Long time no post

Sorry guys for not posting in a while. I started my new job in early October and have been busy doing that for a while. This job is not easy, they really work me for every cent I am earning. But I am doing okay.

I went to Macau twice during this period and going to share with you my experiences. I have still yet to cash in Macau. Dang. And for some reason I always don't do well in cash games there as well.

Defining hands, hands that played for all my chips in Macau:

1. Check raised gut shot on the flop. Turn hit gut shot, check raised all in, guy tanks and calls. Hits his flush draw on the river, slow rolled me. (HKD 7000 pot)

2. Two different hands, got QQ and KK, first time flop Ace, second time turn Ace. The fish played with his hand face up, surely he has Ace in his hand. (both hands cost me about HKD 5000)

3. J53, two clubs on the flop. Preflop raiser no cbet, I led out almost pot size. A2 no clubs called. Turn 4. All in turn. I had 55 (HKD 18000 pot)

4. BB on tournament, UTG leads out 2x, button 3bets to 8x. I was very sure button had only AK. If he had a big pair he would 3bet like 5-6x only. I look at 88, so juicy pot, if I win the pot I will have a decent stack to go deep. I shoved. Flop Ace.

5. I have TT, lead out, 2 callers. Flop 985 rainbow. BB check raises me. Don't put him on strong hand cause of the texture. Maybe 97, 96 kind of hand. Turn 8. He leads out again. Maybe 86, 87? Call. River big bet on a blank. I called. He had 98. (HKD 10000 pot)

6. AK vs AA, (HKD 10000 pot)

Sick of these beats. This few weeks I keep thinking maybe I am not good enough. I really need to review myself. What am I doing wrong? My luck is really bad I feel, but am I blaming too much on luck? Did I put myself in those situations?

I had a few hands I felt I played really well.

1. Some Japanese guy kept targeting my BB because I was folding so much. I fold because I keep getting really bad cards. 49o, 2Ko, etc. One time it came to me, on the BB, I had J2 off. I flatted his raise. Check raised him with air. He folds.

There are a few others, but it is getting late, and I am getting hungry. Will post more next time.

Me vs Foo Foo

I will begin by saying the deuce seven game is a sick game. Preflop Foo under the gun raised to 4x, I got 27o, made it 11x. Everyone folded. Came back to him and during the play he even made a speech about how he had the REAL aces. He tanked then shove 26x on top.

Well with the game in play, there is an extra 14x equity if I win. There was a total of 80x for my 26x. Against AK I still had 30+%. So I called.

He flips over aces. Damn. Run it once I said. Usually I do twice if I am behind.

Flop T66, I called for 9 on the turn. Came an 8!!!! 4 outer!  I told the dealer to flip it slow.....9 on the river hahaha. I never celebrate my bad beats but this time I did a victory lap. Because he is one of my god friends in poker and it was such a funny hand. Hahaha. Sorry bro and thanks for your money.

Ps: he won with 27 a huge pot against AQ a few hours later so karma strikes again

Me vs Nicky round 1 & 2

Post some poker related stuff. Two sick hands against the same %&£*%# I mean same guy hahaha. He's a nice guy lah.

Preflop Nicky double straddled to 20, couple of limpers ahead, I called 15 more on the big blind with JT. Villain made it 60 total. Dang. I know I shouldn't play JT but now I am stuck. One guy calls, 140 in the pot so I committed another 40.

Flop comes JT5 rainbow. Happy days woohoo. Sb checks, I check, Villain cbets 130. Sb folds. I look at my stack. If I call I will have 355 behind. If I raise I have to go all in. JT5 is so dry considering the preflop action. So I just flatted.

Turn off suit 7. Blank really unless you had 89. But I worry he might check back so I bet 255 of my remaining stack. He tanked then shoved so I called with my remaining 100. He turned over set of freaking sevens. Ran twice lost all. Grrrrr.

The following day, big blind again. I had Q6 diamonds. Villain utg limped round of about 6 players. Button made a pot building bet so called around. Flop 754 two diamonds. Open ended and flush draw. Monster!

Rarely do I donk bet but this is one of the situations I might do so. I led out. Villain calls, button reraises. I decided to flat. Suddenly Villain reraises not big, almost a min raise. Button folds. I reraised and he shoved. Set sevens again! Ran twice I won both times hahaha. I did the math. If he had an overpair I had 55%, against the top set I had 40%.

I won more than I lost I think. Sorry Nicky hehehe

Gangsta

We got freaking raided. Two weeks before I was leaving for Hong Kong. Raid is fine but we were in lock up for a few nights. Me taking the blame for the fiasco I stayed one more night at the lock up alone than all the other guys.

Well I learned a few things while inside. 1. Some guys are just pussies. Yeah you should know who I am talking about haha.  2. There are some guys that are really stand up people and all 15 of my lock up bros are really cool guys. You guys took it like men. 3. The media lies more than some of my friends bluff on poker. 4. Appreciate what you have before it is taken away.

Anyway we're all out, safe and sound. I guess Macau is it for me. I want to discuss some hands here and share room reviews but they took my freaking laptop. So I will do that when I get it back.

It has been two weeks since the raid and our release but only now I have the mood to write it down. Whoever caused this, you better be ready. Karma's a bitch.

Everyday I am begging

I just woke up and had a dream a bunch of kids holding me for some money, saying I owe them this and that but their reasons are laughable and ridiculous. In real life I have a lot of people that owe me money. A LOT. I am not rich, actually I am considered poor. I remember I attended my high school 15th year reunion and thought to myself, my goodness I am poor. I have so many other schoolmates that now was driving better cars, had their own businesses, properties, and I had close to nothing. Yet I have a lot of debtors. To put it into perspective, they owe me a cumulative one years' salary. That is freaking a lot.

Everyday I beg for my money back while these guys just go on with their lives without a care. Just ignore my message, no need to reply, no need to answer my calls, just continue on like nothing happened. When is karma going to strike? Well I tell you two people that tried to make my life miserable they got their karma. One is somewhere selling retail. The other sold his apartment to fix his problems.

