PokerStars 50NL 12/2/09 (Cash vs Heads-Up)

Last night was pretty productive.  I got in a great workout and a solid poker session at night.  I started off 4-6 tabling 50 NL.  At one point during the night I was down about $115.  I ran pretty atrocious at some points, typical raping by the ways of 2 outers and such.  The low limits on PokerStars seem barely profitable.  I mean you really have to pay attention to your table selection at all times.  The low-limit cash full-ring game play on that site has to be the tightest in poker’s history of existence.  Sure you are going to have really tight games more and more, but you shouldn’t have to sift through tables almost an hour.  On PokerStars not only do you have to worry about getting sucked out, but there’s a good chance even if you get dealt a monster you are going to only win the blinds.  You really have to stay focused, try to not get pissed off, and keep up with your table selection.  Tough to do when you are already pretty damn exhausted.

After a while I started playing 50NL head’s up at the same time.  I think heads-up is really the way to go if you’re going to play a cash game for money low-limit on Stars.  I’ve just been getting into heads-up more the past few months, but I really enjoy it.  It’s a great change of pace from ring game or even 6-max.  I prefer a sit-and-go heads up format, but the problem is you don’t receive any FPPs unless you play with straight-up cash.

Last night (or a few hours ago) I eventually ditched the ring games, and transitioned into playing just one 50NL HU table with an opponent I played with about 2 hours.  He really had my number at first.  I was actually somewhat confused on an attack plan.  Basically he would raise my blind 95% of the time, and usually follow up huge.  When I raised pre and followed up, he would often unleash a massive 3 bet.  This guy ate aggression for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  He invented his own liquid RAGE, which he injects into his bloodstream before he plays online poker.  This mother fucker did not let up, EVER.  The problem was he raised my blind $3-4.50 every-time.  It’s not fun having to pay 8 TIMES the blind to even see a flop.

He made some really questionable plays with mid pair and such, so I felt like discipline could beat him eventually.  He had the aggression down, but I felt he didn’t have a great concept of what a solid hand to put up a massive amount of chips with would be.  My suspicions were confirmed as I became border-line fed-up and pushed all in over the top preflop with A9 making it $15 more for him to play.  He called with K7.  I somehow held on and won that pot.  So after that I felt I could just push all in preflop with nearly any ace and he would stupidly call while having the worst of the situation.

The plan soon back-fired as I pushed all in $35 preflop with 10-10.  He thought about it a long time and called with J-J absolutely crushing me.  I’m not sure what the hell he was thinking about, but he got my number there.  I soon re-bought $40.  During the next big hand I went all in for about $35 preflop with AQ, he called with 77 (he snap called it here.  So he thought about a $35 call preflop with JJ until the time bank ran out, but with 77 he SNAP CALLS.  Maybe it was because he was already up at this point).  Well luckily I spiked an ace on the flop and doubled up there.  I realized my strategy really wasn’t giving myself a substantial edge.

From that point on I shifted strategy and never let him bully me again.  I would fold 6 times in a row if I had to.  I simply wasn’t going to put up $4.50 preflop on my blind with hands like A 3, and I wasn’t going to push it all in either.  I was content playing my game, not his.  I started playing only bigger hands (A9+).  I felt fine doing this since I realized with any hand he basically proved he would CALL my preflop raise, and unleash a massive 3 bet on my follow up.  An interesting trend soon developed; he would continue the aggression train and get himself in huge trouble.  His steals were not balancing out the enormous pots he would eventually lose, not even close.  I doubled up once when I flopped a set.  He turned a top pair 9 and tried to drive out huge getting smashed.  Another hand I took a full buy in when I top paired ace and out-kicked him for a huge pot.  I soon doubled up again, as I realized this guy was completely fine putting up $20 total to fight, even with AIR on the flop or turn. 

