Donkey Stack

I am hereby coining the phrase 'Donkey Stack' If you are not a regular reader and wondering what the hell im talking about then please read previous post

My first example of my donkey stack theory.

$0.5/$1 No Limit Holdem
iPoker
6 players
Converted at weaktight.com


Stacks:

UTG		($123.91)
UTG+1		($37.35) <<-- DONKEY STACK
Hero		($135.85)
BTN		($51.85)
SB		($97.50)
BB		($41.70)

Donkey Stack is running 75/37/2 over 40 ish hands. He had started with around $65 and was slowly bleeding it away. Also note there are 2 other donkey stacks on the table.

Pre-flop: ($1.50, 6 players) Hero is CO

UTG raises to $3.50, UTG+1 calls $3.50, Hero raises to $14, 3 folds, UTG folds, UTG+1 calls $10.50

Flop: ($33, 2 players)
UTG+1 checks, Hero checks

Turn: ($33, 2 players)
UTG+1 checks, Hero bets $9, UTG+1 goes all-in $23.35, Hero calls $14.35


River: ($79.70, 2 players)

Final Pot: $76.70
UTG+1 shows:
Hero shows:

Hero wins $76.70 ( won +$39.35 )
UTG lost -$3.50
UTG+1 lost -$37.35


Ten Eight Suited, for his stack, on that board.

Add 1 more to my buddy list.

Table Selection - Donkey Stack

Ive been thinking recently about table selection. The fact is you make more money over the long term against players that you have a greater edge over. The bigger the skill difference the more profit can be made.

It makes sense to check your buddy list, hunt out certain fishy players and add yourself to waiting lists in hope to be sitting next to these losing players. This is fine. The problem comes when you are on numurous waiting lists with no tables open to play and no history with other players on other tables.


You can then scan for tables with high $vpip and high avg pot size but this is public data and with a lot of table scanning software out there you will struggle to be first on the list.

Now, heres my new thought. Take a look at stack sizes. Im going to identify 3 classes of players.

1) The Full stack

2) The Shortstack

3) The 'Donkey' stack

It is fact that the good regular players top up their stacks to full as and when they can. If you dont believe you are outclassed at the table then you should be at full or close to it. Full stacks should be seen as good players until proven wrong.

Shortstacks can also be good players. Ive never played a shortstack strategy but there is a strategy that works for a lot of these players. It does spoil the game of poker a bit but if there is profit to be made this way then players will still follow it.

The 'Donkey' stack. These stacks are the middle stacks. The 35-75bb stacks. More often than not these players wont be a good regular or a shortstacker. Usually when a fullstack loses some $ they top up back to the max. When a shortstack doubles up then leave for a new table to buy in short. Medium stacks represent a average players. These may not be huge fish but im betting that they are not decent players.


I tried this last night and I think im on to something. I added 3 or 4 times the number of names to my buddy list and they were all 'Donkey' stacked. Think about it. When have you made a lot of easy cash vs a full stack or a shortstack compared to a 'Donkey' stack ?

Fall in, Climb out..

We had a great game last night. 7 players started a £200 buy in nl game. These were all guys I have played with before so I have an idea how to play against each one.

I documented a few hands that came up through the night. The first after just 5 hands.

Hand1
stack sizes all around £200 (100bb)
dealt to me (67o) on the Button
everyone calls the blind
i call
SB bets 7 total
4 folds
late position and I call
FLOP: 7s Js 7c (pot £29)
sb checks
lp checks
i bet £20 - to protect against flush draw and build a pot.
SB reraises to £60
lp folds
i push
sb calls
sb turns over Ad Jd for 2pair with an Ace.

TURN: Qs
RIVER: Jh (Nice 2 outer)

me -£200

Hand2
stacksize £213
Dealt to me in sb (Kc Kd)
folded to btn who calls
i raise to 7
BB calls
Btn folds
FLOP: Tc 4c 7c
I lead out for £20
BB reraises £60
I push for £213
BB calls and shows (Ac Td) Top pair Top kicker with nut flush draw. (11 outs)
TURN: 7d
RIVER: Ad

That hand wasnt a beat. Im happy with the way it played. But losing this coin flip just a few hands after the bad beat to the same guy was a little bit tough. Luckily I pride myself on being able to control tilt and have the view that this is a long term game.

I hit Quad 7's against a tight player but couldnt extract much value.

I switch seats when i hear there will be a loose player coming in. This puts me 2 spots to his left when he arrives.

Hand3
Another family pot. Everyone but 1 player limps to me on the Btn
Im dealt (78o)
FLOP: 887 rainbow pot £10
UTG bets £9
I call
TURN: 8 pot £28 (Quads again!!)
I lead out £20 hoping for a pocket pair or a 7 in his hand.
He reraises me £75 ithink
I push
He calls and shows (97o) for a Full house.

Total pot around £400

I had AA vs JJ on a KQxxx board which i won quite passively for £100 profit.

Apart from those all other hands were positionally played. I used scare cards to force some folds. I floated and raised some turns and clawed my way back up to just a 50bb loss (£100). My low was down 225bb (£450).

