Team Poker 2008

The Team Poker was a blast. Though I would've wished it ended in our favor but nonetheless I thought it was great.

 

There were a total of 19 teams who joined and it was filled with real poker players. Most of the old regulars were there as well as some new ones. The teams were distributed in such a way that no two players from one team was in the same elimination table. I was assigned to table number six. There was Oging, Dana, Me, Atty Rado, a La Sallite, Eric M, Myra, and I forgot the last guy's name.

 

I have to say that being on the same table as Eric M is great as I rarely get to play against him but I know that he knows his poker and will provide the table with some good plays.

 

There wasn't much to write about my plays. I stole some blinds. I bluffed more than I wanted to. I wasn't getting any good cards and there wasn't any way to keep up with the blinds. What I do remember was the hand I busted out with. There were only 5 players left in the tournament and I was at the cut-off. Blinds was at 300/600 with 50 ante. I had around 11000 in chips, and the average stack was at 10000. UTG Oging folded, I raised to 1800 total with Q9s spades, Button Eric M folded, SB Myra folded. BB, approximately 35000 in chips, thought about it a long time. Then he called. Flop comes Qd, 9c, 8c. BB checks. I raised 3000. BB raises all-in. I thought. BB thought about calling a long time pre-flop which probably means he has a mediocre hand. If he had mid-pockets and made a set, he would've raised on the flop because there was a flush draw and a possible straight. If he had 2-pair, my top 2-pair has the advantage. If he was on a flush or straight draw, I would still be ahead. If he already has a made straight, he would've bet on the flop because of the flush draw or would've just called my bet. My initial thought though was that he had made his straight with JT. But as I only had to call a reasonable amount compared to the pot, I called. I turned over my Q9, and he shows Q8. 2-pair over 2-pair with me a huge favorite. Turn peels off a Ah and river shows 8s. He hit his 2-outer and busted me out of the tournament.

 

The other members of Team King Jack Call had the same fate as I did. We didn't have a fighting chance of getting in the top 3 teams.

 

For me, this tournament had so much on the line. It was my first mid-buy-in tournament being staked. It was a chance for me to play good poker with some good players. And it was a venue for me to show that I had what it takes to be considered one of the good players.

 

I'm looking ahead and I'm aiming for the original plan of saving Php 50,000 for me to start playing regularly again.

Staker Update II

I did it! So far my stakers have given me Php 2,500 to play with and I was able to turn it into Php 7,000. Not bad for a small time operation. I can't wait to join the big games.

There was a noticeable difference in my play. It was a cash game which from previous posts show, is not my strongest point. But I was able to discipline myself not to chase cards. I never took unnecessary chances and I was able to stand up without losing all my winnings. These are what I've been writing about which I've never actually learned. Until I started playing with someone elses money. It made me more focused and it made me more disciplined.

This wekk I'll probably play some more cash games and hopefully, aside from focus and discipline, I'd also gain consistency.

Stakers Update I

The payout has been finalized for my stakers. I will take 20% of the gross profit but this is contingent on them getting their investment back first. Their portion of the remaining 80% will depend on how much they staked.

Seems simple enough. Now all that I need to do is to wait for the Team Poker Event which was moved to May 17. Tough luck.

Razz, 7-Card Stud, Omaha, etc

I'm starting to love Razz. I've been playing it online and it's great. It's simple however a lot of online players seem to have a hard time getting used to it. Now I don't have the whole strategy down pat yet but I'm getting there.

I'm also starting to love HORSE. It keeps one on their toes and it stops the monotony which we sometimes encounter especially when we're getting cold cards.


A few weeks ago I sent an SMS message to The Metro's General Manager, Bryan. I suggested that The Metro can offer alternative forms of poker through their tournaments and gimmicks. This will definitely make our regular players more mature and it'll expand their thinking. Basically, it'll improve their game. And although it may not be as marketable as Texas Hold'em and it'll take some time to train the dealers, I'm pretty confident that in the long run, it'll give positive results.

Stakers Found!

