I've been playing some good poker lately. I've been cashing roughly 40% of the time. I would like to get that up to 50% since I have been playing 10 player sitngo's mostly.
Recently I have played in some bigger tournaments and had some good results. I played in a 103 player tournament and finished 8th for a cash and a 47 player tournament and finshed 4th for a cash.
I'm feeling more confident about my play in the last month or so and it is showing in the results. The suck outs are WAY down. I am really glad to see that because at one point a couple of months ago they were driving me nuts because it seemed I was making good decisions but constantly getting sucked out on. It was a rough go but I ploughed ahead and got through it. I always thought my game was good as I was getting my money in with the best of it more often than not ... but seemed to be always losing as my opponent would always catch his card(s). I say 'always' because when u get sucked out on alot it seems its always happening but I know it really isnt.
Being a poker player means you have to take periods where things seem to being going bad and battle through them ... its just part of the game.
A very bright spot for me is I am getting ahead of the pack earlier in sitngo's and tournaments. I think this has enabled me to sit back a little more and pick my spots. It also enables me to steal more blinds because as the game wears on and the blinds increase, more lower stack players seem to tighten up. My 3 and 4x bets are called less.
In my last blog I talked about the importance of folding. You really have to be patient and wait for your 'spots' to enter a hand. It has happened to me many times that I have only played 1 or 2 hands in the first 50. In those 1 or 2 hands I have maximized my take and am at or near the top chip stack ! Your confidence plays a BIG part in these decisions.
Cashing and winning also play a big part in building your confidence.
Poker has always been about one play leading to the next. Your always trying to read other players and tell a story about your play. Once you have them believing in your story you take their chips at the right time. This involves ALOT of patience and confidence ... and, oh ya, NO EGO !!
I played a 10 player sitngo the other night and it was down to 3 players with not much difference in chip stacks. I had a good read on the other 2 and had painted a picture of me being a tight player. I had let each of them at several points in the match take pots I thought were to risky even though I thought I had the better hand. Then it got down to this hand. I was on the button. The sb raised to 3x the bb. The bb folded and I called with AsKh. My notes on this player was "let him bet". The flop was 7s 8h Kd. The sb checked. I decided to check, after waiting. I wanted him to think I missed the flop but knowing he was aggressive I wanted him to take a shot at the pot on the turn. The turn brings a 3c. He bets half his stack. I just wait until the last possible moment and min raise his bet. He shoves and I call. He shows a pair of 9's. I went on to win that match.
You must realize that one poker decision leads to another and another. Each adds a piece to the puzzle you are building for your opponents. Each builds your confidence to make those decisions and once your confidence is high, good things happen !!
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Folding is key !
Written by John Fava
Well, I have been on a tear lately and so far there has been no let down.
I have cashed in 8 of my last 10 tournaments and my conifidence has not been better. I have been reading other players pretty good and subsequently have been making good decisions.
To me the key to this streak so far has been my folding habits. My chip count is paramount and fold equity is a high priority throughout the match when I am making decisions. I have been folding some great hands in tough positions when there is too much risk to my chip stack and in the long run that has enabled me to take down some big pots when I know I have the nuts. When you can maximize your winnings when you have a monster hand and fold when you have a great hand you have a much better chance at success.
I believe that other players might take me folding a great hand as a sign of weakness ... that's exactly what I want ! On more than a few occasions during this latest streak I have folded great hands on players who have felt they may have 'pushed' me off a hand and take it as a sign of weakness and then when the opportunity is there I felt them because all I have to do is let them bet and take their chips !
I also experienced one other positive trait during this streak. A lot of emotion has disappeared from my game. I am making decisions based on the situation and not my hope to try and bust this player because he's pushed me off several hands !
I also rarely bluff ! I can't tell you how much this has improved my game. I've seen too many chip leaders try to bully other players and lose half their stacks in the process. There is definitely a time and place for bluffing but it should be a rare occurrence.
Most of the tournaments I am playing are 10 man sitngos's but I entered an open tournament the other night where 47 players signed up. I finished 8th but felt I should have finished at least in the top 3. I got payed and doubled my entry fee but the following hand put a big dent in my chip stack.
I was 3rd in chips overall when the final table started. I had about 8k in chips and was on the button when I got pocket jacks. It folded around to me when I put in a 4x the bb raise. The sb folded and the bb called. The flop was 2 3 J. The bb checks and I put in a pot size bet because to me, this was already a nice size pot and this would put me just behind the chip leader. The bb thinks, and then goes all in. He has a pair of 4's ?? I have NO idea why he pushed at this point. I think maybe he thought I was simply trying to push him off his hand and had nothing but if he noticed me at all throughout the match I dont see how he could have thought that. I call and he hits runner runner, 6 5 for a straight. That was a tough one because he had about 2/3 of my chip stack. My fold equity took a huge hit and I finshed 8th. The top nine got paid. All in all I doubled my buy in, I made a correct call, I had way the best of it in an all in situation so I didnt feel to bad about the suckout. It happen's !
I know its a broken record but patience is also key. In many of the tournaments I have folded almost every hand for 2 or 3 orbits before I play a hand. In my last 10 man sitngo I didnt play a hand for the 1st 3 orbits and was still in 6th place. I then got a monster hand and fortunately doubled through a player who caught a piece of the flop as well. I went from 6th to 2nd place playing only 1 hand in the 1st 32 ! If your not getting any playable hands early, DONT WORRY, be patient and let the others donk off their chips in the early going !
When you play at any of the big 3, Full Tilt, Poker Stars or Titan you have to assume there are a lot of good and great players playing. A lot of these types of players will not be trying to bluff you most of the time. Folding is key when making a run in a tournament. You must be folding most of the time. You get a little more respect when entering a hand with a raise. This in turn decreases the chances of suckouts because there will be less players in the hand with you. I've talked many times about how to play against gamblers so just play a patient aggressive game and ALWAYS consider your chip stack and the risk to it with your decisions.
If you do this you will be folding most of the time !
