Thursday, December 12, 2013
Poker Calls Again
It has been over three years since I played a big poker tournament. I barely play with my friends now; almost all of us are married with kids and time is at a premium. Getting that free time and then hoping it's the same free time as your friends...it makes for much less games. That's the way the cookie crumbles, and that's life.
So when the World Series of Poker Circuit came to town at the Lac-Leamy casino (instead of their planned Montreal destination), I couldn't pass up the opportunity. I could only really afford to play one tournament, but that was fine. I was glad the WSOPC was here! Having virtually no practice and just recently read Gus Hansen's "Every Hand Revealed", I took my chances. Just under 160 players signed up, and the structure was such that blinds increased every thirty minutes. After several levels had passed, forty and eventually sixty minute levels would be become the norm. But, as I only lasted about an hour and twenty minutes, it didn't end up mattering all that much.
So why would I write about a failure like this? This tournament ended up being the worst outing I've ever had after steadily increasing the amount of time I was left playing at previous tournaments. Well, putting my mistakes for all to see, I'm hoping not just myself but my friends can perhaps learn from my experience and do better when they give it a shot. I try to encourage my friends to play as it's so much fun, results be damned. I'll share a couple of hands that I played and you can make your own judgments on what you would have done. My first hand I played was just a few hands in, folded to me on the button. We all started with 10,000 in chips and the blinds were 25/50. I had Queen Ten offsuit. I decided to limp in, the small blind called an the big blind checked. The flop came all spades, all medium to low cards. So the blinds checked to me. Actually the big blind was so eager to check, he did so out of turn. Seeing this eagerness to not bet, I decided to take it down with a small 100 bet. Fold and fold. Ben wins! Even though I completed missed my hand, it was a board no one was interested in. I didn't have to bet a lot to take it down, and it was nice to take down my first pot...despite it being a rather small one.
Some time later on, I played another hand where everyone folded to me, again, on the button. I look at ace-six offsuit. The blinds were 100-200. I only played a few hands so I had a tight image. I thought a raise might allow me to get the blinds and if I do get called, an Ace isn't the worst card to have. I raise to 600 and both blinds flat call. Hmmm, interesting. The flop comes: Ace-Ten-Eight. The ten and eight are both clubs. Paired the ace...might as well bet and take 'er down. Both players check, I bet 600 and both players call. The next card: 3 of diamonds. I'm guessing one of the blinds is chasing a flush. Does the other have an ace? I want to keep the pot small and they aren't too aggressive, so after checking to me again, I bet another 600. They both call. The river card: 2 of spades. After getting called twice on the flop and turn, I know I'm beat. I figure I have kicker issues with my low 6 accompanying my ace while the other guy likely missed his flush. So I ask myself, do I want to try a bluff to take down the pot? Both players check to me again. I can cut my losses and check and muck my hand when one of my opponents shows me an Ace with a better kicker. But maybe I can bet out and make them think I have a strong hand...maybe I can sell a two pair hand? Or maybe a set?
Perhaps influenced by Hansen's book, I decide to give it a shot. I'll have to bet a decent sized amount, large enough to scare away my opponents. So I bet out 1500. With our starting stack sizes of 10,000, it's a good sized bet. In relation to the amount of chips in the pot, maybe not big enough. The player to my left went into the think tank for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably about one minute. He decided to call and the big blind folded. The player showed me a Ace-Jack and I muck my cards, and he takes down the pot.
Should I have tried the bluff? It's easy to say no when you lose, and if he did fold I probably would have patted myself on the back for such a bold play. But really, it probably wasn't a good idea. More times than not, it's likely not a good idea to try these plays when the tournament has just started. The blinds are relatively small, and your initial stack is more valuable than gambling with chips that you won in other pots. There is a time to try a bluff, but later in the tournament, with a bigger stack and high blinds worth acquiring, is likely a better time to try it.
At least that's what I think, anyway.
So when the World Series of Poker Circuit came to town at the Lac-Leamy casino (instead of their planned Montreal destination), I couldn't pass up the opportunity. I could only really afford to play one tournament, but that was fine. I was glad the WSOPC was here! Having virtually no practice and just recently read Gus Hansen's "Every Hand Revealed", I took my chances. Just under 160 players signed up, and the structure was such that blinds increased every thirty minutes. After several levels had passed, forty and eventually sixty minute levels would be become the norm. But, as I only lasted about an hour and twenty minutes, it didn't end up mattering all that much.
So why would I write about a failure like this? This tournament ended up being the worst outing I've ever had after steadily increasing the amount of time I was left playing at previous tournaments. Well, putting my mistakes for all to see, I'm hoping not just myself but my friends can perhaps learn from my experience and do better when they give it a shot. I try to encourage my friends to play as it's so much fun, results be damned. I'll share a couple of hands that I played and you can make your own judgments on what you would have done. My first hand I played was just a few hands in, folded to me on the button. We all started with 10,000 in chips and the blinds were 25/50. I had Queen Ten offsuit. I decided to limp in, the small blind called an the big blind checked. The flop came all spades, all medium to low cards. So the blinds checked to me. Actually the big blind was so eager to check, he did so out of turn. Seeing this eagerness to not bet, I decided to take it down with a small 100 bet. Fold and fold. Ben wins! Even though I completed missed my hand, it was a board no one was interested in. I didn't have to bet a lot to take it down, and it was nice to take down my first pot...despite it being a rather small one.
Some time later on, I played another hand where everyone folded to me, again, on the button. I look at ace-six offsuit. The blinds were 100-200. I only played a few hands so I had a tight image. I thought a raise might allow me to get the blinds and if I do get called, an Ace isn't the worst card to have. I raise to 600 and both blinds flat call. Hmmm, interesting. The flop comes: Ace-Ten-Eight. The ten and eight are both clubs. Paired the ace...might as well bet and take 'er down. Both players check, I bet 600 and both players call. The next card: 3 of diamonds. I'm guessing one of the blinds is chasing a flush. Does the other have an ace? I want to keep the pot small and they aren't too aggressive, so after checking to me again, I bet another 600. They both call. The river card: 2 of spades. After getting called twice on the flop and turn, I know I'm beat. I figure I have kicker issues with my low 6 accompanying my ace while the other guy likely missed his flush. So I ask myself, do I want to try a bluff to take down the pot? Both players check to me again. I can cut my losses and check and muck my hand when one of my opponents shows me an Ace with a better kicker. But maybe I can bet out and make them think I have a strong hand...maybe I can sell a two pair hand? Or maybe a set?
Perhaps influenced by Hansen's book, I decide to give it a shot. I'll have to bet a decent sized amount, large enough to scare away my opponents. So I bet out 1500. With our starting stack sizes of 10,000, it's a good sized bet. In relation to the amount of chips in the pot, maybe not big enough. The player to my left went into the think tank for what seemed like an eternity, but was probably about one minute. He decided to call and the big blind folded. The player showed me a Ace-Jack and I muck my cards, and he takes down the pot.
Should I have tried the bluff? It's easy to say no when you lose, and if he did fold I probably would have patted myself on the back for such a bold play. But really, it probably wasn't a good idea. More times than not, it's likely not a good idea to try these plays when the tournament has just started. The blinds are relatively small, and your initial stack is more valuable than gambling with chips that you won in other pots. There is a time to try a bluff, but later in the tournament, with a bigger stack and high blinds worth acquiring, is likely a better time to try it.
At least that's what I think, anyway.
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