Monday, December 18, 2006
Friggn' Canadians
Who taught the friggen' Canadian donkeys how to play limit poker? If Daniel Negreanu wrote a book advising Canadian donkeys to call 4 bets cold with a 6c 2c, I really need to read this book because it worked like magic.
I got crushed, again, playing limit hold'em in Canada. The Great Blue Heron escaped my revenge....this time. I got stuck for $190.
I don't mind, too much, having my bigs hand cracked every once in a while. My problem is that when my big hands held up, I won a nice small pot. When my big hands lost, I lost a gianormous pot. When I chased longshot draws into big pots, I never won the long shot gianourmous pot.
Here's my formula. I win small pots. I loose gianormous pots, and when I chase long shot draws, I need to get real lucky to win. This doesn't sound like a winning formula to me.
Think about it. On your longshot draws - say you are a 12:1 dog on the river (gut shot) into a pot that contains 18 bets, you are getting the right price to call, but you'll still miss that draw almost every time.
I have 2 hands to recap. One that I played like a donkey (hey - the Canadians must have infected me or something) and one where I got donkified by a Canadian donkaholic.
This time I'm the Donkey
It's 5/10 limit hold'em 11 handed. Stack sizes are not material. So I'm in the big blind. UTG+1, a very solid player, open raises. Middle position loose agressive player 3 bets. He's been raising with a wide variety of hands. He could have any Ace or any 2 broadway cards or any pair.
Canadian born donkaholic in the SB cold calls 3 bets. I have not seen him fold a hand pre-flop in about 3 hours, so cold calling 3 bets does not set off much of an alarm to me.
I peek down and find pocket Aces. Now, I'm liking my hand. I capped it, but I'm not sure anyone noticed. I didn't make much of a grand gesture when I capped it. I meekly pushed out 4 red chips and everyone auto called. Now that I think about it, if I'm going to cap a pot, from now on people better damn well know it was I who did so.
I'm happy to have a capped pot, 4 handed, but I'm worried with the pot this big this early, I'm probably going to get chased down like mad. The flop comes with a Qc 7x 4c. It goes check to me. I bet, UTG+1 calls, MP calls, SB calls. No alarms here. People at this table chase hoplessly. If anyone had as little as 2 outs, they'd call one small bet here. The pot now has 20 small bets.
The turn brings a 9c. I'm slightly worried about a flush but I'm determined to not play timid here, so after the SB checks, I bet. UTG+1 raises. MP folds. SB check raises making it 3 bets.
Now if I wasn't donkified by playing with the Canadian donkaholics for the last 5 hours, I'd simply fold. After all, I'm not only beat, I'm drawing dead....so I call 2 bets cold. The river is inconsequential. SB bets. I call. UTG+1 calls. The SB scoops a pot with 19 big bets ($190) after showing his made flush with 6c 2c.
I was somewhat demoralized to find out I was in 3rd place in this hand as UTG+1 flopped top set with the Queens.
I donked off 3 big bets on this hand that I didn't need to. I came into this game with $200, so I just donked about 15% of my stake. I guess that's the nature of limit poker....you have to avoid these types of mistakes.
This time I'm the victim of a donkifiscation
UTG +1 open raises. This guy has been unconscious. He has been open raising with good hands and trash hands all night and his trash hands have connected in so many ways that he now has 7 towers of 40 red chips each. I give him no credit for any hand here. If I have a Q high, I'm 3 betting it.
The guy to his right (UTG+2) is a real beginner. He had to be admonished about 3 times from trying to bet $40 on the turn. "Sir, this is a $5/$10 limit game, you can only bet $10 on this round" Anyway, he had scored some nice pots early, but he was taking a beating recently. This might be because he was calling people down with bottom pair everytime he showed his hand. This guy calls the 2 bets cold.
The donkaholic to my right (from the hand above) has never seen a hand preflop that he can throw away. He cold calls 2 bets.
I'm next to act. I indeed have Q high and it is paired with another Q for added attractivenss. I 3 bet. It's folded to UTG+1 manic who dutifully calls as does everyone else. The pot now has 13.5 small bets.
The flop cooperates and comes with a Jx 8x 4x.
UTG+1 manic opens. UTG+2 beginner calls. Donkaholic calls. I raise. Call. Call. Call.
The pot now has 21.5 small bets.
Turn card is the 3x. Perfect! The board is Jx 8x 4x 3x. No flush. No straight. And I've got an over pair.
It goes check, check, check to me. I think my hand is good. I bet. It goes call, call, and finally donkaholic gives it a break and folds one. Amazing. The pot now has 14 big bets
River is 4x. The board reads Jx 8x 4x 3x 4x. It goes UTG+1 maniac - check, UTG+2 beginner - bet, what? What just happened here? This is what it feels like to get rivered. I now shut it down a little. I call. UTG+1 folds.
UTG+2 shows a 10 4 off suit "good buddy". He scoops a nice pot with 16 bets in it.
Let's take a look at his play. I'm going to skip his preflop play - just grant me this one. It was a bad preflop play. But on the flop, the pot has 13 small bets. He has 5 outs twice and the board is uncoordinated. He's getting 14:1 immediate pot odds when he is a 9:1 dog on his call. Then, when he is facing more bet back to him, he is getting around 21:1 on his call. Not bad.
On the turn, he is getting 14:1 when he is a 9:1 dog. His call is OK.
The river plays itself. He bets and collects one last bet from me after he catches one of his 5 outs.
