The PP 1/2 blood, sweat and tears thread

[dfscott]

Since there are several 2+2'ers slogging their way through PP 1/2 now, I thought I'd start a thread for us to compare notes, progress, and beats (bad and otherwise). Basically, just a place to commiserate and help each other out in general, without the rest of the forum having to put up with our whining. [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[ChromePony]

I just started with 1/2 tonight by mixing one in with 2 .5/1 tables. It could have started out better but also worse, haven't hit many hands and the few that I've played have missed the flop or come up short. All in all only down about 10-12BB so I'm not too worried. I think this thread is a great idea, I'm sure we could use some support as we are getting used to the 1/2 tighties. More updates to come....

[josh1122]

Ive had about 5 or 6 flush over flush beats but other than that things are going well for me and I am recovering from a -100BB Thursday through Sunday. Currently at about 1000 and playing some juicy juicy bad beat tables. They remind me very much of .50/1 [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[dfscott]

<Warning: this is a bit of a rant>

Tonight was another psychologically devasting session. Down early, then up around 20-30BB, but finally finishing down 11BB. Everytime I think I have this game figured out, I end up losing AQo to AJo, flush to royal flush, and KQ to AK when I flop trip Ks.

Since PP's hand histories are screwed up (I think it's because they're not putting the blinds in or something), I really have no idea how I'm doing on a per-hand basis. But here's my guess:

Stats
Total Sessions played: 12
Total Hands played: 1500
Net BB change: -34
BB/100: -2.3

Fortunately, I'm up 180BB at Pacific 1/2 over the same period, so I've actually added $300 to my BR, but I'm worried that I'm not learning how to play good poker. IOW, I'm not going to be happy until I beat this game.

I was considering playing the 1/2 Bad Beat Jackpot tables, but I feel like I'm defeating the purpose. The whole point of playing PP 1/2 is to learn how to beat it so that I can develop as a player and be ready for the higher limits, not just to be able to put a notch on my bedpost.

General Thoughts:
- The 1/2 players seem to be a lot trickier than .5/1. Players will call down with the best hand, not bet until you bet and then raise, and just a lot of slowplaying in general. I lose a lot of money just pushing a hand that turns out to be 2nd best.

- I see a lot of raises for free card plays. One of the other posters felt that it was the exact opposite, so maybe my experience is atypical.

- There's a lot of bluff re-raises, particularly on the flop. A lot of my winners were where I was sure I was beat on the river, but I wasn't.

Thanks for letting me rant...

[josh1122]

I agree on all you said about the normal tables being tricky, liking to slowplay, being tightwads, etc. That's why I play the bad beat tables. Furthermore, from what I read and my minimal experience at them, the 2/4 tables are almost equally as weak as .50/1 and bad beat 1/2. (Can anyone back up this statement?) If you want to make easy money, go to the bad beat tables. But if you are intent on developing your game where you are, good luck and stick with it.

[SnakeRat]

[ QUOTE ]
Tonight was another psychologically devasting session. Down early, then up around 20-30BB, but finally finishing down 11BB. Everytime I think I have this game figured out, I end up losing AQo to AJo, flush to royal flush, and KQ to AK when I flop trip Ks.

[/ QUOTE ]

Scott you gotta accept that bad beats and bad luck are part of the game, you must not let it get to you.
For me a "pyschologically devastating" session is when I play badly, not when the cards are unfavorable.

Try and develop a hard shell which will allow you to stay confident and aggressive through thick and thin.
Be an emotionless mouse-clicking machine.

[dfscott]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Tonight was another psychologically devasting session. Down early, then up around 20-30BB, but finally finishing down 11BB. Everytime I think I have this game figured out, I end up losing AQo to AJo, flush to royal flush, and KQ to AK when I flop trip Ks.

[/ QUOTE ]

Scott you gotta accept that bad beats and bad luck are part of the game, you must not let it get to you.
For me a "pyschologically devastating" session is when I play badly, not when the cards are unfavorable.

Try and develop a hard shell which will allow you to stay confident and aggressive through thick and thin.
Be an emotionless mouse-clicking machine.

[/ QUOTE ]

It's funny, because you're saying all the things that I've said over and over again to other people. I'm not sure why I'm taking it so hard. I think there's a little voice in the back of my head that's telling me (you're not good enough to beat this level) and I'm psyching myself out.

I'd really feel better if I had some stats or hand histories to review. I know it's just a crutch, but when I struggled initially at other levels, I could go back and see that I played the hands correctly or that I wasn't really down as far as I thought. When the only yardstick I have is $$, it's tough to find the bright side.

