2017 Poker Discussion Thread
 

As the title implies, here the place for all of your 2017 poker-related discussions and comments. Looking forward to having proximity share all of his on-going activities and challenges in his talented and witty style, and for others to increase their level of participation.

May your year 2017 felt times be successful!

as i mentioned in the 2016 thread, i apparently have a diamond celebration dinner to burn by january 31 and i'm going to try and have it this saturday night january 7th at horseshoe baltimore.

please pm me if you're interested in coming.

in the past we've gone to binion's and guy fieri's for good food and gambling conversation about various topics including rebates, the tonkowa indians, rebates, easygoer 89's real home track, and rebates!! :)

hope to see you there!

--proximity

better start to 2017.....
 

after a season opening victory thursday at horseshoe baltimore i returned to the charm city tonight for our paceadvantage diamond dinner!!

i jumped out to a good start going 3-0 with QQ but the 4th time wasn't a charm as the ladies ran into BOTH AA and KK in the same hand. an ace on the flop made it easy to get away though and when i got AA in the very next hand another ace on the flop made it easy for me to win the pot. :cool:

wrapped up the night with some great food and racing talk with forum members ronsmac and track collector down at binion's.

awesome red velvet cake for desert!!

game +137 (3/6 lim)
year +329 (2-0)
promo 0 (25)

Thanks Proximity for a great dinner. I always enjoy hanging out with you and Track Collector.

Ditto this! Special PA racing friendships which started around 7 years ago.

Too bad some others didn't take advantage of proximity's generous offer. You never know when new friendships will develop.

My poker results were not as good as those of proximity, losing $118 over the multi-hour session of 1/3 NL. Then Ron tried to cheer me up by reminding me that Timonium is "only" about 7 1/2 months away. :)

Because I live a significant distance away, the horseshoe gave me a $10 promotional offer, which I was fortunate enough to convert to 10 real dollars with a single play at the blackjack table. :ThmbUp:

Excellent start for 2017. :ThmbUp::ThmbUp::ThmbUp:

Hopefully just scratching the surface for what will turn out to be a very profitable year with your poker activities. :jump:

quest for rewards......
 

interesting thread (especially the last page ;) ) on vmb about the caesars quest for rewards promotion that i mentioned towards the end of the 2016 thread:

http://www.vegasmessageboard.com/for....136962/page-5


;) ;) ;)

caesars fixed it......
 

:( :( :( :lol:

http://www.vegasmessageboard.com/for....136962/page-6

well that one was waaaaaaay too good to be true.

caesars fixed the computer and i'm back to one badge. the crazy thing was i had four badges but was only at horseshoe twice! :D

tough game.......
 

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/17.../index176.html

i'm rooting for the guy to get 300 hours. he looked pretty worn out to me on thursday but seemed more sprightly on saturday. he was playing 1-3 right behind track collector........

you made a move on 'cuse? you sun of a beach!!
 

after breaking out of the 2017 gate faster than a juice horse with eight quirin speed points i was last seen partying into the late hours of the night with fellow paceadvantage members ronsmac and track collector.

unfortunately it didn't take very long to return to poker reality as i dropped a pair of games on thursday and a marathon session friday at horseshoe baltimore casino.

it's the same old depressing stuff i've been reporting here for three years.

in one (3/6 limit) hand i raise a straddle to $9 with AK. 52 off suit calls three cold, hits a five and stays the whole way.

in another i limp behind a couple limpers with K8 of spades and raise a flop of K Qs 2s.

