How much can you pay for a gutshot?

I got a nice promotion from a pokerroom: a $40+4 tournament with 20 players and 10 places getting paid. There was some added money (awarding places 6-10 at least $50) and an added ticket for an online tournament worth $1,040 for first place.

So you can expect the play was very tight in the beginning as we startet with 3,000 chips and 12 minute levels.

During the 25/50 level all players at our table had still between 2,400 and 4,000 chips and we had lost just one player so far. In that situation I got dealt QQ in the small-blind. There was one limper in MP and I raised it to 150. The Big blind called as well as the limper. Board came 9h-7s-5s. Although I didn't liked the two spades, the flop itself wasn't that bad. I bet 300 into a 450 pot and got two callers. Turn was the 8s. Didn't like that one but decided that I had to keep the lead here. Betting 700 into the 1,350 pot the BB called and the early limper folded. River was the 4h and I bet 1,400 expecting either a raise if he had hit his flush or a fold.

But I didn't expect a call from the guy showing me then Th Jc for a straight! Calling my pre-flop raise is already quite loose. With a limper in front a steal from me wasn't likely. But calling my bet on the flop with just a gutshot-draw into a dangerous flop and no spade at all goes beyond my mind. And calling another bet on the turn with a straight against a posssible flush is not much better.

Of course I played a dangerous game here. If I would have lost against the nut-flush or if he had outplayed me by raising (inducing that he had hit the flush) I wouldn't complain at all. But calling down this hand and getting rewarded is truly sad.

With just 950 chips left I took my chances with QJo in the 50/100 level and was up against TT. Flop came Q-3-5 but turn was a Ten and I was out (of the money) in 18th position in a tournament that pays 50% of the players. Unbelievable!

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Trip to the "Oceans Pokerclub" near Passau

I must admit I've never heard of this one before. The Oceans Pokerclub is located 2 km from Passau on the other side of the border in Austria. I read about them in a news message advertising the "Oceans Masters 2008". Their main-event was a €300+30 Deepstack with a PF=13.26 (10K startchips / 30 min. blinds). Well worth to give it a try.

So I drove down to Passau and was pleasantely surprised. Although the place is a little bit hidden up the hill in Haibach the indside couldn't be nicer. There are nine poker tables in a large room with wooden walls giving a warm atmosphere. Connected is a small bar with two tables for lunch or dinner.

It turned out that I know Marco (one of the guys running this place) from my early poker days in Munich. They just started this place about half a year ago but decided to try their luck with a bigger event. The day before they had a satellite for the main-event which had about 80 players. As expected the main-event with the higher buy-in drew less people. They expected about 40 to 50 but due to some late cancellations it was "only" 33 ... still creating a prize pool of €9,900 with 5 places getting paid.

And the field was much better than expected. They had people not only from Passau, Deggendorf and Regensburg but also from Linz and even Vienna. I saw a lot of decent play. Some people lacked in pot-size manipulation but in general it was a much better crowd than you will find at most other places. In addition there was none of those maniacs that make people feel uncomfortable while playing. Therefore it was a great atmosphere for a Saturday night tournament. The tournament included a buffet which was really great. Wide selection of salads, some beef and noodles.

The dealers were well trained but obviously need a little more practice. But this was only an issue in a few tricky situation wich we always resolved with no further problems. They use the chips denominations from the Poker World, Vienna (25, 50, 250, 500, 1000, 5000) which is a little weired in my opinion. But well, I'm used to the standard 25, 100, 500, 1000, 5000 scheme ... so this may be just an issue for me.

My only main issues would be that the tournament clock was used just for the time. They never updated the number of remaining players. So you had to count them and calculate the average stack by yourself. Another one was the lack of bathroom breaks. The only break was the buffet break after 4 hours of play. But I am sure those little problems will dissapear as time goes by and they get more experienced. So I can definately reccomend this place. I haven't tried their cashgame but it seems that they offer €1/1 and €1/2 No-Limit for most of the time. Sometimes even €2/5. In addition they run €10, €20 or €30 Sit and Go's.

