dealt with AKo. An early position player raises to 225, 3 callers. I squeezed to 1525, all of them calls. Flop came QQJ or QJJ, took down the pot with a Cbet. From a starting stack of 15k, I was up to 29k. Almost doubling up my stack without showdowns. :)
Folded a couple of hands then I got dealt JJ. Mike Takayama raises at EP to around 3x BB. One player calls, I call at middle position, two other players come along. Flop comes J66, fullhouse on the flop. Mike didn't Cbet, player next to him checks, I check behind, player next to me stabs for 1500, Everbody else folds. Turn was a T. I check, villain checks behind. River was another T. I bet 2000 (yeah I should've checked again), villain folds. Boo. Break time and I now have around 32k, doubled-up without any showdowns.
I few hands after the break I was moved to a new table. This time, there was one player who I knew was going to give me a hard time: Mr. Michael Manlapaz. I played against him a couple of times in Metro's major tourneys. He was playing very loosely and I can tell he recently read Making The Final Table by Erick Lindgren.
Spewed a little and was down to 25k, but I got it back up to 30k in no time.
First big mistake: I had 77 and raised 3.5x BB, Mike M. on the blinds calls. He was calling me light in any position. Flop was J8x with two hearts (forgot about the other card but it was lower than my 7s). I Cbet and he check-calls. turn was a T. He checks, I barrel again and he calls. Before he calls he announces to the table that if he calls my turn bet, he'd shove river. River was another 8. He checks, I thought for a sec and said to myself "wala nagbago sa board" so I bet again (for value). Mike tanks. Ask for my remaining chips and shoves. I fold. LOL. While he was about to muck his hand he was acting like he wants to show, I call out his hand and says "busted flush draw ka?" He shows and I am right! Mental lapse. I was betting river for value and folded to a shove. Terrible fold. I was back to 15k after this hand.
Grinded steadily and I was adding chips to my stack. I was going up and down from 20k-15k.
I got moved to a new table. I got dealt TT at EP and raised to 4x BB. Martin Corpuz on my left flats and we see a flop of ATx. I Cbet, he raises, I shove, he calls. I double up to 30k+.
KQo, from around 30k, I went down to 19k. Raised pre-flop and two-barreled with overcards and got called down with pocket 7.
I got moved (again) to a new table. From 19k, I was grinded down to 16k. Tournament director announces that it was break time. Yatz Javier on the CO raises my big blind. I pretend to look down at my cards and shove. :) He tanks for the longest time. Break was 10 mins, 3 mins into breaktime he was still tanking. Then I opened my mouth. I said "magbreak na tayo Yatz." Yatz snapcalls. Haha! I show Q5o, he shows A9s. Flop Q5x. ;) I got lucky. Doubled up to 32k, and ended day1 with 33k.
Day 2: We were down to 120+ players and we're playing down to 40 players. Two hands into day 2, our table broke. I was moved to table 22 (I felt lucky). Folded my way to M=4. Then the hand that started it all!
QJs: UTG limps (I saw this player limp at early position with KTs) so I knew this was weak. Another player limps, also not the type to limp with a monster. SB completes. I was on the BB, I shove. Both limpers fold. SB tanks then finally declares call. He shows AKo. Board ran TT89x. I double up to M=9, SB got crippled.
JJ: Early position I raise to 3.5x BB. Player next to me calls. Everybody folds to a very tight player who shoves his short stack. I asked the dealer to count the chips and if he was able to min-raise me. He did, I shove. Player next to me tanks. He folds. Short stack player shows KK! Flop JACK! The rest is history. The player who folded says he had TT, flop was JTx. I thought should I have flatted? My problem with flatting is he might shove over me. And I will be put on the a difficult spot. I was definitely calling a shove if I flatted so I just went ahead and shoved and gave him the difficult decision. Went up to 64k with an M of 12.