I am a nice guy, I like to help people. Only a close few people try to help me. Anyway I am told I have to let go. I am trying. Maybe this is my karma, but I know my stress and sleepless nights is not unheard. God is my witness and these people will pay, to me or in another way.

Just a piece of advice, don't lend people money, don't owe people money.

Goodbye Malaysia

I have decided to take the job. Leaving town first of the next month, up to the new change of back to full time employment, top gun position, big responsibilities.

Some of the factors that contributed to the decision

1. Superb offer. The salary they are offering is really really good. It is too good to turn down. I was a bit taken a back then I saw the job description but I think i am ready for it

2. Weakened ringgit. Same salary but in ringgit it is gone up 1000 because of the exchange rate. Considering my previous salary was only 4500 I just got a 1000 raise in a week because of currency exchange

3. Health. Lately I feel aches and pains and really lack of sleep. This lifestyle is bound to catch up to me sooner or later. Suddenly a 9-6 job sounds attractive.

4. Poker. The poker scene in Macau is great. I had to cancel my trip to Cambodia because of this job but now I am planning to play in the ACOP MACAU. I plan to play cash games every weekend

5. Change. Everyday I have to face some issues from poker, my businesses, or some prick decides to cause trouble. I am tired of it. I want a change.

See you Penang, bye bye grinding, but I will be back. Hopefully fresher, better and richer hahaha

Hand Selection

Recently I conducted a class on hand selection. Hand selection is very important in poker especially more inexperienced players because they can either get themselves into really tough spots or call down with a losing hand.

There for 4 key elements to deciding to play the hand or not.

1. Hand strength: This is a given. If you have premium, regardless of position, stack size blah blah, you play them no matter what. You need to know the strength of your hand. This may seem easy to most people but I have some students who think that KJ suited is a premium hand. KJ suited is NOT a premium hand. I repeat, KJ suited is NOT a premium hand. Some hands look really pretty, but they are not as good as they look. QJ, QT, KT, these hands will get many players in trouble more than good.

2. Position: Rule of thumb, the later your position, the worser cards you can play. This is relatively true because late positions offer other advantages so you are able to maneuver marginal hands. But it also depends on how many players are in the hand, pot odds and implied odds. There is no point calling one raiser without any additional value with hands like 69 suited but multiway then there is value.

3. Initial raiser image: You may be holding a nice looking hand like AT, but you have to judge your hand strength based on the initial raiser's image (callers too). If the initial raiser is a tight player, your AT may be going against a hand that dominates you. You are sometimes better off calling tight raisers with hands like 45, 57, etc. If raiser is a loose aggressive player, AT is good most of the time against his range. Instead I would avoid playing small cards.

4. Relative stack sizes: Your hand may be good to call in most spots, but you need to recognise the stack sizes of the initial raiser and relative to yours. For example, initial raiser makes it 4x but only has 14x behind. You are holding JT suited on the button. I might not even play this hand because there is not enough value for you to see the flop. Furthermore, player is likely to shove the flop regardless whether they hit or not therefore putting you in a tough spot if you missed or hit but not strong.

Good luck!

Poker crossroads

I used to own and run a poker room until recently I have ceased that business. However I still help out at the new room until they are able to run smoothly. Last night I had to do the buy ins, run the side game (something I picked up in Bangkok), play poker on two tables (yes multi-tabling live), deal when the dealer takes a break, and entertain the players. I was exhausted and I can feel the fatigue kicking in. I am 36 years old and I play poker 6 nights a week.

Recently I got an offer to work overseas. They offered me about 3.8 times my previous salary which although sounds attractive but the cost of living and being away from home, my poker grinding grounds, not really worth it. However they came back with a counter-offer of 6.8 times my previous salary. I am confused. It is great money, but I have to give up my poker lifestyle. There are other sacrifices too and I don't know what to do.

Lately I feel so tired begging people for my own money back. I have so many people that owe me so much money its not even funny. Every day I take like 1-2 hours of my time keeping in touch with these people, finding where they are with their money situation, when I can get my money back etc. Having a fixed income does sound attractive again. However I play poker 6 nights a week now. Lately on a semi downswing, but still I am enjoying the grind. But if I work full time I would probably have to give this up, but weekend poker trips are still okay.

Sometimes on the poker table or in the poker scene you meet different types of people. Some a really nice and can be friends for life. But others they are out to get you. They know you're the "enemy" on the table and they treat you the same way outside of the table. Yesterday I caught someone trying to cheat on the side game. However I kept quiet as not to point fingers, but by doing so someone else thought I was the one being unethical. I am tired of this life that people keep questioning your intentions when I am pretty sure I am one of the nicest guys on the table. I for one let people owe me money for so long. I try to coach weaker players so that they can fend for themselves. Now some of my students are winning my money. But I don't mind. I treat everyone like friends, but not all treat me back the same way.

Yeah sure, full time employment I also had my fair share of assholes. They would back stab, play politics, gang up on you, bad mouth you etc etc. I have seen some of the worst in the world. But the prospect of being the top guy in the whole company sounds intriguing. Worst case is people will hate me and talk bad about me. But I will still be the boss. Muahahahaha....

At this crossroads at the moment. Where should I go, I still do not know. But I know is, poker is still a bit part of my life.

Sick hand, bad fold?

Just finished playing a long session, second to last hand, I was on the button with

5 players limped to me so I just limped the button. Sb raises to $30 (we were playing $5/$5) 4 players called and I called too. Flop came:

Sb initial raiser bets 95 into a pot of 180. Bb calls, guy in late position calls. So I put the two callers on draws, possibly flush draw or at least straight draws. The pot is now 465 and I reraised to 430. Initial raiser tanked, asked me if I had a set of 3s, mumbled to himself if I have J8, J9 of hearts etc. Then goes all in for 1020 more. I thought for about 3 minutes and then folded.

My reasoning:

1. BB and another guy called, so villain should be able to put them on draws. That makes my hand more unlikely a draw. So my reraise means strength, and my sizing indicates super strength. So if he can shove there he must be good.

2. He asked me if I had set of 3s. Why not ask me if I had set of 8s? He might have set of 8s, Js there.

3. Preflop he raised $30. 8s seem more likely than overpair or Jacks. I doubt he had a draw there and I managed to get all draws to fold.

