MeMe

1. I am married to my best friend - edit: I WAS married to my best friend. Now we're just great friends.
2. I have really cute kids (I resisted the urge to say they are cuter than yours, because I’m trying to be a better person. I will post their picture after the last installment and let you be the judge). - edit: I no longer have the van Dyke, but I still have really cute kids
3. I am a college dropout.
4. I have gotten three legitimate job offers for over 1 million dollars.
5. I occasionally pick my nose.
6. I swam in the Red Sea.
7. I floated on the Dead Sea.
8. The war in the Middle East disappoints me for selfish reasons. I’ve been to Petra, Jordan. I want to take my family there, but I’m too nervous. You’ve seen the Treasury building in Petra if you’ve seen the 3rd Indian Jones movie.
9. I’ve played guitar my entire life.
10. I’ve played guitar in a club with a half-naked woman sitting on my lap.
11. I have an 11 handicap.
12. I played golf at St. Andrews 3 times and never shot better than 95.
13. I got a hole-in-one. It was especially sweet because I was playing with my ex-wife at the time.
14. Men’s Journal magazine did a survey and found that the most trusted profession was being a soldier. The second most trusted was being a doctor. I’m fiercely proud to have been both.
15. I left active duty in the US Army after 21 years without any retirement benefits.
16. In 21 years I was only promoted twice – my promotion to Lieutenant Colonel came with one year left on Active Duty.
17. I was extremely underpaid by the Army for what I did, but I probably made more than you think.
18. I volunteered to go to Iraq and Kosovo.
19. I was in combat in Iraq. Three days before I left, a soldier who was 50 feet away from me got shot in the shoulder.
20. I have received some very high awards during my military service (including the Bronze Star), but the one I’m most proud of is my Good Conduct Medal. It’s the only award that says I was enlisted before I became an officer.
21. I am a Pro-Choice Republican.
22. I’m often embarrassed by my political party.
23. Despite my embarrassment with Republicans, the Democrats are too disorganized to lure me away.
24. I don’t take enough interest in politics to be an Independent or Libertarian.
25. I have never voted in a Presidential election – all for legitimate reasons. During the two GW Bush elections, I was otherwise engaged with military commitments.
26. I have correctly predicted every next president one year prior to the election. EDIT: I finally got my first presidential prediction wrong. I figured Hillary was a shoe-in. Mind you, that’s certainly not what I wanted, it’s just that in November 2007 I figured she was unbeatable.
27. My two Bill Clinton predictions both got me thrown out of an Operating Room.
28. I am a lifetime losing poker player, but I believe I can turn it around this year. - edit: the last two years have turned this around in a big way, mostly due to switching to NL.
29. I am tiltable.
30. I have been playing poker seriously since we moved to Washington State in 2004.
31. I’m proud to say I was born in Brooklyn, NY even though we moved upstate when I was one year old.
32. I miss the Catskill Mountains in the fall.
33. My oldest son has my gift for numbers. When he was 8 and it was time for his friend to go home, my son had to tell his buddy his mom’s cell phone number.
34. The only job I was ever fired from is when I was a telemarketer. I was fired for taking off too much time from work.
35. I was interviewing for medical school at the time.
36. The telemarketing firm asked me to come back two days after they fired me because I was the most productive salesman for the month.
37. I don’t know what that says about me, but I don’t want to think about it.
38. My dad was blind. He lived through 2 heart attacks. He had diabetes and a host of other medical conditions. My dad was not disabled.
39. He died suddenly the day I was scheduled to come home from Iraq.
40. I have been to invitation-only parties with P Diddy and Usher.
41. Me and my two buddies were the only white guys in the room.
42. Usher’s babes are better looking.
43. I do mammography, and I think I’m very good at it. I know I have saved dozen of lives by detecting breast cancer early enough to do something about it.
44. If I lose my license to practice medicine, it will be because of mammography. Up to 50% of breast cancers are visible on the prior mammogram.
45. I hate mammography.
46. One of my favorite anatomical locations is the gastrocnemosemimembranosus bursa. It’s behind the knee.
47. I do a finger trick where I do the Vulcan sign \\// with one hand and the “reversed Vulcan” \!!/ with the other, then I switch back and forth rapidly.
48. I had way too much free time as a kid.
49. I jumped out of an airplane with 95 pounds of gear in total darkness. Airborne!!
50. My chute did not deploy right away. I was too busy bicycling my legs for my life to flash before my eyes.
51. When the chute finally opened, I got the best view of the Hale-Bopp comet on the planet.
52. I believe in God.
53. I have lived in New York, South Carolina, Texas, Florida, Missouri, Iowa, Colorado, Georgia, Wuerzburg, Germany, Washington State and California.
54. I’ve been to 21 different foreign countries, including Canada, Mexico, Germany, Italy, Vatican City, France, Belgium, The Czech Republic, Poland, Spain, The Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, England, Ireland, Scotland, Greenland, Jordan, Egypt, Kuwait and Iraq.
55. My favorite city outside of the US is Prague, in the Czech Republic.
56. I have run two marathons. The best was the 2003 Paris Marathon.
57. The best way to see Paris, France is jogging for 26 miles around the city.
58. I used to drive a beautiful BMW convertible, but I look at Ferraris on eBay almost every day. EDIT: I am now the proud owner of a 1988 Ferrari 328 GTS! Edit #2: The Ferrari is gone, replaced by a stunning 1967 Mustang Fastback.
59. I have driven a Ferrari 360, 430 Spider and 458 Spider. They were better than I thought they would be.
60. I used to own a Saturn.
61. I am an Osteopathic physician.
62. Those last two items are related.
63. I cried when I read [another bloggers] post about her mom, because it made me remember my mom’s death. I can’t remember the last time I cried.
64. I wanted to go to my 20th high school reunion just to rub my success in the face of at least 10 different people.
65. Just typing that embarrasses me.
66. I didn’t go.
67. The first girl I asked to my senior prom turned me down and ended up sitting at my table with her date, who happened to be her brother.
68. I had a woobie as a child. It was an NFL blanket with a satin border. I used to rub the satin between my index finger and middle finger for comfort.
69. I can’t resist the urge to rub clothing between my fingers when I walk through a department store.
70. I celebrated my 10th birthday in the hospital.
71. I have a 10 inch scar on my left flank. My dad had a matching scar on his right.
72. I have never tried cigarettes, pot or recreational drugs. EDIT: I tried my first cigar when I was 43 years old. I managed 4 puffs before I got lightheaded and a little nauseous.
73. I used to pour out my beer at parties when no one was looking.
74. I developed a taste for single malt scotch when I was in Scotland.
75. I am intimidated by golfers that wear black gloves.
76. I am intimidated by anyone wearing a “doo-rag.”
77. I have only been intimidated at poker table once. It was the first time I played 10/20.
78. Science Fantasy is my favorite genre.
79. I have read nearly everything by Stephen King and Piers Anthony.
80. As I am typing this, my three year old son came into the room with his shirt over his head yelling, “I am the ghost of Hanukkah!!”
81. I played video games nearly every day as a child, and eventually worked in an arcade.
82. I once played a video game for 13 hours straight.
83. It was the only time in my life I had hallucinations.
84. My favorite movie of all time is The Princess Bride.
85. Dr. Chako is a childhood nickname. I used to wash dishes in an Italian restaurant and the immigrant workers called me Chako. One day, they asked me if I planned on washing dishes my whole life. I told them I was going to be a doctor someday. As a joke, they started calling me Dr. Chako, as in, “Hey, Dr. Chako. Go clean up the vomit by the cash register.”
86. I ended up working with a physician actually named Dr. Chacko (note the extra "c"). She was my boss.
87. She never found out about my nickname. EDIT: I finally told her my nickname in 2009 when we met at RSNA in Chicago. Even though we no longer work together, I was still a little nervous about revealing my nickname to her.
88. The first blog I ever read was The Drudge Report. I rarely check it anymore.
89. The first poker blog I read was Dr. Pauly. It’s still one of the first blogs I read every day.
90. I am obsessive about my hobbies.
91. My hobbies have been video games, Dungeons & Dragons, running, racquetball, golf and poker.
92. Now that I play poker, all of my other hobbies have been sorely neglected.
93. I will play in the WSOP. Edit: I played a $1500 LHE event in 2012. Got knocked out 9 places out of the money. 
94. I absolutely cannot wait for the next WPBT.
95. My ex-wife is a winning poker player.
96. My ex-wife consistently scores higher than me on IQ tests.
97. Those last two items may be related.
98. My ex-wife is a CPA and a vice president with one of the largest tech companies in the world.
99. I have not written a check or paid a bill in many years. Edit: Um... divorce is a great teacher.
100. I married up. Edit: I still think this, even though we are no longer married. 

101. I have thought of at least four things that I cannot put on this list. My ex-wife knows about all of them.
101a. (I couldn't make this 102 because it's called 101 Things About Dr. Chako. Duh.) - I am madly in love with a woman who still can't tell if a flush beats a straight. She's also a physician and she's scary smart. What can I say, smarts is hot. 

Aren't they cute?! Just ignore the ugly guy in the middle.

Moving to Holland

12 JAN 06

Okay. I’m not really moving to Holland, but this might make me change my mind:




Daunting for sure, but I think I’m up to the task. The real question is, after I conquer the mountain, where do I stick the flag?

Anyway…

No poker last night. Instead, I had to listen to hours and hours of poker stories from the dear and patient wife’s Vegas Chick Trip. Now I know how she must feel listening to me when I come back from the Boy’s Trip.

I kid.

In fact, their trip was a rousing success. I have been encouraging her to take a Chick Trip to Vegas for years. I’ve been going once or twice a year since residency, and it’s always been a blast. Unfortunately, I've always felt a little guilt (intended?) because she stayed home with the kids while I was playing. Now I can truthfully say that she has been to Vegas more recently than me.

Hand, baby!! (Obscure Seinfeld reference. You know: I’ve got the upper hand. Never mind.)

I’m sure she’ll find a way to quantify our Vegas experience (I’ve been 5 times without her and she’s only been once without me), so I’ll lose that one too, but deep inside, I know I have hand. Besides, if she wants to push it, I’m headed to Holland (see above). The email I got with the picture says she is 7' 4" and 320 pounds. Maybe Qantas has cheap flights. They fly to Holland, right?