I will be running a live game every Wednesday at this place. £100 buy in £1/£1 blinds and will post any interesting hands here. I will keep my UK live poker balance updated to the upper right of this blog.


Why the hell has Tiffany Michelle signed herself with UB in the face of all this scandal ???


Fridays game link. fantastic contraption. Get read to lose a few hours of your life. Hint - use conveyor belts, see saw and pyramid designs.

Not Much To Say

I am a firm believer in not playing big games when you are tired or feeling unwell. When you are not bringing your 'A' game then don't put too much money on the line.

I have my first largish game tonight with the boys i used to play with before I went to Australia. £200 buy in cash game. £1/£2 ($2/$4 for the yanks) NL 7 players.

I am as hungover as hell. Vodka vapour is seeping out of every pore on my body it seems and i feel like I have a second heartbeat in my head.

I have 12 hours to cure myself if I want to win some cash tonight.


I've got a few post ideas lined up and im collecting hand histories for examples. I was going to write up a post showing guidelines on how to play against certain types of players that you will come across but I dont think I could write it any better than the gnome's recent post, so I wont try this time. Take a read of that.

Degenerate Flippers

Take a look at this post. $100,000 pots 5 players flippin $20,000 at a time in PLO.

dangerlion

OMG!

You sir deserve a place on my blog list.

The Good & The Bad

The Good
$0.5/$1 No Limit Holdem
iPoker
6 players
Converted at weaktight.com


Stacks:

UTG		($103.90)
UTG+1		($89.00)
CO		($73.10)
BTN		($99.15)
SB		($19.50)
Hero		($103.65)

Pre-flop: ($1.50, 6 players) Hero is BB

3 folds, BTN calls $1, 1 fold, Hero checks
(Villain's first mistake. Never repeat, Never open limp on the button)

Flop: ($2.50, 2 players)
Hero bets $2, BTN calls $2
(Bingo Bango. Such a dry flop, I continue with my aggro post flop play and bet out.)

Turn: ($6.50, 2 players)
Hero bets $4, BTN raises to $10, Hero calls $6
(I pull a muscle while i fist pump the air. I make another bet to try and build a pot. If he put me on a Jack then im now behind to any K. his small reraise seems like hes testing the water. Now with 2 flush draws on the table I call. This should send the message to him that ive not made my hand yet and im still chasing.)

River: ($26.50, 2 players)
Hero bets $90.65, BTN goes all-in $86.15
(This is the perfect card for me. It helps no-one. It misses all draws I may have had. I pushed rather quickly trying to act like a missed flush draw. He almost timed out while thinking then called with his paired King.)

Final Pot: $200.30
BTN shows:
Hero shows:

Hero wins $200.30 ( won +$96.65 )
BTN lost -$99.15

This ovebetting for value works when you have repped a flushdraw and missed yet have a higher hand. It also helps when you have players like this numpty who open limp on the button with K9o. If you take anything from my blog please take this. DO NOT OPEN LIMP FROM THE BUTTON EVER. Thanks


The Bad

$0.5/$1 No Limit Holdem
iPoker
6 players
Converted at weaktight.com


Stacks:

Hero		($97.50)
UTG+1		($108.95)
CO		($19.50)
BTN		($136.90)
SB		($19.50)
BB		($97.54)

Pre-flop: ($1.50, 6 players) Hero is UTG

Hero raises to $4, UTG+1 calls $4, 4 folds
(Villain is playing 11 $vpip 7 pfr over 52 hands. Ive been reasonably active.)

Flop: ($9.50, 2 players)
Hero checks, UTG+1 checks
(great flop. no flush draw. I go for a check raise without looking at his flop aggression. he checks)

Turn: ($9.50, 2 players)
Hero bets $6, UTG+1 raises to $16, Hero raises to $47, UTG+1 goes all-in $104.95, Hero goes all-in $52.50
(I start to build the pot. yuck!)

River: ($229.95, 2 players)

Final Pot: $204.95
Hero shows:
UTG+1 shows:

UTG+1 wins $204.95 ( won +$80.00 )
Hero lost -$103.50

Well played villian. My first thought on this was fair enough. big hand vs big hand. Just a cooler. But lets look at the picture here. The first thing is that he is 11/7. He is Tighty McNuts. When i rereraise him and he pushes all in what am i beating. He is saying he has a boat or a Qx.

Hands that fit in that I am losing to are 22, TT, AQ, QT.
Hands that fit in that I am beating are QJ
Hands that split pot KQ

I AM ONLY BEATING QJ

The sizes of the rereraise is not enough to be a bluff.

The call at the end was $52.50 into a $177 pot. just over 3-1. I think I need 5-1 here to call, maybe more with such a tight player.

I consider myself a student at this game still when I cannot lay down this hand. We can all play our good cards but to make real cash at this game I need to be able to lay down BIG hands like this byt hinking what am I beating and taking into account their style and tightness of their game.

Blue Square (iPoker) Software

This blog is about being honest with myself and last night I played like a fish. I luckily only dropped 2 buyins at $100nl but I did manage to get $10 of bonus cleared. Nice return on my money!