4. If I had over pair in his spot I would either fold them (since I only committed $30+$95) or just flat the $430 if I think I am against a draw. If turn is a brick, I can call another bet or shove or I can donk shove.

5. I can't be on a draw. Even if I had a monster flush draw, I want a multi way pot. Especially if I can put the other two callers on draws. Because 1. They might have my outs and 2. If we all hit the draw together I will get paid. So therefore I thought a good player would put me on a made strong hand instead of a draw.

I tanked and then folded my J3 face up. He flipped over Queens. I over analysed. I would fold queens there if I were in his spot. If he raised $95 and no one called and then I reraised, then it would be a different story. His shove with over pair would make sense. But having two callers and a reraise, the reraise is highly unlikely to be a draw. It should be an easy fold for the queens or peel the turn to see a blank before committing all the chips if you think you're against a draw.

Anyhow, it would have been a 1.8k profit pot if I had called. But sigh..... I am not upset with my fold. I am just upset that I over estimated the guys poker analysis.

Ten "Commandments" of Poker 3 - Thou Shall Not Take the name of "Poker" in Vain

Too many times I have seen players lose and then say, "it's poker". Well yeah, poker has its ups and downs, your swings are as brutal as the next guy. However it is not always poker's fault. It might be you. Lately I've seen a few players overplay their top two pairs, or over-shoving their flush draws or combo draws and when they miss, just say "it's poker".

People say "shit happens". Well if it dropped on your head while you were walking around oblivious of your surroundings then yeah. But if you see it from afar but you still walk straight ahead, well my friend, you made it happen. Poker is a fair game. Over time your good decisions will pan out and your bad decisions will cost you. But if you got it in bad and blame it on poker or luck, that's your own fault.

What I've learned recently:

1. Check raise or reraise draws - there is a tendency for inexperienced players to just call with draws. Some better players at least know they are calling at the right price. But I've learned that in order to maximise EV in the end you are suppose to raise (in position) or check raise (out of position) certain draws.

For example you flop the nut flush draw. Player ahead donk bets or c bets. You raise by 2.5x. What that does is that you announce that you are strong. Unless the bettor has super monster, he is unlikely to reraise you. Secondly he is wary of your strength and might check to you on the turn. That means if you don't hit you can get a free card. Or you can bet turn to take down the pot. If he does reraise you on the flop then you can decide to call or fold based on the odds.

2. Smallish reraise of monsters pre - we know we have to protect our big pockets, and sometimes the game is so crazy the standard open raise is 7x. So we assume if someone opens 5x we have to make it at least 20x to get people off. Sometimes you do, especially if there are callers already. But this situation is if for example someone opens to 3x, you are next to act, or no one called between you and raiser, how much to raise.

Raiser opens 3x, comes to you, you can make it 8x - 9x to go. 8-9 may be a smallish bet, but the fact that it is a 3 bet makes is much harder to call. Someone maybe wary if they called your 9x and the initial raiser comes over the top and they are in trouble. The beauty of 9x in this situation is you can push off those stupid cards, most suited connectors but the initial raise will be priced to call you with a weaker hand. This way you don't lose value because you will still pick up a limper. A small raise may also induce a light 4 bet.

Good luck

Seoul Walkerhill Poker Room REVIEW

I have been to Seoul two times and both times I coincided my trip with the Asia Pacific Poker Tour stop. Usually that is around April which is Spring time in South Korea and the weather is a bit cold. Seoul is a beautiful city, but I feel like it is more like an outdated Japan. Things are expensive, food isn't that nice, and neither are the people. Don't get me wrong, Koreans can be pretty nice people, but on the whole, and I like to compare them to their neighbours the Japanese.

Anyway this post is a review of the Walkerhill Poker Room rather than Seoul itself. The poker room is located at the Walkerhill Hotel and Casino on top of Walker Hill. The casino is beautiful and only foreigners are allowed in, so prepare your passport.

There are about 10 tables available but usually 4-5 are filled with games ranging from USD1-2 to USD 5-10 sometimes. The 1/2 however plays more like a 2/4. 

The players are usually regulars and of course during tournament times you get your tour players as well. That being said the game is not that tough but not soft either. The room offers free snacks like frozen yogurt with walnuts (my favourite), dried squid, nuts, instant noodles and free drinks. However it is recommended that you tip the waitress that brings you the food or drinks. 

The room also offers a bad beat jackpot for aces full of tens or better beaten by another hand. Both hands must use all hole cards and it must go to showdown. Apparently everytime during APPT season, due to the bigger number of games running, someone is bound to hit the jackpot. The jackpot usually gets up to over USD 10k which is pretty cool.

 Rake I believe is 10% capped at 5bb but I may be wrong. The dealers are all female and they are pretty and friendly. However I suspect most of them if not all have plastic surgery of some kind done. 

Melbourne Crown Casino Poker Room REVIEW

First of all Melbourne is a beautiful city, really great food, cold in winter but still bearable, the people are a bit rough on the edges though, especially some they have prejudices against Asians.

The Casino is beautifully located next to the Yarra River and right in the middle of the city. We stayed at an apartment 5 minutes away. The casino is pretty big and lots of people, the poker room is tucked on the basement floor with about 20 odd cash game tables and about another 15 for tournament only. Tables range from $1-2 to $5-10 with the occasional big game like $20-40 and $5-10 PLO. The action is 24/7 and usually you're on the queue. 

Plenty of recreational players to keep the game interesting. Big portion of retirees who are tight passive usually. Some occasional Asian businessmen throwing money around. The game is pretty soft but there is always a resident shark or two especially on the 5-5 and up. 

Rake is usually 10% capped at $15 which I feel is pretty high. No flop and chop pots are still raked, and every time you sit down to a new game you have to pay $5 time charge. But rake is not the biggest problem. The problem I feel is with the buy in maximum. For $2-4 the max is $400, which is 100 big blinds. That is considered a pretty short max buy. For the $5-5 it is at $700. So say you're down $1500, it is really hard for you to launch a comeback with $700. 