The tournament started quite good for me as I was able to pump my stack up to 17K very soon. A little down from there but about an hour before the buffet break I was up to 30K and one of the chip leaders. Unfortunately the last level before the break was costly. Not neccessarily due to bad play ... more to just having good cards that weren't good enough. Like hitting a Ten with AT on a good flop but running into JJ. The buffet break came at the right time to refresh and restart with only 12K as a short stack with 12 people left.

With 11 people I hit an important hand. This time I was on the sunny side with AQ vs. AJ. Busted the other guy and went to the final table with 26K. Still a shorty but not on life support anymore. I got a customer for my AA when my opponent hit a Queen with AQ and was up to 47K with 8 left. Well around average. Unfortunately I had to fold a very good straight draw due to three hearts on the board when the chip leader raised me all-in. He later showed 9 of hearts for at least on pair (I had hit my Ace) but I was sure that he either had a minor flush or maybe two pair (A9).

Down to 30K with only 7 left. As we lost the 7th player I suggested that first and second place give €200 and €100 for the bubble-boy and everybody agreed. Three short stacks refused to bust in the coming thirty minutes and my stack was melted down to 21K with blinds at 2K/4K. Then I found 88 but the chipleader raised it to 12K. Of course I could have folded. But what should I wait for. As he had a wide raising range there was a good possibility that I was at least in a 50:50 situation. So I went all-in, he called (of course) and showed AJ. But a Jack on the flop destroyed my dreams of a big win and I was the bubble-boy for a mere €300 win after little over 6 hours of play.

But I wasn't too dissapointed. I made a good game. Losing this last hand was unfortunate ... but this is part of the game of poker. But in general it added to my growing confidence as it connected with my good results in the last time.

Tonight I will play the Sunday Million once again and see if I can keep up with my good run.

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Something has changed

There has been a significant change in my tournament game since I played in Drogheda. The weired thing is that I can't exactly tell what it is.

For a long time I played solid tournaments but I missed one important thing: I almost never was the big stack or at least a well above average stack going into the middle (=important) phase of a tournament. Since I played in Drogheda (and it started there) I am able to build much bigger stacks than in the past. This results in much more options in how to play the game. One would think that this comes together with an increased bustout rate in the early stages. But this isn't the case. In fact I my early bustout rate has even decreased a little right now. In addition, 13 hours of shorthanded poker definately increased my endgame in a huge way.

So it's not a surprise that I cashed in two of my last four tournaments since Drogheda. One ITM at the FTOPS and a tournament win at the Poker Club in Salzburg yesterday. I busted out from another FTOPS shortly before the money due to my own fault (making a real bad play). Just postive side of the standard deviation (aka luck)? Well, you have to hit at the right time or have players doing bad plays. No doubt about that. But in general my cards are decent but not incredibly great. So I won't say it's just a typical upswing.

I realise some small changes in my game but I am surprised that they seem to have such a great impact. In addition there are some surroundings that might have a positive effect. I sounds weired but it is a fact that your results get significantly better when you're balanced in the rest of your life and go into the game with the right confidence. Even if you are a good player your edge is slim - so being in good mood will help to avoid mistakes and will result in better decisions. Just a small addition to your edge but every single bit counts. So sorting out some things in my life might have helped too.

And although I didn't cash in Drogheda and I was devastated for almost a whole day I came back with a much bigger confidence about my own game. Looks like Drogheda was much more for me than just a nice trip to a great tournament.

I'm sure there will be downs sooner or later again. There will be dry runs again as well as bad beats and own mistakes but that is part of the game. But I know I made a big step forward in my game ... and that's the only thing that counts!

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FTOPS VII - Event 8 ($120+9 Shorthanded K.O.)

6,000 players made it a full tournament just minutes before the start. That made it about $114,000 for the first prize winner. Only 492 payed places ... very tough.

I had a good start and on my second table I met Søren Kongsgaard (3rd place EPT Grand Final, Monte Carlo). At this time I had around 6,000 chips while Søren was at 12,000. With AK I raised it and Søren called. Flop K-T-x. I bet all streets and he called all my bets down to the river. At the end he showed JT and I was up to 12,000 while he was down to 6,000. He later recovered but eventually ended in the middle of the field with no cash. But it was interesting to watch him play ... those Danish players seem to be as aggressive as the Skandinavians.