Final thought: Guys, if it's within your means, send your better half to Vegas on a chick trip. Forget the hand thing for a moment. It’s a great thing to do if they go with the right people (thanks sis!), and it may make it easier when you start the begging process for the next WBPT.

Unusual Problem

11 JAN 06

I actually heeded my own advice, and played two SNG’s. The lure of the online ring game was strong, but I resisted. Actually, I was doing some filing while I played, so I had a distraction. I wonder if I played fewer hands because of it…

Anyway, I busted out early in the first game, largely due to a perception issue. Most people playing the $15 turbo SNG’s are playing at Level One. They only care about what cards they have. They rarely care about playing styles of those around them unless someone is clearly over the top.

Here is the problem. I was dealt a succession of fairly good starting hands. In one orbit, I was dealt KJ, AJ, A8s, 10 10, and 5 5. Now this was the early rounds, so the blinds were at 15 / 30. There is no way I’m laying these hands down. I even tried to mix up my play by coming in with between 2 and 5 x BB. Well, when you play a lot of hands, you get no respect. When I got the 10s, the flop came A J 9. I bet to see where I was and got called. The turn brought an 8 giving me an OESD and a pair. I bet again and got called. The river was a blank. I check and he checked, showing his J 4. How do you cold call two bets on that board? How do you call the flop? I’ll tell you how. When it’s coming from someone you don’t respect, you do like Mike Caro says and call the bluffer to the river. I think he was referring to limit play, but if the bets aren’t big enough, it may be worth a call, if for no other reason than to send a message.

When the blind were at 25 / 50, I saw a free flop from the BB with 9h6h. The flop was 963, all diamonds. I bet ½ the pot and there were 4 callers. The turn was the Ace of clubs. I bet the pot for the Ace bluff, but I was hoping that someone had a naked Ace, or was still drawing and might fold (yeah, right). I got one caller (?). The river was the Queen of diamonds, putting four diamonds (edited) on the board. It’s down to me and one other guy who I have outchipped by 2:1. I put him on the Ace, but no hearts. I go all in, and he thinks for about 30 seconds before calling with pocket 6’s for the set. Am I the only one who folds a set here?

Anyway, I busted out soon after that, and went back to filing. One more SNG, and I had no such problem with early good hands. I tripled up when the blinds were at 50 / 100 with JJ against AQ and KQ and coasted to the final table. I made one great all-in heads-up call with AQ when he had K9. Bottom line:

No Limit Hold'em - $15.00/$1.00
You finished the tournament in 1st place. $108.00

Back to form? Almost. I let you know after a few more SNG’s.

BTW: I was thinking about this post from Joe Speaker while I played. Thank you, sir. I was not a pussy.

Banished!!

The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Second Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	Very Low
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Very Low
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very High
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	High
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Moderate
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	Moderate
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	High
Level 7 (Violent)	Moderate
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	Very High
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	High

Take the Dante's Inferno Test

More Useless Stats

10 JAN 06

No Limit Hold'em $15.00/$1.00
You finished the tournament in 2nd place. $81.00

No Limit Hold'em $5.00/$0.50
1452 players - You finished the tournament in 39th place. $21.78

No Limit Hold'em $15.00/$1.00
You finished the tournament in 2nd place. $81.00

No Limit Hold'em $15.00/$1.00
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. $54.00

No Limit Hold'em $6.00/$0.50
45 players - You finished the tournament in 4th place. $30.00

No Limit Hold'em $15.00/$1.00
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. $54.00

Finally – I always wanted to do this…

Seat 2: DrChako (1920 in chips) Seat 4: machobeb3 (1455 in chips)
Dealt to DrChako [8s 8c]
*** RIVER *** [2d 7d 8d 8h] [3s]
DrChako: shows [8s 8c] (four of a kind, Eights)
machobeb3: shows [As Kc] (a pair of Eights)
DrChako said, "dem quads beeches"

Final thought: STICK TO THE SNG’s, DAMMIT!!

You Sat on What?

Second post today, but I was inspired by Lady Falcon. Here is one of my better x-rays.



-Dr. C

Tilt Resurfaces

9 JAN 06

Just a short woe-is-me post. I tilted again last night, and I’m upset about it. I was playing online (as opposed to at the Muckleshoot Casino, since the dear and patient wife is living it up in Vegas), and I went back to my old stand-by – the two table turbo SNG. I love these, and have had great success in the past. I have probably cashed in 40 or 50, and it’s one of the few areas of my online play where I’m up overall. If I could just avoid those ring games…

Anyway, in the first touney, I busted out 7th with AA, when the chip leader hit his set with pocket 9’s. In the second I busted 5th out with QQ when the AQ fill his straight on the river. No big deal. I’m used to that.

But I guess I was still smarting when I started the $10 + 1 Limit Hold ‘em Re-Buy tourney. As I’ve mentioned before, my wife is a better limit hold ‘em player than me, but I’ve cashed in a few so I was feeling pretty good. We started with about 160, and with re-buys, first place was just over $1000. The top 18 cashed.

In hour 3, I’m sitting on 25,000 chips. The tourney leader is one to my left (isn’t that always the case?) with about 50,000. I’m dealt 88 in the SB. Blinds are 600/1200. I raise to 2400, and he calls after a short pause. The flop is A J 4. I bet and he calls. The turn is a 2. I bet – he calls. The river is a Q. I check. He checks and flips over his J 6. I busted out one hand later in 30th.

In retrospect, it was worth a call preflop, and maybe even one bet on the flop, but why battle with the tourney leader at this stage? Perhaps I should have folded preflop? I think it was the tilt that caused me to bet the turn – I should have let the hand go at that point. In fact, he should have folded at that point, but donkey’s always draw – especially when they are the chip leader, I guess. I don't think I had the table image as a bluffer. He was risking a big part of his stack, too. I guess I made a decision and went with it.

My final though has nothing to do with this, but it made me smile when I read it: A woman has the last word in any argument. Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

Poker and Drugs

6 JAN 06

Okay, so I’m not the first one to come up with the idea of playing poker on drugs. Hell, I’m not even the first person to write about it. It’s blog-worthy because I won while on drugs. I may have to try it again, dammit.

The first thing you should know is that this isn’t as degenerate as it sounds. I’m a goody-goody. Besides, since I’m in the Army, I get drug tested all the time. They said it was random, but in December I had to take a urinalysis 4 times (as an aside, I’d rather have a hot stick shoved in my eye then piss in front of someone).

Dr. Chako: Do you have to stare at my penis while I do this?

Sergeant: Yes sir. Pretend I’m not here.

Dr. Chako: It’d be a helluva lot easier if YOU WEREN’T STARING AT MY PENIS.

But I digress.

So my powerful drug was actually Excedrin Migraine. I’ve taken them only once before, and, strangely enough, I had an improved ability to remember useless trivia. (I used to kick ass at Trivial Pursuit before the study of medicine rotted that part of my brain).

It was while doped up on this miracle drug that I headed to the Muckleshoot for a little 10/20. Unfortunately, there were no open seats, so I sat at a 6/12 game. 6/12 at the ‘shoot is worse than 4/8. 6-way action is the norm, and pocket pairs only means you have to pay all the way just to have someone suck out the flush at the river. Two consecutive hands got rivered on me, and I was stuck my $200 buy-in. Re-buy!

As soon as the new rack of pink $2 chips landed in front of me, a 10/20 seat opened up. I changed the pinks to reds and came in for my usual $500. Long story short – it was one of my best nights ever. Almost every read was correct, and I won the coin-flips that I normally lose. Here is the best part.

15BB per hour!!

That’s right. I averaged 15 Big Blinds per hour of play. I’ve never even come close to that. I’m usually happy with 1 to 2 BB per hour. 15 is unreal. I wished I didn’t have to get up so early this morning. The game was so perfect that I never wanted to leave. Two quick funnies:

1. I played one hand horribly. I slow-played AA in early position, got raised by the button (a weak tight player). I reraised, and HE CAPPED. I know he has KK. The flop is K J 8. He bets, and I raise. So far so good (he could have AK, but I doubt it). He reraises (because there are flush and straight draws out there). Here is when I made my mistake. I should have folded here. But I called. The turn is a 10, giving me the gutshot and an over pair. I check. He bets and I call. The river – Ace, baby. I bet while looking right at him. Before he can act I say, “You are going to call me with those kings, aren’t you?” He does, and I rake the pot. But here is teh funnay – he says, “Do you play here a lot?” The meaning is clear. He is saying I hope you play here a lot because you suck and I’m going to get your money. I’m not normally cocky (my wife may disagree). Perhaps it was the drugs talking but I said, “You know how when you play online and you find a real big fish? You put him in your buddy list because you want his action. I’m that guy. Big fish.” I don’t think he was too amused, but the dealer got a chuckle.

2. I’ve got 76 off-suit in middle position, but I’ve been on a rush. I’ve got the cards in one hand ready to fold, but my other hand is on the chips. I look at Rob (the dealer) and say, “The voices are telling me to play this hand.” Quick as a wink he replies, “One player to a hand, please.” The whole table fell out laughing.

I’m not all the way back, but I’m headed in that direction.

Happy Friggin’ New Year

3 JAN 06

So, I decide to start off the New Year with a big cash. Yeah, right. I’m all set to blog about my worst night (and biggest single-day loss) ever, when Mr. Speaker beats me to the punch. Basically, if you want to know what happened to me, read his blog.

Shit.

I guess it gives me a goal to overcome as the New Year progresses. Stay tuned.

Final thought: When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us. - Helen Keller

LOL

29 DEC 05

In the spirit of the season, may these brighten your day. Have a safe and happy holiday.

See you next year.



-Dr. C

Cute Kid Story

28 DEC 05

Warning – No Poker Content!!

This is supposed to be a poker blog, but this was just too cute to pass up. Besides, Drizz has frequently posted about his young ‘un, to positive dramatic effect.

I too have a potty-training youngster who can be a handful at times, but will easily make up for it with comments like these. Like most 3 year-olds, he is learning to speak and will occasionally mix up letter sounds. We don’t have a Doggy, we have a Goggy.