Tables are clean and nice, the chips are a bit lightweight for my taste. No comps, no free food or drinks. Some sports on show but usually Australian sports like cricket, Aussie rules. Players are usually pretty cool, nice conversation, jokes here and there. But you get some grumpy old men, sore losers, and hit and runners. 

All in all if you're looking for non stop poker action it is a great place. However I've been to better. I will write some more about other poker rooms I have been to but I can say there are at least a few much better than here. 

Melbourne Poker Trip Report

Melbourne is beautiful. I will do a review of Melbourne and the poker room later. But about my poker trip. Bottom line, I lost. I did not achieve what I set out to do. I had a 50% winning rate only and end up having a losing trip. However all is not lost if I have learned something.

1. Preparation is important:

The preparation for the game is just as important if not more important as the game. There were a few sessions I felt I was not at 100%. Maybe I was too eager to play and try to make money for my stakers I failed to recognise that I needed rest more than play. Plenty of rest, water and the correct type of food is key. One session I had a big steak dinner and felt good to play. But when the food kicked in I could feel myself drowsy. I didn't play badly but I reacted badly to a bad beat when my Kings lost to 98s. I couldn't control my tilt the way I normally do.

2. Know your limits:

I played 2 sessions a day. I noticed that I would win my first session, then I would lose my second. It is no coincidence to me now that the first session I would go there after a night's sleep and the second is without a nap and usually after dinner. I think I need to stick to one long session a day after enough rest and proper preparation.

3. Tight Aggressive is the way to go:

Most pros I saw on the tables played tight aggressive. I want to play tight aggressive too but I only had a week in Melbourne so I guess I thought I wanted to play more hands and widen my range. I hit many flops but often get drawn out because of the strength of my starting hands. Tighten up, use position, good music or something to pass the time helps. Wait for good spots.

4. Sometimes you don't need to protect your big hands:

One time I had AK and flop was Kxx 2 hearts. Villain bets, I called. Turn was a blank. He checked. I thought this time was a great time to bet out the flush draw but I checked back.

a) He has a flush draw and he has a 20% chance of hitting. I lose but lose a smaller pot.
b) He does not have a flush draw and has a 12% chance of hitting his kicker or making trips.
c) He does have top pair and I can rep a busted flush draw on the river

River was another blank. He checked to me and I bet pot size. I got called I guess pretty thinly judging by his tank. So I think I maxed valued my top pair.

5. C betting sizing:

I used to C bet dry flops hard and avoid c betting wet boards knowing I will be called. But I realised this is the opposite of what I should be doing. Dry flops mean that others hitting it hard is unlikely therefore a small bet should take it down. Wet flops bet big, because draws will unlikely reraise a big bet to semibluff and when draws call they are usually behind. Only a monster can reraise and you can easily fold.

Melbourne here I come

Getting ready for a poker trip to Melbourne. Well, I have been to Melbourne once, but I didn't play poker there. As a matter of fact, I have played poker in Vegas, LA, Macau, Seoul, Manila, Cebu, Cambodia, Singapore, Bangkok, Sydney, Gold Coast, Christchurch, , Perth, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and of course Penang. But I haven't played in Melbourne.

What's more this trip is going to be the first time I am being staked 100%.

I am excited of the prospects of getting staked full time and travelling the world, adding to my repertoire of poker locations and stories. I need to do really well in this trip to impress my stakers and eventually I hope to be able to start a group of grinders, playing under a staking company, travelling around the world playing poker.

I heard that Melbourne is facing record low temperatures this week, the coldest in 18 years. I hope my deck is the opposite of that. Will keep you guys posted of my trip and results.

Two big plays - Bluff and big laydown

Recently I played in a cash game, stakes was 5/5. A few players limped ahead of me and I was on the button with J5 suited and decided to make a play at it, I raised 8x to 40. (yes again our standard game open is like 6x or more, with limpers ahead I had to make it 8x) A few callers making the pot like close to 200.

Flop came:

 Aggro player loves to steal big pots donk bets 140. Super tight rock limps behind. Action on me on the button. I had nothing. No flush draw, only a runner runner straight draw. Normally I would have given up on the hand but I felt that both players were weak. Aggro player can have anything, maybe a draw. I doubt I can push him off a flush draw, but JT or QT likely he might fold to a big raise. But mostly because the rock limped behind him. He has gotta be wary of that. But what can the rock hand? A king? Set or top two is in his range but he probably reraised the 140 by then. Ace king doesn't seem likely, so maybe a King with a redraw, possibly J clubs. I know in this situation I might be called down by a flush draw when even if they miss they might still be good. But somehow I had a read on this hand that they will fold to a raise to 415.

Aggro player tanks and folds, kept on eyeing the rock behind him. The rock also folds his weak King and giving me the pot of about 100 bbs.

Last night I was playing the same game when I had AKo on the straddle. 4 limpers and came back to me. I made it 10bb. (they limped 2bbs each). All 4 limpers called. Pot was 200. Flop came:

 My AK looks in really good shape. I bet 140 into 200. Player on my left just calls, then the next guy tanked for a while then called. Throughout this whole time I studied them very hard. Something tells me it isn't right. Guy on my left looked really strong. His demeanour, breathing, everything. Turn came another deuce.

 Ace king should still be good here if it were good on the flop. But I studied the players again and something felt off. Pot was 620. I had 290 left. It was a shove situation I feel. But something felt wrong so I just checked. Guy on my left bets 245. The other guy calls. I don't put them on the deuce. Maybe to some my AK is an easy fold, but they fold because the read the caller not the bettor. I felt the bettor was the stronger. Anyway I fold and it went to showdown and guy on my left showed AJ. The other guy mucked.

What I have learned recently

Lately I was preparing for a day long poker class. This is the first time ever in my life I am charging for coaching poker. I put a lot of hours in preparing for the class and I found that I learned a lot myself.

1. Misdirection tells: I guess I was vaguely aware of this tell myself but didn't really pay much attention to it. However after some more observation I found that this tell is very accurate and best of all easy to spot.

