O.J.'s Poker Blog

Thu - May 3, 2007

Retirement

Please update your bookmarks to sendallthemoney.com

I've retired this site. Decided to start a new one up. It's part poker blog part everything else. Should be much more interesting than this site ever was.

Posted at 03:10 PM

Tue - October 17, 2006

Full Tilt Poker Leading the Way

With the new anti-online gambling bill signed and Party Poker dropping its US customer base, a new era of online poker has begun

I'm sure you have heard of the new legislation in place regarding online poker. While it's obviously an election ploy it has left its mark. Biggest news is Party Poker dropping its US customers and other sites following their lead. That leaves a lot of poker players looking for new places to play online with their own hard-earned money. Full Tilt Poker has held their ground and will not let the US Government keep millions of Americans from playing a game which they love. Full Tilt Poker wants to be the new leader after Party's demise.

I strongly suggest you try Full Tilt Poker. They have an easy to use interface. Lots of pro players are on the site playing with everyone else. There are plenty of tournaments with a very sexy structure. New players can get a 100% deposit bonus up to $600. I recommend depositing through Neteller as Firepay is dropping their US customer base.

If you have played on Full Tilt before they are offering a 50% reload deposit bonus up to $500. Make sure to get that in by October 20th. Played last night and noticed the action has picked up. Looks like a lot of the Party players are moving to Full Tilt. If you've played on Party then you know that is a great thing.

Make sure to use OJPOKER for the bonus code.

Posted at 07:13 PM

Sun - September 3, 2006

Mansion Poker/Sportsbook

It's that time of year. Football season is upon us which means another outlet to get your gamble on.

College football is in full swing. The NFL season starts in a few days. It's a great time to be a degenerate gambler. Mansion Poker/Sportsbook/Casino is offering a can't lose proposition to kick off the NFL season. How can you turn down betting $1100 USD and knowing you can't lose? Well Mansion is offering first time account makers to bet on the Steelers game on Sept 7th. All you have to do is bet on the Steelers to cover the spread for $1100. If you win, you win $1000. If you lose they REFUND your whole $1100 bet no strings attached. Get in on this now!

Posted at 01:30 PM

Tue - June 6, 2006

WSOP Time

The 2006 World Series of Poker is just around the corner.

It's that time of the year again. The WSOP is less than a month away and there are so many ways to qualify for the main event and subsequent events. Pokerstars is having a special tournament for those who run poker blogs.

Posted at 02:37 AM

Sat - May 20, 2006

Donation

I love when someone calls on the river and says "donation!"

When someone says donation and practically throws their chips at you, you got to be feeling good about the hand. You're ready to rake in the pot and give a tip to the dealer. However if you are running bad even when someone is trying to donate their money you still cannot win.

A couple of weeks ago I was at the Commerce playing 40/80 hold'em. There were a lot of tell tale signs about that day telling me not to even step foot in a casino. Of course I tried to defy the laws of karma and went to Commerce anyway.

Just got my Aces cracked twice when this hand comes up. I am in seat 1 and in middle position with AhKh. I open raise and seat 2 cold calls two bets as does seat 4 who's in the cutoff.

** Flop ** [Ad Qh 5s]

I bet, seat 2 raises, seat 4 cold calls 2 bets and I just call.

** Turn ** [Ad Qh 5s] 9h

I check, seat 2 bets, seat 4 calls, I check-raise with top-pair/top-kicker and nut flush draw. Call, call.

** River ** [Ad Qh 5s 9h] 3d

I bet, seat 2 folds, seat 4 thinks for awhile and reluctantly throws in his chips and says "donation!"

I roll my AK over and he rolls over 5h3h for bottom two-pair raking in a $1180 pot

All I can say was wow. I was kind of in shock. I mean you expect this in the 40/80 hold'em at Commerce but just the way the hand went down I just didn't know what to say. I think it was just the fact he said donation and I thought my hand was good. It's not the worst of beats even though it was a sick beat - calling 2 bets cold preflop and on the flop with only bottom pair.

