WARNING!!! Going pro... If you don't like hard work then GTFO!!!

Hello mate!

We all know that those things happen. You played all the hands correctly (including the last one imo), but lost. That's poker. As "The Mental Game of Poker" says: "You can't control the cards, you can just control how you play them". Every time I play, I have an open document in front of me which says (in Croatian, ofc): The goal of this session is to make good decisions. The goal is not to make profit. You don't have an impact on it short-term." I have this because losing money is the thing that is puting me on tilt (as a result of being afraid of not achieving my poker goals). The good thing is that long-term good decisions will make you profit (along with other goals, like moving up in stakes, better life etc.).

Just keep going!

Originally posted by Alleen86
Hello mate!

Just keep going!

Hi mate, thanks for the kind words, you really are a top guy!

All is good. I think having 350 buy-ins for NL10 makes it easier to handle this sort of thing!!! When I got all-in preflop at NL100 heads up it was a totally different matter I don't mind admitting!!!

Have a good weekend amigo, thanks again.

Was that all in one session, thats pretty sick, keep going buddy

Originally posted by Eatyourpeas
I think having 350 buy-ins for NL10 makes it easier to handle this sort of thing!!!

Oh yeah, I wanted to ask that before. What is the reason you play NL10 with such a huge bankroll?

H1 - Can't fold here right???

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $9.60
SB: $14.58
BB: $14.74
UTG: $8.83
Hero (MP): $11.12
CO: $18.90

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has Q♣ Q♥

fold, Hero raises to $0.30, CO raises to $1.05, fold, fold, fold, Hero calls $0.75

Flop: ($2.25, 2 players) 2♣ K♣ 9♣
Hero checks, CO bets $1.18, Hero calls $1.18

Turn: ($4.61, 2 players) T♣
Hero checks, CO bets $2.42, Hero calls $2.42

River: ($9.45, 2 players) J♠
Hero checks, CO bets $14.25 and is all-in, Hero calls $6.47 and is all-in

CO shows A♣ 5♣ (Flush, Ace High)
(Pre 33%, Flop 97%, Turn 98%)
Hero shows Q♣ Q♥ (Flush, King High)
(Pre 67%, Flop 3%, Turn 2%)
CO wins $21.38

-----------------------------

H2 - Could be too loose?????

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

Hero (BTN): $10.04
SB: $9.12
BB: $11.72
UTG: $18.18
MP: $10.10
CO: $10.73

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has A♣ A♠

UTG raises to $0.30, fold, CO calls $0.30, Hero raises to $1.35, fold, BB calls $1.25, UTG calls $1.05, fold

Flop: ($4.40, 3 players) J♣ 9♠ 6♥
BB checks, UTG checks, Hero bets $2.31, fold, UTG raises to $4.62, Hero calls $2.31

Turn: ($13.64, 2 players) 9♣
UTG checks, Hero checks

River: ($13.64, 2 players) K♦
UTG bets $4.80, Hero calls $4.07 and is all-in

UTG shows J♥ J♠ (Full House, Jacks full of Nines)
(Pre 19%, Flop 91%, Turn 95%)
Hero shows A♣ A♠ (Two Pair, Aces and Nines)
(Pre 81%, Flop 9%, Turn 5%)
UTG wins $20.80

She is a bit of a nit reg (polite version). In game I thought maybe KK/QQ on flop so called but I think I am dreaming there - he would check that back.

--------------------------------

H3 - WTF is this!?

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $19.61
Hero (SB): $10.35
BB: $11.40
UTG: $5.38
MP: $8.39
CO: $41.17

Hero posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has Q♦ Q♥

fold, fold, fold, BTN raises to $0.20, Hero raises to $0.70, fold, BTN calls $0.50

Flop: ($1.50, 2 players) J♣ 6♥ 4♦
Hero bets $0.78, BTN calls $0.78

Turn: ($3.06, 2 players) T♠
Hero bets $1.60, BTN raises to $3.20, Hero calls $1.60

River: ($9.46, 2 players) 9♠
Hero checks, BTN checks

Hero shows Q♦ Q♥ (One Pair, Queens)
(Pre 81%, Flop 9%, Turn 5%)
BTN shows 4♥ 4♣ (Three of a Kind, Fours)
(Pre 19%, Flop 91%, Turn 95%)
BTN wins $9.03

------------------------------

H4 - LDO!

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $9.77
SB: $10.65
BB: $11.68
UTG: $7.65
MP: $4.04
Hero (CO): $10.00

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has K♥ K♦

UTG raises to $0.30, MP calls $0.30, Hero raises to $1.20, fold, fold, fold, fold, MP calls $0.90

Flop: ($2.85, 2 players) 5♦ J♦ 6♦
MP checks, Hero bets $1.49, MP raises to $2.84 and is all-in, Hero calls $1.35

Turn: ($8.53, 2 players) 5♥

River: ($8.53, 2 players) Q♠

MP shows A♠ 5♠ (Three of a Kind, Fives)
(Pre 34%, Flop 13%, Turn 77%)
Hero shows K♥ K♦ (Two Pair, Kings and Fives)
(Pre 66%, Flop 87%, Turn 23%)
MP wins $8.15

------------------------------------
H5 - Standard

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $10.19
SB: $8.76
BB: $10.00
UTG: $9.78
MP: $15.08
Hero (CO): $12.02

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has K♠ Q♥

fold, MP raises to $0.30, Hero raises to $0.90, fold, fold, fold, MP calls $0.60

Flop: ($1.95, 2 players) 2♣ Q♠ 3♣
MP checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($1.95, 2 players) 4♥
MP bets $0.93, Hero calls $0.93

River: ($3.81, 2 players) 7♥
MP bets $1.82, Hero calls $1.82

MP shows Q♦ A♣ (One Pair, Queens)
(Pre 74%, Flop 88%, Turn 93%)
Hero mucks K♠ Q♥ (One Pair, Queens)
(Pre 26%, Flop 12%, Turn 7%)
MP wins $7.11

AQ is big part of his range I guess

------------------------

H6 - Think I coulda played this a lot better (bet turn for start) but saved money not doing so!

