babe of the month : january

think i'll make this a regular occurence if only to brighten up the page when i look at!

this month i've decided that the newly single (well she soon will be) cheryl tweedy cole is the babe of the month.


enjoy!

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bad ending to the month

down two buy-ins so far today. all to the same guy who seems to enjoy playing random cards 3 apart then rivering some odd straight while i'll hit top set or top two pair. lovely.

am currently a little irritated by this so am logging off to calm down...woo saa, woooo saaaa

edit: pulled some of it back, feeling a little better for it. think its time for another break from the tables, have some lunch and contemplate further how i 1) got stuck, and 2) get unstuck!

edit 2: clawed back a little more, stopping for the day now to see where i went wrong.

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flying high

well had some grand ambitions to play poker on sunday but failed due to the horrific state i was in post knees up on saturday night.

the wedding party was a good crack, 100 royal airforce guys getting sloshed in the officers mess went surprisingly problem free. i did plan to run off during the night and find myslef a plane to sit in but was sternly warned by my buddy that i'd be arrested by the military police and held on base which isn't quite as nice as being arrested by the regular police, so decided to give it a miss.

i ended up drinking black sheep all night and the following morning i was a mess. could barely talk or see. and was in such bad way i dragged myself to a little chef of all places to have a fry up. unfortunately even the magic fry up failed to help and i fell a sleep in the back of my car as i had to check out the hotel at 12.

feeling slightly refreshed a little later in the afternoon i headed home and watched the last few episodes of las vegas season 4 on dvd before ordering a curry and heading to bed.
10 hours kip later and i feel like a new man. hit the gym this morning and am just having myself a healthy soya latte before i have a few meetings!

i do need to get in one more decent session before the end of the month though so will aim to do that on wednesday before posting januarys results.

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friday night session

have a big night out tomorrow at a mates wedding party, prince willy wonka is gonna be there, its at raf lincoln where he is getting his wings, so stayed in tonight to play a few hands.

tried to push myself out of my comfort zone and play a bit more aggressively and see a few more flops. had mixed results. i doubled up early on but then really didn't hit any flops or get any draws so leaked chips for the next hour or so. took down one decent pot and then called it a night up about half a buyin or so.

i wanted to try and identify all the areas i need to improve my game, of which there are many, and start taking steps to address these. from tonights analysis i'm going to identify three as follows...

1) i limp too much. i need to foster a more aggressive table image to extract value on my big hands. too often i'll scoop min pots on my big pocket pairs and they don't come along enough to allow this to happen on a regular basis. i also find i get raised out of pots because i limp from an ealry position and can't justify a call and play the flop from the front. this is a major leak in my game that needs to be plugged.

2) i find myself checking too much. checking in places where only a bet will win it for me and therefore giving up too many small pots that i could easily take down. i seem to be continually petrified of big pocket pairs and need to put this out of my mind and play the player and the board rather than assuming i'm always beat. if i can learn to control the pot and keep pots small when i'm nervous then i'll put myself in a better place to see more showdowns on the cheap and win more marginal situations rather than giving up.

3) i need to open up a little more in the right places. sometimes i play so tight even aces aren't good enough! it minimises my losses sure, but it means i have to sit at a table for hours for just the right set of circumstance, with the right cards against the right players to make any decent cash. sure that really is grinding it out but its not positive poker and i leave a lot of money on the table that i could/should be taking with me.

so from now i'm i'm going to really concentrate on fixing these problems. i know i won't like making these plays some of the time but i think if i at least experiment and see how some of these plays work/make a difference then my overall game can only get better.

if anyone reading this knows of any common mistakes players of under a years experience make then please comment. i'd be interested to discuss with you.

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poker gods are smiling

now although they may have had nothing to do with it, unless they are really good friends with the tennis gods! they have to be looking down from way up there with a big grin on their faces because the world has been blessed with one of the hottest womens tennis finals in probably the history of tennis...unless you are a big fan of the epic navratilova vs graf era!

so for your viewing pleasure i present our finalists. firstly we have the gorgeous maria sharapova who loves to scream or squeak...or squeak scream when she plays the ball. shes russian but has lived in florida most of her life, hence the beautiful sun kissed tan. i don't believe you can buy her as a your russian bride on the internet but i haven't searched that hard.

next up is the lovely ana ivanovic from serbia. she is apparently a tennis miracle as she used to practice in a dried out swimming pool until some rich guy gave her a load of money to practice on a proper court. i do have to wonder what his motives were though when she looks this lovely!

so there you have it, one hot final. i'm pretty sure they will both try to sex it up as well so you, me and the poker gods should have something fairly nice to watch regardless of who wins, woo hoo!!

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big pot with a marginal hand

i have another hand i recently had the pleasure of being part of that i wanted to share. i know there is a mistake or two in there, so i'm sharing the hand and my thinking and would really appreciate any feedback on either my play or how you would have played it.

