Two live MTTs and a lot of online playing

Balance : $1996

Live MTT.  $200 buyin, $6000 prize pool.  30 runners. 

Our local poker club was fairly tight in play on the Saturday it ran the $200 buy in.

I got shortstacked.  On the BB.  SB limps, everyone else folds.

I have K8o.  I decide to check and then shove on a good or dry flop.

Flop : 4/4/5

SB trys to bet 500.  The dealer corrects him and says it’s 800. 

I shove for 8000 chips.  He counts up and eventually calls with KK.

I am thinking he made some amazing  call or just couldn’t get away from his hand.

I went out 14/30.  Straight to the cash tables with the crazy fish.  Flopped 2p and flopped str. first few hands, got my entry back of $200 instantly.  Grinded it a bit but didn’t get any more luck and left at 1.30 AM, broke even for the night which was good. 

I was really comfortable at the cash table, it was a good feeling and ate the fish up fairly quickly.

Next MTT the following weekend.  $100 + $50 rebuy or top up at the crazy wild west poker club.  First hand I have J8. 

Flop : Q/10/9. 

I check…only the button to act.

She bets.  I call.

Turn : A

Not a good card, I’ve got the bottom end of the straight, so I check.  She bets, I call.

River : 10.

She bets.  I figure her for pair of Qs.  Hopefully AQ.  I shove.

She shows Q10 for a full boat.  I over-slowplayed.  But saying that if I shoved on 4th she would have called anyway.

Shortly afterwards hit trips.  But finally became shortstacked.

One caller, I shove with A3 (the Jerry Yang lol).  He has 88.  I hit trip 3s on the river…whew!

Next..one shortstacker shoves, I call with 88.  He has KJ, hits straight on river.

I have A4 and 4000 chips, blinds 2000.  Only 1 caller, instashove.  She has K10 and hits a 10 on the river.

Went straight to the cash tables and won back $100.  But I just couldn’t bluff the donks – even when they had 2p and their was a flush on the board.  They were mostly $60 reloaders and some really awful poker.  They called a ‘gutshot’ a ’straight draw’.  If they had a gutshot at 11 to 1, they were calling all the way.  Then when they get a big hand, as the super-donk did, they slowplay.  He called with KK and let 3 other people in the pot.  It was straight versus flush.  Call-fest.

Online I’ve been playing nitty and only losing marginal hands but still down for this week (up $450 last week)…but overall down $700 since playing NL100.

I still feel I’m playing the best poker possible.  The live cash games showed that.  I’m seriously more skilled than the fish.  My MTT needs more work though.

 The routine is now 1 hour per day, 8 tabling if possible.  That means it doesn’t interfere with my life or work.  As I start winning I will increase it up to 4 hours max. per day but right now I’m doing about 5-7 hours of online play per week, happy with 3000-3500 hands.