It has been a while since I wrote a blog post and there are a couple of reasons for that. One is I didn't feel I had a lot to write about and the other is more than a touch of lethargy.
I think it's fair to say the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have taken their toll somewhat. Although I would class myself as an introvert character, I still like to see people, go to the pub, play sport and socialize. Even when restrictions in the UK were lifted, there were still limits to where you could go and with how many people. My Birthday celebrations were postponed and even when we did go, not all of the friends I would liked to have been there could go, because we still had the rule of 6 restrictions in place.
However, October brought the return of our £10 Friday Night Home Game. Funnily enough having struggled to get 6 players for most months before the pandemic, suddenly, everyone wanted to play, but rules is rules, so 6 it was. I have to say it was great to get the guys round. Everyone was happy to have a game and the chat and banter flowed like we'd never been away. Personally, it was a bit of a down and up and down again game for me. I struggled to find good spots and eventually found my self last with 4 of us left. I looked down and KTs on the Button and shoved for my remaining 12bb. Bob folded the SB and Ashley instantly called from the BB. "Good call" I said as I showed my hand and then he shows AJo. I just need to hit one card. Fortunately for me an T comes down on the flop and the turn and river bricks out. I double up and cripple Ashley, who is knocked out a few hands later. After that I played some fairly conservative poker for 3 handed for a few orbits, picking up some cheap blinds here and there to maintain my stack. The big hand came when Stevie P limped from the Button to my BB. Bob called from the SB and I checked with 87s. The board came 882 rainbow. Bob and I both checked and Steve bet 3bb. Bob check raised to 7bb. I flat called and Steve instant shoved. Bob thought for a little while and folded. I called and Steve turned over AA. Again, I doubled up and Steve was crippled and I knocked him out the very next hand with A high to go heads up with Bob.
This was possibly one of the strangest heads up I have ever witnessed. Bob had been the big stack most of the night, but thanks to my recent couple of double ups, he only had a small advantage over me. I decided I was going for all out aggression against him and it seemed to be paying off as I quickly took the chip lead and started whittling away at his stack. I was running hot! As poorly as I had run at the beginning of the evening, I was getting the rub of the green, hitting trips, and two pairs, straights and flushes on a regular basis. Even when I only had a pair of 8's, Bob would have a pair of 7's. It got to the point where Bob had only a few BB's left. He shoved and I looked down at Q9s. I tanked. I suddenly felt tired. What should I do here? I should call. But he hasn't shoved a single hand for the whole heads up session. I should fold. But the maths says call. I folded. After that, my game unravelled. I didn't know where I was in any hand. I was like I'd hit a brick wall and my brain had turned to complete mush. As quickly as I had reduced Bob to almost nothing, he returned the favour. Before I knew what had happened, it was all over. Bob took home £40 and I pocketed £20 for 2nd, still shell shocked that I had managed to lose from such a commanding position. I stayed up to tidy the flat; normally something I would do the next day, but I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep so soon after that horror show.
My confidence took a bit of a battering after that evening and I played very little online for the rest of the month, playing only a few freerolls and $0.25 45 player SnG's with a couple of minor cashes, but overall very slightly down for the month. Fortunately, We had another Friday Night Game to redeem myself.
That did not go to plan...for the first time since the Friday Night Game had started in August 2018, I was first out. Nothing really I could have done about it either. I ran into some big hands, got outflopped a number of times. Eventually, I had K3 in the big blind. Mikey and Tom limped, I checked with K3. I shoved when I hit a pair of kings, both Mikey and Tom called. I forget what Mikey had, but Tom called with a flush draw and hit on the turn, knocking both me and Mikey out in one hand. I wasn't disappointed like I had been the game before. The cards didn't go for me when I needed them to. I'd played quite well over all and it just didn't go my way. I dealt for the rest of the night. Bob won again, beating Ashley heads up.
November would have been a flat month for me if it were not for an online home game on Pokerstars. We played for a £5.00, but handled the money ourselves to avoid Pokerstars taking the rake and played in their play money platform. I think it's fair to say I destroyed it. After an eventful first couple of levels where Bob knocked out Danny when he turned a straight flush and Danny rivered quad Tens, I came into my own. Playing aggressively from position and noticing some timing tells that allowed me to exploit a couple of the other guys. Not to mention hitting almost every flop I saw. There is nothing better than hitting a set of 5's when your opponent hits top pair top kicker, or you hit top pait top kicker and they have top pair 2nd kicker. I knocked Hamish out with AA vs QQ and then Mikey with A8 vs A6, hitting 2 pair on the turn. 3 ways against Bob and Dave, I have more than 2/3rds of the chips in play. Despite doubling them both up and one point, I continued to dominate the table, knocking Bob out with 88 vs AT to go heads up against Dave. We battled for a little while and I doubled him up when we got it all in pre-flop with KQ vs A9 and the board missed us both, but eventually we got it all in. Again I had 88 and he had KQ and everything blanked.
Other than that I didn't have any wins to write home about apart from a 1st place in a $0.25 45 player SnG for £3.23. Unfortunately a poor cash game session on 888 where I lost $4.87 and a calculated risk playing in the Pokerstars Micro Millions $1.10 where I double re-bought did not work out meant that I finished November just over £14 up. I must remember not to play cash games. They are not kind to me and I always seem to end up making one or two serious blunders that usually end up with me getting stacked.
I hope you have enjoyed reading my latest update, please do leave me a like and a comment if you do and I promise I won't leave it so long until the next one.
Thanks,
Matt