10k hands of muckity muck no limit at the $25 tables.

I have finally gotten through around 10k hands of NLH since I rebooted my system. I don't have the data with me, but here is my assessment off the top of my head.

1. Results: I am slightly in the red. I am still out of the red since March, but I am closer to 0 than I would like to be, but who wouldn't say that?.
   
2. I let myself get into a lot of tight spots on turns and rivers, paid off too often, and ran under EV with my semibluffs. When I am running badly, I play often play too Laggy, so no doubt these things are interrelated.
3. My play with premium hands is on the whole very solid, however I seem to get less value from AK than I'd expect. I will post more as I think about it.
4. Early in the sample set, I played far too many hands UTG and from the hijack. In a loose, spewy game, position and straight value betting are what wins the day. Suited connectors below broadway and suited aces need position and preferably a player to exploit.
5. I am probably cold-calling too much. There are fewer opportunities to play pots in position against players with tight raising ranges and high postflop %cbet and aggression factors. Their hand ranges are such that bluff shoving is nearly a spew.
   
6. I am starting to improve my aggression level, but I need to assess my cbetting and deeply study my line in big pots on the turn and river. **Especially vs. fish. I have given people air when a ton of cards kill my action on the next street, and I have snapcalled in a couple bad spots.

Successes:

• I think more about my individual plays, I challenge myself to develop reads and adjust my play to exploit them.
• I have re-acquired a verve for multitabling, but I am not on the level I once was.
• I have been active in the forums, acquired more poker conversation partners, and developed as a player because of it.
• I have been getting good value on my premium hands.
• My mindfulness of the present situation as an independent event has improved.
• I am considering the rake and rakeback more carefully in my decisions.
  
• Quitting. I generally quit sessions better than most. Once I catch myself out of line, I shut down the system and get up.
  

Shortcomings.

• Tilt. I was letting frustration shape my game too often. I am better than I have been at microstakes in the past (by a TON), but still have a ways to go.
  
• Boredom. I am letting longer sessions get the best of me and slipping into a non-optimal mindset. This feeds into my other problems.
• Short sessions. My mental endurance is lower than it has been.
• Poor hand selection UTG.
• (Possibly) over-estimating fold-equity in semibluff situations.
• Losing EV in big river pots.
  

Intro Lesson and a Poker Hand Anatomy Lesson.

In accordance with a friend's wishes, I'm going to give him an electronic poker lesson.

Step I. Learn the rules.

Poker is a game of combinations. The winner of a hand at showdown is the player playing the highest ranking, rarest 5-card combination.

Poker is a game of betting and bluffing. In order to win a poker hand, you must either:

• bet, so that your opponent folds a hand that would win at showdown.
• bet and call your way to showdown with the winning hand.

Already we can say something about poker. Poker is about betting with the best hand when your opponent will call and betting with the worst hand when your opponent will fold. This is an understatement of cosmic implications.

Step II: Think Big Picture.

To be more general and straightforward, poker winners play in a way that minimizes the number and cost of their mistakes, while maximizing the cost of their opponents' mistakes.

In poker at least some of the cards are face-down. So you never know for certain whether your hand is best or worst. Poker is a game of incomplete information. Making the most of the available data is a critical skill.

The only way to obtain information is to watch and think critically about your opponents actions. To interpret this information best, you must use critical thinking and intuition. Some things you must recognize and interpret:

• Behavior patterns. For example: if an opponent tends to play very passively and play very few cards, a bet from this opponent indicates a hand that is likely very strong.
• The odds. Sometimes your hand is not best but can easily improve. You must know and act upon the odds you have.
• The meaning of different cards and future cards for hand values.
• Deliberate deception.
• Unintentional actions or "tells".

Step III: Learn the Mechanics.

• Every poker game plays for a high hand, a low hand (the WORST hand), or both.
• Every poker game has multiple rounds of play and begins with some sort of bet in the dark.
• In "Ante games" such as stud games and some draw varieties, everyone posts a small blind bet.
• In "Blind games" some players post larger bets in the dark. Since hold 'em is a blind game, I will discuss the mechanics of that game in more detail below.
• The two players to the left of the "button" (dealer seat) post a small and large blind.
• Starting with the small blind and ending with the dealer each player is dealt one card then another.
  
• The first player without a bet in front of them must decide whether to fold their hand, call the blind's dark bet (match it), or raise it. In fixed limit games, each bet is an increment of the big blind. If the big blind is $2, a raise is a $4 bet. A second raise is a $6 bet.
• Each player must match the previous players bet, raise it, or fold. In Las Vegas, no more than five bets can go in per round of play. On the internet, it is 4 bets per round.
• After the button acts, the small blind may act to call the bet, fold or raise as per everyone else. The same goes for the big blind.
• If no one has raised the big blind, the big blind can "check" to take a free flop or raise.
• After everyone has folded or matched the bet for the "preflop round". The dealer assembles a pot of chips in the middle, then deals one card face down (a burnt card, to prevent cheating) and three face up. These are the flop.
• The first player with a hand to the dealer's left may either bet or check in turn. Checking is declining to bet.
• Should someone bet, each player in turn must either call, fold or raise. The action is complete when each player in the hand has either folded or matched the last bettors bet.
• The dealer gathers the pot, burns a card and turns another face-up. This is the turn. On the turn and river, the bets double to two times the big blind. As before each player starting on the button's left must check or bet. Once a bet is made, each player must raise, fold, or call.
• The whole procedure of the turn is repeated for the river. A fifth card is put on the table and betting happens again.
• After the last bet is called, the final bettor turns his two hole cards face up to reveal his hand (the hand is the best 5 card hand he can make with any five cards between his hand and the board). Each player in turn can reveal their hand if it beats the best hand presently showing, or throw it away.
  