Dr. Chako: Jason, it’s doggy.

Jason: Goggy.

Dr. Chako: No, Jason. Try again. D – D – Doggy.

Jason: D- D - … Goggy!!

Cute factor 5/10

So fast forward to last week. The scene is set while riding in the minivan with his 8 year-old brother.

Jason: Mommy, I want a Powder Ranger.

Older Brother: Jason, it’s POWER Ranger.

Jason: That’s what I said! D- D- … POWDER Ranger!!

Cute Factor 10+.

Okay. I thought it was cute. Maybe you had to be there.

Making a Move

27 DEC 05

I’ve grown fond a making a of move that, when it works, the payoff is phenomenal.

Here is the situation. Typically, it’s a loose-passive 4/8 game (better with a full kill). Often there are two bets pre-flop with 4 or 5-way action. I’m in late position or on the button with either J10 or Q10 (preferably suited, but not necessary). Early raiser. One or two callers.

Here is the move. I reraise.

Okay. It’s not the trickiest of moves, but it does a couple of things. First, since I’m not an overly-aggressive player, I get big-hand equity. Post flop, it will usually check around to me - the final raiser. At this point, I bet and most everyone calls. Beware of check-raisers at this point. A flop check raise means only one thing – the check-raiser has a hand, but is afraid of a suckout. It never works. Nearly everyone preflop will call this bet. If it happens, and I have no piece or no draw, I quietly fold. Most people at 4/8 never pay attention to the flop-fold, so I’m not afraid they’ll think (or remember) I was bluffing. If I have a draw, I reraise.

Here is the key. The fish will often fold to the first raiser. If he bets, watch out. If he checks (9 times out of 10), I bet aggressively to the river. It’s amazing how he will fold to the river bet when his gutshot doesn’t get there or his Ace doesn't pair. And if he does get there, I get the wonderful reaction from the rest of the table...

You three-bet with THAT?

I simply go back to my regular tight-aggressive style and collect from all the future bluff equity. They always remember the river bluff.

Mojo

Just what I needed to get my mojo back - a little blogger tournament. Thanks to Wil for setting these up. I placed 25th, but I made good decisions (okay the big bluff with KJ against the 99 wasn't so good, but other than that...)

Second place in a $15 two table SNG turbo helps too. I had recently fallen in love with middle connectors and one gaps. Strange. I kept losing. I started folding them and, what do you know, 2nd place.

Now my wife and sister are headed to Vegas. Without me. Guess where they are staying...

The Bellagio.

Dammit - I've never stayed at the Bellagio. All I'm saying is, they'd better have a friggin' awesome time. And I mean this - I fully expect them to come back with at least one "what happens in Vegas" story.

Of course, my dear wife of 10+ years will eventually tell me the story.

You will, won't you dear?

Pathetic Short Post

Thanks for the advice about getting my money into Pokerstars. I figure the advice is self-motivated since you are all likely going to get my money eventually.

Online first (for me) - getting AA cracked 5 times in one sitting.

Hands that beat my aces:
QQ
JJ
J10 off
92 off (WTF?)
63 (but they were soooted)

'Scuze my whilst I go kick my dog.

-DrC

Best of the Rest

Looks like I'm reaching for a re-buy
How can Bill maintain such a high level of "coolness?"
Yup. I'm a big dumb fan. Jealous?
He totally should have sold these shirts.
Two docs and a luckbox. To quote Dave Barry, that would be a really good name for a rock band.

Back in the Saddle

16 DEC 05

That was the longest I allow myself to be depressed – about 12 hours. I never want to do that again!!

In order to recover my normal jovial disposition, I played intensely with my kids and skipped online poker. Actually, skipping poker was easy. When I tried to rebuy, it said my card was denied. WTF? I know I have a big balance (I set up this account exclusively for online poker), and I keep rigorous records. I clicked on the website to check my balance, and it’s fat and happy. I tried again – DECLINED.

I called my bank. They said the problem was at Pokerstars. I called Pokerstars. They said it must be a problem with my personal information. Well, I haven’t changed the info at all since I opened the account, but sure, I’ll look again. Nope. No problem there. Then they said it must be coming from my bank.

Back on the phone to the bank. NOW they apologize. Sorry, they say, Mastercard (credit or debit) can no longer be used for online poker. You’ll have to find a different way to get them your money. Does anyone else know about this?

Anyway, all this meant more time with the kiddies. I love watching my youngest squeal when I yell, “Who needs a beating?” Then we chase each other through the house with the dog in tow. It’s a blast.

After bath time and bed time (can I have a 3rd drink of water, pleeeeese?), I decide to re-scrub my poker stats.

Since October:

Tournaments (both live and online): +$350
Live Ring Games: +$1100
Online (non-tournament): -$1000

The highlight: I’ve won (meaning walked away with more money than I started) in 18 of the last 20 ring games I’ve played.

The low point: Mega-tilting away $1000 in (basically) one session online.

It’s time to refocus on what I’m good at – live action and tourneys. If I ever get more money into Pokerstars, I’m skipping the ring games all together and concentrating on the SNGs (including the 180’s) and the satellites to the bigger games on the weekends. That’s how I ran up my balance last time.

Just thinking about it makes me smile.

Depressed

15 DEC 05

I still have more stories and pics from Vegas. In fact, thinking about it is the only thing that’s making me smile right now. For those of you looking for poker stories, I’m afraid I have to disappoint you. I have a cold, I lost my entire stake (again) on Pokerstars, and their damn site won’t take my credit card for some reason. WTF?!?! I’m NOT transferring money to Neteller again – not with an 8.9% transaction fee!

To top it off, I had to have “the talk” with two patients yesterday. Normally, I have to give bad news about once or twice a month. Twice in one day was tough. I’ll write more about it on my other blog, Beauty in Shades of Gray.

For now, I’m going to keep thinking about the great weekend we all had in Vegas, knowing that tomorrow will be better.

Final thought: I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble. - Helen Keller

WPBT ’05 Trip Report

12 DEC 05

Wow.

Like most bloggers preparing their trip report, I have no idea where to begin. How do you describe the best Vegas week ever? Are there enough adjectives? Will I get the point across? Does anyone care?

Faithful readers of my blog (basically my Dad, and sometimes my dear and patient wife) were both there. They know what happened. New bloggers I met may also stop by this humble blog (hey guys!), but they were also there. We all saw this incredible event unfold. It was legendary even before it ended.

But let’s go back to the beginning.

Wednesday: My mother-in-law has everything under control. She knows where to find the daycare, the school and the scotch (okay, maybe not the scotch). She kisses the dear and patient wife/daughter and the dutiful son-in-law (your hero) and sends us off to the Seatac airport. An uneventful direct flight into McCarran Airport has us both saying, “Vegas, baby!”

My wonderful wife has already set up the shuttle to take us to the Wynn. That’s right. You heard me. We were staying uptown! And let me tell you, everything they say about this place is true. You gotta love a guy (Steve Wynn) who says, “hmmm… I think we need something in front of the hotel. I know! A mountain. Yeah. Put it right there. No, a little to the left. Good. Now cover it with trees and a huge friggin’ waterfall. Hmmm… Better make it four waterfalls. And fountains!! How come you didn’t remind me about the fountains???” Rooms? Go ahead and put plasma TV’s in the bathrooms. You heard me!! Put in a computer operated mini bar while you’re at it. If they lift up the chocolate and don’t put it back within 60 seconds, charge ‘em! We gotta pay for these friggin’ waterfalls, dammit.

Still, I couldn’t help but think that the Bellagio was a bit more grand. I think it was intentional. In an article I read, Steve Wynn said he already did “grand.” With the Wynn, he wanted to pay more attention to detail. He did, but I think he lost something in the effort. Most of my party agreed (that the Bellagio was better), but that shouldn’t detract from how incredible the Wynn really was.

I’m not there for 10 minutes, and I already have a $100 bar bill. Can you say $25 for 18 year-old Macallan? The bartender actually had a 52 year old Macallan that he let me sniff. It smelled sweet, but get this - it’s $650 for one shot. No shit. This is going to be a great trip. Dinner at Wing Lei is $800 for our party of 10. I better hit the poker room. Fast.

Well, first I have to stop off at the craps table. I help Dad with his chips (he’s blind) and the pit crew is awesome and patient as we start playing the highest stakes craps game of our lives. $15 minimum bets, and suddenly I’ve got $200 on the table. Point. Point again. Holy crap! No wait.

Shit.

No phrase is more painful than “7 out” said in that droll monotone. I friggin’ hate that. Still, I was about even. Back up to $300 on the table and… “7 out.” Donked off $300.

It’s time to play a little game we call poker.

It’s the $1 - $3 NL table right by the rail at the Wynn. A huge crowed of railbirds watch as I sit down next to Duke. Duke is a local Vegas legend. I pull out my $300 stake and call for chips. That’s when I notice that Duke has about $20,000 in cash and chips in front of him. Can you say, “seat change!!” I moved from his right to his left (he was now seated on my right). He was very boisterous and gregarious, introducing himself to everyone at the table and flirting with a really cute girl on the rail. He said he just had his 50th birthday and he was here to celebrate. Needless to say, I was nervous. I fully expected him to live straddle and run over the table. What I found, though, was the tightest player I’ve ever met. He never bet more than $9, he saw about one in 10 hands, and never saw a river card. I’m sure he never varied more than $20 up or down for the hour he sat there (and half of that $20 was spent buying a drink for the model/hooker on the rail). At least he got a kiss on the cheek from her before she left.

After he left, I heard from some of the locals that this is a regular thing for him. He hops from casino to casino as sort of a pseudolife - buying in for far more than necessary, but never playing the games where he might actually put any of that money at risk. Sometimes he shows up in a tux. One of the locals started going on and on about “Duke’s little weiner,” until the dealer had enough and threatened to kick him out. For my take, I thought the guy was a little desperate for attention, but he certainly found a way to get it and was one of the highlights of my trip.

End of the night: Up $100, including the $300 loss at craps.