He kept re-buying and I took further control.  I won over 3 full $50 buy-ins from him.  At the end I had about $220 in front of me, and he had $0.  I would have played until he left regardless of the fact that it was 2:30a.m and I had to be at work at 9a.m this morning.  I knew my advantage over him was enormous at this point.  I wanted to keep pounding him, like I would do too this 20-year old I invited to my moving away party this weekend (I don’t care if she’s 20, mother of god she is cute), but he left and I logged soon after that.  On the session I was up $50 total, which I was really happy with since I was stuck $120 at one point.

There are a lot of regulars on the heads-up scene, but all it takes is the one right person heads-up to make ridiculous profit margins on low-stakes.  My opponent last night really wasn’t that bad, (I’ve seen much worse heads-up) he had the aggression part down which I feel is usually the most important starting heads up concept.  However, he just had no discipline or even worse really didn’t understand hand values incredibly well.  Crazy aggression works great in no-limit heads-up, but you have to know when the hell to back off. 

In a full-ring game, you are going to find targets even on a super tight site, but you have to deal with 7 other opponents.  Chances are he’s going to quickly leave after he busts to some stupid rock/nit player who happened to find a monster hand at the right time. 

However, in the world of heads-up the weak really don’t have anywhere to hide.

I’ll be so tired tonight that I won’t be able to do much productive, certainly not play poker well.  I have to prepare for big party Friday, but won’t have time to go out.  So hopefully I can get in an online session later Friday before my Saturday massacre.

On the “corporate” front I have a pretty cool new strategy.  Whenever something happens that really pisses me off I don’t do anything work related for an hour.  I use the hour to either apply for jobs in Vegas, write a blog entry like now, (this entry is approaching 2 hours, since I’ve been pissed off twice today so that works out well) or do something fun.

Neat right?

-bag



Wasting Time Again

The weekend began busy and ended a blowout.  I passed a required real estate exam Saturday morning, which was a huge relief. A month worth of classes and a failed exam would have amounted to a massive failure.  I still have to take the PSI exam, which is a state exam.  However, I can take it anytime before I leave.  It’s just a $70 dollar fee.  Hopefully I can prepare and pass it on the first shot.  If I want to be an idiot and not prepare I could always keep paying $70 a pop and retaking.  However, I’m not thinking about real estate for a few weeks.  

On the poker front I played two small sessions Thursday night and Saturday afternoon.  The sessions were a few hours each, and consisted of 4-tabling 50NL.  Combined I was up around $100.

Also I created a twitter account.  I provided a link on the right.  It will probably be low-key for some time, but it could be a nice tool if I move out and I’m posting updates live.  I already have an account for my real name.  Maybe one day I can even combine the identities.  Probably a bad idea, but who knows.  But thanks to my first and only follower:

HARDBOILEDPOKER!

I have a lot more link-ups to do; I’m really slacking on that.  Browsing for fellow-poker bloggers you like and asking to link up doesn’t seem like much work, but I love to slack on that for some reason.

I think during the weekend I really began to get a sense for how much I will miss many of my friends around Baltimore.  It is obvious that I will miss people, but I don’t think it has fully set-in yet.  It’s strange I’m already thinking about it a few months in advance.  I’ve been fortunate to have a good support system and friends that really do care about me.  I ended up being semi-dragged to party around Washington D.C Saturday night.  I was reluctant, but I didn’t have to drive and had a free place to stay.  Mixing it up never hurts.  My roommate has been dating a girl who lives down there, so it was an obvious choice for him.  And he somehow got a few followers to come this time around.

I was semi-joking around before going down there, “why the hell would I want to go to D.C?”  I mean then there’s a chance I could meet a girl down there, and that’s a really pain-in the ass drive (I actually experienced that situation first-hand about 3 years ago).  Well I was somewhat impressed with the going out scene in D.C.  Blows Baltimore away (obviously what place doesn’t).  Many people say they feel a pretentious vibe around D.C, but I didn’t mind it at all.  Yah compared to Baltimore maybe, but not as bad as Manhattan.  And at least the bars were full of attractive girls and didn’t close at 2a.m.  In comparison, Baltimore would have had basically zero attractive girls and booted my arse to the curve around 1:30 a.m.  In Baltimore I have to consume enough booze to trick myself into thinking that I'm having "A REALLY GOOD TIME" (when in actuality if I drink enough I will have a good adventure anywhere, no matter how miserable the location really is).  Then when you're finally approach a good level, BAM, they throw you out at 1:30a.m.