After that I had to change tables for three times quite quickly. Shortly before the third break I was up to 30,000 raking in a nice pot in a AQ vs. KQ confrontation were we both hit our Queen.

Then I got a real present: SB raised and I assumed that he was either on a steal or at least not very strong and made the call from the BB with KQo. Flop came Q-Q-T and he went all-in immediately having me covered (had 23,000 left). I called in a second and he showed AT. Up to 52,000 then. From there I made it to my higest point of 74,000 and straight into the money.

Lost some chips but still had about 60,000 chips when I lost a big pot with A9h vs. AKo. Two hearts on the board but no third heart and neither a nine showed up. Down to 32,000.

The next hand a big stacks made a min. raise and I called from the big blind (blinds 1000/2000 with 250 ante). Flop came 3-5-J and I went all-in for my remaining 28,000. He called and showed 35s. What a cruel way to end a tournament that ran so well for 3.5 hours.

Final placement: 364th of 6,000 for a $228 cash + $20 Bounty. Nice cash but without that beat at the end there would have been room for much more!

I love short-handed play. It gives room for so much action with so many flops to see. I will have another shot next Friday with Event #15 the $200+16 6-max. And of course my plans to play the shorthanded event at the WSOP become more and more reality.

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FTOPS VII - Event 4 ($200+16 PL Hold'em)

Had a good run in the beginning busting two people during the first two levels. First one was hitting to pair with AJ vs. AQ and second one trip sevens vs. two pair (KT). That boosted my stack to 11.900 and I was even chipleader for some time. Managed to stick in the top 20 for about 2 hours.

Unfortunately I was stuck there with around 17K before I took down a huge pot with AK vs. AJ against a shortstack. Up to 21K I got KK in the very next hand. A shortstack raised and I re-raised him all-in. He called, showed A6 ... and flopped an Ace. Back down to 16K.

At the begining of the third hour (still around 60th to 70th place) I got AKs in the small blind. I raised but got re-raised by an aggressive player in the big blind who had re-raised my raises for some time now. So I called his bet ... and missed the flop completely. I decided to test if he was just trying to steal and made a decent continuation bet just to be faced with an all-in (he had me covered). Now I was sure that I was up against a pocket pair and folded. Down to 3,900 and severely shortstacked.

Looking back this continuation bet was a very bad play with just 225 players left of the original 1,215 (135 getting in the money). But I was tired of getting re-raised by him and having to fold my decent hands. But with almost 10K left and blinds 300/600 I would have had a good chance to make it at least into the money. On the other hand I should have gone the whole road after the continuation bet (also I was sure I was behind) and call the remaining 4K into a 20K pot. With probably 6 outs I would have still gotten the right odds.

Busted out little later with KQs and no help in 194th position after 3.5 hours.

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FTOPS VII around the corner

FTOPS VII is starting at Full Tilt and I have currently plans to play 3 events:


Event #4 - PL Hold'em $100K ($200+16) on Feb 8th @ 8pm CET [PF=19,95]
Event #8 - NL 6-Max Knockout $150K ($120+9) on Feb 10th @ 8pm CET [PF=17,54]
Event #15 - NL 6-Max $150K ($200+16) on Feb 15th @ 8pm CET [PF=17,54]

Will try to live blog about it in Twitter.

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Day 2 of the "Shorthanded Deepstack" in Drogheda, Irland

Unfortunately my day 2 was much shorter then expected. I was in a good mood and manged to keep my stack around 70,000 for most of the first level on that day. My first important hand during that was a laydown. I had raised AJs in EP and got two callers. The big blind (big-stack) then bet into the A-K-x flop. I assumed that I was still ahead but had the strong suspicion that the small stack behind us would go all-in for about 36,000 and I was absolutely unsure about his hand. So I folded ... he went in and was called. He showed KJs while the big-stack showed KQ. The small-stack managed to make a runner-runner flush and I saved myself many chips.

Somewhat later I made a move with Jx from the button and got called from Nicolas Ragot my french nemesis in the big blind. Flop came Q-J-9. He checked, I bet 10,000 and he raised all in for about 26,000 more. I knew that my Jack with a weak kicker wasn't a strong hand but I assumed that he wanted to steal the pot with nothing or maybe something like A9. I thought for a long time and finally made the wrong decision and called. He showed Q6 and neither a Jack or a Nine appeared on the board.