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $7.18
SB: $12.02
Hero (BB): $10.71
UTG: $13.60
MP: $5.07
CO: $10.70

SB posts SB $0.05, Hero posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has J♦ Q♦

fold, MP raises to $0.30, fold, fold, SB calls $0.25, Hero calls $0.20

Flop: ($0.90, 3 players) Q♥ 9♥ Q♣
SB bets $0.40, Hero calls $0.40, MP calls $0.40

Turn: ($2.10, 3 players) 3♠
SB checks, Hero checks, MP bets $0.70, SB calls $0.70, Hero calls $0.70

River: ($4.20, 3 players) K♣
SB checks, Hero checks, MP checks

SB shows 3♥ 3♦ (Full House, Threes full of Queens)
(Pre 19%, Flop 12%, Turn 88%)
Hero mucks J♦ Q♦ (Three of a Kind, Queens)
(Pre 32%, Flop 86%, Turn 12%)
MP mucks J♣ J♠ (Two Pair, Queens and Jacks)
(Pre 48%, Flop 2%, Turn 0%)
SB wins $4.01

--------------------------------------

H7 - Hilarious, thank you

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

Hero (BTN): $10.40
SB: $10.00
BB: $14.14
UTG: $10.00
MP: $10.00
CO: $13.87

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has 7♣ 8♣

fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to $0.22, fold, BB raises to $0.71, Hero calls $0.49

Flop: ($1.47, 2 players) T♥ 9♠ J♥
BB checks, Hero bets $1.05, BB calls $1.05

Turn: ($3.57, 2 players) A♣
BB checks, Hero bets $2.55, BB raises to $10.30, Hero calls $6.09 and is all-in

River: ($20.85, 2 players) 9♦
Players agreed to run it twice.

River #2: ($20.85, 2 players) 5♥

BB shows K♥ Q♠ (Straight, Ace High)
Board #1 (Pre 60%, Flop 99.6%, Turn 100%)
(Straight, Ace High)
Board #2 (Pre 60%, Flop 99.5%, Turn 100%)

Hero shows 7♣ 8♣ (Straight, Jack High)
Board #1 (Pre 40%, Flop 0.5%, Turn 0%)
(Straight, Jack High)
Board #2 (Pre 40%, Flop 0.5%, Turn 0%)

BB wins $9.96
BB wins $9.95

--------------------------------

H8 - Much excitement on the flop!?

partypoker - $0.10 NL (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

UTG: $28.39
MP: $7.00
CO: $9.80
Hero (BTN): $10.00
SB: $16.20
BB: $10.00

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10, MP posts penalty blind $0.10, CO posts penalty blind $0.05

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.30) Hero has K♠ K♣

fold, MP checks, CO calls $0.05, Hero raises to $0.50, SB raises to $0.90, fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to $2.40, SB raises to $10.90, Hero calls $7.60 and is all-in

Flop: ($20.30, 2 players) K♦ 3♣ 6♦

Turn: ($20.30, 2 players) 6♣

River: ($20.30, 2 players) A♣

SB shows A♥ A♦ (Full House, Aces full of Sixes)
(Pre 81%, Flop 12%, Turn 5%)
Hero mucks K♠ K♣ (Full House, Kings full of Sixes)
(Pre 19%, Flop 88%, Turn 95%)
SB wins $0.90
SB wins $19.30

--------------------------------------------

Was tough weekend for the old boy's mental game but played fairly solid overall (for me) and the results were okay so cannot complain

Originally posted by FrozenElf
Was that all in one session, thats pretty sick, keep going buddy

Thank you mate, yh was toughie! Followed by another toughie!!! Never give up!!!

Originally posted by Alleen86

Originally posted by Eatyourpeas
I think having 350 buy-ins for NL10 makes it easier to handle this sort of thing!!!

Oh yeah, I wanted to ask that before. What is the reason you play NL10 with such a huge bankroll?

Well I was playing NL100 HU and decided to switch to 6max Zoom purely for enjoyment. Started at NL10 to get used to the preflop ranges again and FML I cannot beat it!!!! YET!!!!!!

That was a tough few days for this old fella’s mental game! The coolers were going against me (see video below) but I think I kept losses down quite well. Study and understanding of the game (and life FWIW) are moving forwards nicely. Life is good, REAL GOOD!!!

Profit/loss = -$43
Hands played = 5732

#depressing

These hands do not rattle me much. I know they are not where the money is made in the long run. I have always played a very tight style (as I was taught people do not value bet thin at micros, nor do they 3 barrel bluff much) which is going to change so variance will increase a little I suppose.

I had to do an (almost) insta-quit after the AA v KK v TT hand in case my head fell off!

Learning is going really well. New coach is pushing me in a direction which really suits me. I am looking at quite a lot of maths stuff which works well for me as I can understand the maths and then try to relate it back to poker. I think I mentioned before how I struggle with being just told to do something? Well now I am getting some great theory behind me which makes me understand WHY I should do something and it makes it a lot easier for me to do it.

Coach reviewed a video of my play and spotted a few leaks which will help right away and he also has a cool knack of spotting good things I am doing so I don’t feel a total muppet! Much respect so far.

Beers

I went out for a few beers (8?) with some friends on Saturday night and had a good “blow out”. Followed it up with a cracking curry, one of the best ever! We had a barbecue at home yesterday but as we started to eat hundreds of wasps decide to join us so we had to go inside!!!