Oh well. I guess I'll just keep trying to play percentage poker and call when the calling odds are favorable and fold when there not. I think I need a coach.
I got crushed, again, playing limit hold'em in Canada. The Great Blue Heron escaped my revenge....this time. I got stuck for $190.
I don't mind, too much, having my bigs hand cracked every once in a while. My problem is that when my big hands held up, I won a nice small pot. When my big hands lost, I lost a gianormous pot. When I chased longshot draws into big pots, I never won the long shot gianourmous pot.
Here's my formula. I win small pots. I loose gianormous pots, and when I chase long shot draws, I need to get real lucky to win. This doesn't sound like a winning formula to me.
Think about it. On your longshot draws - say you are a 12:1 dog on the river (gut shot) into a pot that contains 18 bets, you are getting the right price to call, but you'll still miss that draw almost every time.
I have 2 hands to recap. One that I played like a donkey (hey - the Canadians must have infected me or something) and one where I got donkified by a Canadian donkaholic.
This time I'm the Donkey
It's 5/10 limit hold'em 11 handed. Stack sizes are not material. So I'm in the big blind. UTG+1, a very solid player, open raises. Middle position loose agressive player 3 bets. He's been raising with a wide variety of hands. He could have any Ace or any 2 broadway cards or any pair.
Canadian born donkaholic in the SB cold calls 3 bets. I have not seen him fold a hand pre-flop in about 3 hours, so cold calling 3 bets does not set off much of an alarm to me.
I peek down and find pocket Aces. Now, I'm liking my hand. I capped it, but I'm not sure anyone noticed. I didn't make much of a grand gesture when I capped it. I meekly pushed out 4 red chips and everyone auto called. Now that I think about it, if I'm going to cap a pot, from now on people better damn well know it was I who did so.I'm happy to have a capped pot, 4 handed, but I'm worried with the pot this big this early, I'm probably going to get chased down like mad. The flop comes with a Qc 7x 4c. It goes check to me. I bet, UTG+1 calls, MP calls, SB calls. No alarms here. People at this table chase hoplessly. If anyone had as little as 2 outs, they'd call one small bet here. The pot now has 20 small bets.
The turn brings a 9c. I'm slightly worried about a flush but I'm determined to not play timid here, so after the SB checks, I bet. UTG+1 raises. MP folds. SB check raises making it 3 bets.
Now if I wasn't donkified by playing with the Canadian donkaholics for the last 5 hours, I'd simply fold. After all, I'm not only beat, I'm drawing dead....so I call 2 bets cold. The river is inconsequential. SB bets. I call. UTG+1 calls. The SB scoops a pot with 19 big bets ($190) after showing his made flush with 6c 2c.
I was somewhat demoralized to find out I was in 3rd place in this hand as UTG+1 flopped top set with the Queens.
I donked off 3 big bets on this hand that I didn't need to. I came into this game with $200, so I just donked about 15% of my stake. I guess that's the nature of limit poker....you have to avoid these types of mistakes.
This time I'm the victim of a donkifiscation
UTG +1 open raises. This guy has been unconscious. He has been open raising with good hands and trash hands all night and his trash hands have connected in so many ways that he now has 7 towers of 40 red chips each. I give him no credit for any hand here. If I have a Q high, I'm 3 betting it.
The guy to his right (UTG+2) is a real beginner. He had to be admonished about 3 times from trying to bet $40 on the turn. "Sir, this is a $5/$10 limit game, you can only bet $10 on this round" Anyway, he had scored some nice pots early, but he was taking a beating recently. This might be because he was calling people down with bottom pair everytime he showed his hand. This guy calls the 2 bets cold.
The donkaholic to my right (from the hand above) has never seen a hand preflop that he can throw away. He cold calls 2 bets.
I'm next to act. I indeed have Q high and it is paired with another Q for added attractivenss. I 3 bet. It's folded to UTG+1 manic who dutifully calls as does everyone else. The pot now has 13.5 small bets.
The flop cooperates and comes with a Jx 8x 4x.
UTG+1 manic opens. UTG+2 beginner calls. Donkaholic calls. I raise. Call. Call. Call.
The pot now has 21.5 small bets.
Turn card is the 3x. Perfect! The board is Jx 8x 4x 3x. No flush. No straight. And I've got an over pair.
It goes check, check, check to me. I think my hand is good. I bet. It goes call, call, and finally donkaholic gives it a break and folds one. Amazing. The pot now has 14 big bets
River is 4x. The board reads Jx 8x 4x 3x 4x. It goes UTG+1 maniac - check, UTG+2 beginner - bet, what? What just happened here? This is what it feels like to get rivered. I now shut it down a little. I call. UTG+1 folds.
UTG+2 shows a 10 4 off suit "good buddy". He scoops a nice pot with 16 bets in it.
Let's take a look at his play. I'm going to skip his preflop play - just grant me this one. It was a bad preflop play. But on the flop, the pot has 13 small bets. He has 5 outs twice and the board is uncoordinated. He's getting 14:1 immediate pot odds when he is a 9:1 dog on his call. Then, when he is facing more bet back to him, he is getting around 21:1 on his call. Not bad.
On the turn, he is getting 14:1 when he is a 9:1 dog. His call is OK.
The river plays itself. He bets and collects one last bet from me after he catches one of his 5 outs.
Oh well. I guess I'll just keep trying to play percentage poker and call when the calling odds are favorable and fold when there not. I think I need a coach.
