I played six hours last night and I won $10! I will take that considering the game wasn't all that good and I was stuck $225 at one point.
There was one hand on the night that stood out. The hand teaches a lot about image and position. There were two people who limped in (we were playing 7 handed) and I limped on the button with 78. The big blind, a tough but overaggressive player made it $15 more in the big blind. One person called and I saw a flop on the button. The effective stacks were about $175. I called because I knew both players very well and I had position. The raiser raises a lot of pots and had a wide range, and the caller is a pretty ABC regular who gives my bets super respect. Knowing what I know about them and having position I didn't think I was in a terrible spot. And 78 is not a bad hand at all.
The Flop came Q 4 2 and both players checked. I thought about taking a stab at it right there but the preflop check was a little bit suspicious in my opinion from the big blind. He continuation bets 80%+ of the time when he raises and I thought he could be slow playing something. I checked. The Turn came a 9 and it put two clubs on board. Again they both checked. At this point I am 60% sure that the BB has missed this flop with a hand like AK, AJ, KJ or maybe has something like 66 and just wants to show it down. And I am 90% the other player doesn't have a hand that will call. I bet $35 and the BB called after thinking for just a few seconds. The other player mucked and the 4 of clubs hit the river. The BB checked to me again. At this point I was about 80% sure I could take the pot. I really didn't think he would open check to me with anything decent three streets in a row. In addition, the board pairing 4's and putting a third club out there could earn a fold from a hand like 66. I bet $75 and he went in the tank for a long time. Now I was really concerned he had the 66 or 77 type of hand that would make a crying call. But after about 30 seconds he folded and showed AQ! I was really surprised he had that hand. I wasn't so much surprised that he would fold it to me on that river, but that he played it so passively the whole way. I asked if he wanted to see my hand and he said yes and I showed. The whole table gasped and could not believe it. One guy before I turned it over said "100% he has two clubs in his hand." The BB actually smiled and applauded my play and said "I didn't think you had that move in your repertoire." Another player said "what did you have?" when the cards got swept away by the dealer. I answered, "I had the button." Two or three people at the table were absolutely stunned. They couldn't believe that I would make that move. What they don't realize is that I do make moves like this every now and again. They just don't know because it works most of the time. I do it because I have such a straight forward, conservative image. And that image is correctly applied for the most part. I rarely make pure bluffs like this. But I do in certain spots. When the turn of events and my table image makes it a profitable play, I give it a shot. I could probably do it even more than I do now successfully but I also am trying to play a low variance style these days to protect my bankroll.
The hand is a great way to illustrate some of the old wisdom that says Texas Hold Em is about position and people. If you know the people you are playing with and you play in position you are starting off with an edge. That play is so much tougher to make against unknown players and even harder out of position. The beauty is that after hands like that you can go right back to playing solid hands and sometimes they will pay you off because they remember that play. And sure enough not even 20 minutes later I rivered a set of 5's against the same player after the flop and turn went check check. I made a $40 bet and he called instantly and my three 5's took the pot. Maybe he had a really good hand, but after checking three times to me again I don't think he was that strong. That bluff was still in his mind and we would have paid me off with a wide range there.
Yesterday I may have only won $10 in poker but I had one of the sweeter sports bet victories of my life when the Clippers came back from a 27 point 4th quarter deficit to win outright on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies. I had written the game off and if I was at home I wouldn't even have witnessed it as I would have changed the channel and not turned it back. But the game was on at the poker club and I got to witness history. As I made a comeback from $225 in the hole to $10 ahead the Clippers made and awesome come back as well!
Tonight I am taking the night off from poker. I played about 75-80 hours in April and it was a good month. I will take tonight off and jump head first into a new month tomorrow rested and ready to go. Tonight I will kick back and watch the Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks play basketball. And I will be rooting for the over!
I am three weeks and 21 days into the 52 week, 365 day quest and it is going well so far. I am winning and feel good. Bring on week four!
Disciplined Degenerate
Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 29, 2012
14 hours of poker and few sports bets
I didn't post a blog yesterday because I was at the poker table from 11:30 AM until 1:30AM the next morning. I played a nice little 14 hour session. I don't typically play sessions that long. In fact, this was probably my 3rd or 4th longest session ever. I don't play that long very often because I have a real job for one, and secondly, because it is not usually something I want to do. I like being fresh when playing poker and playing long sessions just usually is not the best way to keep your mind fresh. About a year ago I did play a 24.25 hour poker session without stopping. I will share that story with you in a future blog.
Yesterday was Player Appreciation Day at the poker club I play at. They were giving away thousands of dollars in cash and prizes and there was free food and lots of games. I started the No Limit game with three other players at 11:30 AM. About 5 hands into the session I flopped a straight against a player who had two pair and I was ahead, and was ahead for the next 14 hours!
The cards treated me well and over 14 hours I played very well with the exception of 5 or 6 hands.
Here are some of the notable hands of the day. The good, the bad, and the unlucky:
The Good:
I check raised a man on the turn to $60 on a board of A 10 5 4 when I held 22 in my hand. I have played with the guy many times I knew he would fold without the nuts. And he did.
I busted two players with AQ on a board of A J 8. We got it all in on the flop and one player had a straight draw and one player had a flush draw. My hand held and I won a $450 pot.
My JJ beat 1010 on a board of 5 4 5 4 8. My opponent tried to bet me off the hand and I read the situation right and called and won.
I flopped a set of tens and busted a player who had top pair and paid me off when I raised him all in on the turn. He was drawing dead when we got the money all in.
I had 8 10 and called a $21 bet on a flop of 7 9 A. A Jack hit the turn and my opponent had J 9. My straight held and I busted him.
The Bad:
I paid off the nut flush when all I had was top pair and top kicker. I should have known he would not have fired the turn and river without a better hand and the hand cost me $175.
I paid off another nut flush when I had the second nut flush (4 suits on board) when I was sure he was bluffing. That was a $150 mistake.
Made a $25 float on the turn and $60 bluff on the river against a player who pretty much never folds a pair. I should have known not to bluff him.
The Unlucky:
I called a player's all in bet with JJ on a board of 2 6 9 (one heart) and it came heart-heart on turn and river and my opponent showed 45 of hearts and took it down.
The Lucky:
I won $150 in a player appreciation giveaway raffle! Only about 10 prizes were given away to the 60-75 people that were in the building at the time of the drawings. I felt very fortunate to get the free $150.
After 13 hours of No Limit Hold Em and one hour of Omaha 8 or better I ended up winning around $700 (when you include the $150 raffle).
This was a nice win since after my winning streak I had back to back $200 losses (Thursday and Friday night. I didn't blog about Friday night's $200 loss.)
Sports Betting:
As if 14 hours of poker was not enough gamble for me, I also had several sports bets on Saturday. I went 2-0 in the NBA. I bet the under in the Heat Knicks game and won that one, and I teased the Magic and OKC and Dallas over. I hit both of those for a 2-0 day. Unfortunately I lost the money won on those two with two baseball losses. I bet under on Oakland and Baltimore and it went over and I bet over in the Boston Chicago game and it went under. Guess I had those backwards. The good news is that I am back in the black for the basketball season! Dating back to the beginning of the season now I am 96-92 overall (95-89 against the spread and 1-3 on teaser bets) and I am up 0.35 units on basketball! I know that is incredibly small but when you consider I was 20-32 and down nearly 15 units at one point, I am very happy with where I am at. On the year I am 6-2 on bets more than one unit. That is the difference right now and the main reason I am ahead. Tonight I have the Clippers +5.5 against the Grizzlies.
Last night when I went to sleep I was very tired and thinking that I would probably take today off from poker. I should have known better. I should have known that I would be headed to the poker room by about 5:00 pm. I better get going.
Disciplined Degenerate
Yesterday was Player Appreciation Day at the poker club I play at. They were giving away thousands of dollars in cash and prizes and there was free food and lots of games. I started the No Limit game with three other players at 11:30 AM. About 5 hands into the session I flopped a straight against a player who had two pair and I was ahead, and was ahead for the next 14 hours!
The cards treated me well and over 14 hours I played very well with the exception of 5 or 6 hands.
