Four in a row and counting...

I played Monday night at good old Hollywood Park. I like to go on Monday nights. I feel like a lot of people are there chasing the money they lost over the weekend and a lot of others are there because they won a lot on the weekend. Either way, I'm taking their cheese. I actually went and watched the college championship game (gators are nice) after work so I didn't get to HP until about 9 p.m. When I got there the boards were full (100 NL and 200 NL) so I put my name down and sat in the 4/8 limit game, which was the only available table.

In limit, each player has the option to post if he/she wants to play before the blind gets to him. So I posted the $4 and got Qc4c. Not a great hand but playable since I'm already in for $4. There was no pre-flop raise so I saw the flop, which was AQ9 rainbow. Someone lead out with a bet and I called, seeing as it only cost me $4 and the pot was already about $30. Everyone called and the turn was another Queen. It was checked to me so I bet $8 and had three callers. The river was another nine and I again bet $8 and got one caller who held the nine. I got in another pot with a hand I don't remember and bled a few chips off. After ten minutes I was called to the $100 NL game so I came up $33 in 4/8 in 10 minutes.

I didn't even have a chance to play a hand in the 100 game before a new table was started in the 200 NL game. I took my seat and when we drew for starting position I drew the ace of clubs. Remember that! Here are some of my memorable hands:

So I started with the button. My first hand I a few people limped and I looked down at AcQc. I raised to $25. Small blind called me and everyone else folded. The flop came KJx with one club. Small blind checked and it seemed fishy so I checked too. The turn was the 9c, I like. Small blind bet a weak $25 and I raised him to $75. He called. The river was a 2c and now I am putting him on two pair or KQ possibly. Unfortunately for him I have the nuts. He checked and I went all in. He called and showed his aces and I double up first hand. I felt bad that I cracked his aces but everyone, including him, agreed that he played them horrendously and let me catch my flush.

The very next hand there was a hand where someone had a Qx10x on a board of 10 high. The guy fires out and gets called by "John." The river is a blank and John checks. The other player goes all-in with his Q10 and John takes a year to call and wins with KK. The way the hand played out, he had to know his KK was good. But he took a year to think about it. So three hands later I'm in the big blind and John raises to $25. Two people call so I call the extra $20 with Ah7c. The flop comes 2d2h9d. I check, another guy checks and John bets $40. I can tell he has jack shit so I'm thinking the way John played his kings, I can easily bet him out of this pot. But I'd rather let him donate some more on the turn. So I call and one other player calls. The river is the queen of spades. I don't like this as John could possibly have AQ. I check, the other player checks and John takes about three minutes to put out a weak bet of $60. I push all-in for $300 and both players insta-fold. I show the bluff, John asks me "Am I that obvious?" and I basically told him yeah. Now I've been playing on this table for about 25 minutes and I'm up over $500.

Well, somehow I lost all those chips and had to buy back in. I can't even remember how I lost them. I know when I was down to about $45 I was all-in pre-flop in a five way pot and completely missed. But I don’t remember how I lost my stack. So I bought back in. Actually I just remember that I tried to bluff a guy out of a pot on an ace high board and he called all-in with AK. Oh well, it was worth a try. He almost folded, lol.

Right after I bought back in I caught quad sixes and won $100 on the hand. The flop came 6s-7s-8h and everyone checked, including me. The turn was the 6h putting two flush draws on the board. Some new guy bet $40 and I called him extra quick, trying to make it look like I was on a flush draw. The river was the Qh, which I kind of disliked because that meant the backdoor flush draw hit, which is what I was acting like I had. He actually bet $60 and I went all in for like $43 more and he folded.

My next big hand was kind of a donk play by me but it was about 3 a.m. and I was ready to go home. I had $300 to start the hand and I'm in the big blind. The pot is raised to $25 and about four people call. The flop comes Jd9dX. Everyone checks to "Jamaica" who goes ALL-IN for like $225. I barely have him covered. He really made a great bet. I call anything $75 or under instantly. Well based on the fact that if I win this pot I will be up and if I lose I will go home with a small loss and get some sleep, I pushed all-in. A diamond hits the turn and I know I'm good. But then a diamond hits the river! Fuck! Luckily "Jamaica" did not have a diamond and he mucks his card with the jack face up. Sorry buddy.

Later in the night I made a great call on "Jamaica." I had a pair of fives with a gutshot on the turn. "Jamaica" bet $50 on the button and I called trying to catch two pair, trips, or a straight. I brick the river and he bets $50 again. For some reason it was fishy to me so I was taking my time thinking about calling. He started talking to me saying "Just call, I know you're gonna call." So I called and he mucked his hand. I didn't even have to show that I was calling with a pair of fives. Sweet.

Eventually I started playing better and built my stack up to about $700. There was one player ("Loosy") on the table who NEVER folded pre-flop to any raise. He was catching cards like crazy with hands like Q7 off and 62 off suit. Just sick. He beat me when I had pocket aces. He had 7c8c and the board was 9-10-J-Q-x. I had QQ and he called my 100 pre-flop raise with KQ and the king hit the flop.

But anyways, I built my stack back up and was on my last hand UTG with A-10. I called the $5, "Loosy" raised to $30 and six people called. Now the pot is $185 pre-flop. The flop comes A-7-4 with two diamonds. I come out and fire $100. The guy next to me, "Geo" who is a very tight player and a nice kid, goes all-in for his last $70. Everyone else folds and I told Geo he wins, my kicker is only a 10. He says he's on the flush draw with a gutshot. The board misses the diamond and he mucks his 5d8d. I win.

I left up $33 on the 4/8 Limit game and up $670 in the 200 NL game, which was great because I bought in for 400. There are some things that I am noticing about my game that I can really improve. I really feel like I'm playing pretty well right now. Making good reads and stealing pots when I can. But I have been losing a lot of chips trying to make moves on players too frequently when I have the big stack. I am going to work on that this weekend and hopefully that will give me better results. The good news is...I started my "Build My Bankroll" plan just 12 days ago with $200. Now it is at $1860 and I have won four straight sessions since I started. I'm feelin myself!

Monday Night:
4/8 L: $33
200NL: $670
Overall: $703
Hourly: 100/Hr.

Bankroll Plan To Date:
4/8 Limit: +33
$1/2 NL: +195
3