Disconnected

Been disconnected from online poker for most of the past week, but not fully disconnected from poker. In a strange twist, I've found myself playing a good amount of live poker lately. I've been squeezing live sessions in by pushing them late into the evening, starting around 10pm when the homestead is starting to ease in for the night. This has made for some rough days following late-night poker sessions, but it has been worth it.

Being able to play in these live 1-2 games with buddies (usually David, Stephen, or Scott) is really the difference and what makes it worthwhile, since having someone to chat with and sweat out hands helps me overcome my biggest weakness in moving from online multi-tabling to the slooow full table grind - patience. Of course, I also love talking strategy at the table with my friends. I realize it is generally a big no-no, since it gives up a ton of information - how well I understand the game, my take on certain situations, etc. But, if you've played live, you know that it's nearly impossible to whisper to a neighbor quietly enough that no one else can overhear you. And it looks sketchy to be constantly whispering directly into someone's ear while sitting at the table and my draw outcries from other players. So I've decided I'm willing to give up a little edge in order to stay entertained and keep a discussion going with a friend.

No matter how much I mumble about strategy with friends, I doubt it will do much to improve the play of guys like one I played with early this week. I was at a 1-2 game with 2 friends, and all 3 of us managed to score huge pots, all in somewhat tough spots, all against the same maniac.

I had the benefit of watching both of my buddies make correct hero-calls against this guy before it got to my turn. Both times, he raised pre-flop, C-bet, checked the turn, then made a big bet on the river. Both times he was on a pure bluff and got caught.

One final piece of history. I played one hand with this villain in which we saw a flop of 7-7h-Th, and the villain made a donk-lead (he wasn't the PFR), I called with 8h-9h. He checked offsuit 8 turn, I bet and he folded. He told me after the hand that he had A2, and thought he could take it on a scary board. Nice to know, thank you very much.

Here's the relevant hand:
I have ~$290, villain covers me.

I get 56o and limp from MP. LP guy with big stack raises to $12, Villain in SB calls, one other EP player calls, and I make the loose call.
I was trying to see a lot of cheap flops, hit something big, and stack somebody. The table was limpy enough that I think this was a good approach.

4 way flop comes 4-7-K rainbow.
Villain donk-leads from SB for $25. I call and everyone folds.
I almost raised here, but thought I might prefer a bigger pot with a few more players, in case I hit one of my decently well-disguised OESD outs.

Turn is a 7, putting 2 clubs up. Villain checks and I check behind.

River is an Ad. He takes his time before counting out $75 to bet into a $100 pot. I have about $175 behind, and after about 10 seconds, I shove it all in. Villain instafolds.
I honestly think he had no hand-reading skills, and put almost no thought into my actions. I thought my shove would like like 44/A7/K7, but I doubt he gave it that much thought. He would again admit to having complete air.

It felt nice to make the kind of move that I never have the guts to make, and have it pay off. That's the kind of move I would almost never make online, so chalk it up to live feel and read, which is something I never thought I'd practice enough to really develop. But extra time on the live felt has me feeling a little differently about it this week.

Why I Don't Hate On Bad Players

Because you can take them to the bank! It's a trivial sentiment, and yet how many times have you heard someone complain about donkey play? Or even people who will completely avoid super-loose house-style games, just because they're full of donkeys?

The truth is, when people don't like playing with donkeys, it's because

1. Donkeys end up winning a lot of pots (because they're donkeys, and they play a lot of pots) and people don't like losing pots to inferior players, and
2. It takes them out of their comfort zone of predictable, by-the-books poker.

The reason I have this on my mind is the following sequence of hands from last night:

The subject sits down, and only two hands later...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5972974939: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($19.50) <-- BB
Seat 2: JohnGa ($20)
Seat 3: Metsfanman ($38.40)
Seat 4: corbin801 ($17.70)
Seat 5: noldmax ($51.25)
Seat 6: BronxBulldog ($49.80) <-- SB

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [7c 9s]
JohnGa folds, Metsfanman folds, corbin801 folds
noldmax raises to $1.75 <-- From the BTN
BronxBulldog folds
spazzy1 calls $1.25

*** FLOP *** [4h 7d 8h]
spazzy1 checks
noldmax bets $3
spazzy1 calls $3 <-- 8? Straight draw? Float? Too early to know.

*** TURN *** [4h 7d 8h] [Th]
spazzy1 checks
noldmax checks

*** RIVER *** [4h 7d 8h Th] [Tc]
spazzy1 bets $5.50
noldmax folds
spazzy1 mucks
spazzy1 wins the pot ($9.30)

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $9.75 Rake $0.45
Board: [4h 7d 8h Th Tc]
Seat 1: spazzy1 (big blind) collected ($9.30), mucked
Seat 5: noldmax (button) folded on the River