Q3 (no spades) calls the raise and turns a queen.

no help on the river.

just how brazen can these villains get?

one guy called one of my bets...... WITH NO CARDS!!! :faint: :faint: :faint:

technically i went 0-3-1 on the week as before friday's game i sat down for two free no-limit hands against the legendary cuserounder!!

facing the cuse i was more nervous that a career criminal in a police lineup and my fingers trembled uncontrollably as i pushed those rags towards the muck.

it would take a REAL paceadvantage hero to go against the cuse and fortunately we only had to wait about eleven hours and fifteen minutes for this to happen as our former rookie and poster of the year charm city whizz (guy's like the ezekiel elliott of paceadvantage) set up shop across from the legend in a 1-3 no limit hold em contest.

eventually, after a long back and forth struggle, we come to the big hand....

cuse: ?? ($15 pre flop)
whizz: KJ (calls small blind)

flop: A87 (cuse bets $50. whizz calls)

turn: 9 (whizz bets 80. cuse calls)


river: 3

whizz bets $110.

cuse goes in the tank and three agonizing minutes later his cards go in the muck to complete one of the greatest (non emd) victories in paceadvantage history!!

cuse: "did you have it?"

whizz: "i don't remember cuse."

and whizz got up and walked to the cage. he sat with the best. and he won.

(actually i think he did show) :)

thank you for reading.

game -40 (3/6 lim)
year +103 (2-3)
promo 10 (55)

the following link is intended for mature audiences only and is brought to you by horseshoe baltimore casino.

horseshoe baltimore.

never gamble on where you gamble!

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...postcount=4714

Now THAT is how shit is done, wtg whizz

Wow seat 10 needs to lighten up.

cuse screams bloody murder at hsb.....
 

cuserounder approaching 300 hours for january and claims there was a murder in the horseshoe elevator. :rolleyes:

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/sh...postcount=4841

idk if curtisonthebay hijacked his account or something but it turns out nobody actually died. it was merely hand and foot shots. it was probably charm city whizz and track collector arguing about emd and chris kay!! :D

meanwhile i was up at penn national suffering my sixth limit loss in my last seven games. :bang:

i ended up making the money back in no limit but not before value owning myself at what turned out to be a very passive table.

with A8 four or five of us see a flop of AKQ rainbow.

i bet small and one villain calls.

turn: 6

i bet a little bigger and villain calls.

river:6

this has to be a chop. i bet 15. villain calls. how do i lose?

he tables AQ. :bang:

game -80 (2/4 lim)
game +101 (1/2 nl)
year -237 (7-9)
promo 0 (160)

cuse wins 15k!!
 

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/17.../index197.html

from what i personally witnessed he almost always seemed to be ahead in 1-3. for 2-5 i'm just not used to the stacks so i can't say.

played him once at 1-3 and he won like $11 before moving to 2-5. i told the dealer we could all exhale now. :)

one hand i raised 77 first in and he folded behind me. that was really my only experience "against" him. :D

the venetian.....
 

thaskalos or anyone know what's going on with the venetian? it was pretty dead when i did my lv trip (there was some minor construction) but tonight has more games than any casino in town.

bravo:

Promotions
As of 12pm on 1/31/17, the Bad Beat Jackpot is at $164,909 with Quad 8's or better beaten as the qualifying hand! Jackpot updates daily, with the qualifying hand decreasing every two weeks. Complete rules available in the poker room. High Hand Giveaway: In January we gave away $102,000! Our next High Hand Giveaway will be coming mid April, details to follow. As of 2/1/17, we offer $4-$8 limit hold 'em with a half kill and above, with a generous rake structure, and $1-$2 NL and above. Call the Poker Room to inquire about game availability and to place your name on a waiting list. Poker Rewards can be used to enter any Daily or DeepStack Extravaganza poker tournament, for a table side massage from one of our Canyon Ranch Team Members, or for table side food from the Grand Lux Cafe. Please see a member of the Tournament Staff for more details. Start a private tournament or reserve a cash game for your group. Call our Tournament Director Tommy LaRosa at 702-498-6179 for more details. Based on dates and availability

Description # of Tables
4-8 HOLDEM H/K 2
2-5 NL HOLDEM 5
2-4 HOLDEM H/K 1
1-2 NL HOLDEM 9

no limit to maniac madness (part 1).....
 

