So I sit down at a NL table..

And pick up a beautiful AA in the big blind. MP raises, I call.

Flop is a fine K32 rainbow. The chips go in, and the villain has kings :(

But then comes some deliverance

** Hand # 2154550285 starting - 2008-08-30 00:00:13
** Can`t Buy Me Love [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

Hero sitting in seat 1 with $37.09
Kuzushi sitting in seat 2 with $96.11
valkman sitting in seat 3 with $55.77
DenDropsthe_ sitting in seat 4 with $56.34
havas sitting in seat 5 with $122.08[Dealer]
_flatline___ sitting in seat 6 with $47.26
_flatline___ posted the small blind - $0.50
Hero posted the big blind - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero: As, 10s
Kuzushi folded
valkman called - $1.00
DenDropsthe_ called - $1.00
havas folded
_flatline___ called - $1.00
Hero bet - $2.00
valkman called - $2.00
DenDropsthe_ called - $2.00
_flatline___ called - $2.00

** Dealing the flop: Ac, 6h, 7c
_flatline___ checked
Hero bet - $1.00
valkman called - $1.00
DenDropsthe_ folded
_flatline___ called - $1.00

** Dealing the turn: 9s
_flatline___ checked
Hero bet - $2.00
valkman folded
_flatline___ called - $2.00

** Dealing the river: 7s
_flatline___ bet - $2.00
Hero called - $2.00
_flatline___ shows: 5s, 6s
Hero shows: As, 10s
Hero wins $18.05 from the main pot

And finally it's my turn to suck out:


** Hand # 2154577672 starting - 2008-08-30 00:18:25
** Can`t Buy Me Love [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

Hero sitting in seat 1 with $29.27
mookgwaiying sitting in seat 2 with $70.78
valkman sitting in seat 3 with $67.42
DenDropsthe_ sitting in seat 4 with $37.25[Dealer]
Kriiii sitting in seat 5 with $0.00[Sitting out]
_flatline___ sitting in seat 6 with $45.38
_flatline___ posted the small blind - $0.50
Hero posted the big blind - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero : Qs, Qd
mookgwaiying folded
valkman folded
DenDropsthe_ folded
_flatline___ raised to $2.00
Hero raised to $3.00
_flatline___ called - $3.00

** Dealing the flop: Ah, Qc, 6s
_flatline___ checked
Hero bet - $1.00
_flatline___ called - $1.00

** Dealing the turn: 10d
_flatline___ bet - $2.00
Hero raised to $4.00
_flatline___ raised to $6.00
Hero raised to $8.00
_flatline___ called - $8.00

** Dealing the river: 6h
_flatline___ bet - $2.00
Hero raised to $4.00
_flatline___ raised to $6.00
Hero raised to $8.00
_flatline___ called - $8.00
Hero shows: Qs, Qd
_flatline___ mucks: Kh, Jd
Hero wins $38.00 from the main pot


I'm still not even though.. the guy sucked out another gutshot on the river even as we speak..

The story of my night....

Short story: running like a complete dog.. Tables full of maniacs who keep catching runner-runner flushes and backdoor straights, after capping their junky hands preflop.


** Hand # 2154508441 starting - 2008-08-29 23:32:14
** Can`t Buy Me Love [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

Hero sitting in seat 1 with $7.13
Kuzushi sitting in seat 2 with $97.85[Dealer]
PokerTRex sitting in seat 3 with $91.42
DenDropsthe_ sitting in seat 4 with $86.84
havas sitting in seat 5 with $104.04
_flatline___ sitting in seat 6 with $49.00
PokerTRex posted the small blind - $0.50
DenDropsthe_ posted the big blind - $1.00
_flatline___ posted to play - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero : Ah, Qs
havas raised to $2.00
_flatline___ called - $2.00
Hero raised to $3.00
Kuzushi folded
PokerTRex folded
DenDropsthe_ folded
havas folded
_flatline___ called - $3.00

** Dealing the flop: 10d, 6s, 4c
_flatline___ checked
Hero bet - $1.00
_flatline___ called - $1.00

** Dealing the turn: 3s
_flatline___ checked
Hero bet - $2.00
_flatline___ called - $2.00

** Dealing the river: 5s
_flatline___ bet - $2.00
Hero went all-in - $1.13
_flatline___ shows: 2d, Ac
Hero mucks: Ah, Qs




** Hand # 2154513274 starting - 2008-08-29 23:35:31
** Can`t Buy Me Love [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

