Lucky Charms=Confidence

So the lucky charms were not around my neck on Wed. for the 'Moooookie'.....and I went out 23RD. I'm trying to establish that the lucky charms are just giving me CONFIDENCE. It is the ingredient I've been lacking in my game for quite a while. I would fold to lots of raises and not raise with a premium hand......playing passively for the most part. Confidence is/was the missing ingredient. Oh and my play in the 'Mookie' wasn't that good on Wed.....but the hand I went out with was a no-brainer push. I only had about 2.5 BB's and I got an A-Jo....insta-push. I got called by somebody who had A-Qo....but there was no choice. I was berated by a couple of the guys....why?....with an 'M' of 2/2.5....you wouldn't push with A-Jo? C'mon that's just retarded. I love it when somebody has a big-stack......everybody else sucks....don't ya know?

Anyway, I finally got out on Thursday night. I went back to the bar with the NL HE tourneys/league next town over from me. I haven't been there for about 8 months or so....feels like home. It's much better for small buy-in tourneys than some of the other local establishments. The bar "Slickey's" (name given to protect the innocent) has been running these tourneys for a couple of years and they have Monday and Thursday night leagues...and cash games for the knocked-out players. The tournament is run really well, especially after they've got a couple years experience under their belt. Last night there were about 45 players....and 6 were paid. I got knocked out 5th for a nice little payout (more on that later but QQ<99.......What the effff would I look like with 2 girly necklaces 1 broken and 1 not around my neck? I put them in my pocket). I had pocket pairs from A's down to 7's dealt to me and I picked up pots all night with them....I think I mucked 9's once when somebody pushed a large stack all-in but other than that I got great cards. I remember last year in the league I went card dead for like a month. That hurt my chances to qualify for the champ. table (STT with large cash prizes for the top ten after about 12 or 16 weeks...I forget the exact length of time. I hope to get out for a couple of them seeing as how I've cashed in a ton of them before. I made it to the final table with great cards and some great play. I knocked out a player and a couple others pushed all-in on monster hands to knock them out. We were down to six players left and the payouts were announced. I had Pocket 9's dealt to me and 'auntie' (lady who is great tricky player that looks like your aunt who LOVES to gamble) raised it up. I decided to go all-in.....she called with pocket 8's!!! I doubled up and was in great position. I started to go all-in with flopped two-pair hands and started to build the second biggest stack. Then the devastating hand of the night happened. I had pocket Q's dealt to me and was is late position. 'Auntie' was in early position and raised it up again (she was steaming from the earlier beat)....I went into the tank (I've seen this lady slow play A's....K's...i've seen her call with any pocket pair on occasion...and she seldom raises....but she was 'steaming'. I was feeling pretty good about the Q's so I went all in...this would put me in an overwhelming chip lead. She calls...........................with pocket 9's!! A nine falls on the flop and IGH. Every time I get pocket Q's in a live tournament and I go all-in....I get called my a woman with A-rag or another dominated hand....and lose. This happened to me before in another tourney at the local 'Sons of Italy'.......where there were 5 people left and I pushed all-in and a lady called with A-rag.....my chip stack crippled. So anyway, I go home with a little profit and a whole lotta crow to eat after the 'Steaming' auntie had me covered by......T500 in chips!

this weekend don't forget to do this :


......if you can't play you can at least dream.....