I got border-line trashed in D.C of course.  It was a very fun night.  I really hadn’t been drinking much the past month with these classes, so the drinks hit me that much harder.  And of course I did end up meeting a girl I really liked.  I thought she was incredibly fucking cute.  The last two hours of the night we really just talked alone and forgot about our friends: “wait maybe we should be social”.  She was my roommate’s girlfriend’s good friend.  We didn’t “hook up”.  Not that I would ever expect that especially when first meeting someone, but that always seems to be the first question people ask.  I’m pretty much the opposite of a one-night stand guy, the concept is not me.  I picked up a vibe she was very into me, but seemed reserved at some points.  I slept next to her really uncomfortably on a coach Saturday night, and we exchanged texts and face-booked the next day.

First off, she lives in Richmond.  That’s 3 hours away from where I live.  Trying to get involved would be about as stupid as basically dating a girl who lives at the closest beach (3 hours away), which oh wait I pretty much did all summer.  I also found out from an inside source the next day that she is a virgin.  This is why I love having a blog with my real name not attached.  I normally couldn’t go into any of this, but HOW IN THE HELL can someone be approaching mid-twenties and still be a virgin???? 

Ok call me nuts, but this attracts me even more.  It doesn’t bother me; honestly I would rather a girl be a virgin than a raging whore.  I just don’t understand how that happens in this day and age.  And she was really good looking, so it makes even less sense.  She must have incredibly strong morals there?  Hell normally if she was in the area and I wasn’t planning a move to Vegas I would be crazy enough to pursue it.  No wonder I was so attracted to this girl.  IT’S IMPOSSIBLE.  So if we are talking about baglife and it's completely impossible, baglife would say bring it on.  I have this strange urge to try to get involved with crazy shit that doesn’t have a chance of working.  And my philosophy leaks over to the type of girls I go after.  An attempt to dig into my psychology on this particular scenario:

“OH YOU LIVE 3 HOURS AWAY? and you’re a virgin?  (SOUNDS FUCKING IMPOSSIBLE.)  What was your number again?  We should really meet up; you’re like the coolest girl ever.”

I know it’s impossible, and why I become tempted by impossible situations I couldn’t tell you.  I’m not sure if I’m going to actually attempt to push for a meet-up, but knowing me I will.  I definitely want to see her again sooner rather than later, that I am sure of.  I wonder if I told her about my plans to move to Vegas, I'd give it a 50% chance that I did.  I don't clearly remember all of the conversations, but I don't see how I couldn't mention something about it.  But 50% says maybe I didn't because I wanted her to talk to me the next day.  HEY maybe she can move to VEGAS, hahaha right.........

Anyways, Sunday I was really messed up from basically no sleep the night before.  It’s a reoccurring theme when living around here, party to hard and waste away weekends.  Sunday I was basically so out of it the only thing I could do was sit there and watch NFL games all day.  With live poker in my life I instantly plan to cut the temptation out.  It’s one thing that I enjoy even more than going out all night and trying meeting girls that happen to live 3 hours away.

This post was sort-of personal, and not very poker related but oh well.  I want people to know some about me, I think it makes a blog interesting. 

I was going to write something leading to a point about how living around here induces me to waste away a lot of time, and how the move would combat that.  But then I just got lost rambling about going out in D.C and some girl I met. 

I know "I'm young I'm supposed to have fun".  But if I have fun all weekend, and work all week at a job I'm not passionate about then I feel like I am not progressing at an acceptable level by my standards.  Worse than that, I feel as if I'm REGRESSING.

Well this post does sort of touch on the point I was originally going to drive at without realizing:

Wasting time again.