Hero sitting in seat 1 with $30.00
Kuzushi sitting in seat 2 with $96.85
PokerTRex sitting in seat 3 with $100.47
DenDropsthe_ sitting in seat 4 with $68.84
havas sitting in seat 5 with $115.79
_flatline___ sitting in seat 6 with $52.25[Dealer]
Hero posted the small blind - $0.50
Kuzushi posted the big blind - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero : As, Ah
PokerTRex folded
DenDropsthe_ folded
havas folded
_flatline___ raised to $2.00
Hero raised to $3.00
Kuzushi folded
_flatline___ called - $3.00

** Dealing the flop: 6c, 5s, 7h
Hero bet - $1.00
_flatline___ called - $1.00

** Dealing the turn: 4c
Hero bet - $2.00
_flatline___ called - $2.00

** Dealing the river: 8d
Hero > looool
Hero bet - $2.00
_flatline___ called - $2.00
Hero shows: As, Ah
_flatline___ shows: Qd, Kd
Hero wins $8.08 from the main pot
_flatline___ wins $8.07 from the main pot



_flatline___ wins $16.88 from the main pot

Semi-tilt

Had a horrific session last night. Played two 1/2 tables on Captain Cook, and found them very tough. Several tight aggressive players, lots of aggressive postflop play, 3-bets preflop most hands. I ended up dropping $100 in an hour or two. I don't think I played that badly, and I certainly had a bad run of cards - but the crucial mistake was not getting away from tables that don't look profitable. One of my major leaks is that I try too hard to dig myself out of a hole instead of just stopping.

I must learn the lesson of bort: table selection is the number one priority..

Finished Gnuf bonus

I had a pretty horrific run to finish the Gnuf bonus. Ended up $50 down on the play (and I still can't blame Omaha), but that is still $70 net profit! It's definitely the sign of a good bonus that you come out ahead even when the cards (or your play) are running bad. I'll probably use my PSO points to finally register for PokerTracker.

Had more glitches with the Microgaming software. I made a deposit that took about 15 minutes to be able to play - I could see it "My account" but was not able to actually put it on the table despite restarting the software. There was also a problem yesterday with the hand histories - I think it was a network problem, but no histories were recorded (either in PT or in the in-game browser). The delay when you sit down at a table is also very annoying sometimes.

Apart from the above, I quite like the understated Gnuf styling (much better than Captain Cook - also on Microgaming). I also like their marketing angle - that casinos are noisy, smelly, annoying places and that it's much nicer to play from the comfort of your own home..

Edit: Oh, but the most annoying thing about Microgaming is that the "muck winning hands" and "muck losing hands" checkboxes don't work! I am so sick of timing out of a table because I folded but got timed out with the table asking me whether to show or muck! Not to mention the huge holdups to the table.

The bonus hall of fame

I've noticed that for all of the poker affiliates and poker room review sites out there, there is very little help for the punter in working out which bonuses actually represent good value. The poker review site rankings usually bear no resemblance at all to the real value of the bonuses - I can only assume that they push the bonuses that are best value for them as opposed to those that are best value for you.

Therefore, I intend to compile my own list of the best value bonuses based on my own experience and research. I am particularly interested in comments about the bonuses, especially any suggestions on bonuses which should be included. I will always rank the bonuses based on the best interests of the punter. Sometimes I will recommend my own affiliate link (from which I make a small commission), but only where there is not another better value option available (that I know of).

Bear in mind that this list is compiled from the point of view of primarily a low-limit shorthanded limit holdem player.

So here goes:

The poker bonus hall of fame

***** Five star bonuses: These are the premium bonuses. They represent probably better than 200% rakeback when played correctly.