Party Poker, $0.10/$0.25 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 8 Players

SB: $26
BB: $9.75
UTG: $24.39
UTG+1: $32.33
MP1: $34.49
Hero (MP2): $20.03
CO: $4.49
BTN: $26.57

Pre-Flop: K Q dealt to Hero (MP2)
UTG calls $0.25, UTG+1 folds, MP1 calls $0.25, Hero raises to $1, CO folds, BTN calls $1, 2 folds, UTG calls $0.75, MP1 calls $0.75

i'm in a late position here and feel a 4xbb raise should help give me final position post flop and push out speculative hands that can do damage on a bad flop for me

Flop: ($4.35) 3 Q 7 (4 Players)
UTG checks, MP1 bets $2, Hero calls $2, 2 folds

now mp1 limped in preflop so i'm not putting him on a high pocket pair or a/k, a/q. 33 or 77 are a possibility as well as a pair of face cards. he could also be semi bluffing a flush draw here. i'm not happy with my flat call as it gives me no information at all. mistake numero uno!

Turn: ($8.35) 4 (2 Players)
MP1 bets $2, Hero raises to $5, MP1 calls $3

the turn brings a straight possibility but doubt he would be semi bluffing a gutshot, i feel he either has a set or a flush draw here that he is still semi bluffing. my raise is to try and push out the draw and gain more information.

River: ($18.35) 4 (2 Players)
MP1 checks, Hero bets $5, MP1 calls $5

the flat call of my raise on the turn makes me discount a set. i feel if i check here i give him the opportunity to bluff a missed flush draw so my my bet here is to induce a call from a weaker queen or take the pot uncontested. i don't know what i would do to a re-raise here but i feel a bet is better then a check. is this mistake numero deux?

Results: $28.35 Pot ($1.08 Rake)
MP1 mucked Q J (two pairs, Queens and Fours) and LOST (-$13 NET)
Hero showed K Q (two pairs, Queens and Fours) and WON $27.27 (+$14.27 NET)

and there we have it, i take the pot but i felt uncomfortable throughout. any thoughts on how this could have been played better to get more info earlier?

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is poker a sport?

because if it is, is must be the only sport where you become less fit the more you play! all that time sitting at a table, hardly moving, drinking coffee, eating snacks. hardly what you would expect a sport to consist of!

for me, staying fit is massively important. if i'm not going to the gym on a regular basis i feel terrible. i don't feel awake, i can't concentrate for long periods of time, i feel sluggish and slobbish, and i don't find any of those feelings particularly appealing.

i've had about a month off from the gym enjoying the festive period and my holiday to sydney and have given myself a week to get over the jetlag, but come tomorrow its gym time. back pumping iron, grunting and screaming as i lift inhuman amounts of iron over and over again, pumping the guns so i can confidently give directions ;) and flexing the old tshirt muscles ready to get all the ladies swooning!! lol!!

one great side effect of staying fit is my poker game improves. i can sit for longer sessions, my brain stays sharp and i keep concentration which can so easily wander when playing at home. so given that i think i can safely say that hitting the gym is +ev

so i've put together a little muscle building program (i have a diploma in personal training) and am ready to get started in 24 hours. the first 2 weeks are going to be a little sh*t as my body needs to get back into the groove but its totally worth it. if nothing else i'm hoping if i play live the other players will be slightly scared of what my biceps might do to them if they call my re-raise! haha, better get some proper ones first!

i know its not directly poker related but i'm gonna post my current stats and goals here to keep track so here goes, i'll probably post bi-weekly stats or something; (first number is current, brackets equals goal)

12 week program beginning 21/01/2008

general
weight: 69.1kg (69.1kg to 75kg)
body fat: 13.6% (13.6% to 11%)

measurements
chest: 87.8cm (87.8cm to 96cm)
guns: 31.3cm (31.3cm to 35cm)
wheels: 53.1cm (53.1cm to 57cm)
waist: 84.5cm (84.5cm to 80cm)

let the pumping begin!

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pull it apart

here's one for all the fish-er-roos out there. here is a hand that i just had the joy of playing, take a look...

Party Poker, $0.10/$0.25 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 9 Players

SB: $25.12
Hero (BB): $23.40
UTG: $8
UTG+1: $13.70
UTG+2: $42.05
MP1: $3.95
MP2: $24.65
CO: $21.56
BTN: $24.93

Pre-Flop: T Q dealt to Hero (BB)
2 folds, UTG+2 calls $0.25, 4 folds, SB calls $0.15, Hero checks

Flop: ($0.75) A 8 T (3 Players)
SB checks, Hero bets $0.50, UTG+2 calls $0.50, SB folds

Turn: ($1.75) T (2 Players)
Hero bets $1.75, UTG+2 calls $1.75

what do you put him here? i felt i was looking at a/k, a/q he couldn't lay down or a flush draw he was over valuing

River: ($5.25) J (2 Players)

what do i do now, i'm first to act?
if my read is right do i check to induce a bet or bet out?
do i raise if he bets or just call?
do i lay it down if i'm re-raised?

let me know what you think, and i'll let you know what happened, plus what i think i should have done...showing that i feel i played the hand wrong.