Here are some of the notable hands of the day. The good, the bad, and the unlucky:
The Good:
I check raised a man on the turn to $60 on a board of A 10 5 4 when I held 22 in my hand. I have played with the guy many times I knew he would fold without the nuts. And he did.
I busted two players with AQ on a board of A J 8. We got it all in on the flop and one player had a straight draw and one player had a flush draw. My hand held and I won a $450 pot.
My JJ beat 1010 on a board of 5 4 5 4 8. My opponent tried to bet me off the hand and I read the situation right and called and won.
I flopped a set of tens and busted a player who had top pair and paid me off when I raised him all in on the turn. He was drawing dead when we got the money all in.
I had 8 10 and called a $21 bet on a flop of 7 9 A. A Jack hit the turn and my opponent had J 9. My straight held and I busted him.
The Bad:
I paid off the nut flush when all I had was top pair and top kicker. I should have known he would not have fired the turn and river without a better hand and the hand cost me $175.
I paid off another nut flush when I had the second nut flush (4 suits on board) when I was sure he was bluffing. That was a $150 mistake.
Made a $25 float on the turn and $60 bluff on the river against a player who pretty much never folds a pair. I should have known not to bluff him.
The Unlucky:
I called a player's all in bet with JJ on a board of 2 6 9 (one heart) and it came heart-heart on turn and river and my opponent showed 45 of hearts and took it down.
The Lucky:
I won $150 in a player appreciation giveaway raffle! Only about 10 prizes were given away to the 60-75 people that were in the building at the time of the drawings. I felt very fortunate to get the free $150.
After 13 hours of No Limit Hold Em and one hour of Omaha 8 or better I ended up winning around $700 (when you include the $150 raffle).
This was a nice win since after my winning streak I had back to back $200 losses (Thursday and Friday night. I didn't blog about Friday night's $200 loss.)
Sports Betting:
As if 14 hours of poker was not enough gamble for me, I also had several sports bets on Saturday. I went 2-0 in the NBA. I bet the under in the Heat Knicks game and won that one, and I teased the Magic and OKC and Dallas over. I hit both of those for a 2-0 day. Unfortunately I lost the money won on those two with two baseball losses. I bet under on Oakland and Baltimore and it went over and I bet over in the Boston Chicago game and it went under. Guess I had those backwards. The good news is that I am back in the black for the basketball season! Dating back to the beginning of the season now I am 96-92 overall (95-89 against the spread and 1-3 on teaser bets) and I am up 0.35 units on basketball! I know that is incredibly small but when you consider I was 20-32 and down nearly 15 units at one point, I am very happy with where I am at. On the year I am 6-2 on bets more than one unit. That is the difference right now and the main reason I am ahead. Tonight I have the Clippers +5.5 against the Grizzlies.
Last night when I went to sleep I was very tired and thinking that I would probably take today off from poker. I should have known better. I should have known that I would be headed to the poker room by about 5:00 pm. I better get going.
Disciplined Degenerate
Friday, April 27, 2012
Slowrolled back to reality
Last night the Nationals had a 1-0 lead in the 8th inning. That should have been a lock with their pitching staff! But alas, Mark Kotsay, the former Oakland Athletic of all people ripped a 2 run double into the alley and I lost my only baseball bet of the day. I only have one more day to wait for my NBA fix so I decided on a little parlay today in baseball. I rarely bet parlays, but they are fun. Especially when they hit.
Tonight I have the following 4 team parlay:
Oakland A's +110 (Oakland has the best record against the O's in the past decade in the AL)
Phillies -260 (Roy Halladay pitching. That is a lock right?)
Angels -152 (Weaver pitching, plus the Angels gotta win a game sometime)
Nationals +175 (The Nationals are 14-5 with the Majors best pitching and they are getting +175? Yes please)
This parlay pays 11 to 1. I bet one unit and I am splitting the action with my brother. So 5.5 units if I win and just a measly half unit if I lose.
I also have the under on Oakland and Baltimore at -120 (8) and the Nationals straight up in that +175 spot against the Dodgers.
Last nigh my poker winning streak came to an end in a terrible way. And I was starting to wonder when it would happen. It seems like historically when I have had winning streaks and ran hot the good times usually end with a bang. Either a big loss or a brutal beat. Last night was worse than either. My single biggest pet peeve in poker is slow rolling. I absolutely hate it! I think it is terrible to do to someone and makes for a poor environment in a poker game. I understand Meta Game and all of that and I won't say that I am a guy who has never shown a bluff with the intention of putting someone on tilt, but to me slow rolling in a pot of any significance is just scummy. Last night I got slowrolled by a scumbag.
Last night I was playing with one of the best poker players in Northern California. When I say one of the best I don't mean based on his results. But in terms of natural talent this guy is as good as it gets. His only problem is that he has a bit too much gamble and he has absolutely no steam control. He can grind out $5K over a month of solid play and literally dump it all back in a steam filled tilt session lasting one hour. It is actually quite pathetic to see. It is a waste of pure talent.
Let's call this guy Jimmy for the purposes of this blog. I rarely get involved in big pots with this guy because he does play well and I don't have an ego and feel a need to go after the best like many suckers do. But when you play with someone long enough it will happen. And when he is on tilt there is an edge to be gained. Last night Jimmy was losing in the game and getting a bit unlucky and was definitely tilting. He wasn't full blown gone yet but It was possibly coming. For that reason I called a $10 raise out of the blinds when he raised with 78 knowing that if I hit a big flop I could probably get him for a nice pot. At this point in the night I had been playing about 3 hours and was only stuck about $50. I would have been ahead had I not lost to a one outer earlier in the night when my trips lost to the case Queen on the river. But I was playing well and under control. The flop came K 7 8. I checked and Jimmy bet $20. Now I don't have the nuts here but it is pretty darn good, even better when you consider his range at this point. I raised to about $60 and Jimmy pushed me all in and I of course called. The turn and river came a 9 and 5 which I did not love but felt pretty confident as I tabled my cards. Jimmy sat there and stared at the board for about 5 or 6 seconds after the dealer announced "Two pair, sevens and eights." Then Jimmy says "Two pair?" and turns over KK for top set. Jimmy and I have no bad blood or history together before that hand. In fact I would call our relationship friendly. I have no idea why he decided to do this to me. He knew what I had and he knew what he had, and he led me to believe that I won the pot. Anyone who has played live poker knows it is extremely bad etiquiite to do what he did there. Even half of the table mumbled under their breath what an asshole move it was. Maybe he thought he could get me on Tilt? Maybe he thinks I will go on Tilt like he does and he can get my money because he knows the only way he can get it otherwise is to cooler me? I am not sure. But our relationship took a serious downturn. And I will tell you this...I will slowroll him at some point in the future. It might be in three days it might be in three years, but I will not forget what he did. With things like this, yes, I hold grudges. Whatever way I can, I will have my moment. And he failed at getting me steamed up or tilted. He failed at getting me to buy in $500 and play every hand. I don't tilt Jimmy. I don't lose control. That is why I stay in the game and win month after month and pay my bills and don't have gambling debts. I win. Just because you have no control it doesn't mean others are just like you. I am the Disciplined Degenerate my friend. Discipline is real no matter the fact that you have never seen it. I will see you again scumbag. And you, unlike me, will go on Tilt.
Disciplined Degenerate
Tonight I have the following 4 team parlay:
Oakland A's +110 (Oakland has the best record against the O's in the past decade in the AL)
Phillies -260 (Roy Halladay pitching. That is a lock right?)
Angels -152 (Weaver pitching, plus the Angels gotta win a game sometime)
Nationals +175 (The Nationals are 14-5 with the Majors best pitching and they are getting +175? Yes please)
This parlay pays 11 to 1. I bet one unit and I am splitting the action with my brother. So 5.5 units if I win and just a measly half unit if I lose.
I also have the under on Oakland and Baltimore at -120 (8) and the Nationals straight up in that +175 spot against the Dodgers.
Last nigh my poker winning streak came to an end in a terrible way. And I was starting to wonder when it would happen. It seems like historically when I have had winning streaks and ran hot the good times usually end with a bang. Either a big loss or a brutal beat. Last night was worse than either. My single biggest pet peeve in poker is slow rolling. I absolutely hate it! I think it is terrible to do to someone and makes for a poor environment in a poker game. I understand Meta Game and all of that and I won't say that I am a guy who has never shown a bluff with the intention of putting someone on tilt, but to me slow rolling in a pot of any significance is just scummy. Last night I got slowrolled by a scumbag.