• Party Poker has a fantastic bonus offer via Poker Source Online. Deposit $100, earn 125 party points and you get $150 bonus. That takes a bit over 700 hands playing 0.5/1 limit, or less than 5 hands per dollar. Again, this is incredible value (maybe 400% rakeback if you play tight). Party is a great site with high traffic, good PokerTracker support and plenty of fishy tables. Use my link to Poker Source Online, and I get a small commission (but you don't get any less). Click on the "free money" link at PSO.
• Gnuf has another good Poker Source Online bonus. You deposit at least $50, and earn 500 "Gnuf points" (500 hands raked 0.25 or higher playing 0.5/1 limit or 360 hands at 1/2 limit). You get 12000 "PSO points", which can be taken as $120 on a few different sites including Party. Gnuf is on the Microgaming network. Traffic is fairly low, but the games are usually fishy enough. Click on the "free gifts" link at PSO.
• FullTilt has an excellent Poker Source Online bonus. Deposit $100, earn 250 "FullTilt" points (one point per dollar raked at the table) to win 12000 "PSO points". This is another superb bonus, working out at 200% to 500% rakeback depending on how you play it. As bort points out however, since FullTilt is one of the top traffic sites you may be better off in the long term going for a rakeback deal. You can earn 27% rakeback at PSO or at raketherake.

**** Four star bonuses: These are excellent bonuses. They represent at least 100% rakeback when played correctly.

• Ladbrokes via Boogster. Boogster is another kickback bonus site with many good value bonuses. The bonuses can be takes as gift certificates to Full Tilt for example.
  
• Ultimate Bet has another good bonus via Poker Source Online. Deposit $100, earn 400 "Ultimate Points", and you earn $125 from PSO and $10 from UB (out of a larger bonus that you may not bother to complete). This took me about 700-800 hands, and I suspect it is possible to do it faster.
• Hollywood Poker via Poker Source Online. Deposit >$50 (best if you deposit $20 then a second deposit to get a manageable bonus), earn 325 "Player Points" (essentially this is dollars raked in hands in which you contribute to the pot), and you earn 12000 PSO points (=$120) and $40 from Hollywood. Hollywood is on the OnGame network, which seems to be among the tougher networks out there - lots of tight aggressive players. The traffic is excellent though so there are plenty of tables to choose from.
  
• Pacific Poker has a good signup offer via Pokerlistings. The "instant" part of the bonus is 50% up to $175, and is excellent value (there is a further $300 which is earned via points, but this is not good value on it's own). You have to wager 20x the bonus amount before you can cashout, which represents a bit less than 100% rakeback at Pacific's rather steep rake structure. What makes this bonus worth four star however are the excellent freerolls for Pokerlistings players. There is a regular $5000 monthly freeroll, which usually has under 200 runners. There are also regular freeroll satellites for the WSOP, the EPT and other big live events. You have to qualify for these freerolls through play, but the value of the tickets is still very very good.

*** Three star bonuses: These are solid, worthwhile bonuses. They represent decent rakeback (at least 50%) when played correctly.

• Captain Cooks Casino is a small poker room on the Microgaming network. It has a standard 50% up to $200 bonus, which cashes out at $1 per 10 raked hands (raked 0.25 and higher). This is results in anywhere from 50% to 200% rakeback depending on which limits you play. If you want to sign up to Captain Cook, tell me your email address so I can send you a referral - I get $100 referral fee, and your signup bonus is unaffected. Put your email address in a comment and then delete the comment if you don't want it to remain on display.
  
• VCpoker has the fastest cashing bonuses on the iPoker network as far as I know (most, including Titan and CDpoker are woefully slow). You get approximately 8c of bonus for every dollar that is raked at the table. That's nearly 80% rakeback if you play full ring games. The signup bonus is 300% up to $600, and it cashes out in $5 increments. See below for the free35 deal that you can get in addition to the deposit bonus. They also have fairly regular reload bonuses that are also good value.
  

Special mention- no-deposit bonuses: No deposit bonuses are a fantastic way to get started in online poker with no risk. My own start came via the VCpoker "free35" offer. These bonuses are usually not good value for someone who already has a bankroll, since the cashout requirements are usually fairly onerous - the deposit bonuses are also usually better value.

• Poker Source Online has a number of no-deposit bonuses, which change from time to time. Currently offered are Party Poker, Action Poker and Absolute Poker. I would avoid the Party Poker no-deposit bonus for now, because the deposit bonus is much better value. The other two look worthwhile though.
• VCpoker has a long running "free35" offer, where you get $10 up front and $25 earned through points. You can also get the 300% up to $600 deposit bonus. VCpoker has the fastest cashing bonuses on iPoker, so these bonuses are good value - particularly if you play full ring games. Click here for details.

