From Zero To $10,000 on Pacific Poker

You Too Can Make Money From Pacific

2006-07-10T19:55:00.000-07:00

Start playing at Pacific Poker today and receive a 25% first deposit bonus, up to $100!

Deposit $400, you'll instantly get a free $100 -- and you'll be set to start building your own Pacific empire. Good luck!

So I Did It

2005-11-09T16:26:00.000-08:00

Crushing 5/10 Some More

2005-10-06T01:10:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah.

Current bankroll: $8,005.50

Killing 5/10

2005-09-26T22:32:00.000-07:00

I'm +262BB ($2,629.21) after 1,700 hands in 5/10 6-max.

10k is in sight.

Current bankroll: $6,489.42

Nearly Half Way There

2005-09-19T06:47:00.000-07:00

Current bankroll: $4,912.86

I Play 5/10 6-Max Now

2005-09-12T01:51:00.000-07:00

Where has this game been all my life? I'm up about $2,000 in 5/10 6-max after about 25 hours of play.

Current bankroll: $4,140.94

Running Hotter

2005-08-15T02:28:00.000-07:00

Current bankroll: $3,796.00

Update

2005-08-13T19:01:00.000-07:00

Wow, I've been on a roll. Details later.

Current bankroll: $3,405.05

Good News

2005-07-26T02:11:00.000-07:00

Well I've been working fulltime the past two weeks, so my poker time has been extremely limited. However, to compensate for playing less, I've been moving up in limits.

I have been playing $100NL ring games. With the exception of bluffing off $65 in one hand, I've been playing incredibly tight and I'm winning consistently.

"Tight aggressive" play is constantly referred to as optimal. However, I think that concentrating on playing "tight" is the most important element. Anyone can play aggressively, and there are hordes of aggressive players online, yet the vast majority of online players are horribly loose. Playing tight takes discipline; most players simply lack it. I also think you should learn to play tight before you learn to play aggressively -- simply because you have more room for error whilst learning.

I also played a $30 SNG (in contrast to my usual $10 SNGs), which I won for a cool $150.

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $2,724.25

Running Hot!

2005-07-07T07:08:00.000-07:00

I'm on a hot streak. Over the last couple of days, I'm up about $400.

Here are some juicy screenshots:

1. KK, $0.12/$0.25NL. I made pot-sized bets on the flop, turn and river -- all of which got called. Pot: $29.60.

2. T9o, $0.12/$0.25NL. There’s nothing like flopping the nuts! I check/called the flop and proceeded to whack my opponent over the head on the turn and river. Pot: $31.00.

3. 78s $2/$4LHE. I raised pre-flop from the BB, led out with my open-ender on the flop, and continued to do so when the turn gave me the nuts. I think this helped disguise my hand, which meant that I got lots of action on the turn and river. Pot: $52.00.

4. AKo, $0.12/$0.25NL. I pushed with AKo against a maniac pre-flop, who called with KQh. Pot: $47.47

5. A7c, $1/$2LHE. I got obscene action against my rivered full house. I’m pretty sure one of my opponents turned a flush (had I missed the boat, I would’ve check/called the river). Pot: $50.35

6. QQ, $0.25/$0.50NL. I pushed against a pre-flop raise and got called twice. Pot: $51.16

7. 55, $0.25/$0.50NL. I flopped a set of 5s. I bet the pot on the flop because there were six runners and two clubs showing. I got called by two players. The third club hits on the turn and one of my opponent (typical LAG) pushes with a roughly-pot-sized bet. I think “that’d be a weird way to play a flush” and put him on a queen or two pair that was nervous of the flush. I'm thrilled to see he has TT. Funnily enough my opponent berates me in chat for calling his bluff. Does anyone fold here on the turn? Pot: $64.25.

That $10,000 will be mine in no time!

Current bankroll: $2,415.05

Updates

2005-06-29T21:28:00.000-07:00

After exams, I've been able to get back to my Pacific Poker 10k mission.

I've been playing a mixure of the following
- $10/$30 NL HU
- $10 NL SNGs, both 5 person and 10 person
- $8/$16 20-person SNGs
- $25/$50 NL ring game
- $0.50/$1 limit ring game
- $0.50/$1 7-card stud ring game (Stud's a new game for me)

It's going well. I'll be at 10k in no time!

Some interesting hands to be posted later.

Current bankroll: $1,922.50

No Poker Played

2005-04-11T16:32:00.000-07:00

I haven't had access to Pacific Poker. What a boring update.