BlueSquares' (iPoker) software gives me the shits. Its average to say the least and I cant get comfortable using it. I think software usability goes a long way with the end user. I say now that I could honestly design a better user interface than a lot of sites out there. Its almost as though the GUI designers have never played online poker themselves.

The time bank at BlueSquare (BS) is quick and the buttons/input boxes fiddly. I have made more misclicks and betting errors in the 1000 hands at BS than I have had in the 33k hands at AP.

The main lobby has lag. the games that say 5/6 players are full when you open them. the $vpip of some 6max games show 5%. The overall feeling is shoddy.

On the flip side. I am very impressed with Pokertracker3. It is bad that they released a product that wasnt completely finished but, from what I see at the sites it works at, I am impressed. The HUD is good and easily configured. The auto hand import is great and the numbers update after every hand is recorded. There is a wealth of information in PT3 and if you are not using it you are at a severe disadvantage to most online cash players. The downside of this though is it again increases the level of skill of the general poker playing public. Before, pt was harder to configure, pahud was tricky to set up and you needed pokergrapher to show your graphs. Now its all in one tidy package and it is very well presented.

Im hoping to get back into the swing of things again soon and start some good sessions online again. I am expecting to see my cashout from AP very soon after finally clearing their security dept.

Until then I leave you with some pictures of my new car to drool over. Have a look at this 400bhp beast. For all the US readers that have never seen one of these it is a UK made TVR Sagaris. Only 152 approx of these ever made before TVR closed their factory.

Stacking AA

I need to get back to working on my goals. Its been a little hard to concentrate on online poker recently with moving my house half way across the world. As mentioned in my previous post I have requested a cashout from AP. I cant really call it profit yet as I havent received it. As this is my first cash out AP are being over cautious and have asked for verification of address, proof of id and a copy of my bank card. With fraudalant activity in todays banking I can understand a need for increased security but I think AP are doing this to stall things. The reason I say this is that I am requesting my cash back on the same VISA that I deposited with. The money cannot be fraudalant as it is already in the banking system. I faxed details over yesterday but my card came out to dark. Maybe I am being paranoid but can you blame me with AP at the moment ? I guess this was always my risk at playing somewhere like AP.


I have managed to play just over 700 hands at $0.25/$0.50 and $.50/$1 on iPoker for a total profit of around $70. As you can see from the graph below its not been easy going.





It felt like it took me a whlie to get used to the software and players there. The graph shows a downtrend albeit only over a short amount of hands but hopefully this is not going to continue. I dont see the players at this site and level to be any difficult than other sites. Im still seeing the loose tight players, im still seeing the weak limpers and still seeing the outrageous bluffs and the players who dont know how to fold overpairs.

So with that I have a hand for discussion from my small sample.

There are different levels of players in poker.
Level1 - What cards you have
Level2 - What cards you think villain has
Level3 - What cards you think villain thinks you have
Level4 - What cards you think villain thinks you think he has.

Ive yet to reach level 4. Here is a beautiful example of Level3

$0.5/$1 No Limit Holdem
iPoker
6 players
Converted at weaktight.com


Stacks:

UTG		($98.85)
UTG+1		($158.76)
Hero		($116.70)
BTN		($140.10)
SB		($113.15)
BB		($95.60)

Pre-flop: ($1.50, 6 players) Hero is CO

1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $4, Hero calls $4, 3 folds
(A speculative call. Im looking for straight draws, flush draws or 2 pairs. villain is playing reasonably TAG so his range is quiet small here. I dont want to reraise here as I cannot call a 4bet/shove)

Flop: ($9.50, 2 players)
UTG+1 bets $7, Hero calls $7
(Villain bets out. This could have hit a lot of his range. AK, KK, TT, KQs. AA will still be here. All these hands will bet out to protect against a flush draw. I cant see him having a flush draw himself apart from AQs but small part of his range here. Now his bet and my call. What does he put me on here ? He has to put me on a flushdraw here right ? or a very weak straight draw like JQ. Any other hand like a set or AK,KT,KQ wold reraise him here due to the flush draw. Now i know the odds of the next card being a spade are roughly 1 in 5. I take this chance to let him think i am flushing in hope the next card is not a spade and I can extract the most money from him.)

Turn: ($23.50, 2 players)
UTG+1 bets $20, Hero raises to $63, UTG+1 raises to $126, Hero goes all-in $42.70
(This card is a perfect card for me. In villains eyes this doesnt improve my hand at all. To him I am chasing a weak straight or a spade f/d. To me it gives me a diamond f/d. His bet shows he likes his hand still as nothing has changed. My reraise to $63 here gives him a call of $43 into a pot of $106.50. His call would mean he would be committed if i bet my last $42.70 so he reraises for the small bit of fold equity if any.)

River: ($255.20, 2 players)

Final Pot: $232.20
UTG+1 shows:
Hero shows:

UTG+1 wins $0.30 ( lost -$136.70 )
Hero wins $231.90 ( won +$115.20 )

The added part to this hand is if the spade did come on the turn then I could have played it like my flush hit and maybe made him lay down his AA.

Anyone disagree with the above hand ?

I have a few others to talk about but ill save those for the next post.