Special mention- 2+2 book offer: The twoplustwo forums have an excellent book bonus offer for non-US players. You sign up to a poker room, play the required conditions, and twoplustwo will send you five books chosen from a list. The list includes poker classics by Dan Harrington, Sklansky and Malmuth, 'Stoxtrader' and others. The best offer right now is the Everest offer, where you only need to sign up, deposit and play "a few hands" in order to qualify.

This post is a work in progress - check back later for more bonuses!

Oh, the joys of Omaha

Begin Hand Number 2146392440 at 03:49:51 on table Thrush
Table Type: Normal (Non-Tournament)
Game Name: Omaha High
Stakes: 0.50 / 1.00 Real Money
Active Players: 6
Total Pot: US $53.56
Rake: US $2.67
Win Amount: US $50.89

gijuri72 has the dealer button
Kevin_N posts small blind (US $0.25)
Hero posts big blind (US $0.50)
bulbulum sits down
Dealing pocket cards: Ad As Js 6c
Tik_Tak calls for US $0.50
swedishgirls calls for US $0.50
gijuri72 calls for US $0.50
Kevin_N calls for US $0.25
Hero bets US $1.25
Tik_Tak calls for US $1.25
swedishgirls calls for US $1.25
gijuri72 calls for US $1.25
Kevin_N folds
Dealing Flop Ac 8c Kd (sweet - top set, currently the nuts)
Hero checks (I actually meant to lead out for half pot here, but nearly got timed out due to multi-tabling)
Tik_Tak checks
swedishgirls checks
gijuri72 bets US $7.50 (sweeet)
Hero raises for US $15.00 (ok, this is probably a mistake. I think I need to go all-in to price out the flush draw)
Tik_Tak folds
swedishgirls folds
gijuri72 calls for US $7.50
Dealing Turn 9h (nice)
Hero went all-in for US $8.03
gijuri72 calls for US $8.03
Dealing River Jc (uh oh, I guess he hit his flush draw).
Hero shows cards Ad As Js 6c
gijuri72 shows cards Qd Th 5s Ah (make that his naked gutshot, jeez Omaha hurts sometimes)

gijuri72 shows Straight, winning US $50.89

Despite that horrific beat, I am still ahead of the game on Gnuf and more than a third of the way to cashing a $120 bonus. Even my Omaha is ahead, despite the fact I don't really know how to play the game - there are a lot of Omaha fishes around calling big bets with top pair and a gutshot!

Here, fishy fishy fishy

Hand 1:
** Hand # 2143733100 starting - 2008-08-21 22:59:27
** Anytime At All [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

sarandipity85 sitting in seat 1 with $52.56
filiokus sitting in seat 2 with $21.68
tequila62300 sitting in seat 3 with $4.18
alex2505 sitting in seat 4 with $56.77
Hero sitting in seat 5 with $36.50[Dealer]
Kuzushi sitting in seat 6 with $74.00
Kuzushi posted the small blind - $0.50
sarandipity85 posted the big blind - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero : 8d, 8c (Sweet)
filiokus folded
tequila62300 folded
alex2505 called - $1.00
Hero raised to $2.00
Kuzushi folded
sarandipity85 called - $2.00
alex2505 called - $2.00

** Dealing the flop: Ah, 6h, Jh (Eurgh)
sarandipity85 checked
alex2505 checked
Hero bet - $1.00 (Let's see what's out there)
sarandipity85 folded
alex2505 called - $1.00 (Ok, time to give it up)

** Dealing the turn: Ac
alex2505 checked
Hero bet - $2.00
alex2505 called - $2.00

** Dealing the river: 10s
alex2505 checked
Hero checked
alex2505 shows: 2c, 9h (Huh? You're kidding me)
Hero shows: 8d, 8c
Hero wins $11.88 from the main pot

