12-11-2002, 09:09 PM
WARNING: This is quite long and maybe boring to some but I thought I would share it anyway. Maybe, others may learn something from my experience. /forums/images/icons/wink.gif
For the most part, I am a 3-6/5-10 player with no experience whatsoever in NL. However, I decided to "gamble" for a $500 voucher in a single table satellite at Taj and, to my surprise, won it. I know I am severely handicapped in the game because my familiarity of NL came only from articles on CP and the defunct PD. To me, it was for information and entertainment only as I am satisfied to be a winning LL recreational player with no ambition to become a NL tourney player. Maybe, it is because of the lack of such games in AC and my lack of interest on internet games. Like a lost kid, I posted in the Tourney forum hoping that some kind soul will be generous enough to give some nuggets of wisdom on basic guidelines about the game. To my utter surprise and disappointment, I got no reply - NONE WHATSOEVER!
So, like a college kid cramming for a final exam after weeks of partying, I dug out my copies of CP and spent the entire week reading whatever NL article I can lay my hands on. I even read the NL section of Dolly's book FOR THE FIRST TIME in the two years I owned it! I have DECIDED to play and will make whatever PREPARATION - MENTAL AND PHYSICAL I can muster to play my best no matter how difficult it is for my 58-year old brain to absorb as much information in such a short period.
I arrived at Taj Sat AM with a prepared action plan - stay loose, play a few hrs of LL, get a good dinner and a good night rest. I checked into my room, relaxed, and reviewed some of the articles that I thought maybe helpful in the game. I played for about 5 hours of my reg. 5-10 with more frequent breaks, mostly spent socializing with my poker acquaintances while getting all the good luck wishes and those unsolicited advices. I quit about 10PM after losing 54 bucks that did not bother me because I was there for a BIGGER GOAL.
I woke up early, went to the pool and swam a few laps followed by a hearty breakfast. I went to church - a part of my normal Sunday obligation. No! Not because of the tourney! I then took a leisurely mile-walk along the boardwalk back to the hotel mentally preparing myself for the battle that lies ahead. Yet, my mind was racing - full of doubts and apprehension with some tinge of nervousness as I am entering a brand new realm. Just think - all those seasoned high stake players and sharks I have to swim with or away from!
I registered for the 11AM start, scouted the crowd full of out-of-towners and can only recognize the faces of the higher stake regulars with but one LL player like me. Now, I thought, I must be a real underdog.
I sat down as one of the 174 aspirants determined, yet nervous, to play my best game, self-talking about a solid, tight-aggressive game, being observant, and apply whatever NL principles I can recall from my week of cramming.
The game started and I noticed 4 high stakers, a guy with a WPF jacket and no other familiar face in my first table. Boy, did I ever feel intimidated. Then a guy got knocked out on the 4th deal when his KK run into AA, then another, and another. Me? I sat there without playing a hand and losing my blinds in the first two rounds of play. Then I got QQ first one in in MP and made a standard raise of 3x bb (hey, I remember reading that one!). Everybody folded and I got re-raised by a 75-150 player in the BB. I paused and recalled the guy making this move with KQ and AQ and won unimproved. I decided to go all in with my heart raising and doubting whether I made the right move. He called and I crippled him with his AJs. Ah, my first taste of NL blood and it was good!
I stuck to my plans of playing only face cards, pairs and high connectors and soon realized that I have busted 9, mostly high stakers, while flopping sets and my AK's and AQ's were dominating their AT's and KQ's. I have not lost one hand in a showdown! Now, my confidence was soaring, learning to avoid traps and carefully picking my spots. I could have been bluffed a couple times but it was my least worry as my stack was growing while the number of players was dwindling from 90, to 70, to 50. I then realized that there were only 3 tables left and I'm still there with about T12000 - probably among the chip leaders! The anticipated glory of being the final table and maybe become a "Rocky" in poker started dancing in my head.
And then the cookie began to crumble and the "rookieness" in me began to unravel. I thought my nervousness was beginning to show as I cannot even stack my chips neatly like the seasoned ones. I became reckless and lost my discipline and composure. I got my fateful demise when I got dealt AdJd in MP, raised first one in, and run into a brick wall when I got trapped by AK in bb and busted in 22nd place knowing that the top 18 will be paid!
I stood up shell-shocked, and despondent and thought of what might have been. Then I sat down and reflected on my mistakes:
I became COCKY, RECKLESS, ARROGANT, and OVER-CONFIDENT.
I FORGOT to apply some basic tenets - surveying the stacks of others, avoiding confrontations with high-stacked ones and attacking only the lower-stacked players.
I became OBLIVIOUS of the more realistically attainable goal of being in the money at that stage. I became too GREEDY!
In retrospect, all the PLANS, PREPARATION, and GOALS are well and good but everything will be water under the bridge if DISCIPLINE and CONTROL are not PROPERLY MAINTAINED.