Misdirection means that someone says something to explain the reason they bet or called as if to imply that what they have isn't that strong. However if you ask WHY they would do that, it would be very simple, either they are strong and want to feign weakness, or that are high level players that uses this tell in reserve. However knowing high level pros they would prefer to keep quiet that say anything, I doubt they would use this as a reverse tell.

2. Odds and price. I knew about pot odds and all that, but I got a really good refresher and it helped me to think about it in a new light. I understand the reason to take an aggressive line, because of 3 reasons.

i) Player might fold
ii) Even if villain calls you have a good price for your draw
iii) Even if villain reraises, your price is rarely bad

3. Purpose of raising preflop. As I was explaining the purpose of reraising preflop, I got a refresher and I liked the way I explained it. Purpose is 3 fold.

i) Chase away stupid hands that can outflop you
ii) Create Value so that you can have a good pot to win or bluff at
iii) Put callers on a range

Some bets can achieve all three, whereas some can only achieve 2. If your bet only achieves 1 of the 3 objectives, then you should review your bet sizing.

4. No mercy. This wasn't learned during the preparation of the course. It was one of the games I played during this week. I hit a big draw on a big pot. The other player was already down $5k plus for the night. I decided not to value bet him for his last $400. He said he would have called and most likely left for the night. He went on a crazy run and cashed out $6900 with his last $400, most of it was my money.

Retreat to Bangkok

I wanted a few days off so I was deciding between Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Bangkok. KL and Bangkok offered poker games that I wanted because Singapore's main game is SGD5/10. KL to me is boring during the day but Singapore and Bangkok offered plenty of activities. Bangkok and KL are cheaper in regards to hotels and other expenses compared to Singapore so at the end I chose Bangkok.

First night I played poker at a local poker room. Friendly and fun poker. I was doing well until one hand I had kings and ran into aces. But after a while I grinded back to be down just 10k baht and called it a night.

Second night I ran really well and won about 40k baht. After a week away I miss the time in Bangkok. Very relaxed, the game was relatively stressless, wake up late, lunch and massage in the afternoon, nice street food and dinner in the evening. 

All in all I would recommend going to Bangkok for poker. The poker scene is still illegal and they rooms are few, but the day activities make it a great spot to chill and grind. Great food, great shopping, the people are nice, every thing is very affordable. I much prefer grinding in Bangkok than Kuala Lumpur or Singapore or Manila. 

This was a short trip, a bit of a retreat for myself and after deducting expenses, I am up RM 3k or thereabouts.

Little Update

After several bad days, I finally have a good run again. I recently participated in a heads up challenge where I had to beat 3 players to win 8 times my money. The first time I put $400 on myself but lost in the second round. The second time I put $300 on myself and won all three so I got a $2100 profit but tipped the dealer $150. So far my heads up results this year is 7 wins, 3 losses.

Recently I played a hand in a cash game. Many questioned how I made the river call so let me explain it here. It may have looked like a fish call at the time, but I have every explanation in my analysis to justify my call.

I was in the hijack position and I looked down and saw AsJs

so I raised it to 5x. (yes our regular game 5x is a standard open). Button calls and a 2 others called. Flop came 3h4h4s

 It was checked to me and for some reason I decided not to cbet this flop. I checked and button lead out with a pretty big bet, about 15 bbs. (3/4 of the pot) Everyone else folded, I decided to just call. This guy called my preflop raise of 5bbs, unlikely he called me with a 4. Maybe A4, 45, but other 4s seem unlikely. If he hit the 3, I have 2 overs and maybe redraws on the turn. If he had a flush draw or straight draw, I am still ahead. He may have an overpair like 6s, 7s, even 10s, but I called. Turn was 9c

The 9 looks like a blank, doesn't complete any draws, but it doesn't improve my hand either, so I checked. He checked back. I now can safely eliminate 4 as a possible hand. 3 maybe, 6s-8s looks possible, 10s or better unlikely, 9s maybe check the house on the turn. Flush draw straight draw looks possible. Then river comes Ts

To me another blank unless he had 10s, but I already determined it was unlikely he had that hand. I was thinking maybe I can lead out and get a 3 to fold. Maybe even 6s-8s. If he given up on the draw he will fold them to me. And in case he was drawing with AhQh or AhKh, I can push him off the hand. So I bet out about 60% of the pot with 4 times that left in my stack. After a few seconds he asked me how much I had and shoved all in. What do I do? I don't think he has the 4. I don't think he would do that with 6s-8s. Only possible hand was nines full or busted draw. I studied his posture, his demeanour and speech. Didn't look super strong. Now my only concern was did he have AQh or AKh. I decided that if he had those hands he mostly would have reraised preflop. AJ should be good enough. I called and to everyone's amazement I showed the AJ and it was a good call. He showed Q6h. A reraise on the river looks really strong, but the story didn't make sense unless it was the 9s. I went with my read and won a hand I shouldn't have. 

Lately I am also preparing for a one day course I am conducting in two weeks time. I really enjoy coaching people in poker. I get to improve as I prepare the materials myself. I should go to bed soon. I rare day I can sleep before 4am. Good night. 

Ten "Commandments" of Poker 2 - You shall not make idols

Well continuing on my series on the play of words from the actual Ten Commandments, number two is Thou shall not make idols and I use it literally in the sense of poker.

I have seen too many aspiring poker players idolize a certain big name, Ivey, Dwan, Negreanu, etc etc. It is great to watch them play, learn from them, analyse their play, and read their books or blogs. But it is another thing to idolize them. These guys are great poker players, but they are not gods. Dressing like them, doing chip tricks, talk like them, placing your chips like them doesn't make you good. Some newbie players take their sweet time making simple decisions because it looked cool on TV. Sure, Durrr needs 2 minutes to think about the leveling on a half-a-million dollar pot, his brain churning inside trying to get every bit of info from his opponent during that time. But come on, $2 to call or not to call preflop with pocket fives, it ain't cool.

Negreanu is my favourite player. But when he was younger, his bankroll management was *$%@. Sorry Daniel, I love you but it is true. He had only about 3000 in his bankroll but went to play a $2500 buy in tournament where he won and became who he is today. Imagine if he didn't cash that day, how he would have ended up. But those who idolize him follow in his footsteps of crap shooting with money they don't have. We should learn his amazing reading skills, his way of playing the players, his hand analysis process, etc.