Ahh alex.. VPIP of 80, PFR 0, WSD 65% - almost the perfect fish


Hand 2:
** Hand # 2143738782 starting - 2008-08-21 23:03:40
** Anytime At All [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

sarandipity85 sitting in seat 1 with $49.06
filiokus sitting in seat 2 with $23.36
tequila62300 sitting in seat 3 with $17.50[Dealer]
alex2505 sitting in seat 4 with $52.05
Hero sitting in seat 5 with $51.18
Kuzushi sitting in seat 6 with $70.00
alex2505 posted the small blind - $0.50
Hero posted the big blind - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero: 8h, 10c
Kuzushi raised to $2.00
sarandipity85 folded
filiokus folded
tequila62300 called - $2.00
alex2505 called - $2.00
Hero folded

** Dealing the flop: 9h, 2s, 7h
alex2505 checked
Kuzushi bet - $1.00
tequila62300 raised to $2.00
alex2505 called - $2.00
Kuzushi folded

** Dealing the turn: 2d
alex2505 checked
tequila62300 bet - $2.00
alex2505 called - $2.00

** Dealing the river: As
alex2505 checked
tequila62300 checked
alex2505 shows: 5c, 6c (Nice hand dude)
tequila62300 shows: 9c, Qd
tequila62300 wins $15.20 from the main pot


Hand 3:
** Hand # 2143741512 starting - 2008-08-21 23:04:55
** Anytime At All [Hold 'em] (1.00|2.00 Fixed - Cash Game) Real Money

sarandipity85 sitting in seat 1 with $48.06
filiokus sitting in seat 2 with $23.36
tequila62300 sitting in seat 3 with $26.70
alex2505 sitting in seat 4 with $39.55
Hero sitting in seat 5 with $50.68[Dealer]
Kuzushi sitting in seat 6 with $73.28
Kuzushi posted the small blind - $0.50
sarandipity85 posted the big blind - $1.00

** Dealing cards to Hero : 5d, 7s
filiokus folded
tequila62300 called - $1.00
alex2505 called - $1.00
Hero folded
Kuzushi folded
sarandipity85 checked

** Dealing the flop: Qd, 8c, Ah
sarandipity85 checked
tequila62300 bet - $1.00
alex2505 called - $1.00
sarandipity85 folded

** Dealing the turn: Jh
tequila62300 bet - $2.00
alex2505 called - $2.00

** Dealing the river: 9c
tequila62300 checked
alex2505 bet - $2.00
tequila62300 called - $2.00
alex2505 shows: 4d, 4h (Nothing surprises me anymore)
tequila62300 shows: As, 5h
tequila62300 wins $12.83 from the main pot

A voyage of discovery..

Ok, so Captain Cook (microgaming) is running good now too. I was down about $80 at one stage, recovered to be up $50 and then yesterday took a massive down-and-up swing on one table. The usual story, aggressive fish sucking out a few times before finally handing most of it back calling down with second pair and capping turn and river with top pair bad kicker. I have finished about a third of my $200 bonus (which takes me about 20 actual hands per dollar playing a mix of 1/2 and 0.5/1).

If anyone wants to play on CC, let me know your email address and I will send a referral - there is a pretty decent refer a friend bonus on top of the 50% up to $200. If you don't want your email address to be visible on this blog, simply post it in a comment and then delete the comment - I will receive it via email but it will not remain visible on the blog.

I also played an Omaha table and made a quick $30. I will experiment with a bit more Omaha in the coming weeks, as I think it is pretty fishy overall and has high average pots compared to the blinds. I suspect Omaha may well be the right place to play on OnGame when I attempt to cash a couple of PSO bonuses there (Hollywood and PokerRoom), as I have not had a lot of success there playing limit HE.

UltimateBet bonus at PSO

Ok, so the UB bonus has been approved (see the PokerSourceOnline link on the right for details).

There was a bit of confusion on my part over the cashout requirements, because the PSO site mentions "UB points", whereas UB calls them "Ultimate points", but also has other loyalty point systems.

Ultimate Points accumulate at 1 per contributed raked hand (raked hands where you contribute to the pot and rake reaches 0.25) until you have 50, at which point they accumulate at 2 per CRH. Hot tip: make sure you quit your tables when you reach 50 points - this will trigger your level increase and ensure that further hands accumulate points at the higher level.

Anyway, upshot is I have $125 in bonus from PSO and $10 from UB for a grand total of $135 accumulated over maybe 800 hands altogether. Accumulation will be higher if you play very short handed. The downside is that the play was fairly tough and I didn't run goot, so my overall profit was maybe only $65 or so. Bonus is highly recommended overall, if you are willing to put the scandal in the past.