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party poker party...not

who here plays on or has played on party poker? i've just signed up to clear a bonus and have to say the software is terrible!

first of all i hate the little characters sitting in their chairs, is this meant to make it more realistic? why can't i turn the little f*ckers off!

secondly, the layout of the buttons and the mechanic of the slider is just naff, if i try and raise to 3 times the bb, but can i get the slider to stop on that amount, no i fricking can't. the only amounts i can find are the call amount and then like 6 times the bb. so there i am sliding around for 20 secs before i give up and type it in while losing any credibility in the hand. yes, great if i have a monster, but sh*te if i'm trying to make a move!

thirdly, when i multi-table everything jumps around so much i don't even know what table i'm on. one second i'm looking at pocket aces ready to 3 bet and the next thing i know i've been bumped to another table that needs a move from me and i'm re-raising some short stacks all in with jack/four off! aarrgghh!!

anyhoo, on the plus side the play is just terrible, i remember reading somewhere that party poker did have a heavy quota of fish and at the lower limits its so true. i mean look at this hand here, and there i was feeling scared he had aces!

Party Poker, $0.10/$0.25 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 8 Players

UTG: $74.54
UTG+1: $0.19
Hero (MP1): $24.65
MP2: $25
CO: $8.98
BTN: $12.45
SB: $24.69
BB: $18.70

MP2 posts $0.25
Pre-Flop: K K dealt to Hero (MP1)
UTG calls $0.25, UTG+1 calls $0.19 and is All-In, Hero raises to $1, MP2 calls $0.75, CO calls $1, BTN raises to $12.45 and is All-In, 3 folds, Hero raises to $23.90, 2 folds

Flop: ($27.69) T 5 2 (3 Players - 1 is All-In)

Turn: ($27.69) 4 (3 Players - 1 is All-In)

River: ($27.69) 8 (3 Players - 1 is All-In)

Results: $27.69 Pot ($24.28 Rake)
UTG+1 mucked 4 A (a pair of Fours) and LOST (-$0.19 NET)
Hero showed K K (a pair of Kings) and WON $37.76 ($12.64 NET)
BTN mucked 8 J (a pair of Eights) and LOST (-$12.45 NET)

still even with all the fish-er-roos i don't think i can play there on a permanent basis, i would go f*cking insane! i'm sticking around until i clear my bonus then i'm out...for good!

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kaizen poker

i've been considering poker over the last few weeks and ways/opportunities to improve my game and thus make more money. this has led me to start comparing poker (as a business) to the tactics or philosophy's employed by some of the worlds most successful companies.

one of these companies, toyota, employs a japanese philosophy called 'kaizen'. kaizen is the search for continuous improvement. everyday, every employee from the ceo down is looking for ways to improve themselves and the processes they go through to become better and more efficient at their jobs.

now i think the kaizen idea could be applied to poker and help me to make small improvements everyday that will propel my game on a continuous upward trajectory.

let me show you how i think this applies. kaizen is based around 3 principles which i will outline below and then in red i'll demonstrate how i think that can be mapped to poker improvement;

1) consider the process and the results (not results-only) so that actions to achieve effects are surfaced

- review and analyse your play to establish why you won or lost so as to eliminate the negative aspects and increase the positive

2) systemic thinking of the whole process and not just that immediately in view (i.e. big picture, not solely the narrow view) in order to avoid creating problems elsewhere in the process

- don't look at your or opponents actions individually but build a picture or story around their play so you can spot patterns and anomalies and adapt to exploit these. this can be further defined by using r.e.m strategy and commitment planning

3) a learning, non-judgmental, non-blaming (because blaming is wasteful) approach and intent will allow the re-examination of the assumptions that resulted in the current process

- don't focus on the negatives such as bad beats or suck outs but instead look for the ways these problems can be avoided in future whether through changes in your own play or identifying signs in your opponents. and remember bad beats only happen when you are ahead thus you are making the correct decisions and will be profitable in the long run

so there it is, kaizen poker. to me this approach makes total sense. to improve requires learning and study on a continuous basis not periodically. only then can you adapt and improve to stay ahead of the game and maintain your position as a winning player.

to help me make this transition into my kaizen poker philosophy there are certain foundations that i need to put into place which i'm looking to do over the next week or so, and hopefully when i'm done i can start my journey to continuous improvement.