Thursday: More family time. Our posse consists of my dad, his wonderful girlfriend Judy (is it okay to call her a girlfriend when their combined age is over 120? Talk amongst yourselves), my aunts and uncles from Florida and Alabama, my dad’s cousins from Toronto and us. We all head out on the town, culminating with Rita Rudner doing her stand-up shtick. We all laughed really hard in places and at least smiled the whole time. Sitting in the front row sucked, and we all complained of a sore neck by the end.

Back to the Wynn. Donk off $200 more at the craps table before I learn my lesson. It was the last time I played craps in Vegas. A long wait for the $1 - $3 NL table has me sitting in with the dear and patient wife at the $4 - $8 limit table. Holy crap! She plays 4 hands, 4 hands, and she’s up $200. Can you say, OPM*? I knew you could.

Move to the $1 - $3 NL table. Win $300. Thankyouverymuch.

Okay. It’s two am (Golden Earring, anyone?). We are back in the room and the pillows look awfully inviting, but I’m restless. There are bloggers in Vegas, and it’s my duty to find them. Shaking her head, the dear and patient wife finally says, “go already!” A 10 minute taxi to the Excalibur and, holy crap, I’m in blogger heaven. Immediately I see all my internet heroes. There’s Joe Speaker, Bad Blood, CJ, Otis, Drizz and The Mark. Where the hell is Pauly? Shit, he’s right there. I shook his friggin’ hand!! What? There’s a seat for me?

Pauly isn’t at our table but all the others are. I buy in for $100 and proceed to stomp all over the bloggers. That’s right. You heard me. I ran that $100 up to $450 in about an hour (sorry Bad Blood) when Drizz says, “let’s switch to Omaha 8 high/low.” The dealer says no way, and I breathe a huge sigh of relief. My total experience at this game is .01/.02 PLO on Pokerstars, and I’ve lost nearly every time. The Mark chimes in. “If the manager tells you to do it, will you deal it?” “Of course,” says the dealer, “but he will never agree to it.” Turns out The Mark knows the guy and sure enough, I’m playing PLO. Crap.

I fold every hand until I’m dealt AAQ2. The flop is AA10. Holy crap. I bet $25 and everyone folds. I turn over my quads and ask, “Is that any good? I really have no idea how to play this game.”

Only one other hand of note. The details are a little fuzzy, but here is the gist. I pick up A23Q on the button and call $3 into a five way pot. The flop is K53 giving me the nut low draw. I call a $15 bet and three of us see the turn. It’s a 10 and it checks to me. I check and the river brings an 8. I have the nut low. The Mark bets $50. Drizz folds, and without knowing what I’m doing, I say, “pot.” The dealer (very sharp, BTW) says, “that’s $262.” Did anyone see my balls jump up into my throat? Geez, I hope not.

The Mark goes into the tank. I’m praying he has the high when he says, “I’ve got the nut low, I think I need to call.” Shit. All I have at this point is A-high. Even a pair of 2’s and I get ¼ of the pot. I just keep smiling. Finally, he calls and turns over…

A23Q.

That’s right. Chop it up!! Everyone at my end of the table says no one else makes that call. Too bad for me, but I walked around and gave him a high five. It was the hand of the night. Even Otis said it was a hell of a lot of fun to watch. With the blinds and extra small bets that were in that pot, I’m up! I’m a winning O8 H/L player, dammit! Look out Pokerstars!!

I shake hands all around and I’m off to bed, crashing at around 5:30 am. Gotta love Vegas.

Friday: The Wynn buffet for breakfast and dinner. Can you say, “hedonism?” I knew you could. All I remember is John Elway was sitting two tables over, I had king crab legs that were (no shit) 3 feet long and my wife had 4 rambutons. I wouldn’t eat these things on a bet. They look like small pink porcupines, but apparently the fruit inside is quite good. I’ll take their word for it.

No one’s at the Excalibur at midnight (I forgot they were all the MGM playing HORPSE), but the wife and I both won at $2 - $4 limit with a table full of donkeys. We should have won a lot more but for a few unlucky rivers. Still, OPM is awfully nice.

Saturday: Show up at the Imperial Palace at 10 am with our luggage and see a whole lot of familiar faces, including Whiskeytown, who I played with the night before at the most incredible $1 - $3 table I’ve ever sat at. It was at Paris, and I hope he blogs about it. If not, look here for a future post about the maniac of all maniacs.

I’m first on the alternate list, and as people are paying the $65 entry fee, I get to pose with some of the invited speakers, including Barry Greenstein (the Robin Hood of poker) and Charlie Shoten. Holy crap, it’s Wil Wheaton! I shake his hand and I’m a big dumb fan again. I tell him the story about how bonding with my son while watching TNG in Germany was similar to his story about bonding with his step kids while watching Firefly. I hope he doesn’t think I’m too big of a geek. Wait… doesn’t that make me a kindred spirit?

Okay. Here comes the negative part. I’m a real upbeat person, and I hate to say bad things, but here goes. Next time we do this, will someone please tell the speakers to limit their talks to 5 minutes max? Thanks. If I had to hear Michael Craig say, “the next thing that happened was…” one more time, I was going to punch someone.

11:45 am and the cards are in the air. I’m seat 4, table 4 and Bill Friggin’ Rini is on my right. He’s aggressive, so I get to coast a bit. Before the first hand he tosses a $25 tourney chip at the dealer and says, “Aces please.” Sure enough, the next hand he bets $150, gets no callers and flips up aces. I try the same shtick.

No kidding. I get Aces the very next hand.

But wait, there’s more. I proceed to get AA again 4 hands later. I raise to 4x BB and get one caller. It turns out she’s Pokergeek’s girlfriend, and she just calls. The flop is low cards. I bet, she raises and I reraise all in. She thinks for about 20 seconds and calls with QQ. No help on the turn and river and she’s out. I love busting people, but I felt truly bad for her. She clearly has a lot riding on this emotionally, but she recovered quickly and came back just in time to watch me go up against her boyfriend.

Pokergeek is to my immediate left. I’m SB and he’s BB. Everyone folds to me and I go right into the Scotty Nguyen bit from one of the Poker Superstars events.

Dr. Chako: Dealer, what’s the minimum raise?

Dealer: $600.

Dr. Chako: So I have to put in how much?

Dealer: An extra $450.

At this point I deliberately count out $450 chips.

Dr. Chako: Okay. Minimum raise. Is that right?

Dealer: Yes, that’s right.

Pokergeek (looking right at me): All in.

Dr. Chako: Call!!

I couldn’t get the words out fast enough. He flips over KQ, and I flip over AA.

That’s right. I busted out both Geek and girlfriend-of-Geek with AA. He was very gracious and shook my hand before giving me his bounty prize – a very cool Full Tilt hat. Truly a gentleman.

Afterwards, everyone at the table said they knew what I was doing. I made it easy for them because I had AA 5 friggin’ times within the first ½ hour!! It seems they had all seen that Scotty Nguyen episode, too. Too bad Geek doesn’t watch poker on TV. To be honest, I really expected him to fold just so I could show everyone that I AA once again.

I’m up and down, including folding AQ off suit to Jason (Justin?) who then showed his Q4 (bastard!) and reraising Bill Rini with QQ. He folded after a short time in the tank. I put him on something like J10 based on the way he folded and his aggressive style. We’ll see.

I run up to about $8000 (we started with $2500) and it’s the break. I stay to watch the dealer race off the green chips. I’ve got three greenies and she flips me a 2, a 3 and a 4. Oh well. But wait. My four plays!!

I’m moved to table 1, seat four, and guess who is in seat 7? Wil Friggin’ Wheaton. I’m in heaven. Thank goodness for the wife and the digital camera, because I wasn’t there long. The table is pretty tight and I pick up pocket 4s on the button. It checks around to me, and I briefly think about folding (I had folded 44 twice so far) or maybe put in a minimum raise, but no. I go, “all-in.”

The small blind goes into the tank. Shit. We are even in chips and I think he’s thinking about calling. He does calls and the big blind quickly calls behind.

SB has 10s and BB has Qs. A straight for the 10’s on the turn means I’m done. The river brings the BB a full house for a very exciting hand that I got to watch as I was walking away.

Still, the early exit meant we could catch an earlier flight back home to Federal Way, and I got to hug my kids before bedtime.

Here’s the bottom line. I got a hug from Pauly. I got to shake hands with Wil Wheaton and John Elway. I got to pose with Barry Greenstein, and I got to play in the WPBT.

I’d say I’m the luckiest man alive, but there are about 100 bloggers that probably feel the same way.

When are we doing it again guys, ‘cause it can’t be soon enough.

*OPM – other people’s money

WPBT, baby!!

Still recovering from the best Vegas weekend ever. Here's a quick pic dump.

Bill, I had QQ.

The amazing Bill Rini
Dr. Chako and Dr. Pauly
The ever gracious Barry Greestein
Al Can't Hang - what more can I say?
Table 1. I'm in Seat 4. Wil Wheaton is in seat 7.

Kicked in the Juuuuunk

2 DEC 05

I have been WAY too full of myself lately. My mistress has finally set me firmly on my ass.

Flash back to early November:

Mistress: Oooh, Dr. Chako, you are a poker god (running her fingers through my hair). I want you. I NEED you. I’ve never met anyone like you. How can anyone make correct decisions time and again like you? You won three straight hands with Q 10 off suit. Masterful! Take me.

Dr. Chako: Settle down, baby. Just watch me go.

Hell, I’ve been bragging about myself in the comments section of other bloggers (go see Drizz). How friggin’annoying.

Now, how’s about we look at two days ago.

Mistress (still running her fingers through said hair): Oh, Dr. Chako. I’ve got something for you.

Dr. Chako: Yeah, baby. I know. You really dig me. I get that.

Mistress: WHAM! (Kneeing the unsuspecting Dr. Chako square in the junk). Are you okay, baby?

Dr. Chako (eyes wide with despair): WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR?!?! That really friggin’ hurt! (Our hero crumples over and retches his comp’d fruit plate)

Mistress: I know, sweety, but I only do it because I love you. I won’t do it again. Promise.

Dr. Chako (groaning): Really?

Mistress (smiling that sweet smile that you MUST believe): I love you, baby.