From 64k went up to around 90k. Bled some chips, went back to 64k then got it back up to 80k and eventually crossed the 100k mark. I think this was the part where I was abusing the all-in button. :)
From 100k, went as high as 150k. I got grinded down 120k then the flip happened. Two players to ITM, it was blind vs blind. SB raises to 20k (I think). I look down and see KJo, I shove. He calls. He had 99 which held up. I was down to around 70k. Next hand after that, same players busts out with AKo vs KK. Haha!
Finished day 2 with 72900.
Day 3: Rollback! M=8.
I raped the all-in button. That's all I can say. from 72k, grinded it up to around 200k, without showdowns. Just well-timed shoves.
First showdown: I was on the BB, blinds 10k/20k with ante of 1k. Player on the middle position had around 160k, he looks at me, looks at my stack and declares all-in. Action was folded to me, I looked down and see an ace, I almost snapcalled with just looking at one card. Look at the other card and it was A3 soooooted! I call. Villain had QTo. I think I called this one because of my big mistake in day 1. What good is a read if you're not going to act on it?
Second showdown: KK < 88. I'm going to quote this one from my post in Poker Manila.
"may story yun why chris ramayrat called with 88. natilt sakin. and i knew na this time he was gonna call.
chris was on my right. di ako nagreresteal/play sa kanya. pag raise nya, wala ako. fold!
until i saw him limp with K6o blind vs blind... yung next time na naglimp sya blind vs blind, nagraise na ko i had QJo, he had A3 daw, fold sya. tpos medyo natilt na bakit ako nagraise QJ lang...
i told him na pag may hand sya, raise nya na kasi autofold ako... LOL
so he started raising... tpos nanotice ko he was raising light na... then first time i 3bet shoved him with 44. LOL. he tanks, and folds tpos he showed an ace. i didnt show, medyo lalong natilt. LOL.
sabi ko nxt na 3bet shove ko sa raise nito, cacall na. then THE hand happened. bubble time to final table he raises under the gun. i look down and see KK, i insta shove. he tanks for the longest time and then says "370k lng ako this cant survived the final table" sabi ko ayos cacall na. kumall nga.. he shows 88. window card 8, pag spread isa pang 8. naku po. hahahahahaha! i was left with 50k with blinds 15k/30k."
I was left with 50k with blinds of 15k/30k ante 3k. That's all she wrote. :)
Friday, April 27, 2012
I'm Winning, That's What Matters
Somebody asked me today how much my biggest winning was on poker. I answered with a very brief "Not much, I play cash games not tourneys so I don't get those big wins." I was met with another question: "So how much exactly is have you won from playing poker?" This time I answered with a novel. LOL.
Here's my answer:
A winning player will never tell you how much he is winning. A losing player will never hesitate to boast their biggest win. A story which ends in this very familiar line for gamblers -- "pero naubos din."
I think it's very inappropriate to ask a poker player how much he is making. It's kinda like asking your office mates how much everyone's salary is. I'm sure that is one taboo topic in the office.
So anyway, I thought about it and decided to come up with a decent/direct answer.
I make enough money from poker to pay for my bills:
Rent + Groceries + Daily Expenses
I make money from buying and selling online dollars:
I buy at 40, sell at 45.
You do the math. Haha!
Here's my answer:
A winning player will never tell you how much he is winning. A losing player will never hesitate to boast their biggest win. A story which ends in this very familiar line for gamblers -- "pero naubos din."
I think it's very inappropriate to ask a poker player how much he is making. It's kinda like asking your office mates how much everyone's salary is. I'm sure that is one taboo topic in the office.
So anyway, I thought about it and decided to come up with a decent/direct answer.
I make enough money from poker to pay for my bills:
Rent + Groceries + Daily Expenses
I make money from buying and selling online dollars:
I buy at 40, sell at 45.
You do the math. Haha!
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
How Bad Do You Want It?