I think it's become a self-fulfilling prophesy for me now. I'm considering switching over to PS and playing their .5/1 game, which I hear is similar to PP 1/2. I'll lose less money there, get a fresh start, and also have hand histories as well. If I can beat that game, I'll be able to switch back to PP with renewed confidence, hopefully.

[cjromero]

I'm in the same boat you are in, Scott.

I was working my way up to 1/2 from .50/1 around Mothers' Day when I cashed out a big part of my bankroll to buy the wife a new digital camera. The day before Mothers' Day, my PP account stood at $250. Over the next two days, I went on an incredible downswing, dropping all the way down to $70, which is incredibly hard to do at the .50/1 level in such a short period of time.

June and the first half of July were very good to me, as I diligently worked my bankroll back up to $600. I then jumped back up to 1/2. After taking a couple of days to get used to the higher pot size, I began increasing my bankroll steadily at 1/2.

Over the last couple of weeks, breaking and staying above the $1,000 barrier has been a huge psychological hurdle for me. My high point has been $1,051, but I have never actually finished a session above $1,000. I have wanted to simply shut the computer down a few times after breaking the $1,000 mark, but I know that is no real reason to leave a table, so I have resisted the temptation.

The last week or so has been incredibly frustrating, as I have dropped about 100BB. It's not a huge amount, and I know bad swings happen, but it has been difficult to deal with. The last 3 days in particular have been tough. I have been in a pattern where I will sit down for a session and promptly go at least 50 hands without winning a pot. Yesterday afternoon, I only won 1 pot in the first 225 hands I played. Lots of sets over sets, KK v. AA, flush beats at the river, etc. I am usually good at managing my emotions, but trying to stay about $1,000 has been a hard barrier for me to get over, and for some reason it is really bothering me mentally. Maybe because I could see the proverbial light at the end of the 1/2 tunnel and was looking forward to making a run at 2/4.

I have noticed some of the same things you have about the play at 1/2. Lots of bluff re-raising on the flop, and lots of slowplaying with top pair, where players will call a bet on the flop and then pop you on the turn. However, unlike you, I have had a difficult time earning free cards with my strong flush draws and straight draws. People have really been making me pay to try and hit draws.

It seems like advancing through the 1/2 level on Party has been difficult for lots of posters here.

[dfscott]

[ QUOTE ]
Over the last couple of weeks, breaking and staying above the $1,000 barrier has been a huge psychological hurdle for me. My high point has been $1,051, but I have never actually finished a session above $1,000. I have wanted to simply shut the computer down a few times after breaking the $1,000 mark, but I know that is no real reason to leave a table, so I have resisted the temptation.

The last week or so has been incredibly frustrating, as I have dropped about 100BB. It's not a huge amount, and I know bad swings happen, but it has been difficult to deal with. The last 3 days in particular have been tough. I have been in a pattern where I will sit down for a session and promptly go at least 50 hands without winning a pot. Yesterday afternoon, I only won 1 pot in the first 225 hands I played. Lots of sets over sets, KK v. AA, flush beats at the river, etc. I am usually good at managing my emotions, but trying to stay about $1,000 has been a hard barrier for me to get over, and for some reason it is really bothering me mentally. Maybe because I could see the proverbial light at the end of the 1/2 tunnel and was looking forward to making a run at 2/4.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's interesting because I ran into the exact same thing when I was trying to move from .05/.10 to .25/.50. I decided that I needed $100 to move, and as I closed in on it, it seemed like an asymptotic limit:

27-May $92.59
28-May $95.97
29-May $92.77
30-May $90.13
30-May $89.18
30-May $93.01
31-May $91.55
1-Jun $94.76
1-Jun $92.93
2-Jun $97.13
3-Jun $98.43
5-Jun $100.48

I remember that I used to hit the "add chips" button over and over to see how close I was. I finally decided that it was counterproductive and forbade myself from looking at my totals until after a session. Maybe I need to do the same thing again so I can focus on my play, not my progress.

[JDErickson]

[ QUOTE ]
Scott you gotta accept that bad beats and bad luck are part of the game, you must not let it get to you.
For me a "pyschologically devastating" session is when I play badly, not when the cards are unfavorable.

Try and develop a hard shell which will allow you to stay confident and aggressive through thick and thin.
Be an emotionless mouse-clicking machine.


[/ QUOTE ]

I agree with your thoughts but wanted to add that saying and doing are 2 seperate things. I still find nights where I end up tilting due to numerous suck outs. Strive to improve thats all we can do. I also have learned to recognise when this occurs so I can do something about it.

Jim