-bag

Moving to Vegas Checklist (Part I)

Here I am breaking from studying and losing focus REALLY fast. 

I'm officially moving out of Baltimore city December 15th, which is a very big first step.  After that I plan to commute to work from home a month or two.  This way I can save some more money before I take off to Vegas.  I have really been working on getting myself in a mindset to move out alone.  If my one friend falls through, I still have to do it alone.  This is scary to think about at first, but I simply have to be ok with doing this move alone.  This is about my future and getting myself in a position to be my own man again, and persue my passions everyday.  Whether my friend decides to go or not should not factor into play.  It really shouldn't matter.

Anyways I have so many things to get in order before I leave.  Just thinking of a few right now (some much smaller than others): 

1)  Fix your car.

The check engine light is still on.  This should cost around $300-450 to fix.  You don't want to be driving across country and have a vehicle breakdown.  Bad enough you will have to worry about having a MENTAL one.

2)  Replace your windshield wipers.

They make an awful screech whenever used in the rain.  You may encounter some rain when driving across the country, so you should probably change them soon.  Also, buy an extra pair while you are at it in case something happens.

3)  Extra brake-lights.

Your break lights go out frequently.  Didn't think about this before, but would make sense to pick up a few extra.

4)  Get your oil changed and check your tire air pressure.

More minor things that could turn into a big problem

5)  Plan to divide into three bank accounts.

One account will be a fixed $5,000 to start.  This account will only be used to pay rent the first six months.  You should have an additional $5,000 to deposit into this account after the first six months (if things are going well enough to stay 6 more months).

The second account will be your bankroll.  I'm hoping to have a $10,000 minimum in this bank account to start.  Playing 200NL this would be 50 full buy ins.  However, I plan to be buying in for about $150 at first as part of my strategy to play solid poker.  This would give me around 66 buy-ins, which should be plenty.

The third account should be for everyday spending.  This includes food, gas, groceries, going out, a horrible date, or etc.  I plan to have about $5000 in this account.

6)  Your savings account does not exist.

This account will not be touched.  It basically doesn't exist.  If Vegas doesn't work out you will never be broke.  I can't imagine losing everything from the accounts mentioned above.  I'd have to be a pretty shitty poker player, and have even shittier bankroll management skills.  You haven't been playing the last 4 years for no reason.

7)  Buy a lap-top.

This is going to be incredibly necessary especially since writing will be very important when you are on your own away.  You haven't needed a lap-top the past two years because you are always at a desktop.  You are either at work, where you are on a desktop with internet access the entire day.  Or at your place a few miles away, which also has a P.C and internet access.

8)  Buy an Iphone or new Ipod.

The internet access from anywhere will be important, and the maps alone will be of great help.

9)  Get into a 100% mindset that you are moving out alone.

This way it will not matter whether the friend falls through or not.  It should be irrelevant.

10)  Figure out if you are going to:

A.  Get a "job"

and

B.  If you get a job, determine if you want to get something more serious (aka 9-5 through a staffing company), or something with much less stress during the week.  The first option would give you more safety, but only allow you to play poker seriously on the weekends.  The point of the second option would be as much about balance and meeting people.

Right now I'm aiming towards "feeling things out", and getting a "job" if necessary.  I want to commit as much time to poker as possible, and I don't want to be distracted.  Much of the week could go towards studying the game and writing.  The money sessions would probably be Thursday Night to Sunday Afternoon.

11)  Have 100% confidence in yourself.

I know I can do this.  This is not a fling.  It is important to stay focused and not question myself.

12)  Don't get to attached or involved with any girls during the next month or so.

She's only going to distract you from your goals and passions.  Please don't be stupid enough to fall into this trap-door situation.  You haven't the past year, but you have always had a terrible luck with timing in your life.  These upcoming months should be spent saying good-bye to friends and family, and also seriously getting your shit in order.

The last month when you have gone out with someone you have been really honest which has been great.  Basically:

"Yeah I'm actually moving to Vegas soon."