Last night I was playing with one of the best poker players in Northern California. When I say one of the best I don't mean based on his results. But in terms of natural talent this guy is as good as it gets. His only problem is that he has a bit too much gamble and he has absolutely no steam control. He can grind out $5K over a month of solid play and literally dump it all back in a steam filled tilt session lasting one hour. It is actually quite pathetic to see. It is a waste of pure talent.
Let's call this guy Jimmy for the purposes of this blog. I rarely get involved in big pots with this guy because he does play well and I don't have an ego and feel a need to go after the best like many suckers do. But when you play with someone long enough it will happen. And when he is on tilt there is an edge to be gained. Last night Jimmy was losing in the game and getting a bit unlucky and was definitely tilting. He wasn't full blown gone yet but It was possibly coming. For that reason I called a $10 raise out of the blinds when he raised with 78 knowing that if I hit a big flop I could probably get him for a nice pot. At this point in the night I had been playing about 3 hours and was only stuck about $50. I would have been ahead had I not lost to a one outer earlier in the night when my trips lost to the case Queen on the river. But I was playing well and under control. The flop came K 7 8. I checked and Jimmy bet $20. Now I don't have the nuts here but it is pretty darn good, even better when you consider his range at this point. I raised to about $60 and Jimmy pushed me all in and I of course called. The turn and river came a 9 and 5 which I did not love but felt pretty confident as I tabled my cards. Jimmy sat there and stared at the board for about 5 or 6 seconds after the dealer announced "Two pair, sevens and eights." Then Jimmy says "Two pair?" and turns over KK for top set. Jimmy and I have no bad blood or history together before that hand. In fact I would call our relationship friendly. I have no idea why he decided to do this to me. He knew what I had and he knew what he had, and he led me to believe that I won the pot. Anyone who has played live poker knows it is extremely bad etiquiite to do what he did there. Even half of the table mumbled under their breath what an asshole move it was. Maybe he thought he could get me on Tilt? Maybe he thinks I will go on Tilt like he does and he can get my money because he knows the only way he can get it otherwise is to cooler me? I am not sure. But our relationship took a serious downturn. And I will tell you this...I will slowroll him at some point in the future. It might be in three days it might be in three years, but I will not forget what he did. With things like this, yes, I hold grudges. Whatever way I can, I will have my moment. And he failed at getting me steamed up or tilted. He failed at getting me to buy in $500 and play every hand. I don't tilt Jimmy. I don't lose control. That is why I stay in the game and win month after month and pay my bills and don't have gambling debts. I win. Just because you have no control it doesn't mean others are just like you. I am the Disciplined Degenerate my friend. Discipline is real no matter the fact that you have never seen it. I will see you again scumbag. And you, unlike me, will go on Tilt.
Disciplined Degenerate
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Mixed Games and Prop Bets
Last night I got to the card room and there was a very juicy No Limit Game going. There were action players and deep stacks. Unfortunately there was only one No Limit game going and there was a waiting list of 4 people. At this card room being 4th on the waiting list could mean 45 minutes to an hour wait or it could be several hours. The way this game was looking it was going to be a bit of a wait. There was one seat open in the Omaha 8 or Better limit game so I sat down while waiting for No Limit to open up.
I have very little experience at Omaha. Last year I maybe played 10-20 hours total. I know the fundamentals and don't think I am an underdog in the game, but I also don't know that I have any real edge. But I also like playing some of the other games as I believe it helps your overall poker game and you never know when the poker landscape will change. Thanks to TV, Big Bet poker and Hold em probably is not going anywhere, but it is always good to have an idea how to play other games. It is also good for nights like this where my only choice is to wait and sit or wait and play. I played.
When you are running good you are running good. Despite modest experience and knowledge I had a very, very nice session. The structure to the game was $2-4, $2-8. This means preflop can bet and raise between $2 and $4 and between $2 and $8 after the turn. In about 1 hour and 15 minutes I managed to win about $160 playing Omaha. I had a couple of hoggers (meaning winning the whole pot, not splitting) and hardly lost a pot that I played past the flop. In Omaha it is hard for high hands that are the flopped nuts to hold but they held for me tonight. I flopped three jacks and they held (no low came), I flopped a straight and it held, I made a straight on a paired board with a possible flush and it won, and I even made a few lows in nice pots. The table decided to switch the game to Dealer's choice which brought in games like Stud and Draw. I have played these games enough to know what I am doing as well, though I am not super experienced. I was still third up on the list so I agreed and managed to play break even poker at Dealers choice for about an hour.
One interesting hand came up in 5 card draw high low. I was dealt a 5 6 7 8 of spades along with a red jack. This is a great hand for a number of reasons, I have a flush draw, a straight draw, and straight flush draw. But a straight counts for a low as well and any Ace, 2, 3, 4, 9, and even 10 would give me a decent low. The odds of being dealt a straight flush in 5 draw is 65,000 to 1. I was pretty happy to be 4 to a straight flush. I did not make the straight flush but I drew the King of spades for a flush to win the high, and King high also won me the low as my opponents were paired up. I won the whole pot.
It was about two and a half hours before I got in the No Limit game and it was getting late and I was already getting a bit tired. In addition I am still not over my cold yet so I didn't plan on playing long. I ended up playing for just over and hour and had to get home to get some sleep. I am still trying to get healthy and had a long day at work ahead of me. I managed to scrape out a small win in No Limit thanks to a decent pot with 10 10. Overall for the night I profited a little bit over $200.
That makes 11 out of the last 12 sessions as winning sessions (including Omaha and Mixed games) in the poker room. It is hard not to want to play late and play as much as possible when running this well. Often on Thursdays I play pretty late as I know the next day is Friday and I am close to the weekend where I can sleep in (usually). Also, there is a really cute girl who deals on Thursday nights! So I may be putting in a long session tonight (long being 4 or 5 hours on a weeknight/worknight).
One interesting prop came up last night with a friend of mine who is also a dealer at the club I play at. As many of you may know poker players often like to combat occasional boredom by making prop bets on the flops. This includes betting on certain cards coming out and certain suits coming out on the flop. My friend and I play these props when we are playing poker together and have recently started playing when he is dealing. We just keep track of the results and when the night is over we settle up. It is not for big stakes. It is just for fun and to make things a little interesting when you are not in a pot. My card is the Ace of hearts. If the Ace of hearts is the middle card on the flop I win $3, if it is on the outside I win $1. If it is on the outside but the whole board is suited in hearts I win $2. If it is in the middle suited I win $5. If it is in the middle suited with Royal cards--meaning Ace of Hearts in the middle and any combination of KQJ10 in hearts--I win $10 and if it is suited in royal cards on the outside I win $5. If your card comes in the middle with a pair around it you win the value of the pair, plus $3. So if the flop come 3 A 3 and it was the Ace of hearts I would win $6. I win $3 for the card in the middle plus three more dollars for the pair of three's. If your card is on the outside with a pair you win half of the value. So if the flop was 10 10 A I would win $6. I win one dollar for the Ace of hearts on the outside and $5 for half of the 10. Make sense? Well over two nights my buddy had been absolutely smoking me in props. He was up $18 to $2 over about 5 or 6 hours of him dealing while I was playing. So of course I started complaining and whining and sure enough right when my complaining got to its peak the flop came out KAK with the Ace of hearts in the middle! That was a $13 score for me! Not big money but it just goes to teach this valuable gambling lesson: COMPLAIN AND THINGS WILL TURN. Actually the lesson is patience. In the long run the random luck and variance typically evens out. But alas, when he outflops me $10 to $0 tonight I will probably start complaining again.
Only sports bet tonight is the Nationals at -111 against the Padres. I will be watching it at the poker club and looking for the Ace of Hearts in the middle!
Disciplined Degenerate
I have very little experience at Omaha. Last year I maybe played 10-20 hours total. I know the fundamentals and don't think I am an underdog in the game, but I also don't know that I have any real edge. But I also like playing some of the other games as I believe it helps your overall poker game and you never know when the poker landscape will change. Thanks to TV, Big Bet poker and Hold em probably is not going anywhere, but it is always good to have an idea how to play other games. It is also good for nights like this where my only choice is to wait and sit or wait and play. I played.
