As i have a week off work i have decided to put some hours of grindage in on IPN and altho im not putting a huge amount of volume in, i can see how tough it is already.
First MTT of the week was good as i came 3rd in a €10 rebuy for €350 but no big scores since then.
Today has been uber frustrating, as i seem to have an issue with my PC, the Net and the Software all not communicating as i got disconnected a total of 8 times today.
Sadly it was all in and around bubbles.
In a €1 rebuy the bubble burst and i was 1/50 but got D/C'd to finish 19th, this also happened in a €6 freezeout where i was 2/10 and came 11th for a small cash.
Even more frustratingly, i was 1/32 in teh €22 2nd Chance and got D/C'd, by the time i got reconnected i was 17/17 with 15 paid, but managed to make the min cash again....losing KQ V Q8 aipf.....grrrrrr
However, i thought all was getting better, 2 hrs with no D/C and 1/75 in the €11 Deepstack i am in prime position for a deserved FT.....however the D/C blues crept back and i finally reconnected finding myself 23/25 with 20pd, and a lowly 6bbs......UTG i have J9ss and jam it in, get called by AK and lose for €0.
So 19 games in:
Total Buyins: €249.30
Total Cashes: €429.62
Profit: €180
So about €9.50 a game
Obviously fancied a better result today, set myself up for decent scores on 4 seperate occasions, but these D/C's are a killer!!!!!
I have uninstalled the software and reinstalled but to no avail.....ran a virus check and sorted all the bits i can think of.
October was a pretty horrific month in regards to online poker. I started off strongly but couldnt seem to turn deep runs into big finishes. Runs like that are always frustrating, but was easy to see the brighter side with 3 weekends away in a row planned.
Firstly we had the PCUK party, and although the day started terribly (car radiator decided to blow), myself and Dan Carter managed to make it to the tourny in level 2. However after losing JJ < 86 on 6T3 flop i was the first out, and left to enjoy the rest of the party festivities. Was a great night all round, especially with Dicemans Alter-Ego "RubberDick" making a guest appearance:
The next weekend adventure was the APAT National Team Event in which i represented Team GNF, and we were hungry for Gold. The last few team events we have been invited to have seen us run deep and fall short of the titles, mainly due to sick bad run in the later stages.
Non Apat 2010 - 2nd - AA < KK and set of 6s into a set of Ks took the title away
Apat 2010 - 3rd - AA < AK < KJ aipf to cement 1st
So we were definatly hungry for the Gold this time.
Personally it was a tough tourny for me, 10k starting stack and 45min blinds, and i found myself down to 2k after level 1. Within the first level i folded 2 x sets and 2 x flushes on river, when confident i was behind, and each time right. That gives you a boost, but my stack gave me little room to move. :(
Managed to grind back to 8k, and then won a flip with 99 > AJo aipf and started to go on a tear.
As top 50 players score points for your team, with ~100 left and on half average stack, i knew i needed to make a push to get a comfortable stack for the points bubble.
An aggro player raises his button, after a few limpers, for the 5/6th time in the orbit, and i look down with my 16bbs (in bb) at QTss and shove it in. He beats me into the pot with two black Aces and im on the rail. :( Timing is everything!!!
All is not lost tho, as we have 3 players through to Day 2, including Captain Swinebag (Rob Swindells) who has a commanding Chiplead. Determined that we are gonna win the event, i keep the 3 guys left in in the know of points situation etc, and......................................we ship it!!!!! As a bonus both Phil and Swine make the FT and we celebrate a well earned victory!!! At last!!!
Sadly the Team Trophy seemed to have been stolen, and there were no individual medals, so for now ill just show you the Champs, and give a virtual medal for you all to gaze at!!!
Back Row (L-R) John "Smeigle" Georgiou, Andy "Cayton" Walker, Rod "The God" Buckman, Phil "Firephil" Laws. Front Row (L-R) Ben "Waltypies" Walton, Rob "Swinebag" Swindells, Iain "JJJ" Wilson, Dann "S4ooter" Williams.
Next stop for my Poker Travels was the Montesino Card Room, in Austria. WOW, what a cardroom it is. 15 + cash tables running 24hrs a day, and Boss Medias "Vienna Deluxe" was taking place. I had sattied in for €55 and had won Rod some €€€ via a staking deal so we decided to make the trek over.
This weekend shall be split into 2 sections.
Poker.
The poker went pretty terribly for me, both in the tournies and on the cash tables. The first night i played some 1/2 with rod and lost a €250 pot with J9cc v 76o on a 4c5c2h flop. The guy was a aggro-tard and felt he was priced into call, in a spot where he certainly wasnt.
The Main Event, started really well as i chipped up to ~30k from 20k starting stack, but i found myself card dead on an all action table. Sadly my hero call KO'd me when, in a 3bet pot, i called an overbet bluff with top pair top kicker against the table CL and really aggro player. My A8cc on a 8d 5d 3h board was no match for his Ah9d when he hit runner runner flush, for a 100bb late on in day 1. Still, im happy with the way i played, and would rather get it in 75% fav, than in a flip in a spot like that. C'est la vie
Also played the €35 side event, and busted early with AJ v TT v 88 v 77....board ran out AKQTQ lol...all the monies went in pre!!!
Rod, however, did FT the side event only to see his AQ < AJ aipf, when the flop came JJx.....sick
The standard at this event was GOD AWFUL, and am already looking forward to a repeat journey!!
Media:
This, however, was very good for me and the Podcast. Myself and Rod were interviewed numerous times for the Poker Channel (sky 166) and i have made some contacts for future ventures, even if it meant i had to get hustled by Laura Cornelius (Pokernews/Poker channel presenter) at Table Tennis (2-0) Brutal!!!
Also met two Poker Heaven VIPs from the Czech Rep, Luu and Jacob. Great lads, and we found out on 2nd night they were in our hotel too!! That night Jacob managed to chunder if the lift in the hotel but we magaed to get them donning poker.co.uk badges instead of Poker Heaven lol
Dann, Luu aka Ping Pong, Rod, Jacob
Myself and Tom will be recording a double episode in the next week covering his adventures at EPT London, as well as my Vienna Trip.
In regards to the podcast, the site is looking at a revamp very soon as we have lots of stuff to get up there, and hopefully that will make it more user friendly.
Whilst in Vienna, i met Poker Heavens VIP Manager, Toby, how convinced me to enter a freeroll Bingo draw to win some Tournament Credits for rival skin Poker Heaven and i won €55!! Ship it!!!!
I used them tonight........wonder how i did.......
Good ROI on Poker Heaven. €0 deposited, €725.40 on there! BOOM
Thats all for now, ill just leave you with Rods reading material in Vienna!