Some people idolize online phenoms like Isildur who rose to fame and fortune in a short period of time grinding from small stakes to be one of the highest earning, most feared online player. But not many have seen his decline and what I call self-implosion after a bad run of results. Sure he is a great player if not he wouldn't have gotten to where he is or was. Learning from them, their successes and mistakes is one thing, but to idolize them and think that you can follow in their footsteps all the way doesn't work. Isildur can pull off major bluffs because he has that level of thinking, the history with the opponent. A recent event in one of my friend's poker room, there is a newbie who saw someone call down a pot with K high and won. Since then he tried to call down pots with K high but to no success. This I call idolizing. He thought wow, how can this guy call down with K and win. I want to emulate that. But it is not as simple as just following what you see. There are so many other things you don't see.

Anyway, this post is kinda a blah post. But thanks for reading anyways.

Tonight's debrief

At the end of every session I would review myself so to continue to improve. One of my student has a great way to do this with three simple questions.

1. What went well :
Well not much. I played a couple of pretty well. I can comfort myself at the fact that I can play my third /fourth buy in well still. I felt I lost most hands due to bad luck. Queens lost twice, two pairs met with high two pairs, made my flush but he hit his fullhouse.

2. What can be done better (what went wrong) :
I lost almost 900bb in one session. To a table where I felt I had an edge against every one. I went there wanting to prove a point. Ended up losing badly. I think there has to be a cap where I say enough is enough.

3. What have I learned :
Max 300bb swing per session. Never go to a game holding a grudge. There will be bad swings and variance. Just have to minimise loss during this period.

Despite a bad session, I am actually still up for the week and for the month. I also have to learn that I cannot expect to win back a big chunk within the next session or two. But I target 4 more sessions to get me back on track.

Check raise me punk

Any poker grinder if you ask them what they hate, they will tell you bad beats, slow rolls, lost to fishy plays, etc. But one thing they encounter the most often and makes them cringe is the hated check raise.

Check raise is usually a sign of super strength. Waiting for your c bet then show you what I've got. Some may donk bet with a draw, blocker bet before the expected c bet. But a check raise is saying, bring it on. I am cool with putting more into the pot. I am most likely calling a shove.

Most of the time it is met by a long tank and sigh then a fold. But how do you use the check raise to your advantage? The check raise is the strongest weapon of the player oop (out of position). Lets say you flop a pair and flush draw. Monster. You have the choice of donk betting to try to take down the pot. Odds are you either succeed at taking it down (smallish pot)  or get called and having to continue your story on the turn if you miss. If the villain reraises you on the flop you might have to commit all of your chips on the flop.

Lets say instead of doing that you check and let the villain cbet. You raise. You might take down the pot right there. (bigger pot than the scenario before) it is not easy to call a c bet. Lets say he calls and you miss. You can still check and maybe get a check back because you check raised him before. Or if you feel like it, then open shove the turn.

If this works when you have a monster draw, occasionally you can also do this with air. I stress occasionally. Check raise is a show of strength. However please see the texture of the flop before committing your chips.

Good luck

Ten "Commandments" of Poker - 1. You shall have no other games than poker

The actual Biblical commandment is "You shall have no other gods before me". I am writing a series of the 10 commandments of poker kinda playing around with words of the biblical 10 commandments. So first one is:

1. YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GAMES THAN POKER

Well I have seen a lot of really great poker players do so well in poker, but after a while they disappear from the scene. What happened to them? Some would tell me they lost on casino games like baccarat, blackjack, some bet on horses, sports etc. Almost every poker player has a leak. But the rule is, don't have one, or at least keep it to a drip.

Poker rooms are often in the back areas of casinos, and they purposely design it that while you're waiting for a game, there are many tempting games around you for you to pass your time. GENTING, Malaysia's only legal casino runs poker tournaments once every few months. But they structure it in a way that you will spend 2-3 days at GENTING but play only 2 hours of poker a day. What do you do the rest of the time? They are banking on gambling. Free rooms my ass! I am paying for the rooms everytime I sit down at their tables!

A while back I set myself this rule. NO table games, NO gambling, NO sports betting. Most poker players have a gambler hidden inside. And for us to feel the excitement of gambling, we would bet big amounts, often one bet is like 1-2 buy ins or more. Imagine putting 100-200 big blinds on a hand that we don't have the edge!!! How negative EV is that?!?! We can grind for hours for a 10 big blind profit per hour, but would throw all that at a game that swings 100-200 bb every minute. That is just bad mathematics and poor bankroll management.

Stu Ungar, the best poker player of his time, and arguably the best poker player of ALL TIME, had debts from horseracing and a drug-use lifestyle. Although he would crush any table he played at, his poker winnings was not enough to cover his lifestyle choices and end up he would losing his life due to poor heart condition caused by long term drug use.

Hence boys and girls, YOU SHALL HAVE NO OTHER GAMES THAN POKER, period!

My actual data

I am recently compiling my poker stats to show some potential stakers my results. I am quite surprised and pleased with my stats.

Since March 1st till today June 23rd I have recorded 58 sessions and won 42 sessions, a 72.4% winning rate. In the sessions total I am up about 5100 bb.

More satisfying is in this four months I am playing less sessions but higher profits. With increasing profits of 200 bb more than the previous month.

Recently I just got offered to be staked and I am really excited about it and wish to do well so that I can play bigger games and win more money for my investors and myself.

I guess maybe my hard work is starting to pay off. Don't give up because if I can do it, you can too!

Back on track

I started this month on a hot streak. First week of June I was up 1000bb. Then second week I dropped about 400bb. Last 3 sessions I won back 900bb. In between there was a heads up session I lost to my best student so far for 50bb. That session basically hinged on one key hand where my pocket sevens lost to AJ in an all in pot. But otherwise my poker is back on track.

This month did I learn anything? I did. Players have tried to put my on tilt with their words and actions but to no avail. But lately I realised I get tilted when I see a player make a fish call and win. Also when players imply that I am cheap, I get affected also. So I am learning to not let it affect me.

