Published!

Over at the Poker.com forum they had a competition to write an article that would be published on the Carbon/Poker.com blog. I`d had an idea for a piece rattling around in my head for a while but had never gotten around to writing it up. The competition was the inspiration I needed and I put fingers to keyboard and wrote up Sun Tzu and The Art of Poker. I was somewhat surprised, although pleasantly so when I heard my modest effort had won the competition. You can check it out at the Carbon Blog where the guys have added a nice graphic to the article and of course I`ve put it on here too.

I`d just like to say a quick thank you to the people I showed it too prior to entering the competition. Your words of encouragement helped give me the confidence to submit it.

Sun Tzu and the Art of Poker

No doubt some of you are saying Sun who? So before I continue I`ll give you a very brief history lesson. Sun Tzu was born in China around 500B.C, around the same time as the great philosopher Confucious. Sun Tzu was a great strategist and commander and he wrote thirteen essays that comprised The Art of War. This text is still used in military schools today and although the equipment and style of war has changed immeasureably the lessons contained within the essays are still as sound as ever.

There, that`s it, history lesson over, it wasn`t too painful now was it? So why am I talking about an ancient Chinese strategist on a poker blog? Well there`s a quote that says "Cards are war in disguise of sport",and it`s very true, strategy plays a great part in poker as in war. We each have our troops (chips) our weapons (cards) and our battle field (the felt or cyber-felt) and we are the generals trying our best to achieve victory.

I`m not going to attempt to analyse the entire book because I don`t have the space or time to do so. I believe there is a poker book based on it but I haven`t read it. This is purely my interpretation of a very small, but very important part of it.

Chapter 3 is entitled Offensive Strategy and the closing statement of the chapter is:

"Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles, you will never be defeated. When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant of both the enemy and yourself, you are sure to be defeated in every battle".

When you first join a table the first thing you should do is start to categorise the players are they loose, tight, aggressive, passive. The type of player they are is going to give you your strategy for beating them when you are in a hand with them. Against a tight aggressive player you can be more aggressive and bluff and steal more pots. You need to be wary when encountering resistance though. Against the loose aggressive player you`re going to need a better hand unless you too generally play in that style. Which brings me to the part of this quote that I really want to look at - knowing yourself.

In this game we have to know our own strengths and perhaps even more importantly our weaknesses. I love to watch Daniel Negreanu play, I have the greatest admiration for the loose aggressive style he has, the same goes for Phil Ivey. However I can`t play in the same way, I`ve tried upon occassion but inevitably my nature re-asserts itself and I go back to my tighter style of play.

We are what we are, there is no denying that. As the saying goes "The leopard cannot change its spots". Our nature determines to a great degree the type of poker player we are. Younger players tend to be more loose and aggressive, they are fearless and perhaps lack the patience of an older player. Some players will favour a mathematical game, others rely more on instinct. Get to know which style of play suits you best and play that way for the majority of the time. That`s not to say we can`t switch gears for short periods of time when the situation allows but that`s experience not nature.

To quote former world champion Walter "Puggy" Pearson

"Always remember, the first thing a gambler has to do is make friends with himself. A lot of people go through this world thinking they`re someone else. There are a lot of players sitting at this table with mistaken identities. You wouldn`t believe it."

To look at what I`ve said in a strategic sense, by playing in the way that suits your personality best you`re picking your battleground. You`re giving yourself the best chance of winning because you`re fighting on ground that suits you. The same strategy should be applied to the games you play. As popular as no-limit hold `em is you might find that your personality suits limit hold `em better or even one of the other varieties of poker.

So take a few moments, think about your personality, assess your strengths and your weaknesses, be honest with yourself. You may be able to find something that will allow you to improve your game.

A Hot Weekend

The weather was unseasonably warm over the weekend but that isn`t what I really mean in the title of this post. Ever since Friday night I`ve been playing pretty darn good though I say so myself, actually I played well all last week and I think I know why. There was a post over at Rounders Radio that asks what 3 things you need to do to improve your game. Well I gave it some thought and identified a couple of things I could do to try to improve my game and going on recent results they seem to be working. I`m not going to list them here, too many people I play against regularly read this blog and they will have to figure it out for themselves lol.

