oops, my mcstakn

WPN games are currently exactly what you would expect.

Bovada/Ignition games are probably not what you would expect. There are more "regs" than ever in the games, especially in the prime time North American hours. But the biggest difference, especially at the lowest limits, is that the games have been overrun by VPN'ing eastern Euro "professionals" (professionals in quotation because I have a hard time considering any $5nl or $10nl player to be a professional poker player, but I've never lived in a country where you could feed your entire family with a job that pays $3/hr). There are still plenty of fish, and almost assuredly these are still the softest games on the interwebz*, but it's nothing like it use to be. There are plenty of rumors about eastern euro collusion teams on Bovada/Ignition as well as on WPN. I don't know if it's true, but I've heard and read it from at least 4 or 5 sources. I don't use any tracking software for Bovada/Ignition, but experience tells me that my win rate at all levels of microstakes is probably somewhere around 5 to 7 bb/100 these days, and I'm playing better than ever (or so I think), where I would have said 10 to 12 bb/100 a year ago, even though I played worse.

* The possible exception to this being a new site, Global Poker. It's legal (somehow), it uses paypal for deposits and withdraws (I guess because it's a legal poker site in the USA, somehow), and somehow I guess they have legitimate cash games with tons of fish. I haven't tried it yet, but Mingthemerciless (aka FenderJaguar, if you recall him from DC) has several videos on the PokerVIP youtube channel where he plays the site from Washington state. The videos definitely confirm the existence of fish, and the site apparently sprung from facebook, so the supply of fish is likely never ending. No huds or tracking software of any kind (wink wink), but it is not anonymous, so you can use notes effectively from day to day. There are some silly things required, like playing for play money to "unlock" certain other games, but I'm not at all sure of the details as to how it works. Someday, I'll get around to trying it out for myself.

Edit: It's worth mentioning that Ignition (and I assume Bovada as well) is currently running a promo giving away $100 for nothing except play. It's $5 per 50 player points, which happens about every 2 hours when playing $25nl, up to a total of $100. This is the second month in a row that they've had an excellent promotion, though last month they gave away tourney tickets for some mtt series they were running. I hate mtt's as much as anyone, but it was completely free, just play and get tickets, so even though I turned the tickets into $0, it was the best promo I had ever seen from Bovada/Ignition, until this free $100 thing came along this month. Promo ends in 15 days.

Hero: AKs in SB

A fish open raises, a reg calls, Hero 3-bets on the big side. Everyone has about 100bb.

Flop is mostly dry except I have my overs and a flush draw.

Fish checks, reg checks, pot is big. Hero?

I'm not sure how they both checked first with me in the SB. Either I was OTB or I was 1st to act.

I know, I know, check the nut draw for so many reasons and all of that - but are you 100% sure that with the low stack to pot ratio, that it is 3 way, only sets are ahead of me (unless the fish called with J7 and hit 2 pair etc), and that there is a fish in the pot that I should not be building a pot here? Like as in fixed-limit style?

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I rarely look at the bonuses, but when they start new promo's, I always get some sort of notice in the client because I always have to "opt in" to the promo. I don't remember exactly what happens, but something immediately gets my attention when I start the client and login.

The current promo ends today, I don't know if it will be offered to you still, and if it is, you probably can't clear more than 1 or 2 $11 mtt tickets.

Hopefully another cash give away is next, ...well, I guess hopefully, something is next.

First, I'm sorry for not checking in and please forgive me if I have not been a good internet friend.

Soooooooo

I want to play some online poker this autumn and here is what I'm thinking:

I don't need to make money playing poker. I'm looking to play it because it is a "game". But if I make a few bucks doing it, then that's great.


BCP pulled my affiliate's deal (they changed it a few times, then pulled it), so there is no advantage or reason to deposit and play there. But I have a few bukcs on ACR. I think this was my old "Doyle's Room" account(?)


I don't want to grind, that sounds boring. I also don't feel like spending hours and hours studying and playing simulators or watching videos .

My intention is to play a limited amount of tables and PAY ATTENTION - a skill I've always lacked.

Speaking of skills, most of mine have always been mediocre. It's been an interesting XX years since I've been a student of Texas Holdem.

I've been pretty good at:

1) Being patient and steady with my emotions, especially in full ring games
2) Hand reading, especially in FR games
3) Playing a solid TAG strategy, pre and post
4) I've made it to mid stakes and I made the 2nd tier of Super Nova back in the day. I played $200/$400 on FTP and Merge - and $300/$600 on PS.
5) I've cashed in for considerably more than I've deposited.

I've been fair to midland at a LOT of things.

I've been down right terrible at:

1) Calling bluffs
2) Risking chips and mixing it up with payers that will go big without the nuts
3) Six max games
4) Blind play
5) Red line results
6) Paying attention as I play

So my goal this fall will be to play 4 tables or less and to pay attention!

I've put together a 20,000 hand chart of steady to rising redline once or twice in the past - but this time it's going to be better.

I'm going to force myself to be looser with calls and to mix it up appropriately with certain types of players.

I'm going to play exclusively at 6max tables.

I'm going to open up my blind play, preflop and post flop.

For studying, I'm going to review my own hands and use the post flop sim (even if it is outdated) - is it called flopzilla?

But nothing more than that, I'm doing this for fun and I already know what I want to work on.
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Gogogo me