Oh my god live poker is boring.
I wound up losing about €300 ($440) after buying in for €1k (it was a 2/5 uncapped game), so results were a little meh but nothing crazy. It was definitely a pretty frustrating experience. It was a 9-handed table for most of the night (I played for about 3hrs or so), with pretty much the exact mix of players I was expecting – a few old nits and a few complete stations. Overall I think I had a really good table – these guys really had no idea what they were doing, and I had position on two of the looser ones.
Unfortunately I had to just sit there folding for the most part, since I picked up almost no playable hands the entire time. I think the best hand I was dealt in late position was 78hh, and that was facing an 8bb isolation raise from a half-stack. Lame. I got AKo once in the SB, but I got limp-reraised by one of the old nits and had to fold.
The only interesting hand of the night was the big one I lost. I made a loose (read: bored) open with A9hh in MP and got called in LP by the same old nit who had limp-reraised me earlier. Absolutely atrocious young guy with tons of money called from the blinds. There may have been a limper in front of me but I can’t really remember.
Flop came 947cc, and the crazy young guy led out for about the pot. He was the type to always lead with top pair, no matter what. I decided to call – if the old nit weren’t still behind me I would have raised for sure, and I think that may have been the correct play regardless, but I got a little confused. Anyways, old nit thinks for a few seconds and calls as well, and the three of us see the turn.
Blank falls and crazy young guy leads out for €100 into a pot of about €300 or so (reading stack and pot sizes was a definite problem – haven’t really developed that skill yet). I had seen the old guy call a couple double barrels before only to fold the river, so I thought he could very well be on a draw, so I called, expecting him to come along.
River was another blank, putting up a backdoor flush. Crazy dude bets €50, I’m thinking wtf is he doing and just call. Old dude thinks for about five seconds and calls too. Crazy dude confidently flips over 59o for TP no kicker. I flip over my TPTK thinking I’m probably ahead… until the old nit shows up with KK!
I was like, wait, what? You had kings? Lol live poker. I think I had some excuses for my goofy play (honestly, reading stack/pot sizes is tough – I should practice that a bit before I go out for any more live shenanigans), but this guy seemed like a regular. I can’t tell you how nonsensical his play is – the crazy young guy had only played at the table for maybe ten hands but it was already completely obvious he was terrible and a complete spewtard. For the old guy to not raise once during the entire hand… jesus, it’s just so bad.
But yeah, that was about it as far as hands went. I bluffed one guy after he opened from the CO to 6bbs and I called OTB with 77. He checked behind on a 69Tr flop, I bet about €50 into €70, he called. Turn was an K and he led pretty quickly for €150. He was semi-competent at least and a little aggro, so I figured he’d be bluffing here quite a lot. I thought for a bit and made a smallish raise to €350 I think and he folded pretty quickly.
Other than that, I kind of just leaked chips since my hands all sucked. I had to leave out of sheer frustration after the crazy young guy gifted away the rest of his 200bbs with TP no kicker to some other goofy young guy with TP slightly higher kicker. Man, getting to play some pots with that guy would have been really fun, but I just couldn’t get anything playable.
Oh well, not the end of the world. The family and I are back in Zaragoza now, and we’re flying back to New York tomorrow afternoon. It’s been a fun trip but I think I’m ready to be back in the States.
A Chum of Chance 