Now my stack was down to 33,000 and I had left the save regions for the first time. Shortly before the end of that level I found K9s in the small blind. Everybody folded to me and I raised it. Niall Murphy called in the big blind. I caught a dreamflop of K-K-3 and checked. Niall checked, too. Turn was a 4 and I checked again. This time he bet 10,000 and I went-all in just to get a quick call. I was in some trouble as he showed KJ for the better kicker. I still had several outs for a win or maybe a push but there was no further help from the board and I was out in 19th place. Niall Murphy eventually ended the tournament in 6th place.

Busting out from a tournament is always tough. But leaving a tournament after 13 hours of play is devastating. I felt like I had blown it away by making that bad call against the french guy. It's true that I didn't had the right odds to call him here. Total pot was around 75k and I had to pay another 26k. On the other hand folding or losing would have had similar results: I would have left the save M=20 area. So being sure that he hadn't a monster and I was at least not drawing dead offered another option - to increase my chipstack and take him aout of the tournament. Still I'm unhappy with the call (and his outcome) but it wasn't a complete bonehead move. It would have been if I had to put my tournament life on line with that call! But on the other hand there had been ways to play this hand much better! The obvious one would have been to go all-in on the flop directly. Had I payed more attention regarding his stacksize I would have been easily able to pressure him with elimination and the tough decision if Q6 is really good enough here. If he called the outcome would be the same but I would have added another option - making him fold - to my arsenal.

In the set over set situation I had no choice. Assuming that somebody could hold the forth King (especially in a short-handed game) would have been very far fetched. But my opponent made everything correct, too. There's no way I would have played it different being in his situation again.

But beside that this was a wonderful tournament. Much room for good skilled poker and even at the final table there was no rush due to the blinds. No wonder the tournament lasted 18 levels! Additionally they had a very good (flat) price structure. Due to that nobody on the final table ever suggested a deal. They played it down to the last man standing - Peter Heslin (who btw. started day 2 with almost the same chipcount than me!). Congratulations to him and many thanks to Green Joker Poker for setting up one of the most wonderful tournaments I've ever played so far!

This was also a kind of a last test for me. I already booked my flight and hotel for a week in Las Vegas during the WSOP in June. Due to the good exchange rate I made plans to play one of the smaller bracelet events this year. The one in question ist Event #9, the shorthanded event. And now I am sure that this would be indeed a very good choice for me. I like the more aggressive playing style that is needed for short-handed and I also enjoy the space you have with only 6 people sitting together at the same table for hours.

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Day 1 of the "Shorthanded Deepstack" in Drogheda, Irland has come to an end

"Irish players actually hold the top 11 positions, Harald Gaerttner [yes me ;-)] in 12th is the highest placed visiting player at the moment, Nicolas Ragot [France] right behind him in 13th." from the Green Joker Poker Blog.

There's a story behind that line ... as Ragot was sitting on my table and was responsible for making my day much harder then it could have been. Early in the tournament I was up 3,000 from the original 20,000 when we clashed in a hand. I had raised preflop with KJs but Ragot had reraised me. From what I saw from him before I assumed he wanted to take the pot down right here with something medicore and called. Flop was K-5-x, I bet 3/4 of the pot. He called. Turn was a Queen. I shoot another bullet, he called again. River is blank but the pot already big enough that I won't let it go. Another bet ... he thought for some time, asked if I have KQ ... and called ... showing K5. No Fold'em Hold'em poker french style ;-) Unfortunately I was down to 15K after that hand and it took me half of the night to recover from this. I know I played this hand very aggressively but it was the right way to do so against this kind of opponent.