When you are running good you are running good. Despite modest experience and knowledge I had a very, very nice session. The structure to the game was $2-4, $2-8. This means preflop can bet and raise between $2 and $4 and between $2 and $8 after the turn. In about 1 hour and 15 minutes I managed to win about $160 playing Omaha. I had a couple of hoggers (meaning winning the whole pot, not splitting) and hardly lost a pot that I played past the flop. In Omaha it is hard for high hands that are the flopped nuts to hold but they held for me tonight. I flopped three jacks and they held (no low came), I flopped a straight and it held, I made a straight on a paired board with a possible flush and it won, and I even made a few lows in nice pots. The table decided to switch the game to Dealer's choice which brought in games like Stud and Draw. I have played these games enough to know what I am doing as well, though I am not super experienced. I was still third up on the list so I agreed and managed to play break even poker at Dealers choice for about an hour.
One interesting hand came up in 5 card draw high low. I was dealt a 5 6 7 8 of spades along with a red jack. This is a great hand for a number of reasons, I have a flush draw, a straight draw, and straight flush draw. But a straight counts for a low as well and any Ace, 2, 3, 4, 9, and even 10 would give me a decent low. The odds of being dealt a straight flush in 5 draw is 65,000 to 1. I was pretty happy to be 4 to a straight flush. I did not make the straight flush but I drew the King of spades for a flush to win the high, and King high also won me the low as my opponents were paired up. I won the whole pot.
It was about two and a half hours before I got in the No Limit game and it was getting late and I was already getting a bit tired. In addition I am still not over my cold yet so I didn't plan on playing long. I ended up playing for just over and hour and had to get home to get some sleep. I am still trying to get healthy and had a long day at work ahead of me. I managed to scrape out a small win in No Limit thanks to a decent pot with 10 10. Overall for the night I profited a little bit over $200.
That makes 11 out of the last 12 sessions as winning sessions (including Omaha and Mixed games) in the poker room. It is hard not to want to play late and play as much as possible when running this well. Often on Thursdays I play pretty late as I know the next day is Friday and I am close to the weekend where I can sleep in (usually). Also, there is a really cute girl who deals on Thursday nights! So I may be putting in a long session tonight (long being 4 or 5 hours on a weeknight/worknight).
One interesting prop came up last night with a friend of mine who is also a dealer at the club I play at. As many of you may know poker players often like to combat occasional boredom by making prop bets on the flops. This includes betting on certain cards coming out and certain suits coming out on the flop. My friend and I play these props when we are playing poker together and have recently started playing when he is dealing. We just keep track of the results and when the night is over we settle up. It is not for big stakes. It is just for fun and to make things a little interesting when you are not in a pot. My card is the Ace of hearts. If the Ace of hearts is the middle card on the flop I win $3, if it is on the outside I win $1. If it is on the outside but the whole board is suited in hearts I win $2. If it is in the middle suited I win $5. If it is in the middle suited with Royal cards--meaning Ace of Hearts in the middle and any combination of KQJ10 in hearts--I win $10 and if it is suited in royal cards on the outside I win $5. If your card comes in the middle with a pair around it you win the value of the pair, plus $3. So if the flop come 3 A 3 and it was the Ace of hearts I would win $6. I win $3 for the card in the middle plus three more dollars for the pair of three's. If your card is on the outside with a pair you win half of the value. So if the flop was 10 10 A I would win $6. I win one dollar for the Ace of hearts on the outside and $5 for half of the 10. Make sense? Well over two nights my buddy had been absolutely smoking me in props. He was up $18 to $2 over about 5 or 6 hours of him dealing while I was playing. So of course I started complaining and whining and sure enough right when my complaining got to its peak the flop came out KAK with the Ace of hearts in the middle! That was a $13 score for me! Not big money but it just goes to teach this valuable gambling lesson: COMPLAIN AND THINGS WILL TURN. Actually the lesson is patience. In the long run the random luck and variance typically evens out. But alas, when he outflops me $10 to $0 tonight I will probably start complaining again.
Only sports bet tonight is the Nationals at -111 against the Padres. I will be watching it at the poker club and looking for the Ace of Hearts in the middle!
Disciplined Degenerate
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Sick But Winning
Well the degenerate in me won out last night and I managed to make it down to the cardroom at about 9:00 PM after napping and watching TV most of the day. I felt a little better and to be honest I really wanted to get out of the house for a bit.
Very early in the session I picked up 99 and called a raise to $5 in the small blind. I saw the flop four handed. The flop came A97 and I was up against A7. We got it all in on the flop and I doubled up early. My stack was up to about $400. The game then got shorthanded and I almost got up and left but stayed as the lineup was good, even 5 handed. I proceeded to not win a pot for about 45 minutes. And not winning a pot for 45 minutes 5 handed is expensive and frustrating. I gave back almost all of my profit and my stack was down to $230. I was getting upset but I didn't let it effect my play. Sure enough the odds evened out and I won some hands. I made top two pair with AQ for a good pot. I picked up JJ twice and won decent pots and just like that I was back up to a $400 stack. It could have been a real big night when I flopped trip 8's against AA but a third heart on the river slowed me down. I won the pot but it could have been huge if not slowed down by the potential flush.
So I more than doubled my buy in after 3 hours of play. The game was still decent but I was happy to get back up to a nice win after losing 45 minutes straight shorthanded. Additionally I still did not feel that great and it felt like a good time to get out.
It was a good day in baseball as well as I won 2 of my 3 games for a profit of just under a unit. I would take that all year in sports!
No action today in baseball. I am leaning towards the Seattle Whitesox game for an under bet (8). But I will probably lay off unless there is some late line movement. I am really excited to bet the NBA playoffs on Saturday!
For tonight, I will just stick to poker and try to keep the winning streak going.
Disciplined Degenerate
Very early in the session I picked up 99 and called a raise to $5 in the small blind. I saw the flop four handed. The flop came A97 and I was up against A7. We got it all in on the flop and I doubled up early. My stack was up to about $400. The game then got shorthanded and I almost got up and left but stayed as the lineup was good, even 5 handed. I proceeded to not win a pot for about 45 minutes. And not winning a pot for 45 minutes 5 handed is expensive and frustrating. I gave back almost all of my profit and my stack was down to $230. I was getting upset but I didn't let it effect my play. Sure enough the odds evened out and I won some hands. I made top two pair with AQ for a good pot. I picked up JJ twice and won decent pots and just like that I was back up to a $400 stack. It could have been a real big night when I flopped trip 8's against AA but a third heart on the river slowed me down. I won the pot but it could have been huge if not slowed down by the potential flush.
So I more than doubled my buy in after 3 hours of play. The game was still decent but I was happy to get back up to a nice win after losing 45 minutes straight shorthanded. Additionally I still did not feel that great and it felt like a good time to get out.
It was a good day in baseball as well as I won 2 of my 3 games for a profit of just under a unit. I would take that all year in sports!
No action today in baseball. I am leaning towards the Seattle Whitesox game for an under bet (8). But I will probably lay off unless there is some late line movement. I am really excited to bet the NBA playoffs on Saturday!
For tonight, I will just stick to poker and try to keep the winning streak going.
Disciplined Degenerate
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Tonight will I be disciplined or a degenerate?
Last night I was excited to get to the poker table as I had won 7 of 8 sessions. I didn't have giant wins but chopping out $100 on average each night is fine with me. I got to the card room and there was one seat open in Omaha 8 and in one in $1/2 No Limit. That was an easy choice and I bought into No Limit for $200. The game was playing pretty big, with an average stack of about $450. The game was full of regulars, and there were definitely some soft spots. I thought of buying in for $300 but went with $200.
Early on the game was loose and most pots were being raised preflop. I had a drunk guy on my left who seemed to be playing bad and was stuck. I saw him pay off a $50 bet on the river into a pot of $50 with K2 on a K 7 10 J 3 board. And this guy normally plays tight and cautious. I then saw him raise with a 42 offsuit and the game was looking good. On the first orbit I was dealt KK and I decided to do something I almost never do, I limped in mid position with it, hoping for a back raise. Of course, no raise came and I saw the flop 4 handed. The flop came 9 7 5 and it was checked to me. I bet $10 and got a call by Mr. 42 on my left. A third club, which was an Ace hit the turn. This was not a good card but I did have the King of clubs. I checked and he bet $20 and I called. River bricked and after check check on the river he showed 97 and took it down. I obviously didn't play the hand well but I only lost $32 on the hand and the way the game was going and looking it was no big deal.