Goals

I have been reading about goal setting just lately (was not intended, it is part of something else I am studying). I was looking into some of my life goals and realised that I have a lot of conflicting goals in almost every single area of my life! I think it stems from not really knowing (or having) my specific purpose in life. Interesting stuff and will keep blog updated. Maybe goals will start creeping in again???

Self Worth

Something else I have learned/seen is that if your self worth is very low then you are constantly going to be fighting uphill battles in life. In fact for me it is/was more like “if your self worth is very low then you dare not even attempt to achieve success for FEAR of failure/criticism/non acceptance etc.” It has been quite a shock to learn some truths about myself just lately I will tell you!

I am really enjoying this self improvement journey I am on and it has been really interesting how much of a useful tool poker has been and is being in helping me learn what and who I really am! Gotta love teh pokerz!

4 sleeps until holidayzzzzzz! YES!!!

Pray for rungood amigos!!!

Chris.

Great blog sir! The good results will come again

Zoom IS a game of coolers though. When you play vs mostly just other regs, ranges will be tight (when there is plenty of action) and there you go, coolerville!

I don't see the point in posting the coolers/bad beats though. I always used to enjoy reading your blog quite a lot, but since you switched to zoom a bit less so. I am not saying it to be mean or anything, it's meant as... cunstructive critisizm? Is that what it's called? I mean, poker is so full of whining about bad beats and people claiming they don't care. But if you don't care, then why are you posting them? Because as reader, it's not a lot of fun reading a blog full of bad beats and coolers... so it can't be for entertainment.

I mean I know that I used to post bad beats and coolers as well. And then claim that I didn't care, it's all good, it's a part of poker... but I did care. I needed to post them to prove to myself and to others that I was just running bad (confidence issues). But I definitely did care, inadvertently. It was when I tried to stop posting them all together that I really noticed how much my poor confidence craved to show people why my graphs were looking so shitty. I really had to fight my urge to post them, and this way realized that there must be some underlying issues no matter how much I claimed to "not care".

Again, wasn't meant to be mean or anything. It's your blog and it's up to you what to post. But it's a shame seeing such a otherwise enjoyable blog turn into a badbeatfest

Hi Vonki, thanks for the constructive criticism, it really is appreciated.

I will explain the reason first... I never used to post coolers unless I thought they were particularly funny mostly for the reasons you stated. However, I am paid to blog (and this is MOSTLY a copy/paste of that paid blog) and the powers that be gently pushed me in the direction of posting coolers and bad beats.

Secondly... I think you are right so I will not post them on my unpaid blogs any more (although will post funny ones e.g "games are dead"). There may be times I need to copy/paste again for speed though.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for blogging advice, much appreciated.

In my last post I asked friends to pray for rungood. And rungood I did!!! Thanks a million amigos!!!

Results

Profit/loss = +$76 (includes $12 RB)
Hands played = 4913

Rungood Graph

Fun Hands

Hand 1 - Are You Tilted!!!???

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $20.60
SB: $10.50
BB: $10.00
Hero (UTG): $10.05
MP: $10.20
CO: $8.60

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has A♠ A♣

Hero raises to $0.30, MP raises to $1.30, fold, fold, fold, fold, Hero raises to $2.80, MP raises to $10.20 and is all-in, Hero calls $7.25 and is all-in

Flop: ($20.25, 2 players) J♥ 7♣ 7♦

Turn: ($20.25, 2 players) 2♥

River: ($20.25, 2 players) 8♦
Players agreed to run it twice.

Flop #2: ($20.25, 2 players) 8♣ T♣ K♣

Turn #2: ($20.25, 2 players) 2♠

River #2: ($20.25, 2 players) 6♥

Hero shows A♠ A♣ (Two Pair, Aces and Sevens)
Board #1 (Pre 80%, Flop 95%, Turn 84%)
(One Pair, Aces)
Board #2 (Pre 81%, Flop 99%, Turn 100%)

MP shows 3♥ 5♥ (One Pair, Sevens)
Board #1 (Pre 20%, Flop 5%, Turn 16%)
(High Card, King)
Board #2 (Pre 19%, Flop 1%, Turn 0%)

Hero wins $9.67
Hero wins $9.67

----------------------------------------

Hand 2 - Are You Stupid!!!???

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $9.75
SB: $9.60
BB: $14.33
Hero (UTG): $10.00
MP: $10.18
CO: $6.85

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has A♠ A♣

Hero raises to $0.30, fold, CO calls $0.30, BTN raises to $1.00, fold, fold, Hero raises to $2.80, fold, BTN calls $1.80

Flop: ($6.05, 2 players) Q♥ 7♠ 2♠
Hero checks, BTN checks

Turn: ($6.05, 2 players) J♣
Hero bets $3.17, BTN raises to $6.95 and is all-in, Hero calls $3.78

River: ($19.95, 2 players) J♦

Hero shows A♠ A♣ (Two Pair, Aces and Jacks)
(Pre 82%, Flop 82%, Turn 89%)
BTN shows 9♥ 7♦ (Two Pair, Jacks and Sevens)
(Pre 18%, Flop 18%, Turn 11%)
Hero wins $19.05

I received some constructive criticism about my blog the other day suggesting that people do not want to see all the coolers I posted lately. I tend to agree with that suggestion as I remember reading other people’s blogs and not finding that part interesting myself! There is a flip side though as it seems futile to write “I am running terribad” but not to back that up with evidence. From now on, when I have a bad run of coolers, I might make a video as previous (because anyone can choose to press PLAY or not) but I will not list them as hand histories. I will try to keep it just to fun hands and to hands where I have questions. Apologies to those who got bored with cooler stories!!!

Study

This is going really well. I am ENJOYING learning about the game so much again (like 4 years ago!). It will be interesting to see how this learning translates into play at the table because there is more to it than just learning new theory, application is massive! There is still the FEAR to overcome and “beating“ that is something I am thriving on a lot too at the moment!!!