to most normal people it's sunday morning.

but compulsive gamblers aren't normal people and i'm driving around the ghetto of chester, pa at 3:00 on saturday night looking for that venerable harness racino now known as harrah's philadelphia.

of course it's there.... right behind the prison :rolleyes: , and i grind out $20 of no limit profits and another caesar's quest for rewards badge in the process.

if only this was the first game (instead of the last) on my recent poker "vacation" then i could've died a happy man as a no-limit winner.

after a recent 1-2 win at penn national my no limit record for the last 37 months stood at 69-54 with only $11 of losses and with some time off from knish's truck i took off on tuesday night to spend the rest of the week in the place where the sand turns to gold: atlantic city!!

my goal was to win $12 to become a no limit winner and spend the rest of the week "relaxing" in low limit hold em.

with AQ i raise a couple limpers and see a queen high flop heads up.

i lose to a limped KK.

later we learn that the villain hates QQ because he "always loses with those bitches."

"uhh.... you are allowed to raise and three bet," i think to myself.

with 43 in the big blind i usually fold to a raise, but this raise is a small one that several people have already called and effective stacks are certainly deep enough that i decide to call.

on an 8 4 3 flop though i lose not to a set, but to that powerful suited three gap 84. :faint:

hours pass. i'm not winning any hands but when AK rivers trip aces i look to get (kinda, sorta) back in the game.

i lose to a set of 2s.

when the table breaks i finally get a break with a set of queens against a maniac. i can't get him to bite on a big turn raise but he's already put enough in that i now have a chance to get back in it and grind out my $12.

instead i go card dead and maniacs take over the game.

in one big hand two maniacs and another player are all all in on the turn with sets. yes.... three sets!!

maniac 2 takes it down with kkk but starts to give it back.

on a rebuy maniac 1 is all in preflop (hundreds) with AT off and maniac 2 calls!!

board: Q Q 9 6 2 (no flush)

ACE HIGH IS GOOD! maniac 1 takes it down!! :faint: :faint: :faint:

next maniac 2 is up against a woman and they go to showdown on a board of A K J A K.

the woman tables JT for a counterfeited bottom pair.

"playing the board" the dealer (erroneously) blurts out.

MANIAC 2 MUCKS HIS HAND!!! :faint: :faint: :faint:

another player looks to double up through maniac 2 when he flops a set of jacks on a board with two hearts. he shoves ALL IN for WAY over the pot.

maniac 2 calls with 92 and of course the board runs out heart, blank.

next he raises T6 and felts another player when he turns a gutshot.

somehow i manage to lose $41.40 an hour over ten hours against this advanced competition in what i believe was my worst no limit result in the entire history of the proximity poker tour.

the next day i quickly lose with two sets and can never recover, losing $99 in another ten hour game.

friday i finally grind out a $4 win in 2-4-6 limit company before moving my tack over to the borgata.

i wonder what will happen there.....

no limit to maniac madness (part 2).....
 

ok poker fans we're back in atlantic city where we've just arrived at the borgata where we jump right into some intense 10/20 limit hold em action.

i get off to a good start with 99 in this exciting game before quickly picking up where i left off last season.

generally i'm not a very aggressive blind defender in these limit games but this night i'm getting a lot of hands to defend with and then totally missing the flops. the game moves fast and the blinds and time rake are grinding me down. i have two final chances to get back in the game but i'm rivered by a (legitimate) flush and then a gutshot.

down $450 and nearly $1000 for the trip i drop down to 1/2 no limit where i'm greeted by yet another maniac who is getting hit by the deck. eventually lightning strikes and i finally.... and i do mean FINALLY.... win a decent no limit pot when 66 flops a boat!! i get two stacks (one smaller and one larger) but unfortunately the maniac isn't in this hand. eventually i quit with a $192 win so i can get some sleep.