The night ended up being a real grind and I couldn't get much going. I won a decent pot with AQ when I called a raise and saw a flop 4 handed and flopped an Ace. I also made a move with 46 suited in hearts on the button preflop and got 4 callers (ouch!). I have a real tight reputation at this club and often I will make moves like this preflop in late position. Most of the time I will get one caller and take it down with a C-bet on the flop. They all just assume it is me with AK or a big pair again and usually fold. I am not quite so tight as people think. Anyway, the flop came K 8 9 which was about as bad a flop as I can get. Without flopping any pair or draw in a pot with this many people I will almost always shut it down here and settle for the $15 loss (the amount I raised preflop). However when everyone checked to me, as you would expect them to, I just had a feeling I could take this hand down. With only $110 left behind I bet $50 and they all folded. That was a good example of using my reputation and position to pick up $60.
After that I picked up a lot of rags, folded quite a bit and missed a few draws. I had 10 10 and raised one hand and had to fold on the flop when both callers flopped a straight on me and went crazy betting. The flop was 5 6 7 and I was up against 34 and 89. I started feeling pretty crappy a couple hours into the session. It was only midnight and I often play till 1:00 am or a little later on weeknights but I had a major headache and a sore throat. I was down to around $110 and picked up JJ just when I was considering leaving for the night. After a couple of limpers I made it $15 to go and got one caller. The flop was 9 4 5. A pretty loose player with lots of gamble called me. I bet about $35 and he called fairly quickly after asking me how much I had left. The turn was an 8 and he checked. This did not bode well for 89 or 67 but I felt like against this guys range I am usually still ahead and put in my last $60 dollars. He snapped called me as fast as possible but at the same time said "you win." I had no idea what he had. The river was a King and I turned over my two Jacks and he mucked. He said he had A9. So after that hand I was slightly ahead for the night and considering I wasn't feeling well I decided to book a win. I played one more orbit and left ahead $31.
Last night I went 1-1 in my sports bets and lost just a tad bit of juice. Today I stayed home from work as I felt worse and worse through the night. I have a sore throat, feel congested, and feel really hot. Yet I still feel the urge to go down to the card room tonight. I really shouldn't as I need to get better for work and I don't believe in playing when not feeling well. But like I said, it is hard not to play when you have been running good.
Just in case I don't play poker tonight (we will see how I feel later) I am in action on the diamond.
Tonights action:
Indians -133 against the Royals
Giants -113 against the Reds
A's White Sox under 7 -115
I will be back tomorrow to report on tonight's results, tomorrow's bets, and to let you know if I decided to play poker tonight and how much I possibly regret the decision to play under the weather. Will the discipline or the degenerate step up?
Disciplined Degenerate
Early on the game was loose and most pots were being raised preflop. I had a drunk guy on my left who seemed to be playing bad and was stuck. I saw him pay off a $50 bet on the river into a pot of $50 with K2 on a K 7 10 J 3 board. And this guy normally plays tight and cautious. I then saw him raise with a 42 offsuit and the game was looking good. On the first orbit I was dealt KK and I decided to do something I almost never do, I limped in mid position with it, hoping for a back raise. Of course, no raise came and I saw the flop 4 handed. The flop came 9 7 5 and it was checked to me. I bet $10 and got a call by Mr. 42 on my left. A third club, which was an Ace hit the turn. This was not a good card but I did have the King of clubs. I checked and he bet $20 and I called. River bricked and after check check on the river he showed 97 and took it down. I obviously didn't play the hand well but I only lost $32 on the hand and the way the game was going and looking it was no big deal.
The night ended up being a real grind and I couldn't get much going. I won a decent pot with AQ when I called a raise and saw a flop 4 handed and flopped an Ace. I also made a move with 46 suited in hearts on the button preflop and got 4 callers (ouch!). I have a real tight reputation at this club and often I will make moves like this preflop in late position. Most of the time I will get one caller and take it down with a C-bet on the flop. They all just assume it is me with AK or a big pair again and usually fold. I am not quite so tight as people think. Anyway, the flop came K 8 9 which was about as bad a flop as I can get. Without flopping any pair or draw in a pot with this many people I will almost always shut it down here and settle for the $15 loss (the amount I raised preflop). However when everyone checked to me, as you would expect them to, I just had a feeling I could take this hand down. With only $110 left behind I bet $50 and they all folded. That was a good example of using my reputation and position to pick up $60.
After that I picked up a lot of rags, folded quite a bit and missed a few draws. I had 10 10 and raised one hand and had to fold on the flop when both callers flopped a straight on me and went crazy betting. The flop was 5 6 7 and I was up against 34 and 89. I started feeling pretty crappy a couple hours into the session. It was only midnight and I often play till 1:00 am or a little later on weeknights but I had a major headache and a sore throat. I was down to around $110 and picked up JJ just when I was considering leaving for the night. After a couple of limpers I made it $15 to go and got one caller. The flop was 9 4 5. A pretty loose player with lots of gamble called me. I bet about $35 and he called fairly quickly after asking me how much I had left. The turn was an 8 and he checked. This did not bode well for 89 or 67 but I felt like against this guys range I am usually still ahead and put in my last $60 dollars. He snapped called me as fast as possible but at the same time said "you win." I had no idea what he had. The river was a King and I turned over my two Jacks and he mucked. He said he had A9. So after that hand I was slightly ahead for the night and considering I wasn't feeling well I decided to book a win. I played one more orbit and left ahead $31.
Last night I went 1-1 in my sports bets and lost just a tad bit of juice. Today I stayed home from work as I felt worse and worse through the night. I have a sore throat, feel congested, and feel really hot. Yet I still feel the urge to go down to the card room tonight. I really shouldn't as I need to get better for work and I don't believe in playing when not feeling well. But like I said, it is hard not to play when you have been running good.
Just in case I don't play poker tonight (we will see how I feel later) I am in action on the diamond.
Tonights action:
Indians -133 against the Royals
Giants -113 against the Reds
A's White Sox under 7 -115
I will be back tomorrow to report on tonight's results, tomorrow's bets, and to let you know if I decided to play poker tonight and how much I possibly regret the decision to play under the weather. Will the discipline or the degenerate step up?
Disciplined Degenerate
Monday, April 23, 2012
Two weeks down, Fifty to go
I am two weeks into my quest to gamble 365 days straight. I really don't think it will be that difficult. But this blog is meant to just be about gambling in general and the everyday ups and downs and swings of a poker player and sports bettor. I will however recap the first two weeks to get you caught up to speed!
Week 1: (4-09 to 4-15)
Monday:
Lost $25 on baseball/basketball
Won $34 playing poker
Tuesday:
Lost $5 on baseball
Lost $106 playing poker
Wednesday:
Lost $10.50 on baseball and basketball
Won $322 playing poker
Thursday:
Lost $11 on a basketball
Won $120 playing poker
Friday:
Won $2 on baseball
Won $35 playing poker
Saturday:
Won $7.50 on baseball, basketball, and Nascar
Won $68 playing poker
Sunday:
Lost $2 on baseball
Won $62 playing poker
Week result +$491
I was pretty happy with the first week. Obviously If I can win $500 a week for the whole year,committing to it just part time it will be an extremely good year!
Week 2: (4-16 to 4-22)
Monday:
Won $25 on baseball bets
Tuesday:
Lost $21 on baseball and basketball bets.
Lost $423 playing poker
Wednesday:
Won $2 playing online blackjack!
Won $10 on baseball bet
Won $110 playing poker
Thursday:
Won $22 on baseball and basketball bets
Won $297 playing poker
Friday:
Won $20 on baseball bet
Won $114 playing poker
Saturday:
Lost $11 on basketball bet
Sunday:
Won $10 on baseball bet, lost $11 on basketball bet
Lost $3 on NASCAR
Week result +$141
Two weeks into quest: +$632
So that is where I am at two weeks in. Up $635. Not bad. If it were not for some sick, cooler hands on Tuesday at the poker table it could have been even better. I am running well though so no complaints so far.
