Getting back into NL

1800GAMBLER · #1 06-01-2005, 11:13 AM

Hey guys. The addition of $2k nl has brought me back over here. It's took me almost 2 years to finally realise i should listen and follow everything Ray Zee says - so everyone save themselves some time and go search all of his posts and listen - so the advice i'm following is not to have one set game; move up when winning and down when losing. For the first time in my poker career i made a none-bankroll-forced step down in stakes back to the 15/30 6m, this wasn't good for my ego but it's a good thing to finally swallow that. It also paid off, i ran well, played well, thought well. So now i'm going to move around 15/30 6m. 30/60 ring. $1k nl. $2k nl. $1k PLO. 20/40 o8 and anything from 8 tables to 1 table. This should keep things interesting too.

The more dissappointing part is i'm tilting and i've stopped learning. Both go hand in hand, when i'm learning i don't want to waste the hours spent learning by misplaying a hand. The money has never really been a motivating factor to not misplay a hand for me, since i care a lot less than most about the difference in earning $80k/year to $400k/year etc. I'm more of a comfortable and secure person than a want to be rich person. I'd love to change that.

So here i am, climbing out of the trap of getting comfortable in one game and giving up on learning. So! Onwards! Here are the hands and thoughts from today:

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (8 handed) pokerhand.org hand converter

UTG+1 ($2852)
MP1 ($2000)
MP2 ($2469)
CO ($1486)
Button ($1970)
Hero ($1980)
BB ($4000.74)
UTG ($2060)

Villian in this hand is a regular winning player.

Preflop: Hero is SB with K[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img], Q[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]. Hero posts a blind of $10.
6 folds, Hero (poster) raises to $45, BB calls $35.

Flop: ($110) 2[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], 5[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img], T[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] (2 players)
Hero bets $70, BB calls $70.

Turn: ($250) J[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] (2 players)

My thought process at the table for this decision was, if i check and face a $200 bet i'd want to call that since i could have 14 outs here, making me 2.2:1. Given that and the jack i might as well make that bet and give T,x a chance to fold, adding a lot of bluffing equity to that bet.

However, i think that's a silly thought since T,x isn't all that likely given the flop call. 22 55 seem likely given the flop call, which means i'd hate to bet. I still think 99 88 77 66 are possible given the flop call, so my bet does have stealing equity. Lets put some magnitude on each of these.

The stealing equity isn't worth much, against these hands i'll river them 1/3 anyhow and just because i check the turn i don't lose that stealing equity on the river, it just lowers it, i could still pick up the pot on the river. So the value of that is, the difference in my stealing equity times * 2/3 that i don't river them.

Yet the cost of losing my outs/being put to a 0EV decision against 55 22 is huge. So i don't like my bet.

Hero bets $200, BB raises to $400, Hero calls $200.

So it seems like he has the set or maybe TJ. Thinking ahead to a plan for the river. If i call here my range could look like Axhearts. QKo. AJ. QQ KK. So if the river comes an ace/9 heart i think i should be leading the river since he shouldn't be value betting 55 22, but will he anyhow? If it comes an outsuit ace then i don't think there's much difference in leading the river and getting raised or checkraising, it the river is 9o i think i def want to be c/r'ing. Agreed? Thoughts?

River: ($1050) A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] (2 players)
Hero bets $800, BB calls $800.

Thoughts on the bet size?

Thanks guys.