Life

My knowledge and perceptions of life and the world are evolving rapidly lately. My long and intense search for meaning and purpose has reaped huge rewards for me over the last couple of years. None of these rewards are what one might refer to as materialistic and it seems to be that this fact has been a big part of the learning. I urge anyone and everyone to indulge in one thing if nothing else... Study self improvement, research happiness, try to find your life purpose with the knowledge that once found, everything is perfect. (EDIT: Everything is perfect anyway, you just might not know it yet.)

Goals

I am currently re-adjusting my life goals A LOT. As everything falls into place I can see more clearly what is going to happen. I am on holiday for a week next week and will give some thoughts to my goals and come back with them ready to go!

Holiday

We are off to the south coast of England for a week this Saturday! Really excited for some quality time with my family - should be tonnes of fun!

Birthday

My son is 5 today (happy birthday mate!). He is a real gem. He was fast asleep when I left for work this morning so I didn’t get chance to speak to him. It reminded me that my dad didn’t see me on my 5th birthday as he passed away just before that. I am extremely fortunate, when I get a thought like that it makes me immediately grateful for everything I have now. I can’t wait to see him tonight and am looking forward to us all being together next week on holiday. Life has some wonderful lessons hidden in it.

See you in 10 days amigos!

And keep those rungood prayers coming!

Chris.

Haha, don't totally stop the bad beats. Poker is also a bit about emotions and managing them - i.e. i find it pretty funny when going street by street and putting in funny memes with every card revealed...
We'll also soon start a promo a bit like that, but more with graphs then with hands.

So much for my random post here this week :-)
And have wonderful holidays!

Yeah, your blog is so lively atm! I do like the stories more you post I agree. However, the hands you post are definitely up to you as the others say as well. I think your bankroll management is very conservative as well but if this helps to have your mental game optimal, I'd definitely recommend to keep applying this technique.

Family time is just the best thing in the world! We just got back from a fantastic holiday on the South Coast of England. It was nothing extravagant, we stayed in a caravan at a holiday park that caters especially for families and is aimed at younger children. Just watching the kids having fun for 7 days is all that I can ask for in life, just perfect! It was “nice” to get away from poker for seven days but it is even better to get back to it! I am raring to go and am currently forming new and bigger long and short term goals.

Results (3 days)

Profit = +$37 (includes $11 RB)
Hands played = 3409

Graph

Hands

Hand #1 - Can I Check/call River?

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $14.64
SB: $22.49
BB: $4.51
Hero (UTG): $15.68
MP: $10.15
CO: $11.59

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has 3♥ 3♠

Hero raises to $0.30, fold, fold, BTN calls $0.30, fold, fold

Flop: ($0.75, 2 players) 3♦ 8♠ T♠
Hero bets $0.54, BTN calls $0.54

Turn: ($1.83, 2 players) T♥
Hero bets $1.31, BTN calls $1.31

River: ($4.45, 2 players) T♣
Hero checks, BTN bets $1.55, fold

BTN wins $4.25

=======================================

Hand #2 - Standard?

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $17.27
SB: $10.37
BB: $10.70
Hero (UTG): $11.31
MP: $10.46
CO: $9.02

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has Q♦ K♦

Hero raises to $0.30, fold, fold, fold, SB raises to $1.00, fold, Hero calls $0.70

Flop: ($2.10, 2 players) K♥ A♣ 3♦
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($2.10, 2 players) 4♣
SB bets $1.15, Hero calls $1.15

River: ($4.40, 2 players) A♥
SB bets $2.65, Hero calls $2.65

SB shows Q♣ A♠ (Three of a Kind, Aces)
(Pre 70%, Flop 86%, Turn 95%)
Hero mucks Q♦ K♦ (Two Pair, Aces and Kings)
(Pre 30%, Flop 14%, Turn 5%)
SB wins $9.26

========================================

Hand #3 - River raise in 3b pot

=========================

Poker Summary

So the last session was just getting back into it after holiday. Made a few silly errors but nothing too expensive. Felt good at the tables and am raring to get going again both with playing and studying.

I will lay out my new goals in my next post as I have not quite got them exactly how I want them just yet. I am setting BIG targets though so be ready!!!

The Fantastic Holiday!

I wouldn’t be British if I didn’t talk about the weather! Many of my friends laugh because it seems that every time we go on holiday the weather is excellent! And in case you did not know the weather is usually very changeable here and very unlikely to be “excellent”! This week was another of those occasions when we got the best of it!

On The Beach

This fantastic weather meant we could spend almost every day on the beach! As the kids are 5 and 7 this is just perfect as they are at that age where playing in sand and splashing about in the sea is something they love to do. I must point out that I am 45 and it is still something I love to do as well so nothing changed for me!!!

Entertainment

There was kids entertainment laid on in the evenings. Sid The Seagull and Lizzie The Lizard are on for an hour or so and the kids loved it. Also they play games and some of the kids get to go on stage. Jackson went on twice and Francesca once and won some prizes!

Museums & Pizza!

On our last whole day we went to three museums - Tutankhamun, Dinosaur and Teddy Bear. Francesca is studying Egyptians this coming year so Tutankhamun was great for her (I loved it too!) and Jackson is mad about Dinosaurs so he loved that one! The kids also had a go at holding owls which they loved!! After all that we had a great pizza and back to the caravan park for more Sid and Lizzie!!!

Back To Normality!

All back down to earth now! Looking forward to hitting the grind, getting back into training and have still got some work on the rental houses to complete! Next holiday December 16th - bring it on!!!!

Chris.

Originally posted by SvenBe
Haha, don't totally stop the bad beats. Poker is also a bit about emotions and managing them - i.e. i find it pretty funny when going street by street and putting in funny memes with every card revealed...
We'll also soon start a promo a bit like that, but more with graphs then with hands.

So much for my random post here this week
And have wonderful holidays!

Thanks Sven!