I had a nice time in the Bay Area visiting my friends. I had Sushi on Saturday night which is a pretty new experience to me. It was decent but the chop sticks are just ridiculous. Not a fan. Then on Sunday the A's won and we had a nice bit of fun in the sun watching that. A foul ball was caught by a guy three seats to my right! Damn when will I get one!? I have caught two batting practice homerun balls but never a live action ball. Oh well, many more games to come I am sure.
But it is back to real life which means office job by day and gambling at night. I am really looking forward to playing poker tonight! I am feeling confident and the game has been good in my local club lately. I will play while sweating a couple of sports bets.
Today I have a couple of bets placed. I like the Rangers -117 (1.17/1.0) today against the Yanks. The Rangers are on fire right now and Sabathia is on the hill for the Yankees who is struggling so far. He has done well against the Rangers historically, but he has struggled early and the Rangers are crushing lefties so far this year. Texas always plays tough at home and the Yanks are coming off a series at Boston where they are always in a playoff atmosphere. Maybe it is a letdown spot. I also love playing streaks in baseball and the Rangers are streaking out of the gate so far!
I also like the Spurs tonight -13. They are rolling right now. They are blowing teams out and and winning ATS as well. They are 36-13 ATS in their last 49. That is a hot streak. The line also moved down from 14 to 13 when maybe it should be at 15. They also have the added motivation of clinching home court advantage tonight. I like it for 1 unit (1.1/1.0).
I will report on the results tomorrow! Happy betting!
Disciplined Degenerate
Week 1: (4-09 to 4-15)
Monday:
Lost $25 on baseball/basketball
Won $34 playing poker
Tuesday:
Lost $5 on baseball
Lost $106 playing poker
Wednesday:
Lost $10.50 on baseball and basketball
Won $322 playing poker
Thursday:
Lost $11 on a basketball
Won $120 playing poker
Friday:
Won $2 on baseball
Won $35 playing poker
Saturday:
Won $7.50 on baseball, basketball, and Nascar
Won $68 playing poker
Sunday:
Lost $2 on baseball
Won $62 playing poker
Week result +$491
I was pretty happy with the first week. Obviously If I can win $500 a week for the whole year,committing to it just part time it will be an extremely good year!
Week 2: (4-16 to 4-22)
Monday:
Won $25 on baseball bets
Tuesday:
Lost $21 on baseball and basketball bets.
Lost $423 playing poker
Wednesday:
Won $2 playing online blackjack!
Won $10 on baseball bet
Won $110 playing poker
Thursday:
Won $22 on baseball and basketball bets
Won $297 playing poker
Friday:
Won $20 on baseball bet
Won $114 playing poker
Saturday:
Lost $11 on basketball bet
Sunday:
Won $10 on baseball bet, lost $11 on basketball bet
Lost $3 on NASCAR
Week result +$141
Two weeks into quest: +$632
So that is where I am at two weeks in. Up $635. Not bad. If it were not for some sick, cooler hands on Tuesday at the poker table it could have been even better. I am running well though so no complaints so far.
I had a nice time in the Bay Area visiting my friends. I had Sushi on Saturday night which is a pretty new experience to me. It was decent but the chop sticks are just ridiculous. Not a fan. Then on Sunday the A's won and we had a nice bit of fun in the sun watching that. A foul ball was caught by a guy three seats to my right! Damn when will I get one!? I have caught two batting practice homerun balls but never a live action ball. Oh well, many more games to come I am sure.
But it is back to real life which means office job by day and gambling at night. I am really looking forward to playing poker tonight! I am feeling confident and the game has been good in my local club lately. I will play while sweating a couple of sports bets.
Today I have a couple of bets placed. I like the Rangers -117 (1.17/1.0) today against the Yanks. The Rangers are on fire right now and Sabathia is on the hill for the Yankees who is struggling so far. He has done well against the Rangers historically, but he has struggled early and the Rangers are crushing lefties so far this year. Texas always plays tough at home and the Yanks are coming off a series at Boston where they are always in a playoff atmosphere. Maybe it is a letdown spot. I also love playing streaks in baseball and the Rangers are streaking out of the gate so far!
I also like the Spurs tonight -13. They are rolling right now. They are blowing teams out and and winning ATS as well. They are 36-13 ATS in their last 49. That is a hot streak. The line also moved down from 14 to 13 when maybe it should be at 15. They also have the added motivation of clinching home court advantage tonight. I like it for 1 unit (1.1/1.0).
I will report on the results tomorrow! Happy betting!
Disciplined Degenerate
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Running good but running away?
There is no better feeling in the world than running good at the table or being on a hot streak in sports betting. When you have that feeling you usually can't wait to hit the tables again or look at the daily lines. I kind of have that feeling right now. For the week I am up 5.8 units in baseball and basketball combined and I have posted at least a $100 win three straight days at the poker table and I have won 7 of the the 8 sessions at the cardroom (though I did lose $400 on Monday). Yet despite this, I won't be at the cardroom today and I only placed one bet for one unit in sports. The reason being is that I am headed out of town to visit friends.
I think it is important to have balance in life and today I am getting some balance. I have placed at least one sports bet 11 of the last 12 days and played poker 12 of the last 14 days. Today I will experience a little bit of normal life. I have a friend who lives in the Bay Area and I am driving there to spend a few hours with him this afternoon and see how his business venture is going and then I will spend the night with a girl that I have been seeing off and on the past two years. It has really been off lately as I have not seen her since early February. She moved away to the Bay area last summer and we have fallen off a little bit but she is a sweet girl and we always have fun and drama free time. Tonight we are going out to a movie and then tomorrow we will be taking in the A's-Indians game. You can bet I will have action on that game!
But I think it will be a good time and I will be back and ready to play poker all next week. The sick thing is when I am running like I am now I want to play as much as I can. I have a lot of confidence and feel like I will win each time I play. The crazy, sick degenerate in me last night actually considered how bad it would be if I cancelled the trip so I could play poker all weekend. But I am not going to do that. It will refresh me. It will be good to see my friends and it is always healthy for me to get out of town for a day or two at least once a month.
I do have a little action though tonight. I made the ever so dangerous but fun teaser bet in the NBA. I have only bet two teasers all season and I lost both. But I like getting a few extra points on these leans tonight. So tonight I have Golden State +17.5 and Indiana PK in a teaser (1.1/1.0). By the way for future reference, 1.1/1.0 means I am risking 1.1 units to win 1. If I win this bet I will actually be ahead 0.6 units for the basketball season (over 170 bets made)! Not bad for my first year ever handicapping the game.
So I am off to the Bay. Not gonna say I won't hit a Casino on the way there or back but I won't likely be in too much action this weekend, other than a few sports bets. But when I get back Sunday night I will update this blog in full detail on my first two weeks of the 365 day quest. And I plan to put in some real hours at the poker table next week!
Disciplined Degenerate
I think it is important to have balance in life and today I am getting some balance. I have placed at least one sports bet 11 of the last 12 days and played poker 12 of the last 14 days. Today I will experience a little bit of normal life. I have a friend who lives in the Bay Area and I am driving there to spend a few hours with him this afternoon and see how his business venture is going and then I will spend the night with a girl that I have been seeing off and on the past two years. It has really been off lately as I have not seen her since early February. She moved away to the Bay area last summer and we have fallen off a little bit but she is a sweet girl and we always have fun and drama free time. Tonight we are going out to a movie and then tomorrow we will be taking in the A's-Indians game. You can bet I will have action on that game!
But I think it will be a good time and I will be back and ready to play poker all next week. The sick thing is when I am running like I am now I want to play as much as I can. I have a lot of confidence and feel like I will win each time I play. The crazy, sick degenerate in me last night actually considered how bad it would be if I cancelled the trip so I could play poker all weekend. But I am not going to do that. It will refresh me. It will be good to see my friends and it is always healthy for me to get out of town for a day or two at least once a month.
I do have a little action though tonight. I made the ever so dangerous but fun teaser bet in the NBA. I have only bet two teasers all season and I lost both. But I like getting a few extra points on these leans tonight. So tonight I have Golden State +17.5 and Indiana PK in a teaser (1.1/1.0). By the way for future reference, 1.1/1.0 means I am risking 1.1 units to win 1. If I win this bet I will actually be ahead 0.6 units for the basketball season (over 170 bets made)! Not bad for my first year ever handicapping the game.
