Welcome Back!!!

Wow! It has been over one year and three months since I last wrote here on my poker blog. Why have I returned? Because my love and excitement for poker has been rekindled!

How? A friend loaned me Annie Duke's book, and I devoured it. She was honest and open in her book and I learned about Omaha Hi/Lo. So....new knowledge in hand, I went to my free Pokerstars.net account, played some free money hands....then registered for an Omaha Hi tournament. 638 players.....and top 99 get play chip prizes....when I broke 99, I was thrilled. When I broke 18, I was stunned! When I made final table, I was exuberant! And when I came in 6th, I was both exhausted and rejuvenated!!!

Here is a game that is going to improve my NL Hold'em game....and I must have some kind of natural affinity for Omaha too!!

I did go out and buy some new poker books so that I can get back into studying my craft...and improving my game and knowledge of the game.

keep posted!! Got some exciting poker happenings coming up!!!

My Update

I'm still hosting tournaments, and I am still working in poker----but now I am the Director of Operations for the entire league, and well, I am enjoying the process of revamping the company, hiring new hosts and adding some new features.

Like if you play with TFPL on your birthday, you get 10K extra in starting chips for the session of your choice. We have had many players choose to celebrate their birthday with their poker playing buddies!

I have had the great fortune to hire some great new hosts---their energy is high, they are passionate about poker, and they are genuinely nice people! One of our newest "candidates" is also going to be one of our youngest hosts---but I can hardly resist his persistence and drive and enthusiasm. We'll see how it goes. I am going to give him his first trial run next Monday, while I play. Then we'll go from there. I've got high hopes for him, and I am impressed with his maturity and work ethic. Being around him is like a gust of fresh air! He jokes that he is going to take over my position......and I think that's great that he has that much self-confidence.

Won't happen.....but its good for people to have dreams. LOL!!!

New updates!

I haven't written in so long....and i miss it. Of course because SXSW is here again, it makes me think about blogging, and all things online. Unfortunately I'm unable to attend this year.....because I am saving my bucks for my first week long poker cruise!

We are leaving from Galveston, and sailing to Cozumel, Grand Cayman (one of my favorite islands in the world) and Jamaica! And as long as the ship isn't in dock, there will be live poker!!!! Tournaments and cash games....around the clock.

The cruise is with Linda Johnson and Jan Fisher www.cardplayercruises.com

I will be updating as we go!

Local Austinite Places At WSOP!

Charles Woods, from Lakeway, and a TFPL player entered the Seniors WSOP and surprised everyone by making the final table and coming in 6th! His efforts won him $84K+

Who says WSOP dreams can't come true???!!!!!

From a Joker to a King

Talk about transformation. There is a guy in our league, that has always had a care less attitude about how he played. He was there to have a good time, and socialize. And he was great at it. Everyone loves him--even if the way he played threw people off of their game. He might make the points once in a great while--but his final table appearances were far and few between.

But something has changed....about a month ago, he went to Biloxi with his dad and played "real" poker. He had a great time, and learned that he actually could play, rather than just horse around at the table. Of course, it helped that he won money.

When he got back from his trip, he started playing the game more seriously, and because the people in the league are used to the fun loving, goofy guy--he gets called all the time. Needless to say, his standings have increased quite a bit...and his final table appearances have almost been 80-90% of the times that he plays.

Last Thursday night, he had his very first win! He was ecstactic even on Friday. In two years of playing the league, he has not every come in first place. I joked with him that he was a walk-in, and I wanted the real TI back, or I was gonna go to Biloxi and look for him.

Then Sunday, he played an earlier session at another bar...and he again won first place! And then he came to my bar....got down to $1700, turned it into $30,000, and ended up winning again! Three sessions within one weekend is kind of a rarity in our league--especially at three different bars. He won over $150 for his free poker playing.

This past week, he didn't do as well....and then Thursday night, he won yet again! 4 wins in one week.

I don't know what to make of it, and his winning so much is making me re-evaluate the way that I play (which is too tight)--but I am consistent. I just haven't won a tournament in a while. His wins are also making me question how much luck is really involved in poker. Is it luck that he has won 4 sessions, or has his poker game really improved so much? I guess time will tell.

I've been working and playing this league for over two years, and I don't believe that I know anyone that has won 4 times in one week.

