I'm A Fluke

I played a fairly solid game and got lucky at the right times. For that, my making it to the final 3 was a “fluke”. That’s on-line poker. Everyone thinks they deserve to win just because they were the chip leader for most of the tournament. Actually I don’t blame him for being angry. I had more than my fair share of hands go my way and he ended up bubbling out after holding the chip lead from the beginning of the tournament. I didn’t cause the crippling blow but I did take him out when my AQ won over his pair of 2’s. This knocked him out on the bubble and he left a comment for one of the other players to take out the 2 “flukes” (I wasn’t the only short stack getting lucky.)

This was the first of 2 SNG’s I played last night. I finished 3rd in both and went to bed happy with my play. The “fluke” tourney was long and I spent most of my time trying to survive. I was short stacked for most of it so I had to go all-in more often than I would have preferred. I did my best to pick the best hands only to have my opponent flip-up a better hand. That’s when the poker gods smiled down on me allowing the dealer to give me the cards I needed to win the hand. I know my opponent’s were getting frustrated but I did what I had to do and got lucky in the process.

I’ve been playing these $1 SNG’s all week in an effort get my bankroll back up to what it once was. These tournaments have been great practice in the fundamentals of the game. I’m up about $8 since last Monday (would have been more but Friday was a bad day). I’ve cut out all distractions, with the exception of music, and it has been paying off. I have been waiting for opportunities and making fewer mistakes. So far that strategy is working.

Of course I still get stupid from time to time. I’ve caught myself holding onto a hand longer than I should and I occasionally underestimate my opponent’s hand. Most people at this level aren’t bluffing and, even if they are, I should probably fold.

What I am most proud of are some of my lay-downs and some of my reads on my opponents. I’ve folded some big hands because I knew I was beat and I’ve pushed with nothing because I knew my opponent would fold to the pressure. I’m feeling good about my play this week but I know I have a lot to work on.

I have only won 3 tournaments this week because I can’t seem to get a decent chip stack to finish the game with. I have played hands where I knew I could have gotten more chips but my lack of aggression kept me from cashing in. On the hands where I know I am the best, I’m having a hard time figuring out how much I can bet and still get called. I tend to make a bet that gets called quickly leading me to believe that I could have bet more and still gotten a call. How do you know how much to bet?

Blogger Tournament Tonight

As of this moment there are 42 signed up. I plan on depositing and registering momentarily so there will be 43. That means we need 7 more to give away another WSOP seat. Password is the same as last week. E-mail Iggy ASAP if you need it.

What are you waiting for........ GET OFF YOUR ASS AND SIGN UP ALREADY!