over at harrah's i grind out $13 in 2/4 limit and another caesars quest for rewards badge before moving back over to the borgata for more 1/2 no limit. there aren't any maniacs at the table this time but i fall behind early before rallying to win another big pot with a set of tens. i cash out with a $152 win and wrap up the trip back at bally's in a 246 limit game.

unfortunately it's another bad outing at bally's. a set of tens is run down by a baby flush as is a flopped straight with KJ. i drop $75 and take off for harrah's philadelphia (chester) where i win $20 and get another caesars badge.

it's been a horrible week but on the trip home i hear some good news from penn national where a horseplayer known as the lion has been red hot at the hold em tables, going 18-3 and +2100 to start the year.

as for me, atlantic city evens my w-l record at 13-13 but i fall to -789 in the only stat that really counts.

thank you for reading. :)

trip

bally's 1/2 -414
bally's 1/2 -99
bally's 246 +4
borg 10/20 -450
borg 1/2 +192
hac 24 +13
borg 1/2 +152
ballys 246 -75
hph 1/2 +20

here's a great vlog recommended by the lion:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7niy1IA-uc

enjoy!!

the lion roars at hollywood pen.....
 

ok poker fans after (kinda, sorta) surviving atlantic city and chester today's action finds us back in grantville (stepping onto the red carpet) at exciting hollywood penn national!!

bravo says there are five games going but the parking garage is almost totally empty and i begin to wonder. down in the card room though the games are going and i take a seat in everyone's favorite game 1-2 no limit hold em.

i get J2 four of the first five hands but eventually notch a decent win with 99. i flop a boat with AA but don't get any action before losing with KK and AJ, the latter overtaken on the turn by J9.

eventually the game breaks and my starting stack and a couple dollars of profits over to another game featuring our good friend and fellow horseplayer the lion.

after closing out 2016 with wins in like 10 of his last 12 games the lion hasn't showed any signs of slowing down in 2017; starting the campaign 18-3 and raking in about $2100 of profits.

the lion is making a mockery of this game. he's hollywooding at hollywood; standing up in the middle of big hands, "raising" first in, even stealing the proximity "shaking hands" act.

for the second time in a week there's a muck on what would've been a chop and naturally the lion is the beneficiary.

on a board of (approx) J 6 X 6 A the lion tables his KJ at showdown. the villain holds his J7 high in the air (a couple of us can see the hand) before tossing it into the muck.

it's mostly j x hands for me although eventually i score a win with a baby flush and manage a $41 win. but this night belonged to the lion who once again roared at hollywood with a near $300 score!!

thank you for reading!

game +41 (1/2 nl)
year -748 (14-13)
promo 0 (160)

high hand at hollywood???.....
 

if someone has AK i'm rich.

not gates or trump rich but the big share of penn national's 600k + bad beat jackpot will be more than enough for a railbird like me.

unfortunately everyone mucks.

to make matters worse it's now 12:30 am and a long day of high hands has just ended. my queen high straight flush, (with 98) drags only a tiny 3/6 limit pot. :bang:

the long poker weekend started on friday with my annual car inspection/ charles town trip.

as usual, things did not go well.

i jumped out to a slim lead against a weak field of 1-2 nl players but losses with KK, queens full of 8s (to quad 8s) and tt (to kk) put me out of my misery and i stumbled over to the track where i booked a rare live racing loss.

it was a depressing ride home but i looked to give it another try sunday at pen in another 1-2 nl game featuring the lion.

the lion struggled in this one and unfortunately suffered a (very) rare loss while i moved out to a $260 lead with my sights set on having my best game in proximity poker tour history and moving ahead "career" in no limit play.

unfortunately the cards didn't cooperate.

after folding about 100 out of 105 hands, 87
finally rivers a flush but is beaten by a player who limped utg with T2.

frustrated i move to a (rare for pen) 3/6 limit game.

i lose with KK but rally to get ahead as the high hand period is about to end.