That's poker I guess. It's a sick game. I don't normally post hand details and even then with this hand it does not capture the moment. You just had to be there.

Posted at 02:45 AM

Tue - March 21, 2006

Psychology and Poker

Lately I have bought in for 20-30 big bets (BBs) when playing a live limit game (two racks) as opposed to starting with one rack (10-15BBs)

If you play any limit game at a casino most players buy in for a rack of chips. While one rack is plenty of chips and has enough big bets for a couple of hands, if you happen to lose those first couple hands you will be sitting there with only a couple of stacks for less. Now normally you would buy another rack of chips but mentally you are down and feeling stuck because you had to reload. This might not be everyone's thinking but for me that's my state of mind after I lose my first few hands in a live game. What I have started to do is when I sit down is to immediately buy in for two racks. For me it makes me feel like I am not playing short. Even if I lose the first few hands I still have plenty of chips in front of me and can still play my game without feeling short. Chips are power in poker. There is just something about playing a hand against someone who has a ton of chips versus someone who doesn't.

So far since I started employing this idea for myself I have not had a losing session. This is definitely not a new idea since I have seen other players do this but I would recommend trying this especially if you are a tight player. Sometimes I don't play a hand for an hour since I sat down and I will be down the blinds so even though I haven't played a hand I am already feeling short.

Ultimately I am playing a little trick on myself mentally but winning poker requires playing at your best at all times. If all I have to do is start with two racks instead of one to improve my game then so be it.

Posted at 10:38 AM

Mon - February 13, 2006

Running Bad

Past few weeks haven't been too kind to me. The cards just don't like me right now it seems.

After getting off to a decent start this year the past few weeks have been pretty crappy to say the least. I've had marathon sessions where I'm in a game for a couple dimes to make it back within +/- $50. Then there are the sessions where I'm in a ton of money and I don't make it back. I had to fight to break even it seems. Feels like 9/10 sessions I'm playing from behind. My saving grace was knowing I was playing well for the most part but the last few sessions I have just plain played bad. If I'm playing bad then I really lose confidence in my game.

Decided to take an extended break from playing to settle things down. I hate not playing but honestly this time around I have to stay away in large part due to a lack of bankroll. To me there are two keys to being a successful poker player and by successful I mean winning. Money management and game selection have got to be the most important attributes of a successful poker player. No matter how good a poker player you are if you cannot manage your money then you will be unable to play. If you cannot select a good game or unable to realize you are in a bad game then again it does not matter how good a player you are. I've yet to be good at money management and can improve my game selection. In fact I believe these are as hard to master as the game of poker itself.

Posted at 01:32 AM

Sat - January 7, 2006

Tournament Poker

It is interesting to see who ends up making the final table of the tournaments I run

I see a lot of crazy things in the tournaments I run. I make the final table every night I run a tournament and there seems to be a consistent theme of the lineup of the final table. Last night the 10 of the 426 players who made it to the final table had your usual mix of characters. There is the newbie guy who's in his first tournament and just catching everything. Then there's the calling station, the short stack specialist, and a few guys with world-class ability. The newbie is driving the action sucking out on cue. He is also drunk but a good drunk. Polite and not belligerent. Short stack who grinded his way to the final is first one out. Don't forget the beats. Suck out on the flop, re-suck turn, re-re-suck on the river are common. The calling station wins the tournament. Nice lady who earlier was faced with a huge re-raise pre-flop and called with 77 up against someone making an unnecessary move with KQ. 7 in the window sealed it and she became a huge chip leader with 30 players to go and never looked back.

Tonight will be a little bit more tame. Some game called limit hold'em. Anyone still play limit hold'em tournaments anymore?

Posted at 01:01 PM

Thu - January 5, 2006

Full Tilt Poker for the Mac

Full Tilt Poker will be releasing a native downloadable version of their software for the Mac community in late January/early February

I can't tell you how excited I am about this. I've been a Mac user for quite some time now where my only options to play online poker were on pokerroom.com (and all of their skins) and using Virtual PC. All I can say is it's about time one of the major sites made a native Mac version of its software. Leave it to the people at Full Tilt Poker to come through. I believe since they are first to do this they will reap the rewards instantly knowing how the Mac community is. Even though Mac users might only represent 5% of the total computer users that is still a number in the millions. With the popularity of the iPod and the number of people switching from PCs to the Mac you can't leave out the Mac platform for any software to be written.

