Happy Birthday Blog

It's been a year since my first post on here. I've made some really good friends through blogging and playing poker. It's been quite a year. I want to wish a very special thank you to Shea for keeping my friends and family updated of my progress in the WSOP Circuit Tournaments in Tunica this week. It was awesome!!!!
Rags and I drove up very early Sunday morning so that he could play in the Monster Million. It was a very trying afternoon for John. When we got there they wouldn't check us in yet. When we did get checked in he had a hard time getting the internet to work and the tourney started before he could get it up. By the time he had any way to play it the distractions had taken their toll and he was out soon after.
I met up with Wes and his friend soon after and we grabbed a bite to eat and played a few qualifiers. Wes and I wound up heads up and I bought my way in to the first event on a chop with him. We decided to play it down for the last 50 bucks and he cracked my hammer with a measly pair of eights; can you believe it..hehe.
There's not much to talk about from the first event except to say that it gave me a really good feel for how the structure would be in Event 2.
I played a single table $65 tourney that night for a $500 tourney chip plus 50 bucks. Once again I played down to 2 players and chopped it, getting in to the 500+50 for half price.
The blind structure is very good in these tournaments but they don't start you with very many chips so the first three or four hours you have to be very careful until you can chip up a little.
In event 2, Rags and I both managed to make the money. The biggest hand I hit went like this. I was in the big blind with the 5 and 7 of spades. A guy in middle position raised the $400 big blind to 800 and got a call from the small blind so I called also. ( my stack at that time was up to about 5,500 from the 2,000 we started with) The flop brought a 6 and an 8 along with a face card (I think it was a King). We checked it to the raiser and he bet only 400. The small blind called and so did I. The 9 hit on the turn giving me the low end of the straight. I really didn't think the raiser could have 7 10 but I was keeping my eye on the small blind. I had a good read on him and I was almost positive he had hit the king and was slow playing it. The river was a deuce and I felt positive I would get some action so I led out with 400. The raiser went all in and the small blind called. I called as well and they turned over AA and KK. I tripled up to 15,000 and thank goodness I did because I went completely card dead after that and rode that stack in to the money for 49th place and $665.
Rags played his normal excellent game and made the final table finishing in 9th place for over $5,000. Way to go Rags!!!!!!!
It was a great trip and I look forward to the next live tournaments I get to play in. Thanks to everyone for the kind words and well wishes during the trip.

Live Updates from WSOP Circuit Tournaments

I am playing the WSOP Circuit Tourney Events 1 and 2 in Tunica Monday and Tuesday. There will be live updates of my status HERE.
Good luck at the tables this week everyone.

Strategy Question

I made it fairly deep in the Winner's Choice finishing in 22nd place out of 126. This is the first time I've played this tournament and I was fairly happy with my play. I only had one hand I would like to have back so I feel I did OK.
Stay with me on this folks, this may be a little out there but I want some real feedback on this. I've got a very specific thought in my head and I'm going to try my best to lay it out here where it makes sense.Some people like to play a large range of starting hands and some people play a small range; this of course changes by position and size of blinds etc.Some people always raise three times the big blind; some five times the big blind; and some like to vary their raise size.Now take those two criteria and put them on a graph, range of hands across the bottom from small/tight to large/loose and size of raises across the side from min/raise up to 5 times big blind. Assuming decent and consistent post-flop play, do you think that there is an even line of maximum success for each size of raises and each range of hands matched with their perfect counterpart or do you think there is a distinct winner?I'm talking about comparing them in an even way such as the same size field of multi-table tournaments. My opinion is the tighter the range with the larger the raise makes the money often but I'm not sure gets too deep and the wider range with the small raise probably makes it a little less but goes a little deeper when making it. The wide range with the large raises probably busts out a lot but makes more final tables than the others which can make up for a lot of bustouts. Opinions please..............

Winner's Choice Tuesday

I won an entry to the 200+16 Winner's Choice on Full Tilt Tuesday night. It starts at 9:00pm est Tuesday night.

When September Doesn't End

I have really enjoyed September and I don't want it to end. I've been able to hang out with some great friends, play some poker, and spend time with my family. I played a 9,000 gurantee on Full Tilt tonight. I started out very well then made a few mis-steps. I stayed tight after that and managed to hang in for 17th place out of 528.
I want to send out a special thank you to Steve for hanging out with me and keeping me awake.
Good luck at the tables this week everyone.

WSOP Circuit Tunica countdown: 7 days

Mookie Has Moved to Full Tilt

Just in case anyone doesn't already know, The Mookie has moved to Full Tilt on Wednesday nights. It's a really cool online tourney that plays like a home game. Come and join us.

The Mookie: Listed under Private Tournaments

Wednesday: 10:00pm est on Full Tilt

Password: Vegas1

Back!!!

I'm back from 4 days at the lake with "the guys". We had a great time and even got to do a dial-a-shot with Jordan. We played a lot of live poker which is perfect for me leading up to the WSOP Circuit in 2 weeks.
My friend John (Rags on Party) managed to place 14th in the 200k on Party last night....great job!!!! He's going with me to Tunica and it looks like he's ready. I'm meeting up with HuntsVegas when we get there; looking forward to meeting another fellow blogger.
I played a few tournaments on Full Tilt tonight. I built up a lot of chips in the 30k guarantee then donked them off with a really bad play on my part. It's frustrating to play a hand so badly. I also played 2 single table tournaments placing 1st in both and a token tourney which I qualified for as well so overall a decent night.