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back from the land down under

so after 22 hours on aeroplanes and a 12 hours stop over in seoul i am back in london! woo hoo...well not really as i'd way prefer to still be in sydney.

feeling pretty f*cked at the moment, have had about 3 hours sleep in the last 48. i've watched transformers about 18 times on the plane as well so can pretty much quote the entire movie and feel a slight aversion to my6 nokia phone at the moment!

on the plus side i'm feeling refreshed and ready to hit the tables again. hopefully i can get some time in tomorrow as there are some bonuses i want to clear and some software that i'm after. i might post a few pics of the trip if i can be bovved, usually my holiday snaps sit on my digital camera until i next go on holiday and am forced to save them or delete them!

anyhoo, will let you fishes crack on with work or play and i'm gonna check some email and see if i have any new facebook friends...doubtful!

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my stag night

since i devoted myself to my lovely fiancee and spunked sooo much money on her near flawless ring i've been wondering about whats gonna happen on my stag night. is it just gonna be beers with some mates, will there be a strip club (not overly bothered if i'm honest, infact preference is no). trouble is most of my mates who are now married have already done all this, some have even travelled to poland just to fire some guns (not at people in a sick hostel way but at targets in a well supervised environment!).

so basically what does that leave me then? well more of the same i guess until i found full house travel which looks like it could be the answer!

i need to get my best man on the case pronto and see if this could become a reality as not only will i have a wicked awesome time but i could also come home with some cash!

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i paid star city's rent yesterday

thats right, the little casino trip didn't go to plan. i went without any idea of what i was going to play and just donked around the slots, some random spinning wheel thing (not roulette!) and some other bingo game. well as you might have guessed i didn't win at any of the games, and i mean not once, nothing, zip, nadda. i didn't even manage to win a free spin on the slots. all the money just went in and that was it.

on a brighter note my fiancee cained the slots and managed to win back everything i lost. literally every machine she sat at dropped its first, second or third jackpot. just amazing really, she's pick a machine and it would win, i'd pick a machine and she'd sit at the one next to it and win, she'd pick a machine and i'd muscle her off it so she'd sit at the one next to it that i should have sat at and win! drove me crazy!

we do have a little tradition though where the winner on the day buys ice cream so i did end up with a free vanilla cone!

god i can't wait to get back to the tables though!

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toyota racing development and golf

i know what any winnings will go toward now! am currently in oz and saw a tv ad for toyota racing development or trd on the box. now i've worked in the motors industry before for another japanese firm and have never heard of trd. i did a little diggin and turns out its an oz exclusive arm of toyota producing high performance models based on learnings from their formula 1 and other racing teams.

now as a bit of a motors fan, and not that 6 litre v8 shise from the states but of tight, tuned high performance engines, i just had to check this car out. and you know what i think i've fallen in love with it! i'm thinking of moving to oz in the next 12 months and after a house this will be my 2nd purchase for sure.

sexy thing isn't it!

on the golfing front. well i'm not quite as good as i thought! shot a +46 first round, then +37 so was about $150 down. but played today and hit a respectable +27 vs my 36 handicap. my buddy played well below par as well hitting a +19 on his 14 handicap so i recouped most of my loses and am about break even. don't know if i'll get to play anymore while i'm here as am catching up with a few friends, hitting the beach and will also wander into the the casino here in sydney called star city. probably won't play any poker but might try my luck at some other table games. will let you know how that fairs!

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2008 new years resolutions

so here we are in 2008, and just like everyone else i'm going to be putting down a series of resolutions, goals or whatever you would like to call them to map my progress against where i would like to be at the end of the year.

2008 is going to be a big year for me and will hopefully form the foundation of some big things in 2009, i will post more on this in a post entitled 'taking a shot' later this month. therefore there will a number of study related goals as well as the obligatory 'increase the old bankroll'! i hope i can stick to what i outline below and i will be posting quarterly reviews/recaps on my progress as i really want the resolutions to be more then just a forgotten post.

so here goes;

1) play 4000+ plus cash hands per month

2) play at least one mtt or mt-sng with 100+ players a month

3) read at least one poker theory book a month, slanksy, malmuth et al. these will be no limit holdem books as thats my poker of choice. master one variant before trying another is what i say!

4) analyse my play and discuss with others. i want to know where i went wrong in every big pot i lost that went to showdown. feel free to get in touch if you would like to discuss anything.

5) be an active reader and contributor on the 2+2 forum. i'm setting myself a minimum of 1000 posts to achieve this

6) use tutoring tools and videos at sites such as cardrunners or stoxpoker to improve my play and decision making in difficult spots

7) have a bankroll of between $4000 - $8000 by the end of 2008. i don't care if this comes through winning poker, rakeback, bonuses or very welcome donations!

so there they are, 7 resolution/goals for 2008. i hope i can achieve them all, i will certainly be giving it a shot, and we will see where we stand in 366 days time (leap year!)

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