A Little Bit Of HU

2005-04-05T03:56:00.000-07:00

I was able to fit in a few matches of headsup during halftime of the NCAA final this morning. I won two of three games of $10 HU and then won a $30 match.

In the $30 match, my opponent was incredibly aggressive and tended to make massive bets on the turn (which I could only assume were usually bluffs). This led to a fun hand. I made a minimum raise with 8s 9s on the button to 60. He called, the flop came Ah-Jc-2h. I checked and he bet 80. I called with the intention of check-raising the turn. The turn was the Ad, which was a nice card for me because I knew my opponent doesn't have an Ace (like all super-aggressive HU players, he would have re-raised before the flop with any Ace). I checked, he bet 212 and I instantly re-raised all-in for another 750-ish chips. He folds. Phew. Foolish? Probably.

I also dabbled in the $50 NL room where I bled a few blinds while trying to wait for a nice hand. I discovered the players on my table were fairly solid, so I decided to return to see Illinois make an admirable, but unsuccessful, comeback.

Current bankroll: $1,510.10

Poker News

2005-03-30T02:31:00.000-08:00

The good news is that I've been on a total roll recently. I've won my last 7 games of headsup and finished 1st/20 in a little $2 SNG (I meant to play in the $16 variation but accidentally misclicked due to inebriation). There are two hands I played recently that I think were very interesting.

The first hand occured in the SNG. With four players remaining, I was chip leader with 8,000 of the 16,000 chips in play. Blinds are 100/200. It's folded around to the SB (who is second biggest stack with slightly over 5,000) who limps. I make it 1,000 to go with AQo and the SB calls. The flop is Kh-Qh-6s. The SB checks, I bet 2,000 and the SB calls. At this point I'm sure that I'm ahead because the SB would have lead out on the flop with a pair of Kings and he would have raised with 66 pre-flop. I put him on a straight draw or a dominated Queen -- JT, QJ or QT. The turn is another King, which is a great card for me. The SB checks again and I put him in for his last 2,300. The SB calls, the river blanks off and I win a monster pot. He shows QJ. Sweet.

The second hand is in a $30 headsup match against an overly-aggressive player. It's more poker porn than anything resembling an analytical hand. Enjoy.

Sjay2k (720 chips, dealer): Kh Qc
Villain (880 chips): -- --

Sjay2k posts small blind (10), Villain posts big blind (20)

Preflop: Sjay2k raises (35) to 55, Villain calls

Flop: As-Jh-10d (Note: DING DING DING!)

Villain bets 73, Sjay2k calls.

Turn: Ad

Villain bets 200, Sjay2k calls.

River: 3s

Villain bets 552 (all-in), Sjay2k calls 392 (all-in).

Showdown: Villain has Js 9s (two pair, Aces and Jacks), Sjay2k has Kh Qc (a Straight, Ace high). Sjay2k wins 1,440.

The bad news is that I've had very limited access to Pacific Poker. I've been able to play while visiting friends, although this often means that I play whilst drunken and/or distracted. Just the way I like it.

Current bankroll: $1,488.56

Pacific Headsup

2005-03-23T09:19:00.000-08:00

$30+$1.50 headsup: ~~4 wins, 0 losses~~ 5 wins, 0 losses

$10+$0.50 headsup: ~~2 wins, 5 losses~~ 9 wins, 8 losses

Heh.

How To Win $10 in 10 seconds

2005-03-23T04:36:00.000-08:00

Playing $10 headsup SNG...

Why that's a nice first hand.

Oooh.

Next!

Foldem

2005-03-21T21:22:00.000-08:00

I'm playing a SNG at the moment. I just got dealt JJ twice in a row, only to fold both times before the flop against massive raises from tight players. The first hand the tight player had AA and the second hand the other player had QQ. I've been staying afloat by continually stealing pots off the chip leader. The chip leader bets hard every single flop, so I'm check-raising him nearly every time. I love playing against players that are too aggressive.

Another thing: I'm astounded how oblivious online players are to being milked for chips. If you're playing against me and you get check-raised the minimum on the turn, you have run up against the nuts.

Oh Ha Ha

2005-03-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

I was playing in a 400 person $20 no limit tournament. It was down to to 53 players; the top 50 paid. I was the third largest stack in the tourney. I held KJs, the flop came jack high and I got beaten by the big stack's bluff... that turned into a runner-runner straight. Ab-so-lutely fucking disgusting.

I also won a $10, 10 person SNG, but I'm on perma-tilt after that tournament loss. I must concentrate.

PS good luck to Utah. I hope they get to the Final Four.