Then they of course think you are a degenerate fuck-up so most girls around instantly write you off at this point.  Which is fine, best to not waste time with people like this.  Always great when people judge something they know nothing about.

Remember you don't want to be married with kids at 27.  You want to go after your dreams and be your own man again.  Besides, there will be plenty of terrible girls to ruin your life no matter what city or state you live in.  That is pretty much the only thing in life that is guarantee.

13)  Set a date that you must move to Vegas by.

I am aiming for April 1st at the latest.  This would mean two months living at the parents house and saving money.  This strategy should equate to saving at least $2000-$2750 more dollars ($2750 if you are smart; $2000 if you have a little to much fun.

14)  Look up your ex girlfriend that once fucked you over.

Better yet show up at her door and thank her in person.  Make sure you thank that bitch for accidentally giving you the ability to go after your passions.  The past experience has helped mold you into the strong person you are today.  Remember how miserable and dead-end your life would be if you were still stuck with that heartless whore.

15)  Thank your corporation.

For clearly showing you everything you stand against and don't ever want to be a part of.

16)  Buy a digital camera.

You don't need a camera that will allow you to become a professional photographer, but you really should have one.  This will be an experience to cherish and remember the rest of your life, no matter what happens.

17)  Don't forget about your friends.

They were always there for you and nothing has changed.  Don't forget to spend time with them during the upcoming months.

18)  Put forth a serious effort to try to make your parents understand, and hate you somewhat less.

To them it is their moral duty to try to strongly discourage you from something they don't understand.  But you can at least alleviate the situation and assure them you have a plan.  Besides your older brother is already filthy rich, at least one of you "made it".  Every family has the asshole fuck-up right?

19)  You should be looking at rental opportunities everyday and really comparing things logically.

Getting the place lined up is MUCH more important than getting a "JOB" lined up.  Based on your past results and skills you know you should be able to average what you are making at your corporate job now, even just starting out.

20)  Finalize the design on this site, and link up with fellow poker bloggers.

Hell start linking up even if the design isn't top notch.  Hopefully some people have been in this situation before, and can maybe even reach out and provide some great input.  What you're planning seems crazy to many people, but it has been done thousands of times before.

21)  Get back to studying for your Real Estate classes NOW.

You don't want to fail and have wasted a month taking classes.  HIT SAVE AND CLOSE AND END THIS BLOG POST.

CLICK!

Time is Consumed- Classes and Work

It is important for me to get this site off the ground.  I need to work on the design and start linking up with respected bloggers!  My life has just been a crazy mess the two weeks or so.  I'm trying to move out to Vegas by January, follow my dreams, and completely uproot my life.  So that is going to be a major focus with regards to what I write about on B-Life Poker.

I work a corporate job 9a.m-5p.m (minimum) Monday-Friday.  In addition to that I am taking Real Estate classes to get certified.  The classes are 9a.m-5p.m Saturday and Sunday.  So for an entire month I have NO FREE TIME.  I subjected myself to this so I can't really complain.  I just didn't see another time I could fit in the classes.  And it's important to be certified because I'm aiming for the Vegas move.  If something goes horribly wrong and I have to move back to Maryland at least I will be able to make my own deals in Real Estate in a transition period.  It's more of a back-up plan.  Hell even in Nevada if I ever build myself to a level of comfort, I could get certified with little effort since I have already been through the process.

Strange I'm not even going out for Halloween, all my friends must really hate me right now haha.  What can you do?  At least during this crazy time I'm so busy I won't even be able to drink.  Probably good to "detox" and completely clear my head for the first time in a while.  Even though this last week I was so busy I didn't even have time to fit in one measly workout.  I did not expect so much outside work for this class.  I studied 2-3 hours a night for the class since Saturday(10/24/09) and I'm just barely staying on pace.  Tonight same deal; fuck my life right.

Named the site sub-title "ROAD TO VEGAS".  I plan to discuss this more in time.

-Bag