In general it was a nice table. Not so good players except one guy from Scottland (lot's of limping) but a great atmosphere. We had a great laugh at the end of a hand when I raised from the cutt-off with 35s. Button (the french guy) called, as well did the decent guy from Scottland in the Big Blind. Flop was QJA (great flop for 35, lol), it's checked around. Turn is a 3. Nice but not wort anything. Check. River is another Queen. Check. Scotish guy open folds 57s and I split the pot with the french guy showing 36s. So much about making moves ;-)

Unfortunately I didn't came back from those 15K for a long time. But sometimes a table change helps. It was a weired situation. I raised with AQs from EP just in that moment when the TD came by telling me that I have to move. Another player called. I missed the flop completely but went on with a huge continuation bet. He hesitates for some time but then calls. He seemed not to be happy about the call. Still no hit on the turn but three spades now. Being sure he wasn't on a flush I decided to either bust here or go to the new table with at least 20K. Quick all-in and he folds.

At the new table I hade a tremendous run of cards for about 45 minutes. Not the biggies like AA or KK but well playable card that connected quite well with the flop. Although I was the "smallest" stack (still with an M of 20) on the table I fully controlled them for some time. I had huge piles in front of me - especially 25's from picking up a lot of small pots and antes.

At my high point I was at around 45K but then settled for 33-37K for some time. With 400/800 - 100 still a good and healthy stack. Then this hand happend: I get TT in EP and raise to 2,500. Big Blind (how is also the big stack) calls. Flop is 3-3-5 rainbow. He checks, I bet 5,000 and he goes all-in. Damn ... I think for a long time. There's a pot that has already 11,000 in it. He has me covered so now the total pot including my bet would be over 60,000 and I have just 24K left. Tough decision with just 90 minutes to go in the day. What could he have. Overpair ... just flat calling my raise? Trips ... very aggressive move then with no flushdraw. I finally call ... he says gould call and shows ATo. My pair holds up and I am at 60K now ... back to average.

The last 2 hours had been the hardest. You could see a lot of tired faces and altough I was in quite good condition those last two hours of a total of 12 were a real pain. But after winning this hand I felt so great like I had fershly started the tournament. Now I knew I that I would make it through the first day and I aim for making it into the money tomorrow.

At least with my current stack I have all possibkle options at the upcoming 800/1,600 - 200 level this evening at 6:30pm GMT. There are now 24 of the original 97 going into Day 2 with approx. 10 getting paid for their efforts.

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The weirdest Poker Night of my life

Tonight I went to The Sporting Emporium. This place is compared to the Jackpot Club like the Bellagio in comparison to the El Cortez. Or in other words a nice casino with a great victorian style atmosphere. They have Roulette and Black Jack on the first floor and a Pokerroom with 13 tables on the second floor. Entry is €20 (for a one year membership) but you get a €10 token for that. Drinks are free. The poker dealers are well educated and some of the fastest dealers I've ever seen.

As I was a little early I spend my $10 bet on Black Jack and of course lost it. But they have a hand-shuffled €3 minimum 6-deck game that allows multiple splits, double after split and surrender. The cut could be better but in general it was one of the better games I've seen for a long time. So I decided to kill some time there. Broke even but had fun to reactivate my Black Jack Skills.

The poker tournament ($50+5 with one RB or Add-On) had an interesting rule: If a player misses more than a whole round after the break (3rd level) he will be blinded down by posting the big blind every single round of the game until he comes back. I really like that rule.

I donked off my first buy-in with an over-aggressive bluff against an unbluffable opponent. With the second I was more careful and pumped it up to 22,000 till level 9. With blinds 400/800 and a 15K average I was in good shape and had much room for moves. With 22 of 54 left I was dealt 66 in late position and raised it to 2,400. The Big blind went all-in for 3,900. Another player called the bet and so did I. Flop was 5KT and we both checked. Turn was a 6 and made me a set. Here I made my first big mistake by just checking again. River was a Queen and the other guy bet 1,500 into a 12,000 pot. Mistake number two: There are times were it is better to call than to raise ... especially on the river. But I decided to make it a raise to 5,000 and was faced by an all-in. The pot was now 34,000 and I had to call another 12,000. No way I could let this monster go here. Unfortunately my Set wasn't good as I was facing a straight with AJ. With just 800 chips left I went all-in with J9 a little later and was called by JJ.

If you read my posts in the past you read a lot about being card dead and the bad beats I received. This time there's noboy than myself to blame. I blew it myself. By just calling his suspiciously small bet I would have still had an average chipcount of around 15,000 chips. Definately one of my biggest mistakes I ever made. With that mistake I threw away a good shot on the final table.