So I am off to the Bay. Not gonna say I won't hit a Casino on the way there or back but I won't likely be in too much action this weekend, other than a few sports bets. But when I get back Sunday night I will update this blog in full detail on my first two weeks of the 365 day quest. And I plan to put in some real hours at the poker table next week!
Disciplined Degenerate
Friday, April 20, 2012
Background and the 365 day gambling quest
I am a 34 year old, single male, living in California. I decided to
start this blog mainly to chart and keep a record for my quest to gamble 365
days straight. But I will also use it as a gambling journal and a place
for me to vent and brag to the world somewhat anonymously. This first blog will
be a touch long. Most will not be this long. This will be longer
though as I will give you my background and gambling history.
A couple of weeks ago I decided I wanted to see if I can gamble for 365 days straight. I play poker about 200 days a year anyway in my local cardroom and on my trips to Nevada (when online poker was easily accessible and widespread in the US I played poker literally 350 days a year), so just adding another 165 days does not seem like it would be that difficult.
The rules are that I have to make at least $5 in wagers every day for 365 days straight, and it can be on everything and anything. It can be playing poker (minimum requirement would be playing long enough to post $5 in blinds or make at least one $5 bet or call), bet sports (a $5 bet or five $1 bets for example), playing credit card roulette at lunch with friends or coworkers (which I don't usually run that well in but usually cannot resist playing), or something simple as buying $5 worth of lotto tickets at the liquor store. The only other rule is that the money must be won or lost that day. If I place a bet for Friday's basketball game on Thursday, the bet counts on Friday, not Thursday. I must be in action on that day.
You may say or think that $5 is so cheap. You are right. That is why I am the Disciplined Degenerate. I work a full time office job with benefits, I drive a brand new car, and I am a responsible person. I have been gambling for most of my post teen life and had some big wins and losses but I gamble on a bankroll and have never not been able to pay a bill or buy food because of gambling. I have never been busto. Most gamblers go busto, even some of the greats. You often hear that every good player needs to go busto or go broke to joint the club of "true legends" or "true players." That is just a pathetic excuse for someone to shrug off their lack of focus, skill, or discipline. The worst thing that can happen to a gambler is to be out of the game. Better in the game grinding than sitting out. I have an extreme amount of discipline and for the most part I NEVER TILT. You may think it is impossible but it is actually pretty easy for me. I realize that gambling and specifically poker is a long term game and if I lose with AA to 54 I don't need to win the money back that hand or that night even. If you have a bankroll and you stay in the game the opportunity will be there. I am not saying I always play perfectly, because that is far from true. But I don't make major, wild mistakes due to emotion, frustration, or ego. Almost all gamblers and poker players do. Even the good ones. Plus, I like money. Tilt is just expensive, plain and simple.
So the reason I am limiting myself to $5 a day is to protect myself if I have a terrible losing streak or come across some real world financial hardships. I can keep the streak going with some small bets while the storm passes. And $5 should be enough for anyone who really loves to gamble anyway. The following story is attributed to the famous gambler Nicholas Andreas "Nick the Greek" Dandolos.
Near the end of his life Dandolos was near broke and playing $5 limit Draw poker games in Gardena, CA. When asked by a fellow player how he could once play for millions and now be playing for such small stakes, Dandolos supposedly replied "Hey, it's action, isn't it?"
That is me in a nutshell. I play for money and I love to make money but I also love gambling. It is something that feels right to me. I love the matching of wits, the challenge of beating the game and applying logic and math to a problem and coming up with the correct answer (Money!). Action is action and if I am in the game I am happy and there is still a chance to earn.
It probably doesn't hurt that I am winner lifetime at Poker and probably break even in Sports Betting (I have actually beaten NFL and NCAA football over the past two seasons). I have never had a losing year at poker and until last year never had more than two losing months in a year. Last year was my worst year playing poker and I still won thousands of dollars and had 8 winning months out of 12.
That is another reason I want to do this blog. I want to prove and show to people that gambling is not always a bad thing. It has a terrible stigma about it and I think it gets a bad rap. I am going to prove that not only is not not an unhealthy habit, that it is a profitable habit for me. I am going to gamble for 365 days straight and I will be a winner when it is all said and done. Even if you are a losing player it doesn't have to be this terrible thing. It is not always an expensive addiction. Throwing $10 down on a football game and enjoying the game on your couch for three hours can be a lot more fun and a heck of a lot cheaper than going to the movies. And how often do you go to the movies and get paid to watch? In some cases that happens in my scenario. Gambling is not evil. It is not a vice. Like anything else if you let it get out of control it can be, but in and of itself it is not a bad thing.
I learned poker on the internet to begin with. After just a couple of deposits of $50 I started winning. I played some cash games but mainly crushed the $5 and $10 Sit and Go's on Paradise Poker, Ultimate Bet, and Poker Stars. The first time I ever played live poker was in North Lake Tahoe in a $2-6 spread limit game and the first hand I was dealt was AA. I won the pot and I have beat live poker ever since. Since the downfall of online poker I play live exclusively. I like live poker better for the most part. There are days when I miss online poker and get sick of some of the scumbags and losers that frequent casinos and card rooms, but I have also made nice friendships and met great people in cardrooms as well.
I play a conservative poker game. I play ABC poker for the most part and it has worked well for me. I open up and make moves occasionally (more than people who I play regularly with think) but for the most part I play good cards, because it gets the money and the risk is less.
These days I play 4 or 5 nights a week, for 2-4 hours after work in my local cardroom. I make a trip to Vegas 2-3 times a year and I go to Reno or Tahoe and surrounding Indian Casinos occasionally. Sports and Poker is about 80-90% of my gambling but I do like to play the table games occasionally such as Blackjack and Roulette. I play craps every now and then but when I hear "line away" four or five straight times (almost every time I play that damn game) I quit. I never take big hits or losses in those games though. They are losing games in the long run and I stick to poker to make money and sports for low variance fun and the occasional winning season.
I have always enjoyed betting sports for fun and a few years ago I decided to try to start beating the game (which means beating the spread and the juice). I am not an ignorant optimist and I know that to beat sports long term you have to have an amazing gift and knack for it or more likely have to put in hours and hours of study a day. I don't really have that much time but I do study and follow the trends and crunch the numbers to do the best I can. And my results, for a pretty inexperienced amateur have been decent. I started out betting football regularly in 2008. I did very well and at the end of the regular season I was ahead of the NFL and College Football by at least 15 units. (I typically flat bet, just one unit per game in my sports betting. Maybe one game every couple of weeks that I really like will tempt me to bet 2 or 3 units, and about once a year I will find a 4 or 5 unit bet). I got crushed in the playoffs and bowls that season and finished about even that year. The next season I took it more seriously and was super confident going into the season and I managed to get down about 20-25 units halfway during the season. I couldn't pick a game to save my life for about 5 weeks in the first half of the season. I managed to win a little back and finished down about 15 units on the year.
2010 was a great year for me in sports betting (95% football). I went 78-62 and finished ahead 6.5 units. That may not sound like a big win or very impressive but when you are an amateur and you do it for fun and make money over 140 bets, that is a tremendous success. In football in 2011 I got off to a terrible start and was stuck about 13 units at one point but thanks to a couple of 4 unit wins (Fade the Notre Dame Fighting Irish!) I finished the year at 102-102 and ahead 0.3 units! I was very happy to once again beat the juice over 204 bets. And what that meant was over a 2 year period, I beat football with a decent sample size.
In the 2011-2012 year I also decided to start betting NBA and NCAA basketball full time. I grew up playing basketball and played in high school and know the game well, but never really bet it. I started terribly at 20-32 and down nearly 15 units. But I am learning and getting better and right now at this time I am 93-88 and down only 0.4 units! I have a chance to finish ahead a winner my first year ever in basketball! I am very excited about that. The money is insignificant obviously. My real earnings in gambling come from poker. I just enjoy the challenge of sports betting and just want to beat the game even if for just $1.