I watched this video. If anything, it made me feel like I'm not yet there (successful). Then I read the whole speech. When I read this "I'm here to tell you today that you can come here, you can jump up, you can do flips, you can be excited when we give away money. But listen to me, you will never be successful cause I don't have to give you a dime to use it. You won't be successful until you say I don't need that money. Because I got it in here." It made me feel great.
Last DICC, I wasn't able play because I wasn't able to get a seat. It's the first time in a long time that I missed a major tournament at The Metro. I could've bought in if I wanted to, but I didn't. It sounds like a failure but it was actually a success for me. I broke away from staking.
Saturday, December 24, 2011
From 2nd to 22nd
Focus on the task at hand and do it RELENTLESSLY.
It's been almost 3 years and I'm about to have a major change in my life next year. I'm moving. I have been spending the last few weeks preparing. I still have two months to get everything in place. I have never been this focused about something in my life.
Also, I'll be gunning for Super Nova at Poker Stars next year. I'm giving up live poker altogether and just concentrate on cash games online. The only tourneys I'll be playing are the monthly 100k freeroll for Gold Star and the 1M quarterly freerolls. I hope i take one down. :)
Poker-Gym-Cook-Eat-Shower. That's pretty much what next year is going to look like for me. Hopefully, I'll be able to squeeze in a 2-week vacation somewhere.
It's been almost 3 years and I'm about to have a major change in my life next year. I'm moving. I have been spending the last few weeks preparing. I still have two months to get everything in place. I have never been this focused about something in my life.
Also, I'll be gunning for Super Nova at Poker Stars next year. I'm giving up live poker altogether and just concentrate on cash games online. The only tourneys I'll be playing are the monthly 100k freeroll for Gold Star and the 1M quarterly freerolls. I hope i take one down. :)
Poker-Gym-Cook-Eat-Shower. That's pretty much what next year is going to look like for me. Hopefully, I'll be able to squeeze in a 2-week vacation somewhere.
Monday, July 18, 2011
WHAT HAVE I BEEN UP TO LATELY?
-Made a short stint on SH at ENET.
-Played live.
-Came back at GW.
"Coming back bitches!" -Redairkson
-Played live.
-Came back at GW.
"Coming back bitches!" -Redairkson
Friday, April 15, 2011
BOUNCING BACK
Just because it's not your day doesn't mean you have to go and ruin the rest of it.
I made a rookie mistake at the biggest stake I've played live. Done and over with. I learned my lesson. I can't wait to build a bankroll and unleash hell.
As soon as I get home, I open my laptop and play online. Hell! If there's one thing I'm good at, it's bouncing back. I recorded my biggest win online at 6max. :D 3 buy-ins for the win.
So now, time to prioritize. Finish shit and get things done.
I made a rookie mistake at the biggest stake I've played live. Done and over with. I learned my lesson. I can't wait to build a bankroll and unleash hell.
As soon as I get home, I open my laptop and play online. Hell! If there's one thing I'm good at, it's bouncing back. I recorded my biggest win online at 6max. :D 3 buy-ins for the win.
So now, time to prioritize. Finish shit and get things done.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
ANOTHER TOURNEY ANOTHER CASH IN
Finished 11th, again, in my very first APT...side event. It was fun while it lasted. I can't wait for my next tourney. I hope I can make the Final Table next time.