I am hoping this will be successful. I have downloaded the beta and it runs smooth and looks great. Who knows, maybe this will start a chain reaction of Mac versions of other major sites e.g. Party Poker, Pokerstars, UltimateBet and the Mac community will have a choice of where to play their online poker.

Posted at 09:59 AM

Wed - January 4, 2006

Happy New Year

Started the new poker year right with a final table finish

Decided to play a little NLH tourney the other day and finished 6th out of 145 players. It's likely the last tournament I play in awhile since I will be busy running tournaments the next couple of weeks. I've also decided to just take time off from playing for the first few months this year.

I'm not big on new year's resolutions however there are a few things poker-related I'd like to accomplish this year.

* Take better records of my poker play - going to invest in PokerTracker and keep my spreadsheets up to date daily.
* Play more online - deposit some real money on a few sites so I can play at limits I normally play live (15/30 and higher)
* Quit my day job

Since I haven't played as much as I used to I haven't been writing. I'm going to try to write more this year. I don't deal anymore so there will be no more stories of being in the box. What I will start to write about is anything interesting regarding the tournaments I run. There is always something of note in the tournaments I run be it an interesting hand, crazy players, etc. I'm guaranteed to make the final table every day so I should be able to come up with some content.

Those of you looking for a place to get started playing poker online should try UltimateBet.com right now. They are offering a 100% deposit bonus up to $500 from now until January 31st.

Posted at 10:48 AM

Sat - November 26, 2005

In the Mix

Good times in the Wynn Las Vegas poker room whenever there is a mix game going.

Just got back from spending a couple of days in Vegas. Was in town for a buddy's birthday. He was able to get a couple free nights at the Wynn Las Vegas. Last few times I've been to the Wynn poker room I played in a mix game where the lineup was H.O.R.S.E plus 2-7 triple draw. It was 10/20 and a lot of fun. During this last visit the limit was 15/30 and they were playing Omaha 8/b, Razz, Stud 8/b and 2-7 triple draw. I liked that lineup of games a lot. I can do without the Razz but it's not often I get to play Razz live so I didn't mind much. The game got short so we threw out Razz. The game was good but ended up getting stuck a lot before getting it back and winning a little bit. It wouldn't hurt my feelings if I played E.O.T. all day long everyday.

Posted at 02:58 AM

Thu - September 22, 2005

California State Poker Championship

Finally made it to Commerce to play in the $540 Stud 8/b event.

Event had 91 entries for a 1st place prize of over $17k. Since it was under 100 entries we were to play this out in one day. Final table gets paid. We started with 1000 in chips and I was able to double that after the first 3 levels before the break. The insane thing is I look around and I see players with 4-5k in front of them already. After starting off strong I got kind of low before our table broke. Was then able to survive a couple of all-ins including scooping a multi-way pot that kept me in action. At the dinner break I had 2k but we were playing 25 ante 75/200-400 so I pretty much had one hand left. We got down to 3 tables and I finally got my money in against the chipleader with (A2) A. Chipleader opened with a 2 and called a completed bet. He caught an Ace while I caught a 2 for (A2) A 2 while he had (XX) 2 A. He lead out and I raised all-in. He turns over Q 5 for a board of (Q5) 2 A. He catches a 3 which gives him some wins. I do catch a 4 on 5th street to block. However he rivers a low and I miss scooping a pot. I later go out with split Kings against pocket Aces and I'm done 20th.

There was an earlier multi-way pot where I started with (24). It was checked on 4th and 5th. 6th street I caught a Jc which gave me a pair of Jacks and a flush draw. I had (24) 6 5 J J going to 7th. I bet out on 6th and got called by a made low and this lady who opened with a 6. On the river I missed my locked low draw and flush draw. I did pair my 4 for Jacks up but I checked. Low checks but the lady bets out. I make a cry call and the low calls. She rolls over Kings up. That pot would have made me a contender for sure if I scooped it. Oh well. I fought hard but it wasn't my day.