Lucky Charms

So I've been playing way over my head lately.......as some of you may have noticed. I wasn't getting any points in the BBT. I wasn't cashing in any of the Blogger/Blonkey/Blonkaments that I play with regularity recently. I played STT's for a while (with some great success on PokerStars for some reason). I played a hell of a lot of NL Hold'em MTT's for 11.00 and less on PokerStars, UltimateBet, Party Poker, Paradise Poker, and Full Tilt with some small cashes but no final tables (where the real cash is). Sure I could place high in some of the WPBT events...still no cash. I could cash once in a while in the WWdN : NLHE weekly but no wins either. I started taking notes in the past few months (I noticed some of the better MTTers like Lucko and Hoyazo-see today's post by him take detailed notes)....it seemed to help a bit. I read HoH volume I.....that seemed to change my game a bit. I am currently reading SuperSystem II. (we'll see what happens in the other poker games that I am more recently interested in...in the future). I guess all these things I've done recently have helped to tremendously change my game......but my 2-year old daughter of all things.....changed my game more than the other combined! How? you may ask....by giving me my lucky charms (not the cereal....but these two girly-plastic necklaces. She put them around my neck before she fell asleep last week.....right as I was about to enter the WWdN : Weekly NLHE tourney. I won. I found them the next night when I was about to enter the 'Mookie'...I took second. There must be something to these necklaces (I'm thinking at this point it is the 'Placebo effect' or they are my lucky charm)......so I put them on for all the BBT events since last Tuesday the 17Th. Riverchasers on Thursday....I've placed in the points for all BBT events since. I decided to play a 11.00 NL HE tourney on Friday...I took 3rd for over 450.00. On Sunday......I didn't wear them....I got knocked out of the WPBT Limit HE tourney very early....I looked over at my daughter.....she has one of them (the one with the clear-blue beads and she breaks it) and I realize I'm not wearing my lucky charms. By the time she falls asleep....I am knee deep in 3 simultaneous tournaments and I don't place in any points in the WPBT event and there are no cashes to be had in the other tournaments. At this point I'm looking for these necklaces every time I play a tourney (man this would be embarrassing if somebody saw me wearing them....my wife laughs at me when she walks into the room and sees me feverishly looking for them or wearing them...like last night) I put them on for my two simultaneous tourneys.....The token frenzy and M.A.T.H (BBT). I got my token in the token frenzy and I placed 4Th in M.A.T.H.
1. 1st place in the WWdN : NLHE (148.00) weekly on the 17Th.
2. 2ND place in the Mookie (140....119.00 after chop 2nd-3rd) for first Mookie cash on the 18th.
3. 3RD place (458.00) in a 10.00+1.00 NLHE MTT on Full Tilt on the 20Th.
4. 4Th place (137.00) in M.A.T.H. for first cash in that tournament on the 23RD.
5. Token (75.00) in Token Frenzy.
6. Numerous point placements in BBT to move up the leader board.
7. Numerous STT wins and cashes.
I mean I've never had any sort of bankroll online....as I've documented before with the two mortgages etc.....but this has been a great time to build one. Upcoming tourneys include all these BBT events and FTOPS/WSOP satellites....bracelet races etc. There is something to a 'lucky charm' or a 'placebo' that makes people play better/concentrate more/increase observation skills. I don't know if it is possible....but it seems possible. I have one now.....what's yours?

Feel like I'm playin' great lately.....

Didn't have time to get to most of the tourneys I wanted to........but a 3rd place in a Donkament is awesome for me. I feel like I'm playing awesome lately and the money is definitely a plus. I got my money all in with a-4o against A-6o.......what am I gonna do? 3rd in on of these FTP donkaments is awesome.....so I'm not complaining....I am kinda drunk now so .....I think I'm gonna...go sleep.....

Choppin' da Mookie

2nd place...not too bad for someone who had T3oo in chips at one point before the second break. I have to say that Iggy's total of 60 was much more of a defecit. HTF did he do that! Anyway......second place isn't all that bad. 1st in the 'Wheatie' last night.....second in the 'Mookie' tonight......Riverchasers tomorrow night????? I transferred the 19.00 (actually 20...don't spend it all to fast PokahPeakah!). Man I had about a 6-pack more than I planned on having....I have to get up in a few hours for work.....

Finally

A winner in the Wheatie! ISS Spock is my nemesis......at least in the WWdN : NLHE Tournament



As for the rest of the week........I need to get my butt in gear and do some damage in the following:
Below are the next two events for this week.

Tournament: The Mookie
Where: Full Tilt Poker
When: Wednesday. 10pm ET
Buyin: $10+1
Password: vegas1

Tournament: Riverchasers Tour Event #8
When: Thursday, April 19th, 9:00pm ET
Game: NLHE
Buyin: $10 1
Password: riverchasers8

If I could play these tourneys as well as the 'Wheatie' I would be moving on up the BloggerPokerChallenge leader board. I guess I just need to get some beers and put on the lucky necklaces (my 2-year old daughter decided to put on me just before she fell asleep and at the beginning of the 'Wheatie' last night) again.

This is probably the best banner I've ever seen!!!!!!!!!

Friday the 13th.....ain't so bad....

...........................but the weekend looms ahead. Just like last years flooding in the Northeast.

The entire eastern half of the U.S. is bracing for a monster storm, the likes of which one forecaster says occur "once every 20 years."

Three storm systems -- one heading east from the Rockies, another in the Northeast and one in the Southwest -- are expected to come together to form a huge nor'easter that will bring gale-force winds, driving rain and heavy snow to much of the eastern half of the country.

Meteorologists say a storm system that is dumping snow over the central Plains and central Rockies will strengthen as it heads east. It is then expected to merge with storm systems in the Northeast and Southwest and develop into a raging storm that will barrel up the East Coast.

Forecaster Brian Korty says half of the country will feel the effects in the coming days. He calls it the kind of storm that happens "once every 20 years."