Microgaming blows

I've bought into Captain Cooks Casino Poker for a 50% bonus of $200. It's part of the Microgaming network (which used to be Prima). The bonus cashes out at 10x raked hands per $1 (hands where you are dealt it and the rake reaches 0.25). It's a pretty decent cashout rate. I figure it will probably take around 40 table hours to complete at 1/2.

I've played a few hours already. Took a beating early, but have recovered enough to be back square with a decent chunk of the bonus completed.

The software is pretty shoddy - think Pacific. I don't think I will hang around any longer than it takes to finish the bonus. It will give me an idea if I want to chase the bonuses at 24poker (also Microgaming) for example (which cashes a bit slower, but is bigger)

William Hill still runs goot

I finished my monthly $50 on WH yesterday, and won a further $40 (20BB) in the process. So my initial $100 deposit i now up to $260 after just over five table hours of play. Can't complain.

I also recently joined UltimateBet through PokerSourceOnline (see link on the right). I know that UltimateBet is evil (if you don't know what I'm talking about, just google "UltimateBet scandal"), but the bonus is just too juicy. PSO give you $125 once you earn 375 points, which is roughly 250 contributed raked hands. I initially deposited $100, and nearly busted a couple of times before recovering to around $45 and finishing the bonus for an extra $125.

And so it continues

After that five minute wonder, I had several other big plus tables. I finished by cashing a $60 bonus and rounded my profit on Party to a tidy $400 in a couple of weeks.

9 hands: 25BBs

An incredible heater today in a five minute session. Sat down with two other players (heads up against one initially), and proceeded to bust them both in nine hands. Of course their fishy play didn't help them (capping turn and river with top pair and a pair on baord was pretty special), but still I can't complain about the rivered straight or the full house on the turn.

Hand 1:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:55:33 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 5 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $8 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $21.30 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $25 USD )
Hero posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
JimStyle666 posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Ad 9d ]
Hero raises [$0.75 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 8c, As, 5s ]
Hero bets [$0.50 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 7d ]
Hero bets [$1 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$1 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ Qh ]
Hero bets [$1 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$1 USD]
Hero shows [ Ad, 9d ]a pair of Aces.
JimStyle666 doesn't show [ 6h, 7c ]a pair of Sevens.
Hero wins $6.65 USD from the main pot with a pair of Aces.

Hand 2:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:56:03 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 6 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $8 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $17.80 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $28.15 USD )
JimStyle666 posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
Hero posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ 3h 3c ]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.25 USD]
Hero raises [$0.50 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ Jc, 9s, 6d ]
JimStyle666 checks
Hero bets [$0.50 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 4s ]
JimStyle666 checks
Hero bets [$1 USD]
JimStyle666 folds
Hero does not show cards.
Hero wins $3.85 USD

Hand 3:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:56:34 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 5 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $8 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $16.30 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $29.50 USD )
Hero posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
DrMactep posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Qc 5s ]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
Hero calls [$0.25 USD]
DrMactep checks
** Dealing Flop ** [ 2s, Ks, 5d ]
Hero bets [$0.50 USD]
DrMactep calls [$0.50 USD]
JimStyle666 folds
** Dealing Turn ** [ 9d ]
Hero bets [$1 USD]
DrMactep folds
Hero does not show cards.
Hero wins $3.40 USD


Hand 4:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:57:12 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 6 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $7 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $15.80 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $30.90 USD )
DrMactep posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
JimStyle666 posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ As 8h ]
Hero raises [$1 USD]
DrMactep folds
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 5s, 9h, Ts ]
JimStyle666 checks
Hero bets [$0.50 USD]
JimStyle666 folds
Hero does not show cards.
Hero wins $2.65 USD