Originally posted by Hesticus
Yeah, your blog is so lively atm! I do like the stories more you post I agree. However, the hands you post are definitely up to you as the others say as well. I think your bankroll management is very conservative as well but if this helps to have your mental game optimal, I'd definitely recommend to keep applying this technique.

Yh, the bank roll management one is weird I guess. Will take some out of roll to pay for next holiday soon but will still be comfortably rolled for NL50! Thing is, I haven't beaten NL10 Zoom yet so once that is done (convincingly) then I will move on and up! Thanks for comment!

My goals have shifted and shifted again many times over the last year or so. My perception of the world and life has changed so much that this is inevitable. The time has come to set some new goals so today I will share those and give my usual poker update.

Results (3 days)

Profit = +$32
Hands played = 4312

Graph (3 days)

Hand #1 - Line and raise sizes

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $15.65
SB: $10.15
BB: $10.46
UTG: $10.00
MP: $12.64
Hero (CO): $10.00

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has 8♥ 8♦

fold, fold, Hero raises to $0.30, fold, fold, BB calls $0.20

Flop: ($0.65, 2 players) J♥ 8♣ 2♣
BB bets $0.31, Hero raises to $0.99, BB calls $0.68

Turn: ($2.63, 2 players) Q♥
BB bets $1.25, Hero raises to $4.00, BB raises to $9.17 and is all-in, Hero calls $4.71 and is all-in

I think my raise sizes versus his donks are fine here, I just wonder if anyone does anything different (actions or sizes)?

=======================================

Hand #2 - Fun hand v fish

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $10.00
SB: $7.80
BB: $9.59
UTG: $21.34
Hero (MP): $11.13
CO: $10.18

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has T♦ J♦

fold, Hero raises to $0.30, fold, fold, SB raises to $0.50, fold, Hero calls $0.20

Flop: ($1.10, 2 players) 5♥ Q♦ K♦
SB checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($1.10, 2 players) J♠
SB checks, Hero checks

River: ($1.10, 2 players) 8♦
SB bets $7.30 and is all-in, Hero calls $7.30

SB shows T♥ A♠ (Straight, Ace High)
(Pre 67%, Flop 48%, Turn 77%)
Hero shows T♦ J♦ (Flush, King High)
(Pre 33%, Flop 52%, Turn 23%)
Hero wins $14.99

Similar to heads up I get excited when someone min 3bets me preflop. I could bet the flop because I can stack off with my equity and win a big pot when I hit. As it turned out I was okay checking and I have got to admit the huge river overbet was a little “worrying” but cannot fold no way never!!!

“Fish do stupid things”!!!

==================================

Hand #3 - Overpair in 3bet pot face XR and barrel

=================================

This is a copy/paste from my noticeboard!

Introduction

It is time to look at some goals once again. My last goals were set January 2016 (see below) and I am extremely satisfied with the progress and results. My life improves every single day and in ways I find hard to put into words. I will set these goals to help me fulfill my purpose. There is no striving or even effort involved, just loving what I do...

Reflections

Who Am I?
I am a creation of nature. Mother Nature created me perfectly and then human nature took over and I got lost. This was fine and is part of life. I am awakening rapidly and now live with love and peace in my life, things that were not there since I was a tiny child. I am the observer now. My ego is almost dead. When my ego appears I can see it for what it is and it quickly disappears. Ego’s death is imminent in me.

What Do I Want?
Inner peace. Peace for everyone. The awakening of humanity.

What Is My Purpose?
To play my part in Nature’s Purpose of self realization via the awakening of the human race.

How To Fulfil My Purpose?
Continue on my personal journey to inner peace and total love and share that journey with anyone who is ready to follow.

What Am I Grateful For?
Nature/Creation/God. Finding light. The peace and love I have found/been given. My Journey, especially every mistake, every “bad” event and every bit of suffering I have endured (for those have been my best teachers). Eckhart Tolle. Byron Katie. A Course In Miracles. All of my teachers.

Goals

Write twice per week.
Why? I enjoy it and get immersed when doing it. It helps me to realise who I am, where I am going and where I am at. I believe that my writing will one day inspire others but it is not good enough yet. As I keep writing I will get better at writing and as my life gets even better the content will become more useful.

Make at least $30 per hour at poker over 100k hands by end of 2017.
Why? I love playing poker and I love studying poker. I will prove to myself that even though my progress has been small and slow up until now, that I am capable of achieving anything with the correct mindset. My mind was dysfunctional. It is healing. I will prove it to myself and inspire others that that they can do anything that they correctly put their mind to. I will then show others how to achieve whatever they want.

Write down my life purpose and my gratitude list daily.
Why? I have done this for several months now and it has helped me tremendously. No brainer!

Complete “A Course In Miracles”.
Why? I am half way through the text and have learned more about myself and the world. The daily lessons improve my life every day. There is no way I will not complete this work and I believe that it is my destiny to do so.

Notes Regarding New Goals

Property - I have no goals regarding my houses. The economic climate is uncertain and our previous chancellor was increasing taxes for landlords making it even more uncertain. I currently have a 50% share of 10 rental properties which is more than satisfactory (in fact it is a miracle!). So grateful for this and the miracle that let it happen!

Career/employment - No goals. I enjoy my job. My workplace has been one of my greatest teachers in life. I have only gratitude.

Previous Goal Setting (11th January 2016)

Write down my life purpose every day and how it is achieved. - Did this for 3 months then stopped. It changed so much at that time it is understandable. I will do this again as it is crystal clear right now (see above).

Write 10 point gratitude list 5+ days per week - I still do this regularly but do not stick to 10 points which is fine. Life changing.

Meditate daily - Did this very strictly for 3 or 4 months and now still do it regularly but have gotten to a stage wher I can do it at will and without regime. Will continue to meditate as now.