And yesterday…

Mistress (without hesitation or smile): WHAM! (right back in the ol’ sweet spot – square in the junk)

Dr. Chako: Whu….? (air goes out)

Mistress: Baby, I wasn’t sure you got it last time. You understand, right?

Mistress, I have two things to say to you:

1. I HATE YOU.

2. I’ll see you tomorrow.

Final thought: Thanks for the pimpage, Iggy. I really hope to see you in Vegas in a few days.

Blogger NL Action with Wil F***IN’ Wheaton

21 NOV 05

So, I didn’t think to copy the chat portion of the conversation where Wil Wheaton and I had a “geek-off” (BTW- I’m a HUGE geek, but I think he may have me. He did write a book called “Just a Geek,” after all). I mentioned that I sited Bones McCoy in my application to medical school, and it was met with stunned silence. Perhaps no one believed. Well, technically it’s not true, but I did talk about McCoy in my interviews. It helps that most doctors are huge Star Trek fans…

I intended to just post the portions of the conversations that involved me, but there was some pretty funny exchanges between another of my blogger heroes (Dr. Pauly) and Wil:

DrPauly: i got the hammer wil
Wil Wheaton: sigh
Wil Wheaton: dammit
Wil Wheaton: you should call
Wil Wheaton: so you can show
Wil Wheaton: for serious
Dealer: DrPauly, it's your turn. You have 15 seconds to act
BStouts [observer]: call him
Wil Wheaton: wuss
Dealer: Wil Wheaton has two pair, Kings and Queens
Dealer: DrPauly has a pair of Sevens
Dealer: Game #3101315314: Wil Wheaton wins pot ($8) with two pair, Kings and Queens
Wil Wheaton: DING
DrPauly: asscock
Wil Wheaton: hahahaha

And this gem:

Wil Wheaton: eight no goot?
DrPauly: i got 7-3 wil
DrPauly: but do i have hearts
Wil Wheaton: really?
Dealer: Wil Wheaton, it's your turn. You have 15 seconds to act
Wil Wheaton: i have a pair
Dealer: Player Wil Wheaton has requested TIME
Wil Wheaton: it's not a good pair
DrPauly: raise me
Wil Wheaton: i think i'll just call
DrPauly: i'll show
Wil Wheaton: heeeeeehaaaaaawwwwww
Dealer: DrPauly has a straight, Four to Eight
Dealer: Wil Wheaton has a pair of Eights
Dealer: Game #3101363457: DrPauly wins pot ($0.99) with a straight, Four to Eight
Wil Wheaton: nice - hahahaha

It’s always a good idea to insult your gracious host:

Wil Wheaton: now i think i win because i chased it all the way and got there
Dealer: Game #3101378370: Wil Wheaton wins pot ($1.39)
Wil Wheaton: i told you i chased it like a donkey
Wil Wheaton: i felt it
Wil Wheaton: i was going all the way
DrChako: you win back the donkey title
Wil Wheaton: YES!
Wil Wheaton: Heeeeeee Haaaawwwww (shows just how gracious)

This one did involve me:

DrChako: okay - my last hand – it’s my wife's birthday (which was quite true – happy birthday, honey!)
DrChako: take it easy on me
Wil Wheaton: everyone call so chako can have fun on his last hand
Wil Wheaton: wheeee
DrChako: i got a piece
Wil Wheaton: you should totally win, because it's your last hand
Wil Wheaton: i just flipped the switch for you
DrChako: this is my pot
DrChako: are any of you listening?
Wil Wheaton: ding!
DrChako: darn
Dealer: Game #3101545295: PhoebusX wins pot ($1.27)
Wil Wheaton: that wasn't very nice, phoebus
PhoebusX: hehe, sorry
Wil Wheaton: see ya dr.chako :)
Tactix: happy b-day to the wife!
DrChako: thanks - she's sweating me, so you told her yourself
Wil Wheaton: happy birthday!

I won about $2.50, but more importantly had more fun playing poker then I can remember. Thanks again to all involved. I hope to see some or all of you in Vegas.

Final thought: I wonder if the birthday greeting from Wil meant more than the birthstone ring I got her…

The Atomic Hammer

15 NOV 05

The blogger community has united around certain nomenclature. 72 off-suit is known as the hammer because of its awesome (and stealthy) powers. Here is my version – the atomic hammer:

(Warning: Hand History)

Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2005/11/14 - 21:19:51 (ET)
Dealt to DrChako [7c 2s]

*** FLOP *** [7s Js 2h] BAM!!

*** TURN *** [7s Js 2h] [2d] BAM BAM!!

*** RIVER *** [7s Js 2h 2d] [2c] ATOMIC HAMMER, BABY!!

*** SHOW DOWN ***

DrChako: shows [7c 2c] (four of a kind, Deuces)

Of course, that set the stage for my bust out from a live tourney last night. Playing at PJ Pockets in Federal Way, I had AA and raised to 3xBB (it was my second AA of the night - should have folded pre-flop), and got two callers. The flop was KJ3 rainbow. First all in had Q10 and the second all in had K8.

Sweet.

An 8 on the river sent me home.

Final thought: All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence; then success is sure. - Mark Twain, Letter to Mrs Foote, Dec. 2, 1887

SNG and Publishing Update

10 NOV 05

Boring stuff to just about anyone but me, but here goes:

Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
4th place. $27.00
Buy-In: $5.00/$0.25 - 4 players
1st place. $20.00
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
1st place. $108.00
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
4th place. $27.00
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
3rd place. $54.00
Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
6th place. $29.70
Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
6th place. $29.70
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
2nd place. $81.00
Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
6th place. $29.70
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
4th place. $27.00
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
1st place. $108.00
Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
1st place. $153.46

That’s $694.56. Not too shabby. Of course, it’s meaningless unless you know what I spent for all tournaments entered (including those I didn’t cash in). I can tell you that my bankroll has climbed, so my tournament play is clearly +EV. In the future, I’m going to change to the Drizz format and just state total gain/loss.

It occurred to me that online poker has given me a scary gift. Most poker pros probably get this knowledge after years of the tournament grind. I’ve gotten it after less than one year of play. It’s this – make good decisions and you will win in the long run. Bad beats, and even bad moves will take care of themselves. Doyle said it best. He was talking about the play of individual hands when he said that he stabs at smaller pots and wins quite often. This allows him to take bigger chances when he may not have the best hand because even he is supposed to make his share of draws and suckouts.

I’m applying this same attitude to tournament play, and it’s done two things:
1. It’s allowed me to make more aggressive plays closer to the money, and
2. If feel less bad when I don’t hit.

That coupled with a plump bankroll has given me a lot of confidence, and confidence breeds winning.

Final thought: There has been early and positive interest in my publishing idea. Please keep your thoughts and ideas coming (and next time post them on the blog – don’t be shy!). One idea was to pay the writers up front AND offer some kind of royalty. Good idea. My new plan is to distribute 50% of the net profits to the writers. What’s not to like?!?!

Publish!!

9 NOV 05

I love reading other poker bloggers. Our great secret is that there is so much to learn. Good poker bloggers teach you a lot about poker theory, how to play individual hands and how to manage your bankroll. Great poker bloggers teach you about life.

Dr. Pauly mentioned the other day that he still hasn’t published his books yet. I had a publishing company for a while, and I would have loved to publish it for him. Unfortunately, with the advent of self-publishing and the lack of great writing, I stopped after one novel (a very good one by Hunter Silvastorm, check it out if you get the chance).

But now I’m thinking that there is already some great material out there, and it sure would be easy to compile it into book form. The marketing is already there – bloggers would surely push the book, especially if their own work was included. I still have to decide a target price and such, but I was thinking about offering cash for great submissions. Heck, I might even try to get Wil to write the forward…

Your thoughts would be appreciated. Would you let me incorporate some of your best stuff? I’m thinking like $50 for five great submissions. Of course, I get to choose which ones get included (and who gets paid), but do you think this would work?

Vegas Recap

3 NOV 05

Okay. I got it now. Poker is (+) EV. Gambling is (-) EV.

But gambling is fun!!

I broke down the totals from my trip last week to Las Vegas.

NLHE: (-) $190
LHE: (+) $90
Tournament: (-) $124

Roulette: (-) $60
Craps: (-) $6
Blackjack: (-) $10

Total: (-) $300

It would seem like Limit Hold ‘em is my specialty, but I don’t think that’s true. I killed the No Limit tables at 1-3, but GOT killed at 2-5. Once again, I bought in for the minimum and I was over my head. When that happens, I don’t bet appropriately. I know that. I KNEW that, yet when that 2-5 table opened up, I sat right down. There was one famous guy at the table – people called him Cowboy. You’d recognize him from the WSOP broadcasts. He cleaned up and overbet when he knew someone would fold. That’s such a powerful tool, and I had it in my arsenal at 1-3, but not at 2-5. I couldn’t pull the trigger on a $200 bluff. I did in fact pull the trigger on a $90 semi-bluff at 1-3.

I have Q 10 off with the Queen of clubs. I raised to $12 on the button and get two callers. The flop comes all clubs, King-high. I had a straight and flush draw. The first position guy bets $15. That screamed “continuation-bet.” The second guy just called, so I put him on a draw. He was a good player, so I knew he would fold if I bet appropriately. I paused for effect, and bet $90. Both folded, and I raked a decent pot.

Here is one hand I’m not sure I would play differently. I’ve gamed several scenarios, and all have me losing, sometimes losing a lot more than I did.

Playing 1-2 NL at the Sahara. There is a bully to my right who refuses to chop the blinds. He raises to $10, and I call with 4 5 off.

Flop A 4 4, rainbow. Sweet.

He bets $10 and I quickly call.

Turn 7.

He bets $20, and I quickly call.

River 7. Full house, baby.

He checks.

I take my time and bet $30. He quickly raises to $100.

Pocket aces? Case 7? No way. I put him on AK.

I call. He turns over K 7 diamonds for the higher full house.

Before the night was over, most of us at the table had his money, but I heard from one of the locals that he wins more than he loses. Go figure.