Accuweather.com predicts the storm will flood low-lying areas and cause coastal erosion. Inland areas could see a record-breaking snowstorm.

For those of you not from the NorthEast....Wikipedia has a description.

Here is an old post about my partying during Patriots day at Fenway....pretty good stuff :

Poker and Miscellaneous Stuff: (Long) Weekend Events and Past Events

Looks like I won't be able to do much of anything except....Play online poker.....unless the power goes out! That would really....really....really suck. I was going to go to Foxwoods.....had the overnight babysitter (mother-in-law) lined up and everything. No rooms are available.....WTF! I'm even surprised by this....but this is going to be a huge storm so that is probably a pipe dream anyway. I might be able to get to Rockingham Park on Saturday though.....there are some nice NL Holdem tournaments for Donkeys and pigeons alike. There are also weekly tourneys at Maxamillions pool hall in Tyngsboro on Thursday and some Saturdays. Seabrook Racing Park is also basically a full-fledged card room now....with some BIIIIIGGGGG tournaments. I may have to take a shot at this on the 21st of April.

I haven't had much luck in the BloggerTournamentChallenge.....but I did cash as a Rookie in the 'Dookie' 3rd to be exact. I'm usually tapped after the 'Mookie' but I started to drink beers during the 'Mookie' then was looking for another tourney after.......

Miscellaneous Stuff you should look at

News flash! I have a lame blog....I know this. You aren't going to pick up a whole lotta poker strategy here. So I will link things that are of interest to me....and should be for anybody who happens to open this blog by accident (or likes run-on sentences).
1. Dr. Pauly covering the WerldSOPokah for none other than ESPN....(I think that anybody who has read his blog in the past few years can attest to the fact that no one deserves this more than he.
2. UberPost by Iggy.....his latest attempt to destroy your workplace productivity.
3. LEGS!
4. Hilarious posts from a crazy donkey.
5. Wicked Chops Poker + Boobs
6. A collection of some of the best poker players online + Donkeys like me who find new ways to bluff off their stacks for Blogger Legendom (is that a word? well maybe I just made it up so fuck off....)
7. Mookie (one of the toughest tourneys online in my estimation. Now more improved....with bounties!)
8. New test for you 'Test' Donkeys........See which side of the political fence you are on by taking this little test ............I got a 28 right between GBush Sr. and Jack Kemp

Now....Don't be a nappy-headed Ho and please donate to the plight of the poker donkey. Go play the Mookie tonight!

Strike 1, (Strike 1.5), Strike 2, 3Strikes I'm out?!

M.A.T.H. (didn't play due to lack of $26 token and the fact that I'm kind of cheap)-Strike 1!
The WWdN:NLHE (The Wheatie) Out 16Th place pushing short-stack and A-4o into chip leader (WTF did I expect?)-Strike 1.5!
The 'Mookie'-Knocked out when I flopped trip Q's....that's what I get for limping in with Q-7soooooooted and the other guy has K-Qo-Strike 2!
Riverchasers.................Strike 3 or Home Run?????
All the runners showed up last night.....shouldn't they be there for the next WPBT event? Seeing over 75 players made me salivate......the last Riverchasers event had lots of players also. I will be there tonight :
Tournament: Riverchasers Online Tour
Where: Full Tilt Poker
When: Thursday. 9pm ET
Buyin: $10+1
Password: riverchasers7

Tourneys, Tourneys, and more Tourneys

Yet again I am fascinated by this...what a Donkey I am......two tourneys at the same time on different sites this time.
There are many tourneys to be at this week and the coming weeks. The following for the B.B.T (Battle of the Blogger Tournaments) This week : The M.A.T.H.-Monday (had to miss it this week...no token),
The WWdN:NLHE weekly-Tuesday , The 'Mookie'-Wednesday , and the 'Riverchasers Online Tour'-Thursday..........so many....so little bankroll!

Update : Just busted out of the wheatie in 16th of 51 people. What really sucks is that the hand previous to the one I busted out on would have stacked me at T5000 in chips. I got squeezed by Specks'bacon and the chip leader....so I didn't call with my A-3d...stupid me. I busted when I pushed my A-4o into the chip leader........oops.

Money for nothing....and bounty for free

The Main of 'TheMainsDomain' is going to have free roll tourney.......with some prizes! I think he will also put up a bounty for whoever knocks him out. Call me crazy but anybody who is willing to put up some cash prizes out of his own pocket must be raking it in! So don't call me crazy call him crazy! With this free roll and the Battle of the Blogger Tournaments it is sure to be a busy month.