AK (four bet pre vs aq off) sees a beautiful flop of ace-club-club. :headbanger:

but a blank on the turn is of course followed by a non club queen on the river :faint:and my 2017 limit woes continue.

thank you for reading. :)

ct -200 (1/2 nl)
pen +160 (1/2 nl)
pen -44 (3/6 lim)
year -832 (15-15)
promo 0 (160)

Time to rethink your game?

22+, A2s+, 54s+, 75s+, suited big, sometimes off suit big is what got played.

winner again??
 

a few weeks ago we set off for atlantic city with our sights set on grinding $12 (twelve) of profits and returning to the ranks of no limit winners!!

unfortunately we were rudely greeted at bally's with -$414 and -$99 sessions and our dreams of no limit glory were returned to the back burner.

later we'd hit another bump in the road at charles town but over time we gradually grinded back into contention.

i had high hopes for this week but it seemed like the cards had other plans as i opened with three losses to donkeys. i hung tough though to grind out an $18 win and followed up with a plus $154 session to FINALLY pull back ahead (albeit only $13) in no limit play for the last 38 months!!

meanwhile our high rolling buddy the lion had been on another hot streak since his rare loss in our last report. he won every day of the week and was looking to score big again with KK and raised to $10.

two callers joined the lion, seeing a flop of JT6 (two diamonds).

the lion bet $20.

one player folds but the other raises to $60.

the lion calls.

turn: 5

the lion shoves all in for a little more than the pot.

with KQ off.... not even diamonds.... the villain CALLS.

river: A. :bang::bang::bang:

thank you for reading!!

game +154 (1/2 nl)
year -660 (17-15)
promo 0 (160)

royal riches??
 

ok poker fans today's action finds us back at penn national where i'm grinding a long session with hopes to qualify for their new rakeback promotion!!

we're once again in 1-2 no limit company and there are some early fireworks when KQ flops the nut flush!! (AJ8)

a second eight on the turn slows my momentum a little (i still bet) but the river brings a beautiful T to give me my first lifetime royal!!!!!!!!!!!!

the villain has the nine of clubs and if he flips over the seven we're all rich as it will trigger the 641k bad beat jackpot!!

unfortunately he only has the 3 but what a rush to be within one card of such an enormous score!!

hours later i cash out with a $117 win; an overall solid ending to the month after the horrendous start to the atlantic city trip.

thank you for reading!!

game +117 (1/2 nl)
year -543 (18-15)
promo 0 (160)

I've never gotten a royal flush. Great on you. How much did you win on the hand anyway? So the villian went deep into the hand with a 93 same suited as yours? What was the betting like?

villain checked and called the whole way. didn't win much.

this month i hope to start getting back to maryland more so i keep on pace to be caesars diamond again in 2018. i do enjoy playing at penn national though and although it's not (nearly) as much as maryland gives, it was nice to see them start a rakeback program.

another crushing loss.....
 

ok poker fans, we'd been gaining no limit momentum since the horrible game at bally's, even rallying to move ahead lifetime!!

on this poker tour however, pretty much without exception, these milestone wins are quickly followed by catastrophic losses.

someday (hopefully?) the winning streak will keep going but unfortunately once again, misfortune quickly strikes.

our next no limit action finds us back at penn national. i quickly lose set over set and flush over flush and can never rebound in a $365 loss.

it seems so many times that action killing cards come when i get a good hand but it's only total blanks when i'm on the short end of the hand? :bang:

the lion, meanwhile continues to roll. he's finished the first two months like 30-6 with $3000+ of profits. in a developing situation though, it appears penn national is attempting to screw him out of his hard earned rakeback as his efforts are not listed in the official records book at the hollywood poker podium!! stay tuned poker fans!! :popcorn:

game -365 (1/2 nl)
year -908 (18-16)
promo 0 (160)

straight flush sunday at...... mgm national harbor!!!
 

ok poker fans, we're back with more live poker excitement!!