Movin’ On Up

3 NOV 05

I’ve finally figured out my motivation for playing poker – making money. You laugh, but it’s not as obvious as you think. Up until now, I’ve been playing for the challenge and the adrenaline rush, and I’ve had plenty of both. My bankroll stagnated for a while, but now that it’s on the upswing, I’ve been afforded the luxury (no pun intended) to do some soul searching. I want to make some serious money. Granted, I do pretty well in my career as a physician, but this endeavor is separate. In order to call myself a successful poker player, I need to set a goal, and not stop until I achieve it.

That goal is $25,000.

Okay. It may sound unrealistic to some, but after spending a week in Vegas and watching a guy blow that much in 5 hands on the blackjack table, I think it’s a good and attainable goal.

Now, how do I do it? Here is a start:

Buy-In: $25.00/$2.00 - 18 players

You finished the tournament in 2nd place. A $135.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

That’s right. I’m moving up in limits in online tournaments. Up until now, I have only played the $15 + 1 two-table SNG’s, and have been doing quite well. I found the skill level at $25 to be no different. I wonder how it will change as I move to the $35 and $55 tournaments. I also intend to play the bigger tournaments more often.

Stay tuned.

It’s Variance, Idiot!!

25 OCT 05

The epiphany came to me yesterday as I was trying to think why I’ve been so successful at online poker, but so horrible in the casino. Sure, it could be because the online players are donks and the casino players are all better than me, but it had to be more than that. As I’ve said before, if you delude yourself about your skills you will lose money. That being said, I’d like to think I’m fairly intelligent and an above average poker player.

So what gives?

What gives is variance. Much thanks is owed to several bloggers and poker authors for trying to pound this idea into my head. Leave it to Excel to drive it home. Here is the epiphany: I have been buying into limit games with too little to allow for aggressive play PLUS variance.

Let me explain.



Figure 1. Here is me. I buy into a 4/8 table with $100, or about 12 x the BB. With my aggressive style of play, as soon as I get to the inevitable downswing and hit -12 BB, I’m done. I don't allow myself to rebuy, so I walk away down for the session (and pissed off to boot).


Figure 2. Here is where I should be – buying in with at least 30 x the BB. This way, if and when I swing below 12 x the BB, I’m giving myself a chance to swing back.

The key to this strategy is two fold:
- Walk away when you reach a set limit.
- Never lose more than 30 x BB in one session.

Another factor is the change of style once I get close to the – 8 BB point. I become less aggressive, or I go on tilt, and both are HUGE –EV.

I’ll let you know how it goes when I get back from Vegas.

Final thought: This only applies to limit. I’ll be trying some no-limit ring action and a few tournaments, but that’s for another blog.

Blogger Tourney Bust Out

24 OCT 05

902nd.

At least I outlasted Dr. Pauly.

Quick recap:

I’m in EP with A 10 off (no diamonds) and raise to 3x BB. I get one caller. The flop comes three diamonds. I check and the caller bets small. I put him on a hand but fearful of the diamonds. I push and he calls with AcJd. That’s right. No pair, and only the J of diamonds. No more diamonds come, so he beats me with J-high. He didn’t really have me outchipped. Maybe it was a good read…

BS. He made a bad call and got lucky. I noticed that he did not finish in the money.

So there.

Down a little for the weekend, but Vegas is right around the corner. If Pauly is still there, I’m buying him a beer or three just to say thanks for all the free entertainment.

You should be listening to: http://www.jonathancoulton.com/music/thingaweek/BabyGotBack.mp3

What On Earth…?

21 OCT 05

What on Earth did you like about that flop?

I can’t believe how many times I said that yesterday. Gotta love the Muckleshoot, where if you dream it, your card will come.

I hate having made hands trumped by gut shots, especially when the pot odds clearly did not warrant idiots staying in. Lost with KK, QQ and AQ like that. Of course, I had my one suck out when I caught a third 8 to my pockets and busted a guy with AA. I limped in middle position. There was one caller and he raised. I called, and so did MP.

The flop was 7 6 2 rainbow. I had an overpair so I bet it. MP calls and AA guy raises. I call and so does MP. There are now 10 big bets in the pot. The turn is a 5, giving me the open ender and the over pair. I check and so does MP. AA bets and we both call. I think I’m beat, but I have 10 outs (two 8’s, four 4’s and four 9’s).

River was an 8.

I bet, and as MP is calling, the button guy shouts, “you sonofabitch,” because he knows his rockets got busted. With the way the table was going, he should have expected it. Besides, he was one of the morons that sucked out on me two hands earlier.

Small consolation as I still ended up down for the night. I was happy with my play – more aggressive, but I still screwed up one hand by playing too tightly.

I’m dealt KK in middle position and the LAG to my right raises. I reraise and (holy crap), I isolate him. That almost never happens at the Muck. Anyway, the flop comes undercards. He bets and I raise. He calls. The turn is another undercard. He bets again.

Now, I’m thinking, AA? Trips? I just called. That was my mistake. I should either raise or fold that hand. At this point, he looks at me and says, “what, no raise?”

Jerk.

River is an Ace. He bets, I call, and he beats me with A Q.

Final thought: T minus 5 days to Vegas.

You should be reading:
www.Banterist.com
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=8335653541
www.Sixtysecond.com

Instant Karma

19 OCT 05

First, my tournament update (‘cause I know you love these updates):

You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 1st place. A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 4th place. A $27.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You finished the tournament in 4th place. A $27.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

I also tried three 5 table tourneys (and cashed in all three):
Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/07 - 23:47:36 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 6th place. A $29.70 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/11 - 19:45:08 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 5th place. A $44.55 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Buy-In: $11.00/$1.00 - 45 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/13 - 17:23:39 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 1st place. A $153.46 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

And this one I especially liked, because I outlasted a huge field and only got beat on a bad suckout:

Buy-In: $10.00/$1.00 - 1345 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/13 - 21:35:00 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 34th place. A $47.07 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Skills are still intact, despite a couple of bad beats the other day. As an aside, how can I win $704.98, and still go on tilt when I lose $35? Talk amongst yourselves…

On to karma.

So last night, I’m leaving the hospital at 8 pm, when I encounter Jo. Jo is breathing quite heavily while leaning against a car in the hospital parking lot.

Me: “Can I help you?”

Jo: “I can’t find my car! My husband is bleeding from his rectum and I’ve been walking around this parking lot for the last two hours and I can’t find my car and I want to go home and I don’t think I can go on much longer, and…”

Me: “BREATHE!!”

Jo: Silence. Rapid, but quiet breathing.

Me (extending my hand): “My name is Dr. Chako.”

Jo: “God bless you. I’m Jo.”

Me: “Take my arm, and I’ll get you to security. I won’t leave until I’m sure you get where you need to go.”

There is much crying interspersed with lots of thanks as we make our way to the ER and find security. Dr. Chako saves the day.

Fast forward to later that evening and a $25 two-table SNG:

You finished the tournament in 2nd place. A $135.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Coincidence? I think not. Maybe if I drove her home myself, I’d have gotten first.

Karma baby.

Final thought: We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give. - Sir Winston Churchill

I’m Back

18 OCT 05

I knew you missed me.

I was off furthering my career and having a heck of a time to boot. Here is a hint of what I did on my summer vacation:

Online poker treated me well while away, but after last night I’m probably even (KK vs. AA, K-high flush vs. A-high flush – that kind of thing).

More trip report perhaps tomorrow.

Final thought: Thanks Scott. Driving it was fun, and I WILL own that car. Oh yes, I will. (I’m starting to sound like Plankton from Sponge Bob. That crabby patty will be MINE!)

Two Peas – Different Pods

6 OCT 05

I’m short-stacked but in-the-money in the latest $15 + 1, two-table SNG, when I get the following hand:

Seat 5: cdf1983 (13775 in chips)
Seat 7: EvilStepDad (8895 in chips)
Seat 8: DrChako (4330 in chips)

Dealt to DrChako [Ad Kd]
EvilStepDad: folds
DrChako: raises 1200 to 2400
cdf1983: raises 11300 to 13700 and is all-in
DrChako: calls 1855 and is all-in

*** FLOP *** [Ac As Kh] Wow!
cdf1983 said, "nh"
*** TURN *** [Ac As Kh] [Ah] Double Wow!!
DrChako said, "holy crap!"
DrChako: shows [Ad Kd] (four of a kind, Aces)
cdf1983: shows [3c Qc] (three of a kind, Aces)
cdf1983 said, "daaaaammmmmmmmmmm"

It’s nice for the variance to come my way for a change. Unfortunately, the yin-yang in the universe decided to seek revenge on my wife. While I was catching miracle cards, I watched her Aces full of 4’s get beat by Aces full of Jacks, her flopped set get beat by a straight when a Queen came on the river (to a moron holding nothing but AK), her pocket Jacks on a flop of 4, 4, 5 get destroyed by a guy holding pocket 5’s, and at least one other 2nd best full-house. It got to the point where I was calling out the bad beats before the cards were turned over.

Flop K 8 6. Turn Ace. River 6. “Oh, he’s clearly gonna flip over Ace-6."

Bam. Ace-6.

It’s probably my fault.

You should be reading: The Blonde. Look for HNT, or in today’s case LNT. Trust me.

Final thought: History will be kind to me for I intend to write it. - Sir Winston Churchill

Kicker Problems

5 OCT 05

Coffee-housing is talking to your opponent in order to:

- Get information
- Create confusion

So, I’m playing heads up with my wife (okay, we’re poker geeks - got it). The specifics of the hand are a bit fuzzy now, but I had something like A 9 off-suit. The board comes A 10 2 rainbow, and she bets.

Now, you have to know my wife. She is not an aggressive player. It’s fair to say that when she’s betting, she has something. She has a couple of tells, and one of them said that she got a piece of that flop.

But, so did I.

Sometimes I can get information just by looking, but I decided to try a little coffee-housing. She’s looking at her chips (tell) and I say, “I got an Ace. You got an Ace?” She pauses ever so briefly (tell) before the tiniest smirk (tell) comes, and she says, “yup.”

I believe her.

“What’s your kicker?” I ask deviously. “You’ll have to bet to find out,” comes her smooth reply (TELL!!)

I go all-in (moron). She calls.