Friday night I was on a high from winning the $20k GTD coupon and played in two simultaneous Rounders games, one at Full Tilt the other at Poker Stars. I played well in both and went out at Tilt on a truly sick hand that I should have folded. I had even decided to fold then called anyway. The sequence of events was a minimum raise from UTG or UTG+1, a re-raise from me with QQ and then an all-in by the shortstack on the button. The initial raiser then pushed all-in and as he had me covered I`1d mentally decided to fold, instead I called, he had AA the shortstack had KK. An ace came on the turn and a queen on the river just to taunt me. A stupid mistake his play screamed aces. I ended up around 60th from about 500 players. The field at Stars was much shorter and I quickly accumulated a huge stak that kept me in the top 3 for most of the game. It`s not a situation I`m really used to and I probably didn`t use it to my advantage enough. I ended up finishing 19th out of 150+ when my QQ was busted by KJ. I hit the set on the flop but the turn and river gave him broadway. Hindsight is all too easy in this game but I should probably have just re-raised rather than going all-in and trying to take his bet and the blinds. Nonetheless I was reasonably pleased with my games.

On Saturday I had a busy schedule, too busy if truth be known. First up was the Rounders WSOP freeroll at Bodog, then starting an hour later there was the Get Well Soon Game for Skinski and the finals for The Poker Forum Challenge. That`s where the problem lay, no way was I missing any of these games but I know I don`t multi table very well. I was going well at Bodog and then the other games started and I was doing pretty well in all three. I managed to get three very good hands simultaneously and I think that`s what got me knocked out at Bodog. AK in the pocket and a King high flop. I honestly think I would have gotten away from the hand if I had been at just the one table but I ran into KK and it was game over. In TPFC I had a flying start and ended up finishing 16th, a solid result and the highest placing from the K9 Team. In Skinski`s game I played very well overall although I did make a couple of stupid mistakes that meant I had to get lucky with pocket tens vs KK to claw my way back into the game. Picked up a nice pot from Hacksaw when I spotted a betting tell and check-raised him off his small pocket pair. That was my play of the game. He has such an aggressive table image that I usually hate to find myself in a pot with him. I managed to pick up a 5th place finish just in the money being slightly unlucky when my JJ was beaten by Margie`s AJ. She went on to win the game and thoroughly deserved it. She outplayed me on a pot earlier in the tourney and caught Hacksaw who was chip leader at the time with a nicely concealed full house.

The final game of the evening was a K9 satellite re-buy tourney that all I was playing for was fun and leaderboard points having already qualified. I`m not a fan of re-buys but at the start I added-on and hitting a few cards I was dominating my table and chip leader or 2nd for most of the game until the break. I then went from 2nd to 2nd last as everyone else did a double add-on. I just couldn`t see the point of spending more money and besides I felt confident that I could overcome the disadvantage. I really feel I was going to win but I took a horrible beat when my QQ were busted by a runner runner flush. It was pretty awful play by my opponent in the hand but having talked to them the next day I`m wondering if they misread the board and thought they had the flush draw on the turn and river.

Sunday I played a SNG with the K9 guys and won. It`s funny my confidence in these games is massive. I expect to cash and without meaning to sound conceited I actually expect to win. The results show it too, I think I`ve played about 13 and won 5 and cashed in 4 or 5 of the others.

Then it was onto the main event, the K9 game at Pharoahs. I was card dead for most of the game and made a real gamble when short stacked calling Zen who was also short stacked with ace high and an open ended straight draw. I hit it on the turn and after that I steadily accumulated chips until we were down to three players myself, Bully and coco.

It was the most enjoyable final three I ve had in a while. My opponents are great guys and great players. Bully is a monster who has more K9 wins than any other player. He`d probably have even more if this whole UIGEA thing hadn`t stopped him depositing. Coco is probably the most consistent K9 player who cashes so often it`s frightening. He was the shortstack and he hung on grimly until I took him out with 3-8. It was only 600 to call and I hit an 8 on the flop to send him to the rail.