this time we're up early on a sunday morning; a golden opportunity to make a run to the new mgm national harbor!!!

i take the scenic (western) route to mgm and what an amazing sight this casino is as it comes into view on the beltway!! absolutely beautiful property!

inside everything's shiny and new but i'm a little underwhelmed. i guess i thought it would be a little bigger and the ceilings a little higher? some decorations (like penn national's trees and horse statue for example) would've been nice between sections of table games and slots also.

the 39 table poker room is an l-shaped design towards the back on the left side of the casino (coming from the garage, not the resort). the tables are well spaced and feature possibly the best chairs on the circuit and thickly padded rails. cup-holders aren't built into the rails but portable holders that sit on the table are available (they tuck into the rail). i found the felt to be maybe a little too velvety (?) and with my short nails i actually had some minor trouble checking my cards.

a self serve coffee bar is a nice touch here and the room has beautiful and well positioned tvs.

i didn't get to meet poker director johnny grooms but overall i'd say he's assembled an impressive staff. the floor was prominent and fast enough in response to any inquiries and there's a lot of reason for optimism about the dealers. our own charm city whiz has jumped ship from maryland live! to harbor and i noticed other top dealers like anne and terry from charles town as well as kenny, vicky, and taylor from horseshoe. i've definitely missed some names here too. i did raise my eyebrows at one hire but that particular dealer had an above average down at my table so overall it looks like there's a lot of hope for this team.

some negatives were that the room was a little cold (even for a poker room) and the dealer uniforms were horrible. the poker room could use some artwork on the back wall too as it seemed a little bare.

the biggest negative though was the other players.

i played 4/8 limit and only about half of my table displayed what i'd consider acceptable poker etiquette.

slow play, rebuying for the minimum every fifth hand (it's a limit game!!), arguing with other players and dealers, taking long walks with short stacks, majoring in minor things, more slow play, more $40 rebuys when you have $1000 in your pocket....... rinse and repeat.

on the felt, another straight flush (third sunday in a row!!) pushed me out to nearly a $100 lead before the cards went cold. our old friend KK fell to AA and eventually i fell behind. i rally late though when i flop a set with my own AA and retire with a $24 win.

mgm pays $2 an hour in comps but these don't go directly on your mlife card.
you have to get the floor to put the comps on your card AND you have to tell them the specific place you're going to use them.

i got $13 comps for shake shack and $12.87 got me a shake and possibly the best hamburger i've ever had!! overall the food options were very impressive and not as expensive as i expected.

i took the quicker (eastern) route home and made it in a little over two hours. still though the distance and game conditions (at least 4/8) will prevent me from becoming any kind of regular here but it's certainly a solid candidate for the occasional day trip.

thank you for reading!

game +24 (4/8 lim)
year -884 (19-16)
promo 0 (160)

in line a lion???
 

ok poker fans we're back with more exciting hold em action; this time it's yet another trip to america's playground: atlantic city!!

the lion's wife has taken off for florida and he's eager to challenge some of the east coast's finest so i invite him along on the trip but not before cautioning him that new jersey people are THE smartest in the world.

paraphrasing woody stephens i tell him "them casinos get a lot taller when you cross that bay, son," but at like 30-6 and +$3,000 the lion fears no 1-2 player.

we arrive late wednesday night at the borgata and the lion's eager to dip his paws in the water so we join up for some 1-2 action.

i quickly fall behind while the lion's holding his own. with AT he flops a dime for top pair and turns an ace for two pair. the lion shoves all in over the pot and a younger player calls with AJ and hits his heart for the nut flush.

we're at the borgata so i'm distracted by the cocktail waitresses and stuff but i'm almost certain the lion didn't offer the kid anywhere near 3/1 on this hand so i'm flabbergasted by table talk that says that the kid "had to call."