Current bankroll: $1,290.30

Back on Pacific

2005-03-15T04:14:00.000-08:00

I lost a $30 / 5 person SNG after a spectacular lack of cards. I rectified this by winning five $2.50 / 5 person SNGs.

I've started playing looser pre-flop. I figure that I want to be seeing as many flops against weaker players who will let me draw for free and I will benefit more often from their bad play. The hard part is deciding when to let go of hands when I'm probably outkicked.

Current bankroll: $1,345.50

Short-Handed Play

2005-03-07T02:18:00.000-08:00

Last night I played against two ex-college friends in some $20 buy-in three-handed play. All three of us are strong poker players and consistent winners, which made for some good poker (a nice change from the flush-chasing-monkeys online).

The first hand I dealt myself KK. I limped in, the SB called and the BB checked. The BB flopped two-pair and bet a solid portion of my stack off on the flop, then the rest on the turn. The BB said that limping with Kings was too risky because neither of them would put all their chips in the middle after the flop with anything less than two pair. I agreed, and now I think that limping with monsters is only a good play in short-handed against bad players.

A few minutes later I played a big hand against the same player, where I was lucky enough to fold a huge hand on the river. I had 22, the flop was 4-2-J, which we both checked. The turn was an A, he bet, I made a strong re-raise and he called. (I was fairly sure that he had an Ace, although he didn't raise pre-flop, so I think it's a pretty low ace. He probably would have pushed all-in with two pair, so I think he has A3 or A5.) The river is a horrible, horrible 5, he pushes and I fold my set. He shows me A3. Phew.

I was lucky to only be down a little under $20 in the end. I'll be playing some online tonight though :-)

Playing The College Game

2005-03-06T02:28:00.000-08:00

I haven't been able to play online because I've moved back into college and Pacific Poker seems to be blocked by the university's firewall. After about a week of non-stop partying, we were able to play our first game of the year today.

Our college game is incredible. About eight of us played last year about five or six days a week in the common room. We're all Law or Engingeering students and we're all ultra-competitive. It's about the most aggressive game I've ever seen (and still somehow by far the most fun/social game).

To give you an idea of style of the game, here are a few interesting hands today. I had 2h-2c on the button and the flop was Jd-2s-3h. The BB and I both check. The turn is Ad: he checks, I bet $2 (currently a $1.50 pot) the BB check-raises to $6 and I go all-in. The BB has to call another $7.50 (there's about $21 in the pot). He thinks for a second and says, "Ooh you've got a small set, but my draw is live." He calls and flips over Kd-Qd. The river blanks off and I rake a nice pot.

A few hands before, it's folded around to the SB, who limps. I'm in the BB with Kd-8s and I triple the blinds. He calls. The flop is Qs-2s-9d. He checks, I bet roughly the pot ($1.50) and he calls. The turn in the 4s. He checks, I bet $3 (pot $4.50) and he calls. The river is 6s. He checks, I bet all in (another $12ish -- we always fire three bullets!) and he calls with the nut flush. He had As-6h and said he was only calling the flop because he planned on bluffing the river.

Fun stuff.

Bah

2005-03-01T20:53:00.000-08:00

Computer is unavailable.

$2.50 Sit-N-Goings

2005-02-23T00:36:00.000-08:00

I've been playing more $2.50, 5 persons SNGs to work on my short-handed play and boost my confidence, which has been down lately. I've been able to win five of the last six I've played (finishing second in the other).

I think the trick is becoming increasingly loose and aggressive as the number of players decrease and blinds become more important. For example, I fold A-9 five-handed, but I'll gladly go all-in headsup.

I've been told about a loose $1/$2 NL live game that plays locally. The standard buy-in is at least $100, which is more than I'm confident gambling with, but luckily I've got someone who's willing to back me for 50%. It won't count towards my 10k Poker Mission, but it could be quite profitable nonetheless.

Current bankroll: $1,356.45

Here's How I Like To Play HU

2005-02-21T06:40:00.000-08:00

I've been playing short-handed five person SNGs to work on my heads-up game. Here are my hands in heads up against a player who had been playing solid tight/aggressive in regular play. However, in HU I discovered that he was fairly tight/passive pre-flop, but very loose/aggressive post-flop. So I decided to push pre-flop with any ace, king or pocket pair, and to check-raise flops where I had a hand or he was obviously bluffing.

I aimed to steal enough blinds to cushion any losses when the other player actually did call.