I never thought I'd miss these 1-Day-No-Ante Tourneys. :)
I never thought I'd miss these 1-Day-No-Ante Tourneys. :)
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
tanginanyodin
ako pa daw yung mukhang pera eh siya naman tong may sabi na dun lang sya kung san sya kikita. ako pa daw yung nagmamagaling eh mas magaling naman talaga ako sa kanila. dalawang taon na nandyan pa rin kayo. lumaki nga kinikita nyo pero ganun pa rin mga ugali nyo. tanginang yan akala ko kaibigan yun pala businessman. di nyo ba matanggap na yung dating nasa paanan nyo lang ay ngayon tinitingala nyo na? akala nyo ba puro lang ako chamba? hirap ba sikmurain na yung dating di marunong ngayon eh nagtuturo na? tanginanyo.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
JUST BECAUSE I CAN
The next time someone asks me why I play poker for a living, I'll answer them with this -- "Just because I can." The next time someone asks me if they could play poker for a living, I'll answer them with this -- "It's not for everybody." The next time someone asks me what I do for a living, I'll just order a beer and ask them what they do for a living. Haha!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
EAT YOUR HEART OUT
I just realized that in the last 3 major tournaments (10M Resort World, 5M Metro and 3M DICC) I joined I made it to day 2 in two tournaments. I cashed in in one. So that's 33% winning and 66% making it to day 2. So all you haters eat your heart out. HAHAHAHAHA!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
MY DICC RUN
Last March 10-21 The Metro Card Club had this multi-day tournament called the Dirty Ice Cream Cup. It's a yearly tournament to celebrate Neil Arce's birthday. I made a deep run in this tournament. :D
My run can be described in one sentence -- Making things out of thin air.
On days one, two and three of the tournament I had like 4-5 premium hands. Yes, I was "card dead." Good thing I wasn't brain dead so I kept stealing. The formula was steal, steal, re-steal, repeat.
Here are some of the highlights of my tournament.
Day1:
My table was pretty tight and I only hand two players to watch out for. One is Ronnel Sto. Tomas, youngest FPT champ, who was sitting across me. The other was Awie Bulatao, regular metro champ, who I was in position with.
Big Hands/Pots:
Double up with 78o vs Francis Nethercott, Empire champ
Crippled a player with J8s, FH on turn vs flush???
Critical Hand 1:
Last hand of the day I was on CO position with KJo.
Blinds: 500/1000 Ante: 100
Action was folded to me with about 47k in chips. The guys next to me with a big stack was already counting his chips. The BB, I was pretty much sure he was going to fold. The SB was the only player who was keeping me from adding the dead money to my chips. I decided to steal and raise 3500. It was about 1/3 of the SB's stack. I was really hoping he'd fold and just make it to day2.
As expected, the big stack on my left instantly mucks and goes back to counting his chips. SB, tanked. Aaaaargh! I was thinking "Please fold. Please fold. Just fold and shove when you come back for day2." LOL.After about 2mins, he shoves his short stack. BB folds. I asked how much more to call. It was around 14-16k more for me to call. I had around 43k left. My plan was to steal the dead money in the middle. It didn't happen so I folded. SB shows 89s.
Day2:
A table full of familiar faces. Diego_Metro to my right and a couple of metro regulars.
Critical Hand 2:
I wasn't getting any good cards. It turned into a game of who's the better thief.
CO raised about 20% of his stack. I had a read that he was only trying to steal the blinds. I look down and see pocket 3. I had about 60k in chips. I tanked, looked at the BB, and asked how much the CO had behind. He had about 22k. The BB was a super tight player who folded to a less than 2.5x raise from me a couple of hands earlier. I contemplated on my options. I can flat-call and see the flop. I can fold and just give up OR I can raise! I decided to take the more aggressive approach and raise. I asked myself how much? I only had pocket 3... Then suddenly 11Finger came to mind. I decided to go all-in. If the CO was indeed stealing he will fold to a shove and have 20k+ left behind with blinds of 600/1200 it was pretty much still playable.
With me all-in, action was back to the CO. He tanks for the longest time. After about 3-5 minutes in the tank, he decided to call. I announce "Pocket 3 lang ako sir." He shows his cards and I was shocked as hell to see Ace-Three suited. I thought he had A9s or KQ/KJ. I had him dominated with my crabs!
Flop and turn bricked but Barry Greenstein decided to show up on the river.
Critical Hand 3:
I was down to around 30k when a new player sat on the table. There was a player who didn't show up for day 2 and was being blinded out on our table. As soon as this new player sees that, he asked the dealer "Wala yung big blind?" That rang bells in my head. After asking that to dealer and as soon as the cards were dealt, the new player raises! "As expected!" I say to myself. 2 orbits later. This new player was on the button. I was on the SB. The BB was the same tight player. Action was folded to The New Player who raises. He's been raising alot! I look down and see KQo. I instantly announces "All-in!" BB folds and it was back to The New Player. He had me covered by around 10%. He tanks looks at the monitor and then after 3-4mins, he decided to call. He shows 88. I spike a Queen on the flop and doubled-up to around 60k. From there I built my stack to around 200k.
Day3:
After two days of stealing, I was in the hunt to make it to the final table. I was hoping I'd get 100 Aces and 100 Kings. LOL.
Highlights:
After 2days, I finally get a report-worhty hand. I raised to around 2.5BB with 88. I get one caller from the SB. Flop was J-8-4 with two diamonds. SB lead out, I shoved. He calls. He had Top Pair with a flush draw. No badbeat there and I double up to around 650k.
AttyBubba on my table!!! My idol, the man who first introduced me to Bankroll Management is on my table. I am actually going to play against one of the best players in the Philippines.
As soon as his chips were in place he raises to 2.5bb. This was no surprise to me. I call in position with KQo. Everybody else folded. Flop was 9-high all clubs. Check-check. Turn was a 7 of hearts. AttyBubba checks. I bet. He folded. "Bin-luff ko daw agad sya." :D
I was getting too many King-Queens that I decided the next time I see another King-Queen I'm going to play it like Ace-King. LOL. UTG with KQo. I raised to about 50k, 2.5bb. AttyBubba on the button almost smooth calls. Flop: 4-2-5 (i think). I Cbet, to 70k, AttyBubba again smooth calls. Turn: 3. I almost instantly bet 100k. AttyBubba, a little disgusted, folds and tells me he had pocket jacks. :)
Revenge of AttyBubba!
Early position with 33. I raise to about 2.5bb. AttyBubba on the SB calls without hesitation. Flop: A-4-2. I Cbet, he calls again without any hesitation. Turn bricked. Check-check. River a 3!!!!! Hahaha! I hit a set but boom! AttyBubba suddenly wakes up and bets 100k. I call. He shows 55 for the straihgt. :( I lost around 220k on that hand.
The make or break hand.
I finally get a big hand in the form of pocket queens. Before this hand, Richard Mari also had pocket queens who raised to 3bb and got no callers. With that in mind, I decided to raise just around 2.7bb. Anthony Tacda shoves. I say to myself "Finally! A big hand facing an all-in. This is it!" I instantly call as soon as the action was back to me. He shows Ace-Five of spades. I proudly show my pocket queens. Ace on the goddamn flop and another on the goddamn turn. No queen on the goddamn river.
Overall I think I did my best. Stuck to my game plan and slugged it out with the best. I am proud I'm making so much progress on my game. A year ago I would've cursed myself to sleep. Now, I'm only looking to get better.
NEXT TOURNAMENT PLEASE!
My run can be described in one sentence -- Making things out of thin air.
On days one, two and three of the tournament I had like 4-5 premium hands. Yes, I was "card dead." Good thing I wasn't brain dead so I kept stealing. The formula was steal, steal, re-steal, repeat.
Here are some of the highlights of my tournament.
Day1:
My table was pretty tight and I only hand two players to watch out for. One is Ronnel Sto. Tomas, youngest FPT champ, who was sitting across me. The other was Awie Bulatao, regular metro champ, who I was in position with.
Big Hands/Pots:
Double up with 78o vs Francis Nethercott, Empire champ
Crippled a player with J8s, FH on turn vs flush???
Critical Hand 1:
Last hand of the day I was on CO position with KJo.
Blinds: 500/1000 Ante: 100
Action was folded to me with about 47k in chips. The guys next to me with a big stack was already counting his chips. The BB, I was pretty much sure he was going to fold. The SB was the only player who was keeping me from adding the dead money to my chips. I decided to steal and raise 3500. It was about 1/3 of the SB's stack. I was really hoping he'd fold and just make it to day2.
As expected, the big stack on my left instantly mucks and goes back to counting his chips. SB, tanked. Aaaaargh! I was thinking "Please fold. Please fold. Just fold and shove when you come back for day2." LOL.After about 2mins, he shoves his short stack. BB folds. I asked how much more to call. It was around 14-16k more for me to call. I had around 43k left. My plan was to steal the dead money in the middle. It didn't happen so I folded. SB shows 89s.
Day2:
A table full of familiar faces. Diego_Metro to my right and a couple of metro regulars.
Critical Hand 2:
I wasn't getting any good cards. It turned into a game of who's the better thief.
CO raised about 20% of his stack. I had a read that he was only trying to steal the blinds. I look down and see pocket 3. I had about 60k in chips. I tanked, looked at the BB, and asked how much the CO had behind. He had about 22k. The BB was a super tight player who folded to a less than 2.5x raise from me a couple of hands earlier. I contemplated on my options. I can flat-call and see the flop. I can fold and just give up OR I can raise! I decided to take the more aggressive approach and raise. I asked myself how much? I only had pocket 3... Then suddenly 11Finger came to mind. I decided to go all-in. If the CO was indeed stealing he will fold to a shove and have 20k+ left behind with blinds of 600/1200 it was pretty much still playable.
With me all-in, action was back to the CO. He tanks for the longest time. After about 3-5 minutes in the tank, he decided to call. I announce "Pocket 3 lang ako sir." He shows his cards and I was shocked as hell to see Ace-Three suited. I thought he had A9s or KQ/KJ. I had him dominated with my crabs!
Flop and turn bricked but Barry Greenstein decided to show up on the river.
Critical Hand 3:
I was down to around 30k when a new player sat on the table. There was a player who didn't show up for day 2 and was being blinded out on our table. As soon as this new player sees that, he asked the dealer "Wala yung big blind?" That rang bells in my head. After asking that to dealer and as soon as the cards were dealt, the new player raises! "As expected!" I say to myself. 2 orbits later. This new player was on the button. I was on the SB. The BB was the same tight player. Action was folded to The New Player who raises. He's been raising alot! I look down and see KQo. I instantly announces "All-in!" BB folds and it was back to The New Player. He had me covered by around 10%. He tanks looks at the monitor and then after 3-4mins, he decided to call. He shows 88. I spike a Queen on the flop and doubled-up to around 60k. From there I built my stack to around 200k.
Day3:
After two days of stealing, I was in the hunt to make it to the final table. I was hoping I'd get 100 Aces and 100 Kings. LOL.
Highlights:
After 2days, I finally get a report-worhty hand. I raised to around 2.5BB with 88. I get one caller from the SB. Flop was J-8-4 with two diamonds. SB lead out, I shoved. He calls. He had Top Pair with a flush draw. No badbeat there and I double up to around 650k.
AttyBubba on my table!!! My idol, the man who first introduced me to Bankroll Management is on my table. I am actually going to play against one of the best players in the Philippines.
As soon as his chips were in place he raises to 2.5bb. This was no surprise to me. I call in position with KQo. Everybody else folded. Flop was 9-high all clubs. Check-check. Turn was a 7 of hearts. AttyBubba checks. I bet. He folded. "Bin-luff ko daw agad sya." :D
I was getting too many King-Queens that I decided the next time I see another King-Queen I'm going to play it like Ace-King. LOL. UTG with KQo. I raised to about 50k, 2.5bb. AttyBubba on the button almost smooth calls. Flop: 4-2-5 (i think). I Cbet, to 70k, AttyBubba again smooth calls. Turn: 3. I almost instantly bet 100k. AttyBubba, a little disgusted, folds and tells me he had pocket jacks. :)
Revenge of AttyBubba!