to the kid's left, i rally a bit but a missed bluff when a villain gives up on a draw that was better than mine ends up making the difference. i had the chips in my hand but i'd already bluffed this player once and wasn't sure he wouldn't make the hero call with ace high so i didn't throw them in. live and learn.

game -15
year -899 (19-17)
promo 0 (160)

out like a lion??
 

ok poker fans we're back at the exciting borgata in atlantic city for more poker action!

when we last left off, the lion, suffered a rare defeat and today's report finds us up early for some breakfast at casa taco before heading back to the poker room.

the lion heads for 1-2 where his raise with QQ is called and beaten by J5, the hand a reminder that you can't just go to no limit, or mid limit, or probably even high limit to elude these brutal beats. there is no escape.

over at 3-6 limit i get off to a good start and when my table breaks i look to extend my lead at a new table with a QQ of my own.

flop: KQ7

turn:7

villain: KK :puke:

with 76 from the button i limp behind the field and see a much needed flop of T98 rainbow.

villain: QJ. :puke:

meanwhile the lion has launched a furious comeback to break his borgata maiden, but the effort has knocked him out and several hours later i wake him up for some supper.

back in the poker room we jump into a LOUD 1-2 no limit game against local lawyer and author (devil leeds; a book about the jersey devil) voorhees scott macom.

the lion flops a straight but can't get a younger player who has flopped a set to bite on a $60 bet. good laydown by the kid!!

i win $11 and head for 24 where i win a quick $20 before the game breaks and i head back to 36 where i take a seat to the left to a loud and obnoxious action player. i don't do much here but eventually look down at AQ and call the action player's three bet after an early player raises. the early player caps it and half the table sees a flop of low cards. getting like a million to one i actually continue in this overcard situation. i'd love to see a queen but the turn brings an ace. the original raiser comes back to life and i start to worry but call down. i ask if he has the king and scoop a great limit pot for a one pair hand when he flips over AJ!! :cool:

back at 24 i lose $19 and return to the room to find that, overcome by intense anxiety, the lion has packed up and left for the more tranquil jungle of penn national. grantville's home and there's (supposedly) no place like it but for here and now i'm staying put in atlantic city. two more days to go.

36 -49
12 +11
24 +20
36 +63
24 -19

year -873 (22-19)
promo 0 (160)

proximity fans riot in the wild wild west......
 

ok poker fans we're back in snowy atlantic city where we start off the morning at the amazing borgata!!

philadelphia sports radio 94wip is doing a live broadcast on the casino floor and there is a lot of excitement about the eagles signing alshon jeffery. supposedly my colts had some interest in jeffery as well as dontari poe but (so far) haven't reeled in any big names. this week i did see where the colts signed a player named al woods and my immediate reaction was that if we could just get bill benter under contract that......

anyhow i grab some breakfast at bread and butter before checking out of the hotel and heading down the the poker room to close out our borgata stay with a final game of 1-2 no limit holdem.

we start slow in this one as my preflop raise with QQ is called by a player with Q9
who goes on to river a straight.

just not a good week for pen shippers playing QQ here at borgata. :bang:

when i raise again and am beaten by a player calling with A9 i get up and move to the left of BOTH of these players. eventually i rally back to even but the table starts getting tougher. i drop a couple hands with AK and down $60 i wave the white flag and head over to bally's where i have a room for the night.

unfortunately at bally's i had to pay an extra $28 to get a bed for our friend the lion (who already tucked his tail and headed back to grantville) but since i have over $2000 of caesars rewards credits this isn't that big of a deal. of course though the woman at check in can't reverse the advance deposit charge that has already been put on my credit card....... sigh.

maybe things will go better against a weak 246 limit field down in the wild west poker room?

uhh....no.

i start losing from the opening bell but towards the end look to get on the board with KK. but the cowboys lose to 73 and in the very next hand JJ is rivered by a gutshot. :mad:

at this point i get up and storm out of the poker room towards the main wild west section where there's a concert, beer pong, 21 year old girls, and lots of fun things besides losing to rag playing donkeys.

