So I tried switching things up a bit after talking to my good buddy Chuck. Chuck is a no limit cash game player and every time we talk he tells me I should give no limit a shot. So I took his advice today and scouted out a no limit game where I felt the competition would be weak and I could ease myself into the no limit mindset. I decided on Excalibur mainly due to the type of clientele the property attracts. No self respecting poker player who took his/her game seriously would be found here, which is precisely why I went there. Only one $1/$2 no limit game was going when I arrived around noon and I was seated in about ten minutes. The session started off very well as I poked around in late position and picked up small pot after small pot. I thought to myself this is going to be a low risk kind of game full of weak/tight players that will let me push them off pots provided I don't get too out of hand with it. I was up about a stack of red when I flopped a set of 7s on a board of 6-7-8 with a two flush in clubs in a three handed pot. The early position player checked, the middle position player bet out ten into a pot of about that size, I re-raised to $30. The early position player to my surprise called and the original raiser folded. The turn brought an off suit nine so now any ten or any five would give my opponent a straight. The early player checked and I checked behind. The river brought an off suit jack which didn't really concern me since if I was beat that card didn't change things. The early player checked and I should have just shown the hand down but my opponent was a calling station and I figured him for two pair when he did not bet the river (something like 8-7 or 8-6) and I moved in on him (he had about $70 which was the size of the pot roughly.) He instantly called and I asked him if had the ten, instead he showed me an 8-5o for top pair and the ass end of the straight draw on the flop. Not only did the guy call my re-raise of $30 cold on that board, there was the distinct possibility that the original raiser could have bumped it up again and that I would come along or push. The way the hand played out, I guess I could have only been called with a straight there, but I also figured my play could have looked like a busted flush draw trying to pick up the pot on the end. Only against a thinking player should I have made that play. Against a calling station I should try that play because he is incapable of throwing away a second best hand even for all his chips. Other than that hand, there were only a couple other hands worth speaking of.
The first interesting spot that came up was when a weak/tight player min-raised UTG and I was next to act. I looked down at queens and made it $15 to go. It was folded back around to the UTG and he min-raised me again to $30. Right then I knew I was beat but I would have called him with any pair knowing full when if I flopped a set on a board without an ace I would felt him. The flop came down with three cards all lower than my pair. UTG moved in for $75 and I flashed my queens as I mucked them. He showed me his aces and I rapped the table knowing full well he had won the battle but I would win the war with this guy should be tangle again. Alas, that never happened.
The other situation arose when I found queens again in late-middle position. Folded around to me I made a standard raise of $8, the short stack to my left moved in for $24, the big blind called. I also called and we took the flop three handed with one all in. The flop came down 9 high and the big blind shoved for about $75. I instantly called as I had him on jacks since he did not re-raise pre-flop like I figured he might with a pair bigger than my own. He turned over his kings and I did not suck out with queens.
Not such a good start to my attempt at no limit hold'em. I feel like I need to brush up each morning reading some good articles on no limit play. My spidey senses are just a bit off since I am used to limit play where I pretty much know where I stand in the way the bets and raises are made. Still, I feel like I could become a very big favorite in the long run if I keep at no limit and search out the soft games with people looking to have a good time and free drinks rather than those looking to make a score to pay their bills.
7/27
Hours Played This Session: 6.58
Gave: $137
$ Per Hour: -$20.82
Earn:
Month to Date: -$173
Year to Date: -$296
Hourly Rate Year to Date: -$6.79
Total Hours Played Year to Date:43.58
Sessions Played Year to Date:8
Win/Loss Record by Session: 3/5 37.50%
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