She had the Ace. Her kicker – another Ace.

Thank God we were playing for honor only.

Final thought: I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him. - Mark Twain

Oh, the Wit

4 OCT 05

So, I’m walking arm in arm with my wife, when she say, “your arm hair is really soft.”

My quick-witted reply?

“That’s not the only thing that’s soft, baby.”

Okay. Maybe I need to work on that one.

Online Universities

Flush!

3 OCT 05

First off, welcome to my new readers. Many of you got an email from me today, so I appreciate you stopping by. Feel free to leave comments from time to time. Just realize that anyone can read your comments, so don’t be too vulgar.

If you track back to some of my recent postings, you’ll see that I suffered a horrible string a bad beats (it couldn’t be bad play, right?), and I decimated most of my bankroll. I was filled with self-doubt. Why didn’t I just stick with golf?!

But lately, my internet play has surged (as I knew it would), and my bankroll is flush again. Here is a taste:

No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/01 - 18:54:39 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 4th place. A $27.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $12.00/$1.00 - 18 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/01 - 19:48:13 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 2nd place. A $64.80 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/02 - 01:06:49 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/02 - 11:34:34 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 3rd place. A $54.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 players
Tournament started - 2005/10/02 - 19:14:58 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 1st place. A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

And finally, I played in a free qualifier tournament...

No Limit Hold'emSuper Satellite
Tournament started - 2005/10/02 - 12:00:00 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 1st place.You qualified to play in Tournament #12671146 and are automatically registered for it. If you choose to unregister from this tournament your account will be credited with $215.00 Tournament dollars. Tournament dollars can be used to buy into any tournament.

I decided to play the big one. There were 3000 players, about 90% of them paying $215 to play. The rest qualified like I did. Unfortunately, I got knocked out in 845th place. At least I outlasted 2/3 of the field. Too bad. First place was over $100,000.

Still, it feels good to be back.

You should be reading: This (It’s a link to my very first blog. After you click the link, scroll to the bottom.)

Final thought: Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society. - Mark Twain

I KNEW This Blogging Thing Would Pay Off

I have registered to play in the
Online Poker Blogger Championship!

This event is powered by PokerStars.

Registration code: 9658918

Strategy Switch

30 SEP 05

Once again, poker confounds me. Playing NLHE ring game (.25/.50 – 9 handed), I get pocket AA twice in one loop. There are several limpers in front. I bump it to $5 – far too high for this game, but I figure to get at least one caller. I get two.

Flop is Q high. I push. Without hesitation, he calls. Q on the river.

Again, I get AA and this time only bump it to $2. Two callers. Flop is J high with 2 hearts. I bet $4 – more than half the pot. He reraises the minimum, and I push (which overbets the pot) to price him out of the flush draw. He flops over Kh 5h and sucks out the heart on the river.

I tell these two bad beats only to illustrate the following hand: KK UTG. I bump to $1.50. MP calls. The button bumps to $5. I bump to $8.50 to try and get MP to fold. No such luck. He calls and button puts us both all in. We both call. MP has QJ (!), and of course, the button has AA.

K on the river, and the suckout comes my way!! I tripled up and left the room.

Bottom line: AA sucks (right, Jarel?)

Some more good fortune in the two table $15 + 1:

Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00
Tournament started - 2005/09/29 - 23:50:15 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 1st place.
A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00
Tournament started - 2005/09/28 - 20:36:04 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 1st place.
A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00 - 18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00
Tournament started - 2005/09/26 - 19:48:47 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 2nd place.
A $81.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

And I even tried a LIMIT tournament. It was nice to cash since my wife is such a better limit player than I am:

PokerStars Tournament #12956623, Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $10.00/$1.00
243 playersTotal Prize Pool: $6160.00
Tournament started - 2005/09/26 - 00:30:00 (ET)
You finished the tournament in 20th place.
A $43.12 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
You earned 70.09 tournament leader points in this tournament.

I also pulled the laptop in front of the tube to play one of the big games ($11 + 1 with re-buys. There were about 1400 players with a top prize of about $14,000). Bottom line, don’t play while watching final table madness. I finished 250th.

New site to plug: Clarified. She’s not sure if it’s spelled Clareified or Clarified, but it’s always great writing. Laugh out loud stuff.

Final thought: It is a terrible thing to see and have no vision. - Helen Keller

A New Game

23 SEP 05

Or should I say, a new way to play online.

I recently found the 11+R tournament. Poker Stars has this three or four times a day, and it’s quite soft. I cashed the first time I played:

PokerStars Tournament #12672464, No Limit Hold'em Buy-In: $10.00/$1.00
370 players, Total Prize Pool: $14860.00
You finished the tournament in 34th place. A $74.30 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

First place was over $3000. It was a 4 hour investment of time, but the return on investment is huge. I got knocked out by a chip leader who was being a bully. I called with 9c 10c. The flop came A 10 3, with 2 clubs. I bet and got called. I went all in after the turn (a blank) which was probably my mistake. I had a pair and the best draw (9 clubs for the flush, 3 nines for 2 pair, and two tens for the set). He called and a blank came on the river. He won with a pair of Aces.

I’ll be back.

I also cashed in a few more SNG’s:

Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00, 18 players. You finished the tournament in 4th place. A $27.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00, 18 players. You finished the tournament in 4th place. A $27.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00, 18 players. You finished the tournament in 2nd place. A $81.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.
Buy-In: $15.00/$1.00, 18 players. You finished the tournament in 1st place. A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

So, then I went back to the Muckleshoot to play in their $45 rebuy Thursday night tournament. You start with 1500 chips, but the blinds start at 25/50 and go up quickly. Antes begin as soon as the rebuy and add-on period is over.

Nonsense.

The online tournament requires FAR more skill. This live tourney was an all-in fest, and I had no fun. I didn’t even bother to get the add-on. I just wanted to get the hell out of there.

You should be reading: www.thepokerdb.com. It lists all tournament winners and includes their lifetime winnings (since 2004). It’s free to register. It does not list SNG wins (otherwise I’d be on there a bunch), and it doesn’t list losses. Several of the players that made it beyond the bubble in the 11+R tournament had lifetime winnings on PS over $20,000.

Final thought: Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold. - Helen Keller

Heck of a Way to Make a Living

18 SEP 05

So, I’m on my way to a live home game yesterday, but traffic is miserable on I-5 North. Conveniently, I get off in Fife and I’m forced to drive right past my old stomping grounds – Freddie’s of Fife. They usually spread 3/6 (and 4/8 when they get busy), and they have a fairly good payout structure for their Monte Carlo. I’ve never hit the jackpot, but I’ve been close. Anyway, I hate 3/6 almost as much as 4/8. Statistically it should be a better game because the small blind is only $1. That SHOULD mean that the small blind wouldn’t call with weaker hands because he has to pay more than 50% to see the flop.

Yeah. Right.

There was an average of 5 people to see the flop every time. I reraised in late position after sitting quietly for 5 minutes and the flop came A J 6. They all checked to me. My bet got 4 callers. The turn was a 10. It’s checked to me again. I bet and get one caller. The river is a blank. I bet again and get called.

By pocket 8’s.

Do you realize how ridiculous that is? I sure did. It would be great if I could say that he read my “tell.” The truth is that no one in that room knows how to read tells, and wouldn’t care to look if they did. I just ran into a calling station before I knew what to do about it. I mucked without showing to the great surprise of the rest of the table.

So, at least now I have bluff equity, and should get paid for decent hands.

None came.

As my chips dwindled, I get Jc 8c in the big blind. 5 callers see a flop of K J 8. I’m thinking my two pair is good, but I check anyway in 2nd position (the small blind called the flop, of course). One MP bets and everyone calls.

6 on the turn. Rainbow board.

Now I come out betting, and 4 call me. Bluff equity, right? I’m getting paid, baby!!

The river is a 6.

Shit.

Now I’m beat. With the board paired, anyone holding a K or a pocket pair higher than my Jacks has me beat. On the off chance that this was not the case (all right, so it was a stupid move), I bet. I get three callers.

Two of them had Ace-high. I’m reaching for the pot exclaiming how I can’t believe no one stayed with the case K. The dude on the ends waits until my hand hits the chips and slow-rolls his pocket K.

If I wasn’t on tilt before, I was now. I stood up and pointed my finger in the guys face and said, “that’s called a slow-roll, and it’s not right!” He just gave me a blank look. I took my remaining three dollars and left to the sound of “seat open!”

Strange that I lost my cool like that. I’ve had much worse bad beats. The combination of not winning a single hand in that session (!) plus the slow-roll was too much, I guess.

So with that chip on my shoulder, I went to the home game. I was .25/.50 dealer’s choice with a buck on the river. One joker was good for Aces, straights and flushes. We took it out for a couple rounds of Hold ‘em and one round of Omaha.

One game of baseball had me just calling with a Hollywood (straight flush wheel – in this case A thru 5 of spades) because I was afraid of 5 Aces. Fortunately, he only had 4 Aces. I finished up 7 dollars for the night, and I had a great time. I was going to say BUT I had a great time, but that wouldn’t be fair. A win is a win, and we had a good time to boot.

To finish the night, I played a little NLHE .25/.50 on PokerStars, and I brought my A game. Started with $20 and finished over $60 in about 30 minutes.

Sheesh.

Back in the Saddle

16 SEP 05

I hit the Muckleshoot again last night. I stayed WAY too late, especially since I had to get up at 4:30 am again. I made a command decision to sleep in to 6:00, so I set my alarm for 5:50. Unfortunately, I set it for 5:50 pm (when will I stop making that same stupid mistake?) and woke up at 6:37.

Shit.

I doubled up at the ‘shoot, but it should have been much better. I had a bad beat which I’ll illustrate here, not because it’s incredibly bad, but because I made one betting mistake when I knew I was beat.

I had 53 off suit in the big blind. There were 6 to see the flop which came 3 5 7 rainbow. I check my two pair and a late calling station bet. Everyone called up to me, and I check-raised the flop. This is usually a sign of medium strength when you don’t want anyone to draw out on you. It’s often used when you are trying to get people who are drawing to overcards, a straight or flush to fold. It almost never works at 4/8, and true to form, 6 people called the raise. The turn was a 3.

