With live racing still going on at Northville Downs, the cash games seem to be a little wilder, with the occasional horse player trying their hand at poker, and generally a busier than normal poker room that creates more of an action-y vibe. I got in to the room around 730pm with plans to play for the rest of the night.
The primary players driving action was Abe on my immediate left, a very loose action player, who plays way too many hands and I consider generally to be bad, though he can at least put you to tough decisions. He was playing reasonably deep stacked the whole game ($300-600).
Eric, who I have played with before, could be pretty good, but on this particular night he was drinking and playing way too LAGGY. In general he plays too many hands. He knows me by name, and generally gives me a pretty wide berth. He was on his 4th buy-in before he started winning, and built his stack up to around $900 when the night was coming to a close.
Later on Shaun got into the game, which drove the action to an entirely different level.
I would estimate 1/2 of the pots were straddled, and a lot of the raises even in unstraddled pots were unusually large. That created a table atmosphere where I could raise larger with my premium hands as I was still likely to get value.
The session started out rapid fire, as I picked up 4 pocket pairs in my first 5 hands.
Hand #1: My first hand of the night, I picked up 88 in the BB, in a pot that got limped all the way around. My options were make a big raise to try to thin the field, or check. Since quite a few of the players looked sticky from past experience, I elected to check. The flop came 3 overs and I check folded. It felt weak, but I didn't particularly like the raising option first hand of the night.
Hand #2: Another limped pot, of which there weren't many the rest of the night, I complete with 33 in the SB. Flop comes 6h3h2h. I lead 6 into an $8 pot, and get called by button, who I have never played with before. Turn is Ts, I bet $15, and he calls again. River is Kc, I make a weak bet to $21, and he raises to $42. His line felt so much like a recent 2/5 hand I played at the Bellagio where a guy slow played nut flush into my bets that I was blinded by that and ignored the immediate great odds the pot was offering and folded. He showed T6 for a turned two pair, that I'm sure he felt was best.
Hand #3: Very next hand, my stack at about $155 as I haven't even had a chance to top off, I get KK. Loose bad player raises to 15 in EP, one caller, and I make it 55 on the BTN. Bad player calls and we are HU, and caller goes all-in for less, with me having about 100 behind. Flop is Q9x, he checks, I bet 51, he shoves and I call. Board runs out and my hand is good.
Hand #4: After folding in the CO, I pick up JJ in the HJ. After limps I raise to 21 and get 2 callers. I flop an overpair and they check-fold to my bet.
Hand #5: In a straddled pot there are several limpers, and I make it 35 in the CO with KK. Abe calls on the BTN, along with Eric and one other player. Flop is Ac9c8s, checks to me, I check, and Abe immediately declares all-in for $280 (into a pot of $140). Both fold to me and I'm pretty sure I'm going to fold. I think there's a reasonable chance he has an ace, as well as a reasonable chance he is on JT. He tells me unsolicited "Whatever you want to do, run it once, run it twice...." I debate a little further, thinking more and more that he is drawing, but decide there are better spots to get it in, and fold. He shows JT.
Hand #6: Eric is stuck about 2 buy-ins now, and raises to 15 (playing about 130 or so). He has literally been raising at least 25% of the time, so suffice it to say he doesn't have to be very strong here. After one caller, I 3 bet AcTc to 55. Eric goes all-in after a few seconds, folds to me and I call and hold up vs A9.
Hand #7: A newer player who I could characterize on the tighter side opened UTG to 12, and after 2 callers I called on the BTN with T9s. Flop is 4 ways, and comes Q86, giving me a double gutter. He led $21, which didn't strike me as particularly strong, and got a call from one player. The original raiser had about $200 going into the hand. I debated my options, and didn't feel like his lead felt very strong, so I decided to raise, with the plan of probably calling if he shoved, and shoving most turns if called. The raiser thought for a bit and then called, and the other player folded. Turn was a total blank deuce. He checked and I confidently slid out a large stack of reds. He thought for about 15 seconds and then folded, showing a Q when he did. Eric wanted me to "show the bluff", and I quickly considered it but decided not to pour salt in the wound of the guy who folded.
Things calmed down for a while, as I tightened up and the cards weren't particulary attractive for a while. Was considering racking up and leaving a $400-500 winner, but with so much money in play I decided to hang around. Then things got interesting, a player named Shaun wanted to flip Eric for his stack. Apparently as back story Shaun had been on a massive heater, and had just taken 8K from a PLO game at a bowling alley.