Hand 5:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:57:29 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $6.75 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $14.80 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $32.05 USD )
JimStyle666 posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
Hero posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Kc Qd ]
DrMactep raises [$1 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.75 USD]
Hero raises [$1 USD]
DrMactep calls [$0.50 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ Th, Jh, 5d ]
JimStyle666 bets [$0.50 USD]
Hero raises [$1 USD]
DrMactep calls [$1 USD]
JimStyle666 raises [$1 USD]
Hero calls [$0.50 USD]
DrMactep calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ Ac ]
JimStyle666 bets [$1 USD]
Hero calls [$1 USD]
DrMactep calls [$1 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ 5h ]
JimStyle666 bets [$1 USD]
Hero raises [$2 USD]
DrMactep calls [$2 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$1 USD]
Hero shows [ Kc, Qd ]a straight Ten to Ace.
DrMactep doesn't show [ Ah, Ks ]two pairs, Aces and Fives.
JimStyle666 doesn't show [ Jc, 8c ]two pairs, Jacks and Fives.
Hero wins $17.10 USD from the main pot with a straight, Ten to Ace.

Hand 6:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:58:22 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 5 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $0.75 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $8.80 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $43.15 USD )
Hero posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
DrMactep posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ 6d Td ]
JimStyle666 folds
Hero calls [$0.25 USD]
DrMactep checks
** Dealing Flop ** [ Tc, Ks, 2s ]
Hero bets [$0.50 USD]
DrMactep is all-In [$0.25 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 2d ]
** Dealing River ** [ Kc ]
Hero shows [ 6d, Td ]two pairs, Kings and Tens.
DrMactep shows [ Th, 7s ]two pairs, Kings and Tens with Seven kicker.
Hero wins $0.25 USD from the side pot 1 with two pairs, Kings and Tens.
DrMactep wins $1.45 USD from the main pot with two pairs, Kings and Tens with Seven kicker.

Hand 7:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:58:59 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 6 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $1.45 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $8.80 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $42.40 USD )
DrMactep posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
JimStyle666 posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Js Th ]
Hero calls [$0.50 USD]
DrMactep folds
JimStyle666 raises [$0.50 USD]
Hero calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ As, Jh, Jc ]
JimStyle666 bets [$0.50 USD]
Hero calls [$0.50 USD]
** Dealing Turn ** [ Tc ]
JimStyle666 bets [$1 USD]
Hero raises [$2 USD]
JimStyle666 raises [$2 USD]
Hero raises [$2 USD]
JimStyle666 calls [$1 USD]
** Dealing River ** [ 9c ]
JimStyle666 bets [$1 USD]
Hero raises [$2 USD]
JimStyle666 raises [$2 USD]
Hero raises [$2 USD]
JimStyle666 is all-In [$0.30 USD]
Hero shows [ Js, Th ]a full house, Jacks full of Tens.
JimStyle666 doesn't show [ Ac, Kh ]two pairs, Aces and Jacks.
Hero wins $0.70 USD from the side pot 1 with a full house, Jacks full of Tens.
Hero wins $17 USD from the main pot with a full house, Jacks full of Tens.

Hand 8:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 09:59:52 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 3 is the button
Total number of players : 3
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $1.20 USD )
Seat 5: JimStyle666 ( $0 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $50.60 USD )
Hero posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
DrMactep posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Qs 9c ]
Hero calls [$0.25 USD]
DrMactep checks
** Dealing Flop ** [ 7d, 4h, 3c ]
JimStyle666 has left the table.
Hero checks
DrMactep checks
** Dealing Turn ** [ 3h ]
Hero bets [$1 USD]
DrMactep folds
Hero does not show cards.
Hero wins $1.95 USD

Hand 9:
$0.50/$1 USD Texas Hold'em - Sunday, August 10, 10:00:17 ET 2008
Table Table 164551 (Real Money)
Seat 6 is the button
Total number of players : 2
Seat 3: DrMactep ( $0.70 USD )
Seat 6: Hero ( $51.05 USD )
DrMactep posts small blind [$0.25 USD].
Hero posts big blind [$0.50 USD].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ 6d 7d ]
DrMactep is all-In [$0.45 USD]
Hero calls [$0.20 USD]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 3d, 9c, 9d ]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 3h ]
** Dealing River ** [ 2d ]
DrMactep shows [ Ac, 2c ]two pairs, Nines and Threes.
Hero shows [ 6d, 7d ]a flush, Nine high.
Hero wins $1.35 USD from the main pot with a flush, Nine high.

Pokertracker

I finally have pokertracker working on my laptop. Stupid Vista was blocking it via "data execution prevention". Watch out fishes!