Money.

Now I had the baby full house, and I wanted to get paid for it, so I bet. I had a reputation as a little aggressive, so I thought I might get some action. I was right. There were three callers before the calling station raised the pot. I wasn’t afraid. In fact, I put him on AA or KK which was fine by me. I reraised. He capped and I called. The river was a 5.

Holy crap.

Now I went from a bottom full house to a top full house (not quite, but you see it coming, don't you?). Here is where I made my mistake. He is a calling station and he capped the river. The correct move was to check and call (since I had the 3rd nuts at this point. I’m beat by 75 or 77).

He raised.

As I’m calling the raise, I said, “You picked a helluva time to get pocket 7’s.” He said, “You mean these?”

Asshole.

My only real mistake was that last bet on the river. Normally, I’m getting paid for that hand. I still left up $100, so all was not a total loss. I think I tilted a little after that hand, but not too bad.

Final thought: Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. - Will Rogers

A Flurry of Success

15 SEP 05

So, I reread my last few entries. Talk about depressing.

I took a break from poker (for about 12 hours) and did some reading. I also listened to Barry Greenstein live audioblog the WCOOP tournament on PokerStars. He mentioned that most good players “got broke” several times before they became successful. I think the only pro who claims to never have been broke is Sklansky.

I decided to concentrate on my specialty. Things have taken a decided turn for the better:

PokerStars Tournament #12401432, No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $5.00/$0.25
4 playersTotal Prize Pool: $20.00 Tournament started - 2005/09/10 - 18:57:06 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 1st place. A $20.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

PokerStars Tournament #12433089, No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00
18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00 Tournament started - 2005/09/11 - 13:55:49 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 2nd place. A $81.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

PokerStars Tournament #12457937, No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00
18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00 Tournament started - 2005/09/12 - 00:02:51 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 4th place. A $27.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

PokerStars Tournament #12540227, No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00
18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00 Tournament started - 2005/09/14 - 00:47:39 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 1st place. A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

PokerStars Tournament #12580369, No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00
18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00 Tournament started - 2005/09/15 - 01:03:52 (ET)
Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 2nd place. A $81.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account.

Reading this helped.

I can’t say I’m completely back yet, but I’m getting there.

More Ups and Downs

7 SEP 05

So, my bankroll is gone.

Talk about depressing. After the self-doubt (and self-loathing) of watching the last of my allotted stake disappear at 10/20, I started doing some soul-searching. Why am I playing this stupid game? What if I’m not as good as I think I am? Maybe 10/20 is too high a limit for me?

Actually, that last one is partly true. Some of the players at the table even told me so. I made two pair on the turn, but folded on the river when the 4th spade hit and the caller finally bet into me. I (stupidly) asked him to show and he told me he’d show for $5. I felt like an idiot for even asking. I didn’t pay him off. To needle me, he told his buddy (sitting between us) that he put me on being a tight player and thought I might fold to the bet.

He was right, but I still think he had a spade. I didn’t.

Part of the problem is playing 10/20 on the weekends. The play is a LOT more aggressive (a lot like 4/8, in fact), and my game isn’t suited to that (no pun intended). Never try to play higher limits when you are nursing a dwindling bankroll. It was in Doyle’s book, Poker Wisdom of a Champion where he said that there are very few players that play well under these conditions. Unfortunately, I’m not one of them.

So in the midst of this rut, I decided to do some bonus whoring. I dropped $600 into Poker Stars in order to get the $120 reload bonus. I’m playing two tables of 1 / 2 limit simultaneously in order to gain the 600 FFP’s I need to qualify. After that, I’m going to stick to my specialty – the $15 two-table NLHE tournament. Just to remember what it’s like, I signed up for one while playing the two tables of 1 / 2 (so I'm playing three tables at once). When I got to the final table, I was the short stack. I was dealt 9 9 with the 9 of clubs, and I raised. I got one caller. After the flop I had an overpair and three to the flush. The Jc came on the turn and my bet got raised. The river completed my flush, but at that point, I was all in. He had Jh 8c for the flush with the 8c. My flush with the 9c took the pot. Here is how we finished:

PokerStars Tournament #12209146, No Limit Hold'emBuy-In: $15.00/$1.00
18 playersTotal Prize Pool: $270.00
Tournament started - 2005/09/06 - 00:36:44 (ET)

Dear DrChako, You finished the tournament in 1st place.A $108.00 award has been credited to your Real Money account. Congratulations! Thank you for participating.

So maybe poker is trying to tell me not to give up. I’m not one to look for omens, but last night…

PokerStars Game #2516556885: Hold'em Limit ($1/$2) - 2005/09/06 - 23:04:02 (ET)
Table 'Balaton' Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: hartdoc ($22.25 in chips)
Seat 2: DrChako ($19.25 in chips)
Seat 3: Kutz43 ($82 in chips)
Seat 4: gravedigger ($26 in chips)
Seat 6: BostonDonny ($44 in chips)
Seat 7: Moleman ($68.50 in chips)
Seat 8: Ranza ($14.25 in chips)
Seat 9: scottrude ($117.75 in chips)
Seat 10: Toyman ($66.25 in chips)
BostonDonny: posts small blind $0.50
Moleman: posts big blind $1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DrChako [Qh Kh]
scottrude: calls $1
DrChako: raises $1 to $2
scottrude: calls $1 (it's rare to isolate in 1 / 2, but it worked this time. Too bad.)
*** FLOP *** [Th Qc 5s]
scottrude: bets $1
DrChako: calls $1 (smooth call with top pair, K kicker)
*** TURN *** [Th Qc 5s] [Ah]
scottrude: bets $2
DrChako: raises $2 to $4
scottrude: raises $2 to $6
DrChako: calls $2 (I figured he had me beat when he reraised. I was right.)
*** RIVER *** [Th Qc 5s Ah] [Jh!!!!!]
scottrude: bets $2
DrChako: raises $2 to $4 (after MUCH pausing)
scottrude: calls $2
*** SHOW DOWN ***
DrChako: shows [Qh Kh] (a Royal Flush)
scottrude: mucks hand
DrChako collected $26.50 from pot

*** SUMMARY ***

Total pot $27.50 Rake $1

Board [Th Qc 5s Ah Jh]

Seat 2: DrChako showed [Qh Kh] and won ($26.50) with a Royal Flush

Seat 9: scottrude mucked [Js Kd] for the straight

I called my dad right away. He said that in all his years of playing, he only got one Royal Flush. I’m sure the difference is that I’m playing online. Not that I think online is fixed (I’ve heard all the conspiracies. It is not in the interest of Poker Stars to fix the games. They probably make millions a day already. If rumor got out that they were fixed, all their business would go away). It’s just that I’m seeing up to 200 hands per hour. I’ve probably seen almost as many hands of poker this year as my dad did in 5.

So, maybe I won’t give up just yet. My plan is to build the bankroll back to at least $500 (if possible) then maybe try a little NLHE ring at Tulalip (risky, but a good way to build a bankroll in a hurry) before going back to 10/20 at the ‘shoot. When I do go back, don’t look for me on the weekends. If you see me there, it’s either because I’m desperate, or flush with cash.

You should be reading: Wil Wheaton at CardPlayer

Final thought: It is easy to be brave from a safe distance. - Aesop

New Orleans…

1 SEP 05

Second post today. Unusual, but necessary.

As a doctor and poker player, I urge you to sign up/re-buy/buy-in to the PokerStars fundraiser. See this and this for more information.

Many thanks to PokerStars, Wil Wheaton and the many bloggers who are getting behind this.

A Clash of Kings

1 SEP 05

That’s actually the title of George R. R. Martin’s second book in what is soon to be a 4 parter in the Song of Ice and Fire series. Seems appropriate for a poker blog, too.

As I noted, my bankroll has suffered lately. I’m stuck for all my online play. My entire stake at Party Poker and Poker Stars had vanished, and I was hovering near the bottom of the barrel (talk about a mixed metaphor). I took close to my last $400 to the Muckleshoot a couple of days ago. I say it was nearly my last because I forced myself to stick to the “poker-can” concept, and so far it’s working. That is, it was until recently.

For those that didn’t read it on an earlier blog, the poker-can probably saved my marriage (okay, that’s a bit of an overstatement. Let’s just say that after an INTENSE discussion with my wife, we decided that using family money was unacceptable for by burgeoning poker career, so we staked my “can.” When the stake is gone, it’s gone. Then the begging begins, and NOBODY wants that).

I started looking at this like a business recently, and I immediately became much more frugal. Start thinking about BB/hr and stop lamenting individual hands, I told myself. Well, I’ve cashed in the last two tournaments I played and had three consecutive winning sessions (included a 4/8 win, which is astounding given that this isn’t really poker IMHO). While the bankroll isn’t back to even yet, it’s getting there. I’ve decided not to rebuy on Poker Stars until I get back to even (or close to it) and then I’m going to stick with +EV events like 5/10 LHE and the $15 two-table NHLE.

One bad hand from last night: I’m playing 10/20 and I’m in MP with AJo. I’m first in, so I raise. I get three callers. The flop is A 9 6 rainbow. BB checks, I check and the button checks. The turn is a K. BB bets and I raise. He’s played too many pots, but he does raise with a premium hand (although thinking about it now, I never saw him reraise). Since he just called my raise from the BB, I can’t put him on anything, but if I was going to make a move, this was the time). Button calls (!) and BB calls (!!). The river is a 2.

BB checks. I check.

Button bets.

Okay, now what? Did the BB slow play his AK? Did the button flop trips? Actually, to this point, I haven’t screwed up too badly (other than not betting the Ace on the flop). BB called and I called. Classic mistake. You need a MUCH stronger hand to over call. Aces with a J kicker could NEVER have won this pot, and it didn’t. BB had 2 pair (K2, but they were sooooted) and the button DID in fact flop a set of 6’s.

Ouch.

You should be reading: David Sedaris; Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim

Final thought: Never... ever suggest they don't have to pay you. What they pay for, they'll value. What they get for free, they'll take for granted, and then demand as a right. Hold them up for all the market will bear. - Lois McMaster Bujold, A Civil Campain, 1999