Eric didn't want to do it, so Shaun bought in for $200, after asking to buy more and getting rebuffed. FIrst hand he goes all-in immediately and loses to a player with QQ. Very next hand after rebuying he does the same thing and beats the same players AA with 93. Then the very next hand he beats a different players AA with 98. All of these were all-in pre. Suddenly he has about $600 in front and is still raising to $100 pre every hand. He said his goal was to ruin our game, or take Eric's stack.
Hand #8: I limp AdJd in EP after a limper, and Shaun raises to $40 from the BB. Limper folds and I call. He says "Alright, we're gonna play some poker." I respond with a question "Are we??" Flop is AQT, he checks, and I check behind. Turn is a 5, he checks again, I bet $50 and he folds.
Hand #9: Shaun had gambled his stack away again, and was back down to $200. This hand brought up an interesting ethical spot, that I am curious how others would handle. Straddled pot by Eric (not sure why anyone would straddle or raise now with Shaun driving action on literally 100% of hands). Tommy calls (young player I have played with and beaten up on several times, very fun to have in the game though, and he originally set the unofficial straddle record when he did it for $160 sometime last year), and then I limp the straddle with AA. A few seconds before that, he asks if we mind if he buys in for another $200. Nobody objects and I say ok (following my limp). Then he raises to 100 before the chips are delivered to him. I ask him "Is that playing this hand?", and he says "Yes.". Tommy calls (leaving himself 80 or so more behind. Then I shove, and both players call. Tommy had JTs, and I have no idea what Shaun had. The board paired with 9's, but nothing else of significance, and my hand was good for a pot of nearly $1K.
I don't feel like I did anything wrong here by allowing it, as he had originally asked before the hand started, but still felt a bit conflicted by it. I know all he wanted to do was gamble, and he had no ill will about the hand in any way.
After that hand, the charity had sold out, so I played a few more hands and left a 4 figure winner for the session. Good times, and a nice little boost before the MSPT which I am planning on playing in at Firekeepers.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
A great session, for more than one reason
I arrived at Northville Downs for what was likely to be a 3-4 hour session before meeting the wife and her family for dinner nearby. I got there right at noon, and had to wait for about 20 minutes for the first game to start. We started with 5 players, a then the 6th player arrived shortly thereafter. That group composed the people involved in all of my spots/hands of the session.
I feel it was the best that I played in a while. Maybe it was because my decisions weren't the most difficult, but you will see in one of the hands below I avoided getting stacked in a spot where I probably should.
The key players were as follows:
AYK: Aggro young kid, you know the type, plays there a decent amount, thinks he's the best in the room. The reality is that he could be decent, but because he thinks he's so good, he plays WAY too many hands.
Al: Pseudonym for this guy, he's basically a major fish who I love having in my game. He can really frustrate players with the hands that he makes, and the lines that he takes. But I've noticed in playing with him that he has a critical flaw, that is amazingly transparent to me yet somehow nobody else. He tends to overbet, or bet very large with a nut type hand, and tends to make small bets, and even extreme underbets when he doesn't have a strong hand.
Setting the tone:
The very first hand, AYK is on the button and straddles to 5, the blinds fold, and I raise 22 UTG/HJ to 20, as expected the button calls and we are HU to the flop. The flop comes with 3 unconnecting overcards, I believe it was Q high, and I cbet 30 and he folds.
I felt that it was important early on to establish an aggressive image, and not allow the AYK to take control of the table.
First big spot
Playing about 225 deep, I open QQ after a few limpers to 15. Al re-raises on the button to 50. He bought in for 100, and just won a fairly big hand to get his stack above mine. This guy is super loose, and very aggressive with pre-flop raises, but not particularly aggressive with 3 bets, especially larger 3 bets. I considered all of my options. Certainly shoving QQ couldn't be that bad against a fish like this. I also considered folding, as the size of his 3 bet gave me some pause. In the end I thought I could call, and gauge his post flop action to determine if I had run into AA or KK. I called, and the flop came KK5. I check, and he strongly bet 100. I thought for a bit and stared at him and he told me: "I don't have a king." As an aside, at that point a player to my left asked what the rule was on talking during the hand, knowing full well that the rule there is no talking allowed. I appreciated that the dealer said something to the effect of "There's some things I don't hear.", as I don't particularly like the rule, especially when I am getting information volunteered to me. The dealer basically told him, probably wrongly per the rules of the cardroom, to basically mind his own business when he wasn't involved in the hand.
I asked him if he would show and he said "Sure, why not?", and I mucked face up, he proceeded to show me AA, and I immediately felt even more strongly than I already had about the hand.