My floating timing has improved and I set a few traps limping big pairs that have paid off. I have some donk bet moves now too haha. I am pretty happy with maximising value and pot control when I need to.

But what has gotten me here thus far? Humility. I am not good enough yet. Still need to improve more.

You reap what you sow

Wise words indeed. It goes with poker as well. I see so many players complain that why they keep losing but never put any effort in improving themselves. Honestly I put more money than effort into poker. I don't know over the years how much I spend on learning from my own mistakes when I could have just studied the game properly through books (which are readily available) or hired myself a coach. But I guess I was lazy or even too proud to learn and I ended up have to learn the hard way.

Thankfully at least I learned and improved. It is only the last 2 years that I have been able to profit from poker. I don't think I have covered my expenses yet but at least I am on my way. So if you're reading this, maybe you're on the right track. At least you are willing to read and learn from others. There are so many mistakes that can be avoided by just learning from others.

Put in the hours, review your hands, critique your own plays, study books, watch videos, learn calculations, etc. It will pay off sooner or later.

Happy fathers' day

How to play big pairs - AA, KK, QQ

Years ago when I was playing poker in Hong Kong, there was this irritating guy, always in a pink polo tee, kept on complaining that why I limp (just call) preflop with big pairs. Something about information blah blah. I really didn't like the guy so I never bothered to listen to him. One day he saw my aces got cracked by 29 of spades. Still I didn't listen to him.

Now I realised he meant well, but I didn't appreciate his tone and attitude. You almost always, ALMOST always have to raise your big pairs. There are a few reasons. 1. is to protect your hand and avoid people limping in with what I call "stupid hands" and crack your pair. ie. J2 and flop comes 22x. 2. Is to build some value into the pot so your premium hands, however rare they come by can make you some decent money. 3. You want those hands that are dominated by your pair to call you. ie. KQ, AQ, QJ, etc. These hands are almost drawing dead if you have a big pair.

The only FEW exceptions to the rule that I accept are:

1. You are almost certain it will be heads up.
One of the main purpose to raise with your pair is to chase away the stupid hands and get one or two to call you with most likely dominated hands. However if you see a guy raised and you are pretty sure no one else is going to call, and you can go heads up with him, then by all means, just call. Heads up with a big pair you will always be the big favourite to win. Also you have hidden your hand strength and more likely to get paid off if your opponent hit something.

2. There is a maniac on the table
Sometimes when you are lucky enough to have a maniac on the table that raises almost every hand, you can slow play your pairs preflop. If he is behind you, let him make the action and most likely many players will call behind him knowing his range is super wide. Then when it comes back to you, you can 3 bet and isolate the fish or just take down a decent pot preflop.

3. Under the gun
I don't recommend doing this always because it often backfires. However if you are under the gun, (next to the big blind), you can limp your big pairs hoping someone raises behind you and you can 3 bet. However if your table is super nitty, (all tight players) then raise. Some people think I don't want to win just the blinds with a big pair. Well, I always say, winning less is better than losing more.

4. You are super short stack
Well when you are losing you want to win back your losses. When you are short stacked and have a big pair, you can try to slow play them to get a big return on your remaining chips. Big pairs usually still hold up but now the risk vs reward is worth slow playing them. The other reason is if you are short stacked, raising usually doesn't get many hands to fold anyways. So just let the cards fall and hope you land on the winning end.

My first major tournament and cash (APT Cebu 2010)

I thought I try my hand on tournament poker too. Mind you, I was still a fish then. But little did I know hahaha. But confident with my recent winnings in Macau and full time exploits in HK, I thought I was a pro.

Cebu is a nice place. But the tournament was held at the Shangrila on Mactan. Which is far away from everything else other than the airport. But it was still fun to go. Beautiful beaches, nice food, friendlier people compared to Manila, although I did get mobbed by a bunch of kids trying to steal my wallet and money.

First tournament I went out, second was the NLHE which I got called by a crazy Japanese player who hit the river and knocked me out. The third event I joined was the KO Bounty. I don't really remember the tournament much but I remembered a few key hands.

Sitting across me on our table was this massive chip leader. On his right was the famous Celina Lin, (Pokerstars Pro Asia). The chip leader must have knocked out like 20 people and had at least 15 times more chips than I did. One key hand he open raised 3x, I shoved my 20+bb stack into him with AKo. He tanked and then folded. Then he asked me if I would shove with AK, I just smiled but Celina said, of course! All poker players do that. Grrrr...Celina, why did you have to tell him that hahaha....

Then our table got broken up and it was down to two tables left. I got moved to a table full of what looked like young online grinders from either Australia or the US. Clearly they knew each other and were rooting for one another. One hand on the small blind I had like Ax I can't remember. I open raised and he shoved back on the big blind. I tank folded and showed my ace. He looked at me and said "bad fold" and showed A5o. Smartass.

2 hands later I had KQ of clubs. I think I made a fish play here because they were like how did I win blah blah...I can't really remember the hand but I think I called an all in preflop but flopped a flush draw and hit the river. He had Ace high.

Final table! Woohoo, my first ever final table and I was seated on Celina's right. She is quite a nice pro. Very friendly and accommodating. She had a great presence about her. Anyway 7 spots paid, still 9 of us. I was one of the short stacks. Oh by the way, the massive chip leader who folded to my shove bubbled. Well, he still made money with his 20+ KOs.

Finally I was ITM! (in the money) First ever cash, in an official tournament. Short stack and UTG, I don't know why i just min raise with K9 spades. This Aussie kid from the last table had Aces and min raised me. I didn't have much left so I shoved and we were heads up. Funny thing was I flopped a flush draw but missed. 7th place finish for USD 947. Not bad for my first cash and first major event.

Ahhh, sweet memories.

My first big pot, USD 2k+ (Macau 2010)

Well, USD 2k pot is not a considered huge to most pros but considering my bankroll was just around the same, I doubled my bankroll in one hand, so it was a big deal to me then. Okay, I know poor bankroll management to be playing that high. But it was my first time playing in Macau when poker was just starting off there, so I thought I had to play.