Early position with 33. I raise to about 2.5bb. AttyBubba on the SB calls without hesitation. Flop: A-4-2. I Cbet, he calls again without any hesitation. Turn bricked. Check-check. River a 3!!!!! Hahaha! I hit a set but boom! AttyBubba suddenly wakes up and bets 100k. I call. He shows 55 for the straihgt. :( I lost around 220k on that hand.
The make or break hand.
I finally get a big hand in the form of pocket queens. Before this hand, Richard Mari also had pocket queens who raised to 3bb and got no callers. With that in mind, I decided to raise just around 2.7bb. Anthony Tacda shoves. I say to myself "Finally! A big hand facing an all-in. This is it!" I instantly call as soon as the action was back to me. He shows Ace-Five of spades. I proudly show my pocket queens. Ace on the goddamn flop and another on the goddamn turn. No queen on the goddamn river.
Overall I think I did my best. Stuck to my game plan and slugged it out with the best. I am proud I'm making so much progress on my game. A year ago I would've cursed myself to sleep. Now, I'm only looking to get better.
NEXT TOURNAMENT PLEASE!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
FIRST WEEK IN NL50
Last Feb. 10, 2011 I started grind at NL50 with 20 buy-ins. I got addicted. On my very first day I played 2000+ hands. I lost 4 buy-ins but I didn't care. I was having fun!
Now, on the last day of my first week at NL50, I got everything back plus a little more. :D I'm getting the hang of it and still having fun. The two sweat sessions I had with my friends helped a lot! Thanks Berto! (I hope you agree to do it regularly.)
I can't wait for tomorrow to start!
"Get your brain on the prize then DIVE INSIDE."
Now, on the last day of my first week at NL50, I got everything back plus a little more. :D I'm getting the hang of it and still having fun. The two sweat sessions I had with my friends helped a lot! Thanks Berto! (I hope you agree to do it regularly.)
I can't wait for tomorrow to start!
"Get your brain on the prize then DIVE INSIDE."
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
16TH WEEK
...and the training is over. We had our final exam yesterday and hopefully I'm just two videos away from my APA avatar. It's been one hell of a ride. I started this training as a 5 (1-10, 10 being an expert), ended it as a 6.5. I have a lot more to learn. This training literally changed my life. Both on and off the felt. My coach isn't just a poker coach, at times he's a life coach as well. If there's one lesson I've learned from all of this, it's to take everything in, all the experiences both good and bad, and use it as fuel. Fuel to get better. Between me and my classmates, I must be the weirdest. I didn't read poker books or questioned the lessons, all I had was my trust in the system. Trust in my coach and trust in the training. If I could, I would do it all over again. :D
BTW, in the last few weeks of training, just like my other coach, I got obsessed with the book The Secret. A few days ago I came across a perfect soundtrack to The Secret.
I also made a "The Secret" playlist made of songs that inspire and remind me how far I've come.
BTW, in the last few weeks of training, just like my other coach, I got obsessed with the book The Secret. A few days ago I came across a perfect soundtrack to The Secret.
I also made a "The Secret" playlist made of songs that inspire and remind me how far I've come.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
MOMENT OF ENLIGHTENMENT
Why momentum is so important...?