I wasn't really in the mood for playin cashgame but there is an important rule in Rock'n'Roll dancing: If you fell down at an arial do it again as soon as possible - preferrable immidiately. This is the best way to avoid bad feelings in the future. I was in the same situation here. A good poker player has to make his peace with wrong decisions as fast as possible - especially with a big tournament around the corner.

Little did I know at this time how good this decision was. Bought in for €100 at an €1/2 PL game and pumped it up to €282 with a straight against two pair quite soon. Just two rounds later I got dealt 44. The flop was A45. There was a bet, a call and I made it €220 to go (pot). First one folded but second called (had him covered). What I didn't know at this time was that I was way behind. He was holding 55 for a higher set and was happy to call as he put me on a set of 4s. A set of Aces was unlikely due to the way the betting happend. But sometimes even the Shadow hits an one-outer on the river. Quad 4's and I was uo to €430. Gave some back on a missed open-ended straight and flushdraw but the poker gods loved me this night. With Q6 in the big blind it was just called around. Flop was QQx and I decided to check. One player bet €10 and the others folded. I called. Turn was nuts ... THE nuts as the last Q appeard on the board. I checked it again and he bet another €20. Just called. River was a blank and this time I bet €50 into a €120 pot after some hesitation. I was very delighted to get called here. Up to €396 I cashed out after 80 minutes of play. What a way to end a poker night. There are days were I love poker...!

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Bad Beats in Dublin

I'm sure that most of you are tired of bad beat stories ... so if you can't stand them you better skip this entry.

My first tournament (€20+3 freezeout) brought me back to the Jackpot Club. Not much to report here except of my exit hand. Got dealt AJo and went all-in with 3,900 chips (blinds 200/400) and got called by ATo. Great, I'm ahead! Flop comes a Ten. Damn, I'm behind! Turn is a Jack. I'm ahead again! River is a Ten. I'm out on 15th position of 53.

Those tournaments are dealt by playing dealers. In general there is nothing wrong with that if you have experienced dealers. But those at the Jackpot Club are more like players that have learned how to deal. And with a tournament director that isn't able to run a tournament smoothly there's a lot of small things that might go wrong and may (unintenionally) favor a player in some way over some others. Personally I wouldn't play a bigger buy-in event under this conditions at the Jackpot Club. Will be interesting to see how the Sporting Emporium (the place I play tomorrow) can handle the tournament action.

Over to the cashgame (€1/2 PL) ... with real dealers. Was somewhat ahead in the beginning but went card dead for four hours. And of course even those rare but marginally playable hands never connected with the flop. Recovered later almost to my initial buy-in when this hand happend: Got KK and raised it to the maximum from EP. Two callers. Flop was T75 with two hearts. Bet the pot and still two callers. Turn was an Ace (no heart) ... not the card I wanted to see with Pocket Kings. I could have checked here but decided for a bet (half of the pot). One fold but the other player went all-in. I assumed that he was on a flush draw when he called the flop but now it looked like he had hit his Ace. He had me covered and the pot was way too big to give my hand up here. He showed AT for two pair and the River was blank. Maybe my bet on the turn was too aggressive here. Without that bet it would have been much more easier for me to fold on his action. But I would have given him the option to represent the Ace even if he had nothing. What puzzles me most is that he assumed that his TPTK was good on the flop although I bet the maxiumum preflop and on the flop from EP. What did he think I could hold with that betting pattern?

In some way the whold day was a bad beat. First Aer Lingus gave me a different seat than reserved. As I had paid €3 for the reservation I insisted on my seat. Bad idea ... I had some very annoying and loud people in front of me. On the bus to the city my ticket didn't work. I didn't work on either bus so far. So I think it is damaged. In the bus I had the next bunch of annoying people (with even more annoying kids) around me. When I left the bus for a stop at the Starbucks on my way to the hotel it was cold but sunny (well, that is the good part). But when I left the Starbucks 15 minutes later there was a small rain- and snowstorm. In the hotel I got the worst possible room: small, no wireless-lan access and cold. I wasn't able to get the heating working so (fortunately) I got a new room which was warm and much nicer. Wirless-lan is working but the connection is medicore.

So I hope things will be better tomorrow...

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