That left me and Bully HU and I was determined to win. I feel that I played very well and eventually took it down after a good battle to give me my 6th piece of K9 bling. The funny thing about this tourney was that until someone mentioned the bubble it never crossed my mind. After winning I was almost surprised about the cash and had totally forgotten that I also won a webcam. All that mattered was the win, the external factors like money and prizes were truly irrelevent.

It`s Nice To Be Lucky

Well for once it`s me putting the bad beat on someone, the hand in question K-3 vs JJ with a board of A-A-Q-Q-x making me the winner because of my kicker. It was without doubt the key hand of the tourney and I went on to win a coupon to the $20k GTD at Poker.com. There`s no doubt I`d rather have won without having to suckout but I don`t feel too guilty. It`s happened to me too many times, it`s just part of the game. Besides which I really had no choice my opponent had nearly a 4:1 chip lead and was pushing me about so I decided to make a stand whilst I had enough chips to even the odds up a little.

Let`s hope my luck holds up for the $20k.

A Change Is As Good As A Rest

Had an unusual but very enjoyable night of poker tonight. A post over at 5th Street prompted me to go over to Third Bullet and whilst I was there I glanced at the tourney list and saw a $5 no fee tourney starting in about 5 mins. As I had some time to kill I thought I`d give it a shot. What I didn`t realise was that it was limit, in fact I didn`t even notice until several hands in. Still no big deal I`ve quite enjoyed playing limit tourneys in the past. The payout structure was pretty good too, 21 entries top 5 places paid. No long drawn out descriptions I took down 4th place for $15.75.

I then end up thinking that the K9 buy-in at Pitbull is on so I decide not to bother with the OPT freeroll. With twenty minutes to kick-off and only two of us registered I realise the tourney is scheduled for the next night - DOH! Not to worry though, I listen to the Rounders show and sign up for their Full Tilt freeroll. My result there isn`t worth recording but hey I had no better options at the time. I end up chatting with a bunch of my K9 mates on Skype until the early hours who eventually drift off until only myself and coco are left. The other day I withdrew most of my cash from Dream Poker leaving enough for a multi-table SnG so I decided to give that a shot. I sign up for a 30 seater and finish 13th, uninspiring to say the least.

I`m still chatting with coco who is over at Third Bullet playing a ring game so I decided to watch him for a while. Whilst I`m there I spot a $6+1 $50 added PL Omaha hi/lo tourney about to start. Now it isn`t really my game but I decided what the hell and registered. I figured even if I didn`t cash I`d still be slightly up for the night. Thirteen players regged, top four places paid, I clawed my way to 4th then hit a few hands and ended up finishing 3rd for a nice payout of $25.60.

I have to say I really enjoyed playing something other than NLHE, it made a refresing change as they say on a certain cider advert. It was also nice to play two tournaments where no-one was smack talking and most of the poker played was pretty solid.

My Anniversary!

It`s official, 6th April 2006 I entered into the crazy world of online poker and I haven`t looked back since. When I started I was armed with some book learning but no real experience. I think I`ve come quite a long way in my rookie season, I`ve learnt a hell of a lot by playing against some really quality players so thanks to all the guys and gals at K9 and 5th Street who have helped me improve my game.

In pursuing this hobby I`ve had the chance to meet some great people from all over the world through the forums I`ve joined and of course at the tables. To the outsider I can see that online poker might seem a lonely pursuit but they couldn`t be further from the truth. At pretty much any time day or night I can turn on my pc, start msn or skype and chat with someone. Some of these people I will probably never meet and yet I`m able to share with them the ups and downs of life and poker. To anyone who thinks poker is a bad thing all I can say is you`re very wrong. For me it`s made the world a much smaller and friendlier place. I`ve won a few bucks at the game but the real riches are the friends I`ve made and the laughs I`ve had.

Special thanks must go out to Shaggy and Earl who both had the faith to make me a moderator at their respective forums.

Finally thanks to all my online friends, Novice, Jax, Leafy, Shaggy, Skinski, Bully, Coco, Nemises, ArmySSG, Masala, Brad, Mr Nobody and many many more far too numerous to mention. Thanks for the laughs, the games, the chats and even the bad beats, you guys are great.

Here`s to the next year of poker!