Since the start of our live training, Coach Red has been telling us to build a habit of playing so we can build momentum. It's only now that I realized how important momentum is. The graph above is from my recent two-day grind. I started grinding playing good, solid poker then boom! One bad beat and I'm playing ridiculously bad.Then I win a big pot and stack someone and started playing really good. After reviewing my hands, looking at my stats, and viewing my graph, I realized that the two big swings in my graph started my losing momentum and my winning momentum. (did i say that right?) From now on, every time I lose a big pot I will stop playing so I don't build a momentum of losing. :)
Since the start of our live training, Coach Red has been telling us to build a habit of playing so we can build momentum. It's only now that I realized how important momentum is. The graph above is from my recent two-day grind. I started grinding playing good, solid poker then boom! One bad beat and I'm playing ridiculously bad.Then I win a big pot and stack someone and started playing really good. After reviewing my hands, looking at my stats, and viewing my graph, I realized that the two big swings in my graph started my losing momentum and my winning momentum. (did i say that right?) From now on, every time I lose a big pot I will stop playing so I don't build a momentum of losing. :)
Saturday, December 18, 2010
"QUITTING"
Some friends were asking me yesterday to reconsider my decision of quitting tournament poker. So here I want to explain myself why I'm "quitting."
It's more like putting tournament poker on hold. I want to be a successful poker player but I have to choose between the two -- cash games and tourneys. Why not both? Well we can't have them all. I decided to choose cash games and concentrate on it so I can succeed faster.
I am a dreamer and I dream of new dreams every day. I have dreams of having my picture taken holding two cards and a pile of chips infront of me. Dreams of winning international poker tournaments. But for the new year I decided to dream more simple dreams. Dreams I can turn into reality in a year or less. For the meantime, I will dream of sitting at Table 20 at The Metro. I'll dream of crushing NL30 online. I'll dream of moving up atleast two limits both online and live. Dreams I know I can turn into reality. :D
"Feel the pain teaching us how much more we can take
Reminding us how far we've come
Let the pain burn away from our hearts
We have time to start all over again"
These big tournaments I've played recently have brought me big time heartaches. Then I realized how far I've come and felt good about it. "Quitting" is not about me breaking down. It's about me building over... on the cash games. :)
This song says it all.
It's more like putting tournament poker on hold. I want to be a successful poker player but I have to choose between the two -- cash games and tourneys. Why not both? Well we can't have them all. I decided to choose cash games and concentrate on it so I can succeed faster.
I am a dreamer and I dream of new dreams every day. I have dreams of having my picture taken holding two cards and a pile of chips infront of me. Dreams of winning international poker tournaments. But for the new year I decided to dream more simple dreams. Dreams I can turn into reality in a year or less. For the meantime, I will dream of sitting at Table 20 at The Metro. I'll dream of crushing NL30 online. I'll dream of moving up atleast two limits both online and live. Dreams I know I can turn into reality. :D
"Feel the pain teaching us how much more we can take
Reminding us how far we've come
Let the pain burn away from our hearts
We have time to start all over again"
These big tournaments I've played recently have brought me big time heartaches. Then I realized how far I've come and felt good about it. "Quitting" is not about me breaking down. It's about me building over... on the cash games. :)
This song says it all.
Friday, December 17, 2010
NO MORE TOURNIES
It's official. I'm quitting tournament poker. From hereon, I'm going to stick to play cash games both online and live. I really hate the feeling of busting out of a tournament. LOL!
Ice breaker! After I busted out of the I went to The Midas Touch to play cash games. After that went back to Metrowalk to have dinner. LOL. After dinner I went home. While I was waiting for a bus, jeep, FX, taxi... I saw a folded paper that looked like a twenty-peso bill. I picked it up and poof! it wasn't just a twenty-peso bill! It was accompanied by Ninoy. Hahahahahahahaha!
BTW, quitting tourney poker is a conscious decision. I've been thinking about it for quite awhile. I am not on tilt or anything. :D
Ice breaker! After I busted out of the I went to The Midas Touch to play cash games. After that went back to Metrowalk to have dinner. LOL. After dinner I went home. While I was waiting for a bus, jeep, FX, taxi... I saw a folded paper that looked like a twenty-peso bill. I picked it up and poof! it wasn't just a twenty-peso bill! It was accompanied by Ninoy. Hahahahahahahaha!
BTW, quitting tourney poker is a conscious decision. I've been thinking about it for quite awhile. I am not on tilt or anything. :D
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