But it was all worth the lessons and tremendous learning experience I gained in one session. Who knows, I may think like Arnold Schwarzenegger and say:
"I'LL BE BACK"! And much better prepared next time. /forums/images/icons/mad.gif /forums/images/icons/grin.gif
For the most part, I am a 3-6/5-10 player with no experience whatsoever in NL. However, I decided to "gamble" for a $500 voucher in a single table satellite at Taj and, to my surprise, won it. I know I am severely handicapped in the game because my familiarity of NL came only from articles on CP and the defunct PD. To me, it was for information and entertainment only as I am satisfied to be a winning LL recreational player with no ambition to become a NL tourney player. Maybe, it is because of the lack of such games in AC and my lack of interest on internet games. Like a lost kid, I posted in the Tourney forum hoping that some kind soul will be generous enough to give some nuggets of wisdom on basic guidelines about the game. To my utter surprise and disappointment, I got no reply - NONE WHATSOEVER!
So, like a college kid cramming for a final exam after weeks of partying, I dug out my copies of CP and spent the entire week reading whatever NL article I can lay my hands on. I even read the NL section of Dolly's book FOR THE FIRST TIME in the two years I owned it! I have DECIDED to play and will make whatever PREPARATION - MENTAL AND PHYSICAL I can muster to play my best no matter how difficult it is for my 58-year old brain to absorb as much information in such a short period.
I arrived at Taj Sat AM with a prepared action plan - stay loose, play a few hrs of LL, get a good dinner and a good night rest. I checked into my room, relaxed, and reviewed some of the articles that I thought maybe helpful in the game. I played for about 5 hours of my reg. 5-10 with more frequent breaks, mostly spent socializing with my poker acquaintances while getting all the good luck wishes and those unsolicited advices. I quit about 10PM after losing 54 bucks that did not bother me because I was there for a BIGGER GOAL.
I woke up early, went to the pool and swam a few laps followed by a hearty breakfast. I went to church - a part of my normal Sunday obligation. No! Not because of the tourney! I then took a leisurely mile-walk along the boardwalk back to the hotel mentally preparing myself for the battle that lies ahead. Yet, my mind was racing - full of doubts and apprehension with some tinge of nervousness as I am entering a brand new realm. Just think - all those seasoned high stake players and sharks I have to swim with or away from!
I registered for the 11AM start, scouted the crowd full of out-of-towners and can only recognize the faces of the higher stake regulars with but one LL player like me. Now, I thought, I must be a real underdog.
I sat down as one of the 174 aspirants determined, yet nervous, to play my best game, self-talking about a solid, tight-aggressive game, being observant, and apply whatever NL principles I can recall from my week of cramming.
The game started and I noticed 4 high stakers, a guy with a WPF jacket and no other familiar face in my first table. Boy, did I ever feel intimidated. Then a guy got knocked out on the 4th deal when his KK run into AA, then another, and another. Me? I sat there without playing a hand and losing my blinds in the first two rounds of play. Then I got QQ first one in in MP and made a standard raise of 3x bb (hey, I remember reading that one!). Everybody folded and I got re-raised by a 75-150 player in the BB. I paused and recalled the guy making this move with KQ and AQ and won unimproved. I decided to go all in with my heart raising and doubting whether I made the right move. He called and I crippled him with his AJs. Ah, my first taste of NL blood and it was good!
I stuck to my plans of playing only face cards, pairs and high connectors and soon realized that I have busted 9, mostly high stakers, while flopping sets and my AK's and AQ's were dominating their AT's and KQ's. I have not lost one hand in a showdown! Now, my confidence was soaring, learning to avoid traps and carefully picking my spots. I could have been bluffed a couple times but it was my least worry as my stack was growing while the number of players was dwindling from 90, to 70, to 50. I then realized that there were only 3 tables left and I'm still there with about T12000 - probably among the chip leaders! The anticipated glory of being the final table and maybe become a "Rocky" in poker started dancing in my head.
And then the cookie began to crumble and the "rookieness" in me began to unravel. I thought my nervousness was beginning to show as I cannot even stack my chips neatly like the seasoned ones. I became reckless and lost my discipline and composure. I got my fateful demise when I got dealt AdJd in MP, raised first one in, and run into a brick wall when I got trapped by AK in bb and busted in 22nd place knowing that the top 18 will be paid!
I stood up shell-shocked, and despondent and thought of what might have been. Then I sat down and reflected on my mistakes:
I became COCKY, RECKLESS, ARROGANT, and OVER-CONFIDENT.
I FORGOT to apply some basic tenets - surveying the stacks of others, avoiding confrontations with high-stacked ones and attacking only the lower-stacked players.
I became OBLIVIOUS of the more realistically attainable goal of being in the money at that stage. I became too GREEDY!
In retrospect, all the PLANS, PREPARATION, and GOALS are well and good but everything will be water under the bridge if DISCIPLINE and CONTROL are not PROPERLY MAINTAINED.
But it was all worth the lessons and tremendous learning experience I gained in one session. Who knows, I may think like Arnold Schwarzenegger and say:
"I'LL BE BACK"! And much better prepared next time. /forums/images/icons/mad.gif /forums/images/icons/grin.gif