Weekend Games

Another pretty good weekend for me results wise apart from Friday. Actually I had no business playing on Friday at all. Firstly I wasn`t in the mood, probably because I was tired and by the time I did start playing I`d had a few glasses of red wine and so wasn`t at my best concentration wise. Throw in the fact I was listening to Rounders Radio and chatting to someone at the same time and we have a recipe for disaster. I probably wouldn`t have played but I`d won entry into the K9 event at Vegas 24/7 and the Rounders freeroll was at Poker Stars where I`ve done pretty well the last two times I`ve played there. Anyway nothing special about either result, a mid field finish at Vegas and top third at Stars. It shows how tired I was at Stars when my aces were cracked and all I thought was good I can go to bed now.

Saturday I felt much more in the mood and first on the agenda was a Rounders freeroll at 3D poker, not my favourite site but I thought it would kill an hour whilst I waited for my 5th Street and TPFC qualifier games to start. I expected to be out at 3D by the time the other games started - I have a poor record there mainly because the blinds are killer. However for once I was doing prety well when both of my other games started.

So three different games on three different sites and me with a 15" monitor. Needless to say things were pretty hectic, so I was concentrating on 3D and 5th Street and just trying to hold my own in the TPFC game. At 3D I get As-Qs in the BB and UTG pushes all-in, it folds round to me. It cost me about 5k to call which left me with about 2,500. I almost layed it down but with blinds at 1k/2k and having already made the money I decided to call. My thoughts were that if I won the hand I had a great shot at winning and if I lost I could concentrate on my other games. Well my opponent had AA and I lost. A few hands later I`m out, immediately after I`m short-stacked at 5th Street with AK in the BB, two limpers so I push my remaining 800 chips in and Margie calls me with 66. The board fails to help me and I`m out of two tourneys in two hands.

On the bright side I`m still in the TPFC game, my stack is in decent shape and the field has thinned a little. We get to the final table and I`m trading the lead with Brad who is on a tequila inspired streak. I`ve enough chips that I can pretty much sit back and wait for the lesser stacks to get wiped out or until I hit a premium hand, which is exactly what I do until there are five of us left. With qualifying taken care of it`s now about finishing top 3 to pick up a little cash and of course winning the tourney. Shaggy the owner of K9 goes on an amazing streak and we`re down to three players with him having gone from short-stack to chip leader in a matter of a few hands. The tequila finally catches up with Brad, not to mention his KK running into AA and all of a sudden I`m heads-up with Shaggy.

We`ve been HU two times before but neither has been a long drawn out battle. On the first occasion the blinds were very high and it was pretty much a case of push with anything decent and hope it holds up. On the second I had so few chips it would have taken a miracle for me to get back into the game. So with the score at one all we finally had the chance for a real match. He had a decent chip lead about 17k to my 6-7k but the blinds were still relatively low and what developed was probably the toughest and best HU I`ve ever played.

The chip lead swung back and forth, everytime one of us seemed ready to finish the other off the right cards would come and the stacks would get back close to even. At one point after having him almost crushed, only to see him double up and pull back almost level I typed in "Just die" only to see his reply "I`m sat here saying the same thing lol". Well in the end I managed to pull it off and take down the win. I`ve got to say it`s a win I`m very proud of. I commented to a friend a while back that I held no fear for facing anyone HU and whilst I was a little nervous at times during this match I never felt overwhelmed.



Sunday night I played the 5th Street Leaderboard game but was denied the win when Ramster hit his king to beat my pocket fours. No complaints really, I limped with 4-4, he raised with Kc-9c (the irony eh)and I re-raised all-in. He had me covered by a little then flopped a four-flush giving him 15 outs twice. Shame though, it`s been a while since I won a 5th Street tourney and I fancied my chances.

Last game of the weekend was an OPT freeroll. It`s the first freeroll of theirs I`ve played and the donkeys were out in force. I spent most of the first hour dodging all-in and folding a lot. Finally managed to triple up with 9-9 and never really looked back from there. Played solid A-B-C poker and ground my way to the final table with only one major piece of luck when my A-K ran into K-K and I turned an ace. Unlucky for the other player but no guilt on my part, I was short-stacked and in the BB there was no way I could lay the hand down. So a solid 8th place to round off the night and the weekend. All-in-all a satisfactory performance.