Blinds were HKD 10-25, about USD 1.20-3. I was one the button and I had QQ. everybody limped the 25 to me on the button. Pot was already 175 ish so I raised to 200. Everybody freaking called except one guy folded. Came to the hijack position he shoved all in 295 total. Dang. It was an underraise, so I couldn't reraise. But how could I fold Queens there? So I called and everybody else did too. Pot is now about HKD 2800. 

Flop comes 266. Someone leads out like HKD 400 (yes the game was fishy at the time), I reraised to HKD 1500. Small blind calls, big blind goes all in for like HKD 1900. Donk bettor calls, I am like, no one is folding so I just called, small blind goes all in almost same size. Suddenly the pot is like HKD 10k. 

Turn is another 6. Heads up with the donk bettor. He bets like 5k into the pot with 300 behind. I am like what is going on??? I just called, river blank, check check. Yeah I know I should have put him all in, but anyhew....

Funny thing was all 9 players called preflop except one and he claimed he had 26o. Hahaha.

Poker is NOT a game, it is a SPORT

My dream is one day I can convince my parents especially my mum that I am really good at poker and it is what I enjoy doing, and that it is not a gambling game. Too many people especially where I am from don't understand poker. To them it is a game and it is luck based. But how many pros are out there making a living and some making a KILLING playing poker. We are talking millions of dollars every month! Are they really that lucky? Or are they just better than the rest.

Similarities to sport:
1. Skills are important. The more skills you have the better player you are. There are many footballers in the world, but why is Messi better than the rest? Because he can do almost anything in football. He can dribble, pass, shoot, head, cross, juggle the ball like it is part of his body.

2. Practice makes perfect. The more you practice, the better you get. You learn from experience. But I do know some players who never improve despite playing the game for years.

3. Studying helps. Some people think reading books is a waste of time. I once spent 20 minutes reading one poker book (Mike Caro's poker book of tells) and that same night it saved or made me $2000. Books help you to learn from others' mistakes and speed up your learning process.

4. Stamina is key. Grinders play long hours and if you play poker long enough you will notice that the most profitable time is late night. The players left are usually losing players trying to fight back their losses so they are tilted and prone to mistakes, or they are tired and similarly vulnerable to making wrong decisions. I once played 30 hours straight and I was 34 years old at the time.

5. Ability to outplay your opponents. If you are a better player than your opponent, you will beat them consistently in the long run. If the Brazilian football team plays 100 times against Taiwan (no offense to my Taiwanese friends), the Brazilians should win most of the time if not all. Maybe once in a while on their worse day, or bad refereeing decision, or bad luck, they might lose, but overall they will crush their opponents consistently.

6. Self discipline is a must. Like any sport, you need to be able to control yourself to be a good player. You may have to make some adjustments to your life, make some sacrifices, and keep your discipline.

Differences to sport:
1. Poker does not discriminate. You can be male or female, young or old, white black yellow or green, if you put the effort, you can be a great poker player.

2. Skills can be maintained for life. Doyle Brunson is a valid poker pro in his day, and even till today when he is 81 years old. You may lose some stamina but you can still be as sharp as a knife if you hone your skills.

3. The sport evolves over time. Football has remained the same over the millennia. The strategies are almost similar. However poker has changed and is constantly changing. If you don't change with the times you will lose out.

I have seen too many players too proud to stop and critique their own play. Stop to seek help or learn to improve. They keep losing but blame it on luck. Well, like any sport, having a coach really helps. Keeps you focused, helps you improve on your weaknesses, etc.

Why does Manchester United make millions a year? Well, football is not a game to them. It is a sport and a business. Well, poker can be a business too, if you're good enough. :D

My first post - a bit about myself

How did I get into poker? Simple answer: ROUNDERS.

If you haven't seen this movie, you should. I have watched it at least 5 times. Although as I progress as a player, I find more and more flaws in the poker strategy and logic of the movie. Teddy KGB, perceived to be this scary shark seem to be making really rookie mistakes. Anyhow, it is still a great movie that got me interested in poker.

1999. The first time I played poker. It was the poker boom and there were many fishes. I guess I was one of the faster swimmers so I still did okay despite being a newbie. I fell in love with the game but online wasn't my thing so I didn't really play that much. Off an on when I had the opportunity, like a business trip to Sydney, I would venture to the limit tables of the poker room and paid my dues. 

In 2005, I was living in Hong Kong when I found a poker group gathering twice or more a week in a small hotel. I started to go there quite often. Surely I was getting pummelled at first but the love of the game kept me going. I later returned to Hong Kong in 2008 and played poker non-stop for 3 months. I actually grinded from HKD 1000 and managed to survive 3 months on that starting bankroll, including my living expenses. Woah, I can make a living on this game!

Soon I would travel the world to play poker. Mostly it was tagged to some business trip of course so that I got my travel expenses covered. (There was a lack of live games where I lived) I would go to the Philippines, Korea, Macau, Australia etc to play poker. Surely I should be able to beat the games there if I could survive playing in Hong Kong right? WRONG. I lost, miserably. Why? A pro such as me still can be beaten like that? Is it variance? Is it luck? 

I hit the books, watched videos, reviewed my game, read Negreanu's blogs a lot. Well, he is my "idol" of poker. I will write an article about him later and how he inspired me. Long story short, I told myself, YOU ARE NOT A GOOD POKER PLAYER. I humbled myself. Why the pros can make millions from the game, and I can barely cover my costs? I must be doing something wrong. One day in Manila, suddenly all the theories and books made sense to me. I could predict the other players cards and moves before it was made. I made the correct bets and bluffs and crushed the table!

I then moved up the tables that night. I bought in 10000 Philippine pesos but cashed out 100,000. That was about USD 2.5k, not a lot but a lot for me at the time. However I must add, when I look back to myself at that point now, I was still a fish then. Maybe I am still a fish now if I look back to myself years from now. But at least I am a growing fish. 

This past 2 years I have been consistently making a living off playing poker. However I easily get side-tracked by other stuff, so this blog is also for me to focus my energies on poker and make sure I don't deviate. Lately I have been coaching a few players as well, so I will use this blog as some sharing of my progress and theirs and drop in some poker tests and theories for them and whoever else is reading this thing. :D