A Right Step
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
I have written a lot lately about the path to success in poker. Some of my recent titles include The Path to Destruction, The Way It's Supposed to Be, and Not the Way to Play. All of this introspection into the game and, specifically, how I've been playing, is really an outgrowth of my desire to improve in the face of the reality that this game somtimes has a compulsive pull on me.
Last night, I was able to harnass that pull. The result was a +$40 night, which in and of itself is no real accomplishment, but is at least a step in the right direction.
I had intended not to play at all, remember? Well, wifey Kim insisted on watching the Real World/Road Rules Challenge and I just couldn't take it. I mean, come on! How many times do I have to see the same freakin' celebrity-wannabes compete in senseless physical challenges and hook up with each other like some sort of backwoods family reunion.
What's a man to do? I know. Poker.
The night started with about 30 minutes of 1/2 Limit at Poker.com. I signed up at Poker.com through VegasPokerPro, a site that gives you free things for signing up at poker rooms through them. In this case, I'm going for the 750 VPP points, in an effort to earn enough points for some decent Amazon gift cards, to be used toward the purchase of an iPod. I've already gotten $120 in Amazon gift cards from PokerSourceOnline, so I'm working toward something here.
I finished the Poker.com VPP bonus in no time. I highly recommend it, too, since PSO only requires you to earn 1000 points, and that amounts to very little time (I think for me 3-4 days, tops without even trying) at Poker.com.
Since I still have a $100 bonus to earn (which requires 10,000 points, over 10x the VPP bonus), I have decided to stick it out there for a little bit. Last night went smoothly, winning about $15 or so at a relaxing full ring 1/2 Limit table. By the time the half-hour was done, I decided to lock in the profit (any profit would do well for my confidence) and spend more time with the wifey.
Wifey Kim eventually went to sleep, and I was still up. I decided to shop around for a game to play. Nothing was really interesting me. I was in the tournament mood, but I didn't want to start an MTT for fear that I'd once again stay up too late. I decided on a Rio 6 person SNG. I played smart and tight, limping with AJ preflop as opposed to raising, and folding in the small blind when my cards were utterly miserable. I even laid down some otherwise decent hands to preflop raises. My goal is to simply money in the top 3 out of 6 spots, so to start off, I just want to avoid confrontations. The game was a long one, but eventually I was able to scrape by into 3rd before switching to a more aggressive play. I eventually busted 2nd for about $12.50 profit.
After that, I considered turning in, but I still felt like I had one more in me. I went for my second Rio, and once again, the competition was stiffer than it used to be. I was still able to play a smart game, though, and placed 2nd once again, creating a 2 game streak. If I can money in the 1st or 2nd place spots 4 more times in a row, I got a $300 bonus coming to me. But let's not get ahead of ourselves.
So, what did I do differently? First, I was stone-cold sober for most of the time I was playing (accent on "most"). Second, I was playing one game at a time. Third, I was not bonus chasing for the sake of bonus chasing. Fourth, I was paying attention when it mattered (as I freely admit that I was surfing the web during the beginnings of the Rios).
It's that simple. I just need to screw down and play poker, instead of this mindless gamblefest that I've been prone too lately. And while we are talking about a mindless gamblefest, let's get to my sports betting.
A HUGE thanks to Mr. Gross, who suggested that I bet on the Mavericks +4 last night. Also, thanks to Own the Flop, who seconded the suggestion. A couple of days ago, I had $7.23 left on Paradise Poker. I put it into their sportsbook, which immediately gave me double my money as a bonus, $14.50 in total, approximately. I then bet on the Under 188.5 in Game 2 of the NBA finals and won that bet, with about $28 total in my account. I put it all on the Mavs last night and they came through, bringing me to about $58. Thanks guys, I needed it.
Spain is whooping Ukraine as we speak, up 2 nil (thanks Acorn for the soccer grammar lesson), so that bet doesn't look too good, but I still have some decent dough on Germany over Poland later. Wish me luck.
That's all for now folks. Be good to yourself and each other.
posted by Jordan @ 9:34 AM,