• The best hand showing is awarded the pot. The dealer is typically given a small tip.
• Alternately, should no player wish to call a bet on any street, the last bettor is awarded the pot. That player returns their cards.
  
• The button moves 1 player to the left.
  

Part IV: The Mile-High View of a Limit Hold 'em Hand.

• Each hand starts with many players and ends with one winner. The winner has the best hand at showdown.
• The button gives a player the ability to act after everyone else.
• In order to win, a player must bet enough to convince opponents to fold or make and call many bets.

These are the three aspects that you must consider all the time. Hand strength, position, and betting. They interrelate and inform every decision.

Part V: Three instructive hands.

These are three hands I culled from about 40 minutes of playing 6 "penny" or "micro" stakes tables on the internet. Play in these hands is comparable to play at $1/$2 and $2/$4 limit hold em tables in Las Vegas.

Hand 1: I am dealt pocket jacks on the button.

I have the button and a premium holding. I am undoubtedly not folding. One player folds and two others call the big blind to "limp in".

I raise, expecting my hand is best and is likely to win at showdown.

The small blind calls, the big blind folds and the two limpers call. The flop is dealt. It contains a jack of clubs, the Q of spades and the seven of spades. All the players check to me.

My hand- 3 Jacks- is the second best of all possible hands on this flop. I have the best hand at the table nearly all the time. However, anyone with two spades in hand now has a flush draw. I bet for value (I expect any hand with a queen to call) and to charge the draws. King-ten and hands with two spades can improve to be me.

All 3 opponents call. The turn brings the King of Spades. A flush-card has hit. My hand may not be the best now, but could very well be. Again it checks to me.

I bet for value.

The small blind calls and the next player raises. The cutoff (CO- hand next to the button folds).

My opponent may be betting a flush, a king, two spades for a flush, or two pair. I am likely ahead and I can improve against a flush if the board pairs. I raise again.

The small blind folds and the check-raiser calls. The river brings a red ten. This is a terrible card, putting 4-to-a-straight on the board. Any nine or ace now beats me. My opponent bets.

My opponent is representing a flush, an ace, or a nine and is betting for value. There is some chance he has a worse hand. The pot is offering me 14.5-to-1 to make a call. If he is betting a worse hand 8% of the time, calling will be profitable. I call.

My opponent shows ace-king for the straight. I dislike my opponents play in this hand a tremendous amount. He should have raised and 4-bet preflop, bet the flop, and called on the turn instead of raising after the flop action. The only thing he did correctly was bet the river, which I surely check behind with a worse hand. The worse player won. That's poker.

Hand 2: How grown-ups play Ace-king.

Several players limp and I find Ace-king in the cutoff. I raise, several players call and another reraises.

While a limp-reraise is the ultimate show of strength in hold'em, my hand is strong and depletes the deck of kings and aces. My opponent is less likely to have aces or kings than usual, and so my hand rates to be very competitive with his. I reraise to put get more money in.

The button calls, as does the limp-reraiser. The flop brings two-tone K84. It checks to me.

My hand rates to be best on this flop. I bet for value.

The button raises, and the out of position player (OOP) calls.

I raise again to bet for value against one beaten hand and another that I probably beat. The button may have three of a kind but probably does not.

The button caps. The OOP calls. I call. The turn is an offsuit 7. OOP check to me.

This does complete a draw, but all the betting indicates no one has it. I bet for value.

Again the button raises and OOP calls.

I am beginning to believe that the button has it. It is another good king, two pair, AA, or a set. The pot is huge and my hand may still win at showdown. I call.

The river brings a lovely offsuit ace. It checks to me.

My hand just improved and the board basically indicates that the villain does not have AA. I expect him to bet most of his hands. I expect the OOP player to call. I check, intending to raise both of them and pick up an extra two bets when my hand is best.

The villains fall face first into my trap, I make my raise and show down my winner. As it turns out I was ahead the whole way.

Hand 3: Further out of the box.

The table is 4-handed. The cutoff folds and the button completes the big blind. The small blind calls.

I have QJ. I have been attacking this table with aggression to great success. This hand rates well against the small blinds range as well as the buttons limping range (I expect he would make a steal raise with AJ, AQ, KQ, KJ, or any pair higher than TT). I raise.

Both players call and the flop comes 59J rainbow. SB checks.

The board is dry, the pot is big and my hand rates to be best. I bet for value.

The button raises, the SB three bets.

The only hands that hit this flop hard are J9, QT (overcard and a straight draw), T8, sets and ugly two pair. Given my level of aggression, I expect that they would trap me with their best hands. I think they are just pushing back with crappy hands. In poker terms, they are value betting light or making bad semi-bluffs. With the best hand and weak players betting spitefully, I call. They might spite bluff again.

The button caps and everyone calls. the turn brings a second jack. SB bets.

I just do not believe his hand is better than mine here. The card only slightly improves my hand but I may fold the button if I raise. I call.

The button raises and the SB calls.

Now it really looks like the button might have a hand that beats me. But again, the pot is big and he has to beat me quite often to make my calling unprofitable. I call. I intend to check and call on the river unless a queen hits or the board pairs.

The river brings a seven. The SB checks. I check. The button bets his last few pennies. The SB calls. I call.

My hand wins.

In this hand, I make several "poker plays".

1. I use my table image to push my opponents out of their comfort zones.
2. I correctly recognize that the aggression at the table is a "reverse tell", recognizing that they would probably trap me with a genuinely strong hand.
3. I make a small mistake. When the button bets his last few pennies and the SB calls, I call. I missed an easy raise for value.

So I pick up a couple bets I wouldn't normally and miss one that in the future I might find.