Round 1 to spazzy

Two hands later...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5972997074: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($23.80)
Seat 2: JohnGa ($19.50) <-- SB
Seat 3: Metsfanman ($38.40) <-- BB
Seat 4: corbin801 ($15.45)
Seat 5: noldmax ($50)
Seat 6: BronxBulldog ($52.30)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [Kh Th]
corbin801 folds
noldmax raises to $1.75
BronxBulldog folds
spazzy1 calls $1.75
JohnGa folds, Metsfanman folds

*** FLOP *** [6c Ah Tc]
noldmax bets $3
spazzy1 calls $3 <-- Look familiar?

*** TURN *** [6c Ah Tc] [3d]
noldmax bets $5 <-- Okay, maybe a second barrel will work this time.
spazzy1 calls $5

*** RIVER *** [6c Ah Tc 3d] [7h]
noldmax bets $6 <-- Second pair, good kicker is strong enough to try a blocking bet.
spazzy1 raises to $12 <-- Ugh, what on earth do I beat here?
noldmax has 15 seconds left to act
noldmax folds
spazzy1 wins the pot ($30.65)

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $32.25 Rake $1.60
Board: [6c Ah Tc 3d 7h]
Seat 1: spazzy1 (button) collected ($30.65), mucked
Seat 5: noldmax folded on the River

Round 2 to spazzy. Maybe he struck gold both times, but I'm highly skeptical. Mental note: Let's not try to bluff this guy again. But if we have a hand, extract value.

Another orbit later...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5973027925: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($70.75) <-- BB
Seat 2: JohnGa ($20)
Seat 5: noldmax ($50)
Seat 6: BronxBulldog ($53.50) <-- SB

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [Tc 8s]
JohnGa folds
noldmax raises to $1.75
BronxBulldog folds
spazzy1 calls $1.25 <-- Well we should have known this would happen, right?

*** FLOP *** [Js 2h 3c]
spazzy1 checks
noldmax checks <-- Heeding my mental note!

*** TURN *** [Js 2h 3c] [7c]
spazzy1 bets $3.75 <-- Overbet? Suspicious, but I'm not convinced I can make him fold here.
noldmax folds
spazzy1 wins the pot ($3.60)

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $3.75 Rake $0.15
Board: [Js 2h 3c 7c]
Seat 1: spazzy1 (big blind) collected ($3.60), mucked
Seat 5: noldmax (button) folded on the Turn

Round 3 to spazzy. Now I resolve to tighten up my PFR range and just be patient. I've lost over half a buy-in to this guy already.

In the meanwhile, spazzy nearly triples up when his AK turns broadway against KK and QJ. Then the following hand goes down...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5973042570: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($75.80)
Seat 2: JohnGa ($19.50) <-- SB
Seat 4: spiceman007 ($9.50) <-- BB
Seat 5: noldmax ($50)
Seat 6: BronxBulldog ($50.75)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [7d Jd]
noldmax folds
BronxBulldog raises to $1.50
spazzy1 calls $1.50
JohnGa folds, spiceman007 folds

*** FLOP *** [9s 7s Td]
BronxBulldog bets $1.50
spazzy1 calls $1.50

*** TURN *** [9s 7s Td] [2c]
BronxBulldog bets $4.50
spazzy1 calls $4.50

*** RIVER *** [9s 7s Td 2c] [Qh]
BronxBulldog has 15 seconds left to act
BronxBulldog bets $15.75
spazzy1 calls $15.75

*** SHOW DOWN ***
BronxBulldog shows [Ks Kd] a pair of Kings
spazzy1 mucks
BronxBulldog wins the pot ($44.90) with a pair of Kings

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $47.25 Rake $2.35
Board: [9s 7s Td 2c Qh]
Seat 1: spazzy1 (button) mucked [Qd 8s] - a pair of Queens <-- Q8off, lovely. Then called a third barrel after hitting a pair of Qs?
Seat 5: noldmax didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: BronxBulldog showed [Ks Kd] and won ($44.90) with a pair of Kings

Well, now I know my opponent. And fortunately, he still has a sizeable stack remaining. Now I just need to hunker down, be patient, and hope that someone else doesn't clean him out first.

About two orbits later...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5973125863: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($41.05) <-- SB
Seat 2: JohnGa ($5) <-- BB
Seat 3: cherumka ($38)
Seat 4: spiceman007 ($10.10)
Seat 5: noldmax ($50.70)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [5h Ah]
cherumka folds
spiceman007 raises to $1.50
noldmax calls $1.50
spazzy1 calls $1.25
JohnGa calls $1

*** FLOP *** [Kh 8h 6c]
spazzy1 checks, JohnGa checks
spiceman007 bets $1.50
noldmax raises to $6 <-- semi-bluff, hopefully take it down.
spazzy1 calls $6 <-- but of course
JohnGa folds, spiceman007 folds

*** TURN *** [Kh 8h 6c] [3h] <-- Gin card!
spazzy1 checks
noldmax bets $12
spazzy1 calls $12 <-- Oh now I love you so much spazzy, now please put a heart up on the river so I can stack you and your middling flush draw.

