Online challenge - update 2, "TV-Total" qualifikation and a "Happy New Year"

No, I don't suck at internet poker but I still only break-even with the 9-player SnG's. Interestingly I had similar problems to adjust my game to the live SnG's during this years WSOP. Maybe low stacks and fast blinds isn't my style?

I'm doing much better with Full Tilt's 90-player Deep-Stack SnG's. I'm in the black here and even took one down just yesterday. Beside the better results I feel much more comfortable in this kind of games. So I changed the online challenge and skipped the 9-player SnG's and only play the 90-player Deep-Stacks.

In addition I will try to play as much as possible (affordable) live "Deep-Stack"-tournaments. So if my time permits I will play the €800 freezout at the "Bregenz Open" in March and maybe the €500 "Ice-Poker" in Bremen next month.

I played some of PokerStars anniversary $5,000 Freerolls (buy-in 50 FPP's) but didn't last long enough to make it into the money. And of course I never was at the same table with Joe Hachem or anybody else from the Team PokerStars to get a shot on the bounty. One thing I can't understand is that PokerStars allows the observer chat in these tournaments. It's absolut ridicoulous what stupid questions people try to ask a guy who is playing in a tournament with a bounty on his head. And of course as soon as one of these people goes all-in almost everybody at the table calls with any two cards just to get a shot on the bounty (and to be able to say "they busted the champ").

Talking about freerolls ... there's another one at PokerStars (exclusively for players from Germany, Switzerland and Austria). Stefan Raab a german comedian did already two poker shows this year with some german "celebrities" and one online qualifier to win up to €50,000. To qualify online you have to play a freeroll which is an absolut crapshot. Up to 10,000 players (most of them probably never ever heard about pot-odds before) in a turbo structure with just 9 players qualifiying in each one for the final online tournament. Additionally they now offer some 10 FPP qualifier. I was surprised that these qualifiers only averages about 400 players each but offer 18 places each for the finals. Even the quality of the opponents was much better. Took a shot today ... and finished 7th.

So I just have to beat another probably 5,000 players (or more) in the finals in early February to make it into the show. Beating 5,000 donks, fishes, morons and some decent players of course ... that will be as much fun as crossing a mine-field. At least the blind structure with 15 minute blinds is much much better than in the qualifiers.

This will be most probably my last post ... for this year! ;-))
Good luck and good cards
(as long as you don't sit at my table!)
to all of you in 2007.