Listen to (or read) self improvement book 1 hour+ per day. - Still do this without fail. Do not have to put it as a goal as it is part of me.

Journal 5+ days per week - Done and will continue. Part of me.

Blog 3+ times per week and try to write 1 "useful" article per week. - Reduced to twice weekly (three is too many). Part of me. I do not write an article weekly and am not sure about this right now.

Poker. Complete $10k Profit Journey to pay for family holidays. - Bad goal. Did not set target well with respect to time. I made $4000 which paid for the family holidays (3) for 2016 and once I got to that figure I lost the target completely. However, I am making changes regarding format and play style that will make me more profitable in the long run. I did not enjoy bumhunting heads up any more and, fortunately for me, I am in a position where the financial rewards are not that important anyway.

Bonus: Helen and I decided to live with cash rather than credit around 1 year ago. We have done that (almost completely) and all credit cards are now paid off. 90% of the credit for this must go to Helen though! We will continue to live like this and should start to see some rewards for this immediately.

Conclusion

So poker is going great, goals excite me, everything is perfect. Please feel free to comment or ask about my goals!

Let’s go!

Chris.

Man, why am I always the breakeven guy!? I mean, I know it could be worse - I could be Mr.Loser! Maybe it is just part of my make up? Always just do enough to breakeven and nothing more. Hopefully the new goals are going to help me to kick on from that mindset...

Results (3 days)

Profit = +$2
Hands played = 5182

Breakeven Graph (3 days)

$10,000 Journey

Not looked at this for a while, probably won’t be pretty…

Hands

Hand #1 - Raise size river?

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $24.74
SB: $9.33
Hero (BB): $10.00
UTG: $10.99
MP: $3.77
CO: $10.79

SB posts SB $0.05, Hero posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has J♣ Q♣

fold, fold, CO raises to $0.30, BTN calls $0.30, fold, Hero calls $0.20

Flop: ($0.95, 3 players) 8♥ 3♣ J♦
Hero checks, CO checks, BTN bets $0.36, Hero calls $0.36, fold

Turn: ($1.67, 2 players) K♣
Hero checks, BTN bets $0.79, Hero calls $0.79

River: ($3.25, 2 players) 2♣
Hero checks, BTN bets $1.55, Hero raises to $4.10...

She looks really weak here with those sizes so think my size is about all I can get from her. Thoughts?

=====================================

Hand #2 - XR Bluff and barrel v assumed reg

I am trying to force myself to be more aggressive. I check raise here with 3 to the straight (BDSD) and a backdoor flush draw. I barrel the turn as it gives me a gutshot and it is an over to his Tx but afterwards I thought it connects too well to his range so my fold equity is not good enough. On the other hand I can jam some rivers or hit. When the flush completes on the river I think I can jam but it is the turn and flop decisions that are maybe wrong???

======================================

Poker Summary

I am not sure if you can see from my graph but it is a little bit more swingy than usual. I am trying to break through an old comfort zone and this is now making me play in bigger pots. I always played a little bit too tight (fold too much) and nowhere near aggressive enough (not bluffing). That is part of my personal make-up that I only recently recognised and have now started to overcome.

The “plan” is to go a bit overboard (at least for me!) with bluffing and calling and ask lots more questions in order to learn what is theoretically sound. I am enjoying it and it is making poker even more fun than it was before! I have been consulting Janda’s book and videos to help me but if you know of any other great sources please let me know!

The $10,000 Journey is very flat but I am happy with my decision to change to 6 max and to Zoom. I know that rake-wise it is possibly not the best idea at present but regarding enjoyment and especially with respect to fitting in with my life commitments it is a no brainer for me. I feel it is helping shift my mindset and my game way quicker than otherwise it might. Hopefully the $10,000 graph will take an upturn again soon!!!

I put some (a lot) of weight on on holiday. I always put weight on over the summer when I am working on the houses. I tend to cram some extra food in whilst driving from my day job to the houses in the evening to kind of “keep me going”. Then I still have a bigger meal at night when I get in! And I train less of course! The houses are almost finished and ready for the students to move in now though, so that sneaky meal will go and I can get back in training.

I did manage to bang out 128 push ups and 251 squats these last few days, just need to start eating a bit more healthy again and will be back on track!

Coming up this week I have got my annual trip to Stratford Races (horse racing) to look forward to! We went there as part of my stag do 4 years ago and have returned each year. I organise it all for my mates but once I get on that coach it is non-stop beers and fun for 12 hours. Can’t wait!

See you in a couple of days for more bluffing (and less breakeven) escapades amigos!

Chris.

IMPORTANT NOTE: There was a "flaw" in my profit figures. Brexit cause me to make quite a lot of money on exchange rates which should not be included in here. I have changed how I account for it now so although I made $34 at tables this week my roll has gone down. (But it hasn't really thanks to Brexit )

Did i hear a complaint? Please send me the funds that you have left over, thx

from someone who earns in £ and spends in € - i hate my life

August has been yet another fantastic month for me. Many things are falling into place for me now as I find my true purpose in life thus helping me to know why I want to set certain goals and how to become even more fulfilled than ever before!

Let’s have a quick look at the last three days then look at August as a whole…

Results (3 days)

Profit/loss = -$20 (includes $10 RB)
Hands played = 4643

Results

Profit = +$62 (includes $30 RB)
Hands played = ~30,000
Hours played = 55 (had 1 week vacation)

I am okay with that, of course I would like to be higher and get into NL25 but so much of my game is changing. I am on my third set of preflop ranges in only 3 months for a start!

Graph

Nice 18bi upswing in there but yeah, overall it should be better than this. I am confident it will come as my game plan gets clearer…

There’s an 80bb pot I won missing in there too and I even tried to import the hand history via email but after 5 minutes (okay it was 20) of messing around trying to set up POP details (whatever that **** is) I though “C’mon man, you’re trying to prove your win rate is $1.30/hour rather than $1.12/hour here you dummy” and then I got a grip of myself and moved on in life again!