So after two good years of football betting and nice comeback in basketball I did it...yes, I have jumped head first into the world of baseball betting. I am a big A's fan and have followed baseball most of my life but it is by far the sport I have bet less than any other. So far so good. Early in the year I am 10-10 and ahead 0.3 units.
So that is my gambling background. I will post my daily bets, thoughts, and results on this blog. I will also share stories from my past. Including a 24 hour poker session last year and some cool Vegas stories.
Now, I have a bet on the Nationals Marlins under and I need to check the score.
Disciplined Degenerate.
A couple of weeks ago I decided I wanted to see if I can gamble for 365 days straight. I play poker about 200 days a year anyway in my local cardroom and on my trips to Nevada (when online poker was easily accessible and widespread in the US I played poker literally 350 days a year), so just adding another 165 days does not seem like it would be that difficult.
The rules are that I have to make at least $5 in wagers every day for 365 days straight, and it can be on everything and anything. It can be playing poker (minimum requirement would be playing long enough to post $5 in blinds or make at least one $5 bet or call), bet sports (a $5 bet or five $1 bets for example), playing credit card roulette at lunch with friends or coworkers (which I don't usually run that well in but usually cannot resist playing), or something simple as buying $5 worth of lotto tickets at the liquor store. The only other rule is that the money must be won or lost that day. If I place a bet for Friday's basketball game on Thursday, the bet counts on Friday, not Thursday. I must be in action on that day.
You may say or think that $5 is so cheap. You are right. That is why I am the Disciplined Degenerate. I work a full time office job with benefits, I drive a brand new car, and I am a responsible person. I have been gambling for most of my post teen life and had some big wins and losses but I gamble on a bankroll and have never not been able to pay a bill or buy food because of gambling. I have never been busto. Most gamblers go busto, even some of the greats. You often hear that every good player needs to go busto or go broke to joint the club of "true legends" or "true players." That is just a pathetic excuse for someone to shrug off their lack of focus, skill, or discipline. The worst thing that can happen to a gambler is to be out of the game. Better in the game grinding than sitting out. I have an extreme amount of discipline and for the most part I NEVER TILT. You may think it is impossible but it is actually pretty easy for me. I realize that gambling and specifically poker is a long term game and if I lose with AA to 54 I don't need to win the money back that hand or that night even. If you have a bankroll and you stay in the game the opportunity will be there. I am not saying I always play perfectly, because that is far from true. But I don't make major, wild mistakes due to emotion, frustration, or ego. Almost all gamblers and poker players do. Even the good ones. Plus, I like money. Tilt is just expensive, plain and simple.
So the reason I am limiting myself to $5 a day is to protect myself if I have a terrible losing streak or come across some real world financial hardships. I can keep the streak going with some small bets while the storm passes. And $5 should be enough for anyone who really loves to gamble anyway. The following story is attributed to the famous gambler Nicholas Andreas "Nick the Greek" Dandolos.
Near the end of his life Dandolos was near broke and playing $5 limit Draw poker games in Gardena, CA. When asked by a fellow player how he could once play for millions and now be playing for such small stakes, Dandolos supposedly replied "Hey, it's action, isn't it?"
That is me in a nutshell. I play for money and I love to make money but I also love gambling. It is something that feels right to me. I love the matching of wits, the challenge of beating the game and applying logic and math to a problem and coming up with the correct answer (Money!). Action is action and if I am in the game I am happy and there is still a chance to earn.
It probably doesn't hurt that I am winner lifetime at Poker and probably break even in Sports Betting (I have actually beaten NFL and NCAA football over the past two seasons). I have never had a losing year at poker and until last year never had more than two losing months in a year. Last year was my worst year playing poker and I still won thousands of dollars and had 8 winning months out of 12.
That is another reason I want to do this blog. I want to prove and show to people that gambling is not always a bad thing. It has a terrible stigma about it and I think it gets a bad rap. I am going to prove that not only is not not an unhealthy habit, that it is a profitable habit for me. I am going to gamble for 365 days straight and I will be a winner when it is all said and done. Even if you are a losing player it doesn't have to be this terrible thing. It is not always an expensive addiction. Throwing $10 down on a football game and enjoying the game on your couch for three hours can be a lot more fun and a heck of a lot cheaper than going to the movies. And how often do you go to the movies and get paid to watch? In some cases that happens in my scenario. Gambling is not evil. It is not a vice. Like anything else if you let it get out of control it can be, but in and of itself it is not a bad thing.
I learned poker on the internet to begin with. After just a couple of deposits of $50 I started winning. I played some cash games but mainly crushed the $5 and $10 Sit and Go's on Paradise Poker, Ultimate Bet, and Poker Stars. The first time I ever played live poker was in North Lake Tahoe in a $2-6 spread limit game and the first hand I was dealt was AA. I won the pot and I have beat live poker ever since. Since the downfall of online poker I play live exclusively. I like live poker better for the most part. There are days when I miss online poker and get sick of some of the scumbags and losers that frequent casinos and card rooms, but I have also made nice friendships and met great people in cardrooms as well.
I play a conservative poker game. I play ABC poker for the most part and it has worked well for me. I open up and make moves occasionally (more than people who I play regularly with think) but for the most part I play good cards, because it gets the money and the risk is less.
These days I play 4 or 5 nights a week, for 2-4 hours after work in my local cardroom. I make a trip to Vegas 2-3 times a year and I go to Reno or Tahoe and surrounding Indian Casinos occasionally. Sports and Poker is about 80-90% of my gambling but I do like to play the table games occasionally such as Blackjack and Roulette. I play craps every now and then but when I hear "line away" four or five straight times (almost every time I play that damn game) I quit. I never take big hits or losses in those games though. They are losing games in the long run and I stick to poker to make money and sports for low variance fun and the occasional winning season.
I have always enjoyed betting sports for fun and a few years ago I decided to try to start beating the game (which means beating the spread and the juice). I am not an ignorant optimist and I know that to beat sports long term you have to have an amazing gift and knack for it or more likely have to put in hours and hours of study a day. I don't really have that much time but I do study and follow the trends and crunch the numbers to do the best I can. And my results, for a pretty inexperienced amateur have been decent. I started out betting football regularly in 2008. I did very well and at the end of the regular season I was ahead of the NFL and College Football by at least 15 units. (I typically flat bet, just one unit per game in my sports betting. Maybe one game every couple of weeks that I really like will tempt me to bet 2 or 3 units, and about once a year I will find a 4 or 5 unit bet). I got crushed in the playoffs and bowls that season and finished about even that year. The next season I took it more seriously and was super confident going into the season and I managed to get down about 20-25 units halfway during the season. I couldn't pick a game to save my life for about 5 weeks in the first half of the season. I managed to win a little back and finished down about 15 units on the year.
2010 was a great year for me in sports betting (95% football). I went 78-62 and finished ahead 6.5 units. That may not sound like a big win or very impressive but when you are an amateur and you do it for fun and make money over 140 bets, that is a tremendous success. In football in 2011 I got off to a terrible start and was stuck about 13 units at one point but thanks to a couple of 4 unit wins (Fade the Notre Dame Fighting Irish!) I finished the year at 102-102 and ahead 0.3 units! I was very happy to once again beat the juice over 204 bets. And what that meant was over a 2 year period, I beat football with a decent sample size.
In the 2011-2012 year I also decided to start betting NBA and NCAA basketball full time. I grew up playing basketball and played in high school and know the game well, but never really bet it. I started terribly at 20-32 and down nearly 15 units. But I am learning and getting better and right now at this time I am 93-88 and down only 0.4 units! I have a chance to finish ahead a winner my first year ever in basketball! I am very excited about that. The money is insignificant obviously. My real earnings in gambling come from poker. I just enjoy the challenge of sports betting and just want to beat the game even if for just $1.
So after two good years of football betting and nice comeback in basketball I did it...yes, I have jumped head first into the world of baseball betting. I am a big A's fan and have followed baseball most of my life but it is by far the sport I have bet less than any other. So far so good. Early in the year I am 10-10 and ahead 0.3 units.
So that is my gambling background. I will post my daily bets, thoughts, and results on this blog. I will also share stories from my past. Including a 24 hour poker session last year and some cool Vegas stories.
Now, I have a bet on the Nationals Marlins under and I need to check the score.
Disciplined Degenerate.
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