Maniac time

Speaking of William Hill, the first table I sat down at, I found myself on the left of a complete maniac - preflop raising almost every hand. My tactic against him was to reraise any decent heads up hand (any pair, most aces), and defend my blinds and to play hard any hit flop. It worked ok, but maniacs still make me nervous because they cost you big when they hit. Here is a typical hand:

Game #6365020713: Hold'em FL ($1/$2) - 2008/08/07 - 14:14:17 (UK)
Table "Tanzanite" Seat 6 is the button.
Seat 1: Fs3424 ($109.22 in chips)
Seat 2: Hero($41.30 in chips)
Seat 3: goldmine ($69.70 in chips)
Seat 5: tulku ($40 in chips)
Fs3424: posts small blind $0.50
Hero: posts big blind $1
----- HOLE CARDS -----
dealt to Hero[4s 7s]
goldmine: folds
Fs3424: raises $1.50
Hero: calls $1
----- FLOP ----- [2h 8s 4c]
Fs3424: checks
jiwa76 joins the table at seat #6
Hero: bets $1 (2nd pair looks good to me)
Fs3424: calls $1
----- TURN ----- [2h 8s 4c][3h]
Fs3424: checks
Hero: bets $2 (still good)
Fs3424: calls $2
----- RIVER ----- [2h 8s 4c 3h][8c]
Fs3424: checks
Hero: bets $2 (can't see any hand beating me except a better 4)
Fs3424: calls $2
----- SHOW DOWN -----
Hero: shows [4s 7s] (Two Pairs, Eights and Fours, Seven high)
Fs3424: mucks hand [Js Tc]
Herocollected $13.30 from Main pot
----- SUMMARY -----
Total pot $14 Main pot $13.30 Rake $0.70
Board [2h 8s 4c 3h 8c]
Seat 1: Fs3424 (small blind) mucked [Js Tc]
Seat 2: Hero(big blind) showed [4s 7s] and won ($13.30) with Two Pairs, Eights and Fours, Seven high
Seat 3: goldmine folded before Flop (didn't bet)

New territory

Big props to bort for the awesome tip of William Hill poker. You get $10 an hour to play up to a max of $50 a month (playing 1/2 limit and above). Plus you can get 30% rakeback from raketherake.com (see link). This is amazing value for the five hours that you play it. I signed up, played for an hour - was up about 20BBs at one stage playing two tables (one 10max one 6max), and then took a horrible run to bust out on the 6max table. I looked at my balance and saw $20 already in my account, taking me to $30 ahead with rakeback still to come. And that's on a bad day.

I'm still working on a Party reload, and then will look at a couple of pokersourceonline signups.

July: the month that wasn't there!

Since it looks as though one or two people are actually reading my blog now, I guess I should explain the absence of July!

After the big Casino final, poker slowed down a little bit. In some ways I had achieved one of my aims when I started playing in January, which was to build my bankroll to a level where I can play "serious" poker at reasonably high stakes. A tournament with $130k in prizes certainly satisfied that aim, but it also left me hungry for more. There is also plenty of work to do (on both bankroll and poker) before I can play at that level consistently.

I also had a work trip and a holiday with the family in July, which meant a whole week away from the internet. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed that.

My online play has suffered in the last month or so. The bankroll is hovering around the $800 mark, which is down on the $1000 high point achieved in May. This is in part due to some dreadful card runs, but also because I started to lose focus a bit - playing while distracted or doing something else, some poor decisions playing unfamiliar games and levels, and also by playing while not accumulating bonuses.

In the last week, I have signed up at Party Poker and qualified the Tell-A-Friend bonus (which is good value if you consider both referrer and referee). I am still working on a $60 14 day reload bonus at Party, and will then look at a couple of sites that I noticed on reading Bonus Chasing Grinder. I also want to qualify for the $17k WPT Barcelona freeroll at Pacific.
- 24poker and Littlewoods.

New goals for the rest of 2008:

• Score a good cash in one of the Pacific freerolls
• Build the bankroll to $3000 by the end of the year
• Play 2/3 NL at the local casino. This is a crazy loose game that I should be able to beat for a lot, but the variance might be huge
• Play another live tournament
• Get the Neteller prepaid card so that I can buy dinner for my wife from poker winnings!