Biggest Winning Hand

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $10.30
SB: $6.87
BB: $11.20
Hero (UTG): $10.15
MP: $29.11
CO: $7.52

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has A♣ A♠

Hero raises to $0.30, fold, CO calls $0.30, BTN raises to $1.20, fold, fold, Hero raises to $3.10, CO calls $2.80, BTN raises to $10.30 and is all-in, Hero calls $7.05 and is all-in, CO calls $4.42 and is all-in

Flop: ($27.97, 3 players) 9♦ 6♠ 3♥

Turn: ($27.97, 3 players) J♣

River: ($27.97, 3 players) 4♦

Hero shows A♣ A♠ (One Pair, Aces)

Main Pot [$22.71]: (Pre 82%, Flop 95%, Turn 100%)
Side Pot#1 [$5.26]: (Pre 93%, Flop 99.7%, Turn 100%)

BTN shows A♦ K♥ (High Card, Ace)

Main Pot [$22.71]: (Pre 6%, Flop 0.3%, Turn 0%)
Side Pot#1 [$5.26]: (Pre 7%, Flop 0.3%, Turn 0%)

CO shows A♥ Q♥ (High Card, Ace)

Main Pot [$22.71]: (Pre 11%, Flop 4%, Turn 0%)

Hero wins $26.71

And there was me thinking people only play KK+ this way!

=============================

Biggest Losing Hand

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $11.90
Hero (SB): $12.57
BB: $11.77
UTG: $16.55
MP: $25.95
CO: $4.28

Hero posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has A♣ A♠

fold, fold, fold, BTN raises to $0.20, Hero raises to $0.70, BB raises to $1.95, BTN raises to $11.90 and is all-in, Hero raises to $12.57 and is all-in, BB calls $9.82 and is all-in

Flop: ($35.57, 3 players) 9♠ K♣ 3♥

Turn: ($35.57, 3 players) T♦

River: ($35.57, 3 players) J♦

Hero shows A♣ A♠ (One Pair, Aces)

Main Pot [$35.31]: (Pre 67%, Flop 9%, Turn 5%)
Side Pot#1 [$0.26]: (Pre 80%, Flop 89%, Turn 5%)

BTN shows T♠ T♥ (Three of a Kind, Tens)

Main Pot [$35.31]: (Pre 16%, Flop 2%, Turn 2%)
Side Pot#1 [$0.26]: (Pre 20%, Flop 11%, Turn 95%)

BB shows K♠ K♥ (Three of a Kind, Kings)

Main Pot [$35.31]: (Pre 18%, Flop 89%, Turn 93%)

BTN wins $0.26
BB wins $33.81

Hey, I know… It’s a standard cooler… I just was gutted to come third in the hand that’s all!

==============================================

Conclusion

I would have liked to have moved up this month but it was not to be. I changed a lot in my game, for example I am bluffing way more than before and I make thinner value bets than I used to on the river (plus new preflop ranges AGAIN!).

Study is going really well and as it is more maths based than before it is much easier for me to act on that learning and understand what is going on. I am really enjoying learning the game again and just need to improve my study skills to suit my learning style (aka inability!).

In September I will have another of those huge upswings and take on the NL25 Zoom nits!

Purpose and Why

As I said, a lot of things have gotten clearer for me with regard to life purpose. I have always liked to set myself little challenges and it has become quite obvious to me why I complete some of them (look, I know it’s not many but I am trying here okay!!!) and why I fail at others (sometimes without even hardly trying).

It all comes down to PURPOSE. It all comes down to WHY. I have said that a thousand times before, I know I have, but if you can’t really define it then it seems to me that it’s really just not likely to happen!

For example, I spent around 18 months doing Coaching For Profits at BPC and you know what? I don’t even know WHY I really did it! Of course, I am not saying I did not get anything out of it, for sure I did, for example I proved to myself I can work 100 hour weeks for over a year and I found out a lot of my mental blocks (on my own I hasten to add).

Another example was my challenge to do 100 push-ups. Turns out I had absolutely no idea WHY I even wanted to do 100 Push-ups! I know I was seeing it as fitness and healthy etc but those types of “why” just don’t really cut it. I got nowhere with that, seriously I probably have gone backwards since then!

Moving On

From this point on, everything I do is going to be with good purpose. Most of all I will set my WHYs in stone and make sure I am aware of the reasons and bang! As a result everything will come to me with ease. I just know it will!

In September I will share my targets for getting in good shape (aka getting ripped I believe) and talk more about my purpose. I am really excited about life but then as you might have noticed by now, I say that every single day!

Good luck in September everybody! Let’s go!

Chris.

Great blog! I just feel the energy you have in you. It is a great read every time I bump into you!

We all do sometimes things without a reason or something we haven't thought thoroughly about. However, I think it's not a big deal. Life may be short but does it need to have thorough decisions? Well considered and well researched before you have even started? I don't think so. I think you have done great things in your past. I must say I saw today a quote from Einstein, which said 'If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.'
Talking about thoroughly but that's a different thing.

Keep it up bro!

Wow that was a busy few days! For starters I have been making lots of plans for getting myself into peak physical shape and have made a start with some training. I will get my body into (what I consider to be) perfect shape and I am going to have a lot of fun doing it - I hope you will follow and support me!?

After work we have also been busy putting the final touches on four houses that university students move into this week and also finishing off our most recent purchase so that it can be advertised to let. On top of all this I just about found time to fit in a 13 hour drinking session with my amigos too!!!!!

Results (2 days play)

Profit/loss = -$6 (includes +$10 RB)
Hands played = 3305

Graph

Extremely uneventful couple of days with regards to poker I am afraid! Had too much other stuff going on and when I did play my focus was poor and it showed. Just a minor blip hopefully, will get going again as soon as these houses are handed over.