suddenly though there's complete chaos and rumors of a gun and bally's security and atlantic city police are chasing people all over the casino floor!!

they run past me about five times in both directions. there are rumors, including one that it's outraged proximity poker tour fans that have finally snapped but no one can say for sure.

thank you for reading.

borgata -60 (1/2 nl)
bally's -100 (246 lim)
year -1033 (22-21)
promo 0 (160)

At 3:42 getting drilled at 5/10 half kill Omaha

Ha.
Man, if I'da bin there ... ;)

Prox, have you ever tried tournament play? Tournies that have good blind structures with decent time between increases (and lots of players) can reward better play.
Are there 'rag playing donkeys' in tournaments? Of course. But they typically weed themselves out fairly early.

Best advice given out on this board in quite some time....:ThmbUp:

Poker tournaments require a totally different set of skills...IMO. Tight cash-game players often get a rude awakening when they venture into tournaments. Dan Harrington is the EXCEPTION rather than the rule.

quit tournaments while i was ahead.

i do see a lot of zombies in these fields but i simply don't enjoy tournament play.

this from the famous limon #2000 thread on that other site:

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/19...m-shyt-457839/


I wrote about this years ago. Its one of my essays about how poker is hard, boring, and no way to get rich (unless you diversify**).
Another place you see this is in televised cash games. Contrary to many of the posts on 2+2 these games are BORING! Doyle is boring, Patrick is boring, ivey is boring, jman is fuqqing boring, reese was boring, chan is boring, greenstien ohhh so eye gougingly boring and, don’t say it, ZOMG!, im gonna say it…DURRRRRRRRRRRRRR is boring! (sans 1 hand but that just proves the point). Guy isn’t boring, gold isn’t boring, the gyno isn’t boring, negreanu isn’t boring, hellmuth isn’t boring, elezra isn’t boring, matusow isn’t boring…etc…do we see a pattern?

i'm about as boring as they come. :pout:

peppermint patty needs a ride.....
 

ok poker fans we are back at the amazing bally's in frigid atlantic city!!

when we last left off i lost with KK and JJ in back to back hands and there was a riot in the wild west section of the casino.

with a fraternity/bachelor party group on my (mr big shot diamond member:rolleyes:) floor i didn't expect to get much sleep but surprisingly i never heard a peep out of them.

instead at 5:00 am i am awoken by a peppermint patty sounding girl in the room next door telling her life story to some hapless chump on her cell phone.

peppermint patty doesn't want to be in a relationship with charlie brown. instead she wants to travel for work and have sex with lots of other guys is the cliffs notes. :popcorn:

when i hear this i think about getting up and knocking on her door but with the way i'm running in this godforsaken city she'd probably be bigger and uglier than the average lineman on the colts.

instead i drift back to sleep for a few hours before heading downstairs for a nice breakfast at johnny rockets.

on the way back to the room i stop at the check in counter and surprise, surprise; bally's CAN take the charge off my credit card and apply my reward credits!!

so the morning's going well and my play now is to sleep a few more hours before heading down to the poker room to avenge last night's loss to those high hand chasing donkeys.

at 9:00 though peppermint patty gets another call.

apparently charlie brown's abandoned her here in atlantic city and she needs a ride back to.... newark??

sigh.... :)

One thing about large-field live tournaments that almost nobody seems to realize is that the variance involved is so large that it's unlikely that anyone has outrun it.

There are some mathematical truths about tournament play that players should learn before playing in them-- ICM and the like, as well as a bunch of pokerstove / equilator calculations about how wide ranges play against other hands-- but certainly if you are looking to make a consistent profit in poker, you probably need to play cash games (unless short field tournaments are frequent enough where you play, or you can play large field tournaments online) because at least you have a shot at attaining a decent sample size and establishing a real winrate. You'll never really know if your results in big-field live tournaments are due to running bad or good or your skill level.