Be The Bounty

Come on out tonight and play the Tanner Evers Charity Tourney on Full Tilt. Knock me out and pick up a cool $50. There are lots of prizes and money to be had so come on out and have fun while supporting a great cause. For a list of all the bounties and prizes, go to Mookie's site. See ya there.

MTT Strategy

I havn't posted much strategy lately but I've had a lot of success getting deep in MTT's the past few weeks so I'm feeling a little inspired tonight. Keep in mind that I'm going to post about how I would normally play in a multi beginning to end. That doesn't mean I play this way every time so don't go crazy and say you saw me do the opposite. I'm telling you right now I just may do the opposite at any moment but here is a solid strategy to get you going if you are struggling to money in these things.

Step 1: You first need to be honest and qualify yourself in to one of three categories. 1:Novice with not very strong post flop play 2:Intermediate with average post flop play 3: Advanced with good post flop skills

Category 1: This is what I would do early. Look for a chance to get your money in early with AA, KK, AKsuited. Don't slow play these hands. Play them strong when you get them and hope to get some action. Medium pairs are good to raise a 3 or 4 times the blind and try to get a good flop with. Be a little cautious if you get pressure or "played back at" after the flop, be wiling to get away from these hands if you didn't hit a set. Small pairs and suited connectors are good to see a flop with if you can get in with 3 or 4 players or in the blinds with no big raising going on pre-flop. If you hit 4 to the flush on the flop and you are in this category, I would go ahead and get my money in on the flop. If you hit a set, a good check raise can get you some action here. I would stick with this stategy until you get to the first break. At this point, you need to take a good look at your stack size and put yourself in one of three categories.
1: Big Stack Being a beginner I would stay tight and stick with your strategy. Take out a few of the riskier moves like shoving on a flush draw at this point. You're in great shape. No need to take this kind of gamble but I would still look for big action on your big hands. Stay away from the trouble hands: KQ , QJ. These hands will get you flops that you aren't ready for.
2: Medium average stack Same as above; you have plenty of chips and you're OK. A lot of beginners will feel the pressure of so many stacks bigger than yours. Don't worry, you still have plenty of time to hit some big hands and become a contender. Pay attention to the other players at your table. Try to pick out a big stack that is over-aggressive. Hopefully you will get a chance to isolate this player when you get a big hand and let them double you up.
3: Small stack or half the average stack or less: Look for a chance to get your money in there; good places are late position with AJ, AQ, AK, or any medium pocket pair. AA and KK are good from any position....just shove it in there....don't worry, the big stacks will double you...they can hardly resist.

Category 2: You've been playing no limit hold em for a while and know how to avoid some basic traps. Get in there and mix it up a little in the early going. Work on expanding your range of hands from late position. Identify some tight players and if the table isn't too aggressive get in there and pick off some blinds. This will get you a little more action on your big hands. Start setting some goals break to break and see what works best to get you to these chip counts. Pay close attention to the other players and don't try to get too fancy. Work on getting your draw cards cheaply while giving yourself the chance to pick up a few pots even when you don't have the mortal nutz.
Try to work your average chip stack up until you are sliding in to the money fairly regularly. You will probably find your stack being lower than the average when you get to the money. Work on ways to loosen up your game a little without getting too crazy. Work hard on figuring out what other players have. Learn to have fun and not let the bad beats tilt you.


Category 3: Here we go folks. The real deal. You've progressed through the ranks of Categories 1 and 2 and have a lot of experience on your side. I'm going to assume you can stay tight and get to the money fairly often and sometimes when the cards are hitting you in the head you get pretty deep. How do you handle the final stages when you get to the border of the big money? I'm assuming you're not playing for 30th so lets break this down in to a few categories here and get to the meat: Category 1: Big Stack Category 2: Average Stack Category 3: Small stack

Category 1: Be careful not to get winner's tilt. It's easy to donk off big chunks of chips with less than premium hands. Stay smart and use your weight to pick off some big blinds pre-flop and stay loose enough to get action when you do have a big hand. Don't show any hands if you can help it. The re-raise against the medium stacks works well here.

Category 2: Remember the money is at the final table. The difference between 30th and 11th is probably not that much so look for big opportunities to use your favorite moves and get a few big pots. Stay focused and try to get your chips in ahead. You can probably pick out a big stack or two that will double you up if you are patient and play your cards right.


Category 3: Get em in there before the blinds eat you up. You can't sit there all night...hehe.

Good luck everyone. I know these are some very broad pointers as they are intended to be. If any of you have any specific questions or are struggling with a particular thing about your MTT game, I have probably been through that struggle myself and would gladly try to help you work through it. Let me know.........surf

Aussie Qualifier in Progress

I'm trying Jules, I'm trying!!!

Final Table

Been a while.... Final Table in a MTT

Tunica and Mookie Info

The WSOP Circuit is coming up in a few short weeks in Tunica. These are the events I am considering:
Mon, Sept. 25th NLHE $300+40
Tue, Sept. 26th NLHE $500+40
Wed, Sept. 27th NLHE $300+40
I've had a few people express interest in a percentage of my action. I'm not looking to sell off a large percentage but I do want to give you a chance to be a part of it if you like so shoot me an e-mail if you are interested to surflexus@comcast.net

Now on to The Mookie tourney info. Mookie is moving to Full Tilt this Wednesday for the Tanner Evers Fundraiser. This is for a great cause and I have a bounty on my head in this tourney. Knock me out and nab yourself a cool 50 bucks. Several players are donating cool prizes and prize pool money for this event so come on out and help us raise as much as we can.