Blinds: 50/100 (mostly boring play by me)

Chips: 1820(me)/2180(him). 62o, he folds, I win 50.
1870/2130. 82o, I fold, I lose 50.
1820/2180. 97s, he folds, I win 50.
1870/2130. Q5s, I raise to 200, he re-raises to 300 and I call. The flop is 9-3-J and I fold to a 100 bet. I lose 300.
1570/2430. T3o and he lets me limp. The flop is T-6-2, I check, he bets, I re-raise to 550 and he folds. I win 200.
1770/2230. QTo, I raise to 200 and he calls. The flop is 4-5-J and we both check. The turn is a 3, he bets 100 and I call. The river is a J and we both check. He wins with K2o. I lose 300.
1470/2530. ATo, he folds, I win 50.
1520/2480. 98o, I raise to 473, he folds, I win 100.
1620/2380. 42s and he lets me limp. The flop is 9-6-2, I bet 200 and he calls. The turn is a 8, he bets 200 and I fold. I lose 300.
1320/2680. KK and I let him limp. The flop is Q-9-4 (two clubs), he checks, I bet 200 and he folds. I win 100.
1420/2580. 96o, he folds, I win 50.
1470/2530. 62o, I fold, I lose 50.

Blinds: 75/150 (push it, push it real good!)

1420/2580. A5s, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1570/2430. 95o, I fold, I lose 75.
1495/2505. 96o and he lets me limp. The flop is K-J-2, I check, he bets 150 and I fold. I lose 150.
1345/2655. KQo, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1495/2505. T9o, he folds, I win 75.
1570/2430. AKo, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1720/2280. A9s, he calls, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1870/2130. J6o, I fold, I lose 75.
1795/2205. T2o and he lets me limp. The flop is K-8-5 (two hearts), I check, he bets 150 and I fold. I lose 150.
1645/2355. J9o, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
1795/2205. K3s and he lets me limp. The flop is K-2-4 (two of my suit), I check, he bets 150, I re-raise all-in and he folds. I win 300.
2095/1905. K5o and I let him limp. The flop is T-5-2, I bet 500 and he folds. I win 150.
2245/1755. Q9o and he lets me limp. The flop is A-8-4, I check, he bets 150 and I fold. I lose 150.
2095/1905. K4o, I go all-in, he folds, I win 150.
2245/1755. Q2o, he folds, I win 75.

Blinds: 100/200 (changing gears to somewhere between above two styles of play)

2320/1680. 64s, I fold, I lose 100.
2220/1780. T6o, he raises to 400, I fold, I lose 200.
2020/1980. 95o, I fold, I lose 100.
1920/2080. 72o, he folds, I win 100.
2020/1980. 83s, I fold, I lose 100.
1920/2080. 95o and he lets me limp. The flop is K-K-4, I check, he bets 200, I re-raise all-in and he folds. I win 400.
2320/1680. 93s, I fold, I lose 100.
2220/1780. K3o, he folds, I win 100.
2320/1880. T4s and I let him limp. The flop is 8-6-3 and we both check. The turn is a T, he bets 200, I re-raise to 400 and he calls. The river is a J and we both check. He has 76o. I win 600.
2920/1080. T4s, he folds, I win 100.
3020/980. 94o, I fold, I lose 100.
2920/1080.J3o, he folds, I win 100.
3020/980. Q2o, I fold, I lose 100.
2920/1080. T6o, he raises to 400, I fold, I lose 200.
2720/1280. 32s, I fold, I lose 100.

Blinds: 150/300

2620/1380. ATs, he folds, I win 150.
2770/1230. 84o, I fold, I lose 150.
2620/1380. 93o and he lets me limp. The flop is 9-4-J, I go all-in and he folds. I win 300.
2920/1080. TT, he calls, I raise all-in, he folds. I win 300.
3220/780. T8s, I call, he raises all-in, I fold, I lose 300.
2920/1080. A9o, he calls, I raise all-in, he folds. I win 300.
3220/780. 72o, I raise all-in and he calls. The board is 9-Q-5-4-7 (four clubs) and I win with my 7 of clubs.

Like I said in my last post, 72o is a great hand for me. I think my hyper-aggressive pre-flop strategy was working because not only was I stealing his big blinds, but he began folding lots of small blinds to avoid a possible all-in raise by me.

Current bankroll: $1,340.30

Interesting Stat

2005-02-19T07:41:00.000-08:00

I've had AA twelve times in 1/2 and 2/4. Overall on these 12 hands, I'm down $124.

Frickin' hell. Give me 72o anyday.

Another reason to stick to no-limit.

Current bankroll: $1,313.24.