*** RIVER *** [Kh 8h 6c 3h] [Ts] <-- Bummer, no heart
spazzy1 checks
noldmax bets $25 <-- The big mistake.
spazzy1 folds <-- I bet way too much...could possibly have gotten a call from a pair with a $10 bet.
noldmax wins the pot ($41.35)

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $43.50 Rake $2.15
Board: [Kh 8h 6c 3h Ts]
Seat 1: spazzy1 (small blind) folded on the River
Seat 5: noldmax collected ($41.35), mucked

Round 4, at last, goes to me!

And another 2 orbits later, we have Round 5...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5973224138: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($21.35) <-- SB
Seat 2: JohnGa ($3.25) <-- BB
Seat 3: cherumka ($35.60)
Seat 4: spiceman007 ($4.95)
Seat 5: noldmax ($79.90)
Seat 6: thee babe ($50)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [9c 9s]
cherumka folds, spiceman007 folds
noldmax raises to $1.75
thee babe folds
spazzy1 calls $1.50
JohnGa folds

*** FLOP *** [Kc 2s 3s]
spazzy1 checks
noldmax bets $3
spazzy1 calls $3 <-- Nope, I'm no longer buying it.

*** TURN *** [Kc 2s 3s] [3c]
spazzy1 checks
noldmax bets $4
spazzy1 calls $4 <-- I'm still not buying it.

*** RIVER *** [Kc 2s 3s 3c] [9h] <-- Saweeet river!
spazzy1 checks
noldmax bets $6 <-- Value extraction
spazzy1 raises to $12.60, and is all in <-- Thank you sir.
noldmax calls $6.60

*** SHOW DOWN ***
spazzy1 shows [Qs 3d] three of a kind, Threes <-- Q3off! And didn't raise his trips on the turn. How kind.
noldmax shows [9c 9s] a full house, Nines full of Threes
noldmax wins the pot ($41.05) with a full house, Nines full of Threes

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $43.20 Rake $2.15
Board: [Kc 2s 3s 3c 9h]
Seat 1: spazzy1 (small blind) showed [Qs 3d] and lost with three of a kind, Threes
Seat 5: noldmax showed [9c 9s] and won ($41.05) with a full house, Nines full of Threes

So I took Round 5, and then one orbit later had the honor of finishing him off with this hand...

Full Tilt Poker Game #5973345958: Table Exley (6 max) - $0.25/$0.50
Seat 1: spazzy1 ($19.50)
Seat 2: JohnGa ($41)
Seat 3: cherumka ($12.25) <-- SB
Seat 4: spiceman007 ($4.50) <-- BB
Seat 5: noldmax ($106.30)
Seat 6: thee babe ($64.90)

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to noldmax [7c 7d]
noldmax raises to $1.75
thee babe folds
spazzy1 calls $1.75
JohnGa folds
cherumka calls $1.50
spiceman007 folds

*** FLOP *** [7h 4c 6h] <-- Lovely, almost nothing to be scared of
cherumka checks
noldmax bets $4
spazzy1 raises to $17.75, and is all in <-- OMG I love you spazzy
cherumka calls $10.50, and is all in <-- Gotta be a heart draw
noldmax calls $13.75
spazzy1 shows [Tc Ts]
cherumka shows [8s 5s] <-- spazzy's protege
noldmax shows [7c 7d]

*** TURN *** [7h 4c 6h] [2s]

*** RIVER *** [7h 4c 6h 2s] [6d] <-- The most beautiful card in the world
spazzy1 shows two pair, Tens and Sixes
noldmax shows a full house, Sevens full of Sixes
noldmax wins the side pot ($13.80) with a full house, Sevens full of Sixes
cherumka shows a straight, Eight high
noldmax wins the main pot ($35.40) with a full house, Sevens full of Sixes

*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $51.75 Main pot $37.25. Side pot $14.50. Rake $2.55
Board: [7h 4c 6h 2s 6d]
Seat 1: spazzy1 showed [Tc Ts] and lost with two pair, Tens and Sixes
Seat 3: cherumka (small blind) showed [8s 5s] and lost with a straight, Eight high
Seat 5: noldmax showed [7c 7d] and won ($49.20) with a full house, Sevens full of Sixes

When you're playing with a loose passive mule like this, you've gotta tighten up and let him take down a lot of small pots while you wait to work him over on a big one. Only a made hand is going to beat a player like this, so adjust accordingly, and give the multi-street bluffing a rest. In the end, you'll often find that this type of player takes 2 or 3 pots to every 1 you take, but you're crushing him in the number of chips on the table.