Fun Hands

Hand 1 - Cooler Alert!

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $10.62
SB: $62.14
BB: $7.59
UTG: $11.47
MP: $14.88
Hero (CO): $11.88

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has Q♦ Q♠

fold, MP raises to $0.30, Hero raises to $0.90, BTN calls $0.90, fold, fold, MP calls $0.60

Flop: ($2.85, 3 players) 7♣ Q♣ J♠
MP checks, Hero bets $2.04, BTN raises to $9.72 and is all-in, fold, Hero calls $7.68

Turn: ($22.29, 2 players) 6♥

River: ($22.29, 2 players) A♦
Players agreed to run it twice.

Turn #2: ($22.29, 2 players) 8♣

River #2: ($22.29, 2 players) 7♠

Hero shows Q♦ Q♠ (Three of a Kind, Queens)
Board #1 (Pre 81%, Flop 96%, Turn 98%)
(Full House, Queens full of Sevens)
Board #2 (Pre 81%, Flop 95%, Turn 98%)

BTN shows 7♥ 7♦ (Three of a Kind, Sevens)
Board #1 (Pre 19%, Flop 4%, Turn 2%)
(Four of a Kind, Sevens)
Board #2 (Pre 19%, Flop 5%, Turn 2%)

BTN wins $10.64
Hero wins $10.65

Nice!

=========================

Hand 2 - Standard 3 barrel?

PokerStars - $0.10 NL FAST (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
Hand converted by PokerTracker 4

BTN: $10.00
SB: $14.36
BB: $15.74
UTG: $8.97
Hero (MP): $10.86
CO: $17.03

SB posts SB $0.05, BB posts BB $0.10

Pre Flop: (pot: $0.15) Hero has Q♠ K♥

fold, Hero raises to $0.30, CO calls $0.30, fold, fold, fold

Flop: ($0.75, 2 players) J♦ T♥ 2♦
Hero bets $0.47, CO calls $0.47

Turn: ($1.69, 2 players) 5♥
Hero bets $1.07, CO calls $1.07

River: ($3.83, 2 players) 6♥
Hero bets $2.43, CO calls $2.43

Hero shows Q♠ K♥ (High Card, King)
(Pre 41%, Flop 47%, Turn 30%)
CO shows J♥ A♣ (One Pair, Jacks)
(Pre 59%, Flop 53%, Turn 70%)
CO wins $8.30

Barrel off looks standard to me here, villain has a tough time calling top pair here and I can fold some AdXd hands out.

My Perfect Body

The time has come, I am seriously going to get into perfect shape. I have been “tinkering” around with fitness for too long now but I know exactly why that was - I was not sure WHY I was doing it. All that is totally clear now and I am super pumped about getting into shape and sorting my body out.

I made an introduction video here…

I will make regular (probably weekly) videos of what I have been doing to perfect my body but mostly it is going to be a lot of fun and a lot of trial and error. Very excited to be getting into this!

A Day At The Races

We had our annual day at the horse racing on Saturday. This is our fifth year of the outing which started as part of my stag do and we have kept it going as it is a great (but messy) day out!

We meet at 10.30 in the morning in the pub for a few beers to get warmed up…

That is me on the left and Andy (my best man 4 years ago) the first in the pub as always at 10.30 sharp!

Then we have a minibus take us to the racecourse…

I think we had just stopped for the inevitable pit stop after several pints of beer!!!

I only had a couple of bets at the races as I was having a great time catching up with some mates that I only see once or twice a year and also it was raining a little bit but it didn’t take anything away from the day, just some light drizzle. The beers kept flowing anyway!!!

Then we were back to the pub by 6.30…

More beers!!! By 10.30 a few of us were starving (and the rest had gone home!) so we wandered over to our local Indian restaurant for a curry and of course a few more beers…

Helen told me I got home about midnight and as you can imagine Sunday was a bit of a write off for me!!!

It was a fantastic day out as always and I am already looking forward to next year!!! Not sure how good these sessions are for attaining my perfect body but hey, you gotta make it tough right!!!!?

See you next time with another video hopefully of me doing some workouts this time and maybe some better effort on the poker scene!!!

Cheers!

Chris.

Originally posted by Hesticus
Great blog! I just feel the energy you have in you. It is a great read every time I bump into you!

We all do sometimes things without a reason or something we haven't thought thoroughly about. However, I think it's not a big deal. Life may be short but does it need to have thorough decisions? Well considered and well researched before you have even started? I don't think so. I think you have done great things in your past. I must say I saw today a quote from Einstein, which said 'If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.'
Talking about thoroughly but that's a different thing.

Keep it up bro!

Hey man, thanks a lot for the kind words and encouragement.

Agree with you, some things don't have to be taken so seriously for sure. Just if you REALLY wanna achieve something it is going to be a lot easier if you work on the purpose and reasons why first. People generally rely too much on will power and other weak sources of motivation (videos etc).

Let's go BIG!

Good read as always, good luck on your training journey, something i believe every human should be on, our bodies are our true home. Imo it is a truly spiritual process and will evolve as you do but to be honest i think your initial training plan is pretty boring and lame and wouldnt last long for a lot of people, losing interest.

Couple notes that may help
Learning a new movement with your body builds more neural connections in the brain than learning anything else, its literally the main reason we have brains.
As you build also fix, everyone has damage accumulate in their bodies over the years, mostly from lack of movement but also poor training, im sure most poker players have 1 or more problems in their back, shoulders, hips, neck, etc and ya dont have to just live with them.
'intermittent fasting' is a place to start with nutrition that wont make you have to give up the beersies and throw out the pantry and go through the classic evolution of paleo, pescatarian, vegatarian, vegan, raw vegan, breatharian.
These are just my opinion and arent necessarily directly related to getting buff and ripped but my thoughts anyway.

Much love