I now have 5 people willing to stake me for tournaments. Cool! Now it's pretty hard to decide on the actual division of profit if I win. With that many stakers, the percentage will be small.

Which is why I'm trying to see if aside from the Team Poker event, I can also join a Metro 75 perhaps. But I'll think about that more after I run some calculations in Excel. For now, I'm just excited to be able to join the Team Poker Event. I can just hear the crowd cheering, King Jack Call!

The Results Are In...

Based on the poll, I should stick to Live Poker. It wan't a landslide, Live Poker only lead by one. And I voted fo it so it's really dead even.

One of these days I will actually try Online Poker. Probably until I lose a $100 buy-in. But that'll have to wait until I have internet at home. I can't have one set up because I'm planning to move to a different unit or building. Maybe until then, I'll content myself with the free WiFi access at McDonald's Katipunan. Problem is they don't have power outlets. It's free but only until your laptop battery runs out. I'll probably disconnect their hand dryer one of these days so I can charge my laptop. I hate going to Starbucks or Seattle's Best because internet costs an arm and a leg and I don't even drink coffee. I'm just very hesitant to even have my own internet service because I'm rarely home and it's going to be a waste. I'm very stingy when it comes to things I know I can live without but sit me in a poker table and I'll just leave enough money for the cab ride home (read as a hyperbole). I'm weird that way.

On the other hand, there are some very enticing tournaments scheduled for this summer at The Metro. This is the main reason why I can't leave Live Tournament play. There was the eliminations for the Heads-Up Tournament earlier today which I wasn't able to attend because of work. And there'll be the Team Poker event scheduled early May. I can't wait for the Team Poker because it'll be our chance to make up for last year's performance. I've been formulating plans on how we can work as a team even when we're on different tables. I'll leave these thoughts for posts after the event. So far, I think our roster will be me, Rini, Jerry Bernas, Bryan Ang and Aris or Dondi. I'm really not sure because Rini's in charge of that. And from what I hear, the other teams are going to be revived/modified Servitek Team Poker teams as well. This will be one of those tournaments you know will be a classic because the players will definitely be top-notch. If you can't join the Team Poker event, just come and watch and cheer with us, King Jack Call!

Poker Player For Hire

A few posts ago (Putting Things in Perspective) I mentioned that I'll be looking for stakeholders and I'm proud to say that my first shot at being staked was a success. My officemate was able to stake me 2 buy-ins for the daily Metro 25k guaranteed tournament. Yes it is just a 500 buy-in tournament but I have to start somewhere. And besides, he hasn't played poker all his life so it's just appropriate for him not to put in too much.

Our agreement was that he'd front the 1000 buy-in for 2 tournaments and we'd split the net profit. I finished 6th on the first tournament and won 1000. This guaranteed my friend that at the very least, he'd get his money back. The second torunament didn't end as good. I finished 18th or something. I kept pushing all-in because I wasn't getting cards and the blinds were coming up. Finally, I pushed UTG with Q7s and got a caller, AA. Oh well, if I didn't push then, some random cards would beat me on my BB and then I still would've lost. Long and short of it, my friend will get his 1000 back later when I see him. Now I consider this as a great run because it wasn't a loss. I managed to secure my stakeholder's investment which considering that it's a tournament, is a big thing.

Now that was the trial run for the whole staking endeavor. This will probably influence other people to stake me for other tournaments. I'm hoping I get staked to the weekly Metro75 (2000 + 200 buy-in) or the weekly Asian Poker Tour satellite level 1 (2000 + 200 buy-in) or the Metro Heads-Up tournament on April 26 (5000+500 buy-in).

I'm also planning to join the Team Poker tournament on May 3 as part of Team King Jack Call. The team roster is not yet finished but I'm sure we have a good chance because it'll be easy to get the crowd behind us. (More details about the last Team Poker Tournament here) It'll be a shoot-out tournament and it's just going to be like 2 Sit and Go's. And although the team ranking will depend on the performance of the team as one, there will also be individual payouts which would guarantee that the torunament remains as an individual game.