I am very proud of him, and it is giving me great pleasure to watch his transformation, and confidence in his game grow.

Lol---maybe it was the trip to Biloxi, or maybe it was Phil Ivey's autograph, or maybe it's the corner seat, or maybe it's just his time to ride a wave of great cards, and good decision making.

We'll see!

Once In A Lifetime....and Being A Part of WPT History

A friend of mine, DP had the wonderful opportunity to play in the WPT Celebrity Invititational at the Commerce Casino this past weekend. Here's the link to the tournament.

There were 430 plus people in the tournament, and my friend made it to the second day. She was happy to have made it that far. The second day began with 13 tables, and their were more poker pros than celebrities left playing. Hoyt, Phil Laak, The Dragon, The Master, Linda Johnson, Jan Fischer, Kenna James, Jennifer Tilly and other players whose faces I recognize but can't recall their names at this moment, were also there on the second day.

The action was fast and furious enough, that by the time I left for dinner, they were down to 6 tables. And DP had been on a roller coaster ride of ups and downs. Just prior to my leaving, she had almost quadrupled her stack. I hated leaving, but I had already made dinner plans with Amanda. I asked DP to text me if she got out.

Unfortunately during dinner, the flu hit me head on, and I could barely hold my head up by the end of dinner. So after much internal dialogue on how terrible a friend I am, I went to bed....and woke up to a text that she had gone out at 7th.

I was thrilled for her....but I also knew that she was going to be upset, because the final table always films with 6! That means she was the bubble!
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I call her on Monday, the day of the taping to see how she is doing. And the whole story is that she actually went out at the same time as another woman, Beverly.....therefore the final table was going to be starting with 5. She was still going to go to the taping, since they wanted to interview her.

She wasn't doing too well emotionally, and there was nothing that I could say that would help her feel better.
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As they start the taping, Mike Sexton and Vince Van Patten announce that "for the first time in WPT history, the final table is beginning with 5 players." I had no idea that this had never happened before, and neither did DP.

In her interview, the girl asked her how did it feel to make WPT history....and I was proud of DP's answer---nothing could have prepared me to answer that one if it had been me---especially with the wound so fresh.
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I've had almost a week to think about the opportunity DP had to play, and how well she did, and the result, and the questions that she is going to be asking herself for a very long time. I feel for her in many ways. I'm so happy and proud of her for doing so well........and I'm sad for her that she is going to be questioning her decisions and being on the cusp of sitting at the final table.

I know she'll make another final table....she is too good a player....and now she should know that she can hold her own in a field of professionals.
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And of course, a woman won the tourmanent....for the first time!!!!!!!!

The Bicycle Home Game

Yesterday really sucked! I lost more money in one day than I have in all three years of poker playing combined. I'm not even gonna tell you how much it was. Needless to say...when I finally crawled into bed at 4am...I was pissed and exhausted...and well, feeling like a BIG loooooooooser!
The table we had last night was great! There were four guys there that play a home game, so we all joked that this table was their home game. Luis, Oscar, Carlos and Willie.....I'll describe each of them individually later.

Jerry Buss and some pro that I can never remember were playing a high stakes game in the back corner.

LOL! I am finally back online....after a miserable poker holiday, and coming down with the flu. I am totally blaming the homegame guys! And too funny...two of you commented before I could provide everyone with your details. I'll just let you know that I will be back for my cash!

I really didn't want to go back and play, but my friend, Amanda really wanted to play poker. So I said that I would go back for ONE more $40 round...and that was going to be it! She assured me that my run of earlier bad luck would change, and that it was an anomaly (which I also I believed).

So I don't like getting seated at a table that has already been playing when there is big money on the table, especially when I can only buy-in for $40. We were lucky enough to get seated at a brand new table. I chose to sit across from the dealer. Luis (I didn't know his name at that point) sat in seat one, and with his sunglasses, and very cool poker chip trick looked intimidating, and my first impression was that he was going to be a bully and pusher at the table. A friend of his, Oscar sat in seat three, Amanda was in 4, I was in 5, and two guys that didn't know how to play sat in seat 6 and 7. And random people came and went in seat 8 & 9. Luis kept getting phonecalls, and telling his friends to come sit with us. Pretty soon, there were 4 of them, and well, the thought did cross both Amanda's and my mind that we were getting set up.

What broke the ice at the table was that I got pocket aces and went all-in, up to that point, I hadn't won a single hand, so it's understandable that Carlos, Willie and Luis would call. However, I also hadn't raised unless I had something, and well....I only had about $12.00, so it should have been a great quadruple up. I was confident that I was gonna win the hand....and by the river, there was just Willie and I. Willie shows 6-2 offsuit, and he won!!!!!!!! On the river, he got two pairs, and I was out of the game! I sat there stunned for about 15 minutes, and Willie kept apologizing. Then Carlos was talking to Luis and called him a tightass...and I turned to him and said,"I can't believe that you are calling me a tightass." He looked at me in shock, then Luis said no, he was talking about me....and then I started laughing and the ice was broken.

They kept wanting me to buy back in...and I really didn't want to lose anymore money that day. Luis bought me a cranberry and Jager---which I liked.

I think our potential jackpot was spoiled by Carlos raising pre-flop, and I had pocket fours. Carlos had bet way too much for me to call. Too bad, on the flop, I would have had quads, and he would have had two pair....and our dealer Pam, had dealt two jackpots the week before. I kept reminding Carlos, that he was responsible for our not getting the jackpot.

I think this is what makes our trips enjoyable....is meeting the very fun and friendly local poker players. Because of my memory for faces, I saw many people that we played with a year ago, and playing at the Bike felt like I was home again.

Amanda and I thoroughly enjoyed their company, and Luis---next time we are in town, be sure to send us the email, so we can be invited to your home game!

I hate this game!

Sometimes!

I played at the Bike today. And it didn't matter what I played, or what I bet....someone called me and I lost. My AA, KK and JJ, and straights, and flushes were all counterfeited by some other winning hands. I took it as a sign that I really shouldn't play anymore poker. It's too easy w/$40 buy-ins to keep buying back in. So I am down $200 for the day right now.

The good news is that I played a $40 tournament, and there were 138 players total, and I went out at 40th. I was happy about that. I am supposed to play in a $100 women's tournament this Sunday. I hope I do well!

I did get quads during the tournament....and a guy at my table got a Royal Flush in the tournament.

I know that my cards are going to improve.

I do not know what is better: being card dead and patient, or getting great cards and losing with them, time and time again.

LA Poker Classic--Final Table

Phil Hellmuth, Woody Moore, Quinn Do, Nam Le, Phil Ivey and Steven x. What do these people have in common? They were all seated at the final table at the Commerce Casino last night. When I found out that I was going to be able to watch Phil and Phil and Nam play poker, I was beside myself with excitement!

Thank goodness, I arrived at the first tape change, and was able to go get to my seat before Phil Helmuth went all-in. He was the first to go. He was jovial, and very pleasant with the audience and the other players--I didn't expect him to be so good-natured--given there was 1.9 million dollars on the line!

Several other pros were in attendance---I recognize their faces, but not their names. I'll have to look them up later.

I didn't know that Phil Ivey has made a WPT table 8 times, and had never won a WPT title before. He has placed 8 - 2, but never first. There was no doubt in my mind that he was going to do it. He was unstoppable! He took Nam Le out with trip 3's, and Nam had gone all-in pre-flop with pocket aces. Ivey called with his pocket 3's. wowowow!

To say that the room went crazy when Phil won is an understatement. He was so focused and serious during the game. And even though he was the chip leader, he played very conservatively and didn't play many hands. He was definitely a great example of patience. Quin had interesting body postures when he was calling, raising and folding. I wonder if he realizes that he changes his body postures when he is playing?

My camera ran out of battery (damn it!) so I won't be posting many pictures of this event. But I will try to post what I can when I get home.

All In For Obama

One of the players in my poker league heard about a poker fundraiser for Obama. They didn't have a place or experience with hosting a tournament, so I volunteered to run it for them. It was great fun! In one week, we were able to get enough prizes donated to ensure that everyone that played got a prize. We had 37 players and raised $1200. I'll post a picture of the T-shirt that I had made up for the event.

I haven't really followed any of the political activity going on this election year---but I knew that I wanted to do my little part in getting people educated about one of the candidates, and what he stands for.

I used to live in Virginia, and remember going to the Clinton/Gore inauguaral parade in D.C., and I remember the excitement and the energy of that weekend. The tournament had a similar buzz---just alot less people, of course!