Ace Magnets
A bit later I raise KK after a few limpers to 15, and get 3 callers, all OOP to me. Flop comes As9s4s. Checked to me, I'm pretty sure I had the Ks, and I bet 25, first limper shoves for 39 total, rest fold. I make sure I have the Ks and call. He has AJ no spades. Board blanks out and I lose. At this point I feel pretty good about the fact that I've lost with QQ and KK, and am still only down about $25, despite not winning any showdowns.
Another one with Al
Al opens the pot first or second to act to 15, SB calls, and I elect to just call in the BB with JJ. Flop comes king high, we check to him, and he bets 15, SB folds and I call. Turn is a blank, I check, he again bets 15 (bet sizing!!!) and I call. River is a K, I check, he checks and shows TT. Maybe I should have gotten more $ on this hand, but it helped further reinforce my bet size read.
I get rolling
UTG (young kid short stack) opens to 15, Al calls, and I call with 99 in the BB. This may not be the best call, but I am not purely setmining. There are plenty of boards and actions where I am willing to continue. Fortunately I don't have to worry about that as the flop is Q95. I check, UTG shoves for 60, Al quickly calls. I then shove for about 170. Al folds JT face up. I turn my cards over and he says he is probably drawing dead. I never saw his cards as I rake a nice pot.
Bluff inducement
This hand I got creative as the hand played out. For background, I saw Al raise a smallish river bet to 50ish on a stone bluff, and get called. For this hand, I raised A6o to 12 in MP (which I hated immediately after doing it, knowing that Al was likely to call me in position). We ended up HU to the flop. Flop was QJ8. I checked and he quickly checked. I'm 100% certain he would bet here with anything that remotely connected to this board. Basically any pair, any gutshot, etc.... Turn was another Q, making board QJ8Q. I checked, he bet 15, and I thought about it and called, thinking I was good. River was an A, now I lead out 15, in hopes of inducing a raise. He doesn't disappoint, and raises to 51. I call knowing that if he does have an ace, that we are chopping the pot since there is no way he AK here. He mucks without showing, and I do the same after being pushed the pot.
Biggest hand
I open UTG to 12 with AA. I get called by Al, and another player, and then AYK 3 bets to 50 with another 200 behind. I 4 bet to 125, 2 players fold, and the AYK thinks for a while and calls. I am putting him pretty strongly on QQ or JJ here, with a very outside shot at AK. Flop comes Ax9d8d. AYK checks, and I think for a while, and decide to give him some rope here, with only a 1/2 PSB left. Based on the action, a free card can't hurt me, and may give him a chance to push me off of the KK that I am trying to rep. The turn is the Ad, giving me quads. He checks his cards, presumably to see if he has a diamond, and then shoves. Obviously I call and he shows JJ. Immediately after this, which means he is down about 2-3 buy-ins, he switches tables, presumably to find greener pastures.
The rest:
Other than that, I played pretty solidly, continuing to pick up occasional pots with Cbets. During that same time Al was on fire, picking up pots with a full range of hands. The most egregious, though it was a small pot, was when he called a flop bet on a board of Td8x4d, with 7d3x, and went runner runner to make a winning flush. He also called a flop bet with a gutterball, and then ran runner runner 2 pair to scoop another pot. About 3.5 hours into the session, I got the call to leave, and Al was racking up as well, along with another player, essentially killing the game.
The best part of it all was that I was able to make over 2 buy-ins, while at the same time Al was able to run his 100 into over 1K, thus ensuring that money makes it back into the poker community.
I feel it was the best that I played in a while. Maybe it was because my decisions weren't the most difficult, but you will see in one of the hands below I avoided getting stacked in a spot where I probably should.
The key players were as follows:
AYK: Aggro young kid, you know the type, plays there a decent amount, thinks he's the best in the room. The reality is that he could be decent, but because he thinks he's so good, he plays WAY too many hands.
Al: Pseudonym for this guy, he's basically a major fish who I love having in my game. He can really frustrate players with the hands that he makes, and the lines that he takes. But I've noticed in playing with him that he has a critical flaw, that is amazingly transparent to me yet somehow nobody else. He tends to overbet, or bet very large with a nut type hand, and tends to make small bets, and even extreme underbets when he doesn't have a strong hand.
Setting the tone:
The very first hand, AYK is on the button and straddles to 5, the blinds fold, and I raise 22 UTG/HJ to 20, as expected the button calls and we are HU to the flop. The flop comes with 3 unconnecting overcards, I believe it was Q high, and I cbet 30 and he folds.
I felt that it was important early on to establish an aggressive image, and not allow the AYK to take control of the table.
First big spot
Playing about 225 deep, I open QQ after a few limpers to 15. Al re-raises on the button to 50. He bought in for 100, and just won a fairly big hand to get his stack above mine. This guy is super loose, and very aggressive with pre-flop raises, but not particularly aggressive with 3 bets, especially larger 3 bets. I considered all of my options. Certainly shoving QQ couldn't be that bad against a fish like this. I also considered folding, as the size of his 3 bet gave me some pause. In the end I thought I could call, and gauge his post flop action to determine if I had run into AA or KK. I called, and the flop came KK5. I check, and he strongly bet 100. I thought for a bit and stared at him and he told me: "I don't have a king." As an aside, at that point a player to my left asked what the rule was on talking during the hand, knowing full well that the rule there is no talking allowed. I appreciated that the dealer said something to the effect of "There's some things I don't hear.", as I don't particularly like the rule, especially when I am getting information volunteered to me. The dealer basically told him, probably wrongly per the rules of the cardroom, to basically mind his own business when he wasn't involved in the hand.
I asked him if he would show and he said "Sure, why not?", and I mucked face up, he proceeded to show me AA, and I immediately felt even more strongly than I already had about the hand.
Ace Magnets
A bit later I raise KK after a few limpers to 15, and get 3 callers, all OOP to me. Flop comes As9s4s. Checked to me, I'm pretty sure I had the Ks, and I bet 25, first limper shoves for 39 total, rest fold. I make sure I have the Ks and call. He has AJ no spades. Board blanks out and I lose. At this point I feel pretty good about the fact that I've lost with QQ and KK, and am still only down about $25, despite not winning any showdowns.
Another one with Al
Al opens the pot first or second to act to 15, SB calls, and I elect to just call in the BB with JJ. Flop comes king high, we check to him, and he bets 15, SB folds and I call. Turn is a blank, I check, he again bets 15 (bet sizing!!!) and I call. River is a K, I check, he checks and shows TT. Maybe I should have gotten more $ on this hand, but it helped further reinforce my bet size read.
I get rolling
UTG (young kid short stack) opens to 15, Al calls, and I call with 99 in the BB. This may not be the best call, but I am not purely setmining. There are plenty of boards and actions where I am willing to continue. Fortunately I don't have to worry about that as the flop is Q95. I check, UTG shoves for 60, Al quickly calls. I then shove for about 170. Al folds JT face up. I turn my cards over and he says he is probably drawing dead. I never saw his cards as I rake a nice pot.
Bluff inducement
This hand I got creative as the hand played out. For background, I saw Al raise a smallish river bet to 50ish on a stone bluff, and get called. For this hand, I raised A6o to 12 in MP (which I hated immediately after doing it, knowing that Al was likely to call me in position). We ended up HU to the flop. Flop was QJ8. I checked and he quickly checked. I'm 100% certain he would bet here with anything that remotely connected to this board. Basically any pair, any gutshot, etc.... Turn was another Q, making board QJ8Q. I checked, he bet 15, and I thought about it and called, thinking I was good. River was an A, now I lead out 15, in hopes of inducing a raise. He doesn't disappoint, and raises to 51. I call knowing that if he does have an ace, that we are chopping the pot since there is no way he AK here. He mucks without showing, and I do the same after being pushed the pot.
Biggest hand
I open UTG to 12 with AA. I get called by Al, and another player, and then AYK 3 bets to 50 with another 200 behind. I 4 bet to 125, 2 players fold, and the AYK thinks for a while and calls. I am putting him pretty strongly on QQ or JJ here, with a very outside shot at AK. Flop comes Ax9d8d. AYK checks, and I think for a while, and decide to give him some rope here, with only a 1/2 PSB left. Based on the action, a free card can't hurt me, and may give him a chance to push me off of the KK that I am trying to rep. The turn is the Ad, giving me quads. He checks his cards, presumably to see if he has a diamond, and then shoves. Obviously I call and he shows JJ. Immediately after this, which means he is down about 2-3 buy-ins, he switches tables, presumably to find greener pastures.
The rest:
Other than that, I played pretty solidly, continuing to pick up occasional pots with Cbets. During that same time Al was on fire, picking up pots with a full range of hands. The most egregious, though it was a small pot, was when he called a flop bet on a board of Td8x4d, with 7d3x, and went runner runner to make a winning flush. He also called a flop bet with a gutterball, and then ran runner runner 2 pair to scoop another pot. About 3.5 hours into the session, I got the call to leave, and Al was racking up as well, along with another player, essentially killing the game.
The best part of it all was that I was able to make over 2 buy-ins, while at the same time Al was able to run his 100 into over 1K, thus ensuring that money makes it back into the poker community.
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