Posted at 10:46 AM

Mon - September 12, 2005

Donkey Kong

No limit Hold'em is obviously the poker game of choice these days. There are so many donks that you don't need to learn how to play anything else.

Why would you not want to play NL Hold'em? I've seen the action at the fixed buy-in NL hold'em live games and there are so many donks out there it's like Donkey Kong country. As for me I haven't touched the silly $100 or $200 fixed buy-in NL games because I just don't have the patience. I don't like the fact I have only 30 to 40 times the big blind. However I always see people sitting there with $4k in front of them and it's only a $200 buy-in game which makes it seem so alluring to play. Once you have the table covered by a healthy sum and you are any at all a decent player it is easy money as after you bust someone they can only reload for 150% of the buy-in usually.

I decided to try the $200 buy-in game for the first time in a long time. I prefer no-restricted buy-in pot limit hold'em but the game is full of donks. The players are so easy to read. One hand I had JJ and made it $15 to go (blinds are $3/5). MP makes it $40 and call to see a flop. Flop is 9 high rainbow and I check and he bets $50 and I muck faceup. Most donks would have bet big or even pushed in my position. They might have even re-raised all-in preflop. Anyway the guy showed me KK. I can see why people put up with the restrictions because the game can be very lucrative. I left the game a decent winner for only playing like an hour. I'm curious to see how I'd do in a real session in that game.

Although there are so many donks who play NL hold'em, there are donks who are eternally bad at other games like Omaha 8/b and Stud 8/b. These games are gold mines where if you make sure you start rock solid you should come out of winner most of the time. I like these games at 20/40 limits or higher if I can find them. It's amazing how bad players can play. What's more amazing is how they are still in action. I recommend you learn the split-games. It will make you a better poker player in general.

Posted at 12:44 PM

Sun - August 21, 2005

Tiny Bubbles

Focused my online play on Sit and Go's (SNG) lately.

So far my play has been good for the most part but my results have been sub-par. I usually either win the SNG or bubble. I've been trying to figure out why I bubble more often when I should. If I can at least reduce my bubbling by 50% I would be seeing the kind of results I am expecting. Right now my in the money (ITM) rate is 33.3% which is usually losing but I'm only ahead a little bit because of my majority 1st place finishes.

I haven't done much on the live poker scene. Did go over to the Normandie for some after work grub and a little 4/8 hold'em action. Finished +$140. Was just glad to get out of there alive against those weak/passive players who tend to always suck out on me. Haven't had a chance to play an event at the Bike. The California State Poker Championship is coming up in September at the Commerce. Haven't been to the Commerce since the LA Poker Classic. I might head out to check out the action then.

Until then you should try the 2-7 Triple Draw games at UltimateBet.com

Posted at 07:25 PM

Mon - August 8, 2005

Limping Ain't Easy

Still grinding away at Full Tilt Poker

Online poker is boring but the money is too easy. I won a Stud 8/b tournament and today I finished 10th in a $50+5 NL tourney. The tournament structures at Full Tilt Poker are so sexy. They start you with a lot of chips and the blinds go up in small increments so there's no need to have to gamble early. Live games are good with the softest being Razz and Omaha 8/b and Stud 8/b. Only problem is finding a good game at the wee hours in the morning when I get off work.

Haven't played much live these days but hopefully will play one of the Legends of Poker tournaments at the Bike. I'll be moving (again) this time to Gardena which turns out to be an ideal location for a poker player. Hustler and Normandie are down the street. Hollywood Park is not too far. Commerce and the Bicycle are not a big cross-town drive. Can even hit up Hawaiian Gardens if I feel like it. Of course there's always online poker. Guess I can't complain about game selection anymore eh?

Posted at 12:08 AM

Sobered Up Just In Time

Small Things Make a Big Difference

What a Difference a Year Makes

Poker Can Be Taxing

Cannot Control the Cards

Learning From Old Mistakes