Last week, I took the train to visit a shady part of town, with people hanging out on the street, “for rent” signs for cheap, and storefronts in a different language.
Was I buying drugs? Was I looking for a crack whore?
No, I was depositing to an online poker site.
Poker Stars‘ 10 billionth hand promotion came with a 25 percent deposit bonus, and going busto a couple weeks ago, it was enough of a draw to bring me back.
But I wasn’t about to pay the 4 percent + $.50 for a credit card transfer to the PayTru card plus the 3 percent my credit card charges for a cash advance. No, I do that when I’m desperate enough to play online blackjack.
At a flat $9.95 fee for any deposit below $2500, Moneygram seemed the bargain of the payment processing sites.
Stars makes it as simple as possible, showing a screen for the deposit amount and a space to enter 10Bhand as the bonus code.
It then brings up a sample blue Moneygram Express Payment form with what to fill out when you get there. Entering your ZIP code shows the closest stores, banks, and check-cashing places that handle Moneygram.
Once I got there, I found the blue form, filled it out, and handed it over along with my deposit and the $9.95 fee. No I.D. was asked, and by the time I got home the deposit was ready with the bonus.
Assuming I don’t go busto again, I’ll be withdrawing through the PayTru card, which just charges ATM fees.
***
After doubling my buy-in in SnGs, I made the mistake of sitting at the 5/10 6max tables. Lost two buy-ins there.
Then sat at 1/2 NL with $200 each.
Smooth-called three small raises with a pocket pair:
With 77, hit a set on the flop. EP bet out, I raised, he reraised, I pushed. Turn was an Ace, river was an Ace. He had AA for quads.
With 99, hit 10-10-2 on the flop. I check-raise big, he pushes, I call. Probably a bad call by me. Turn is a 7, river is rag. He has 77 for a turned set.
With AA, hit a rag flop. I bet out, he reraises, I push, he calls. He turns a 10 for a set.
In chat, someone said, “kerrwhooops.”
The hands released my $150 deposit bonus, and that’s all that’s currently left.
I then moved to Full Tilt, depositing by credit card with a cash advance fee of 4 to 5 percent. No Moneygram option.
Life there was equally rocky.
Knowing I tend to recall the bad beats more than the beats I put on others, this time I kept track of all the all-in showdowns. I wanted to see how often my better hand held up when all-in preflop. I didn’t include the times when I or other players were shortstack, nor when the caller was the chip leader. All are when we were about evenly stacked, though some were when the opponent raised big and I reraised, pricing him in to call.
Here are the hands I played vs. my opponent:
KK vs. 99
JJ vs. QJ
AK vs. AQ
KK vs. AA (as expected, but it’d be nice to crack Aces)
AQ vs. Q10
KK vs. QQ
AK vs. QJ
AK vs. A6
AQ vs. K3
AQ vs. KQ
A7 vs. A6
QQ vs. KK (again as expected, but the cards should be balancing out at some point)
88 vs. 57
KQ vs. 45
AA vs. KK (twice)
J10 vs. J9
QQ vs. 88
AQ vs. 57
KK vs. JJ
KK vs. 1010
In each case I lost, bouncing me from the SnG. Many 4th places as well as finishes toward the bottom. Though both pay the same, I’d much rather have hands hold up toward the bubble because blinds are higher and I feel there’s more skill and fold equity shorthanded.
The only hand that held up when I was dominated was AK vs. QQ.
It just seem ridiculous that I can lose all the above hands but suck out only once, and even then on a coinflip.
Someone’s definitely telling me I shouldn’t play poker anymore, and I don’t know why I’m not listening.
At least I haven’t deposited to play online blackjack (though I did try and this time UltimateBet refused the credit card).
Still, despite all that, I’m now in the top 200 SnG players at the $22 level. Which mainly means I’ve been playing a lot of them. If I can place in the top few, Full Tilt awards tourney chips. But the distance between top 200 and top 1 is too vast to attempt.
***
Full Tilt has a great promotion if you earn 3000 points in a week. They hold a freeroll on Sunday afternoon with the top 2 players winning a $10,000 seat to the WSOP. Every time I’ve played, they’ve had fewer than 200 people play. A better than 100-to-1 shot at winning a seat.
Before the first break, I pushed with KK. Often a push far above the blinds will look like you’re trying to steal and may invite any Ace or any pair to call.
Someone called with 10-10.
I told myself that if I saw a 10, I’d take a break.
The 10 came on the river and I was out.
Instead of taking that break, though, I tilted by playing the insane super turbo SnG satellites to the FTOPS main event. They had two levels, one $59 which awarded one seat, and another $118 that awarded two seats.
You start with T100 chips (yep, just 100) and blinds are T15/30. Where the Button is drawn is important, and it’s an all-in fest with bad beats galore. These satellites definitely flop the skill vs. luck in poker percentages.
I played five of these and came in 2nd (bubble) in two. Final hand was K10 vs. KJ. Thinking back to similar hands where I’d dominated, I felt like I deserved that 10, but I must be behind on poker god sacrifices.
I had enough money left for two more buy-ins, and threw it into the other SnG where the top 2 were awarded.
I was UTG and folded through the button, leaving me only T55. A couple people were knocked in the first orbit, I won one hand, lost another, and I found myself in the BB with T10.
Three people were now all-in, and I could call here with J2s or be taken in with the SB. Getting 4x my money, I called.
Hands were AJ, 10-J, A9. Aces and Jacks looked dead, c’mon spades!
The flop had no spades but gave me a 2. River also deuced up and I quadrupled.
Another hand had me with K5o and I caught two 5s.
From there I stayed out of the other chip leader’s way, and we both got the $500+35 seat.
I’d play just these satellites, but it cost me about $420.
There’s $1,899,000 in the prize pool, first place gets $336,217.95, and 522nd gets $664.65. The final table awards at least $25,000.
There was no way to unregister to get the cash, and frankly, I’d settle for 522nd because I don’t want to pay 4 percent again in cash advance fees to redeposit.
Pros playing are Farzad Bonyadi, Erick Lindgren, Gavin Smith, Ben Roberts, Joe Sebok, Roland de Wolfe, Paul Sexton, Stuart Paterson, Gus Hansen (who’s hosting, though I don’t know what that means), Paul Wolfe, David Chiu, John Juanda, Mike Matusow, Berry Johnston, Michael Craig, John Cernuto, Aaron Bartley, Keith Sexton, Andy Bloch, David Singer, and Lee Watkinson (who also played a ton of the super satellites).
We’re at the first break now and down to 3308 remaining of the 3798 who entered. Sexton and de Wolfe are out.
Chips began at T3000 and I’m at T7085 (average T5740) seeing 16 percent of the last 57 hands.
Long way to go, and I haven’t eaten.
I’m taking the tight approach. I bought in directly to the first FTOPS event and limped with a lot of hands out of position, which got me far but dropped me after 3 hours with $0. Playing premium hands early will hopefully get me past 3 hours with a decent chipstack.
Raised 4x with KK and one caller who’d limped early. Flop was an Ace. He checked, and I bet 85 percent pot.
This is another thing I tend to do whether or not I hit, because a) if they’re calling 85 percent, they’re calling pot, b) it gets them thinking a little (why didn’t he just bet the pot? He must want to draw me in or he has nothing), and c) if I’m raised, I can get away saving a few chips.
After my 85 percent bet, he didn’t go away, and I gave up on the turn. On the river, he bet pot, and I folded.
Weak-tight, that’s me.
I’ll save the moves for later — so early in the tourney, people would gladly call a large raise looking to double up.
Break’s over, will report back with any interesting hands. I’m crossing fingers that the entire weekend of being unlucky was in preparation for a reversal in this tournament.
But actually, I’d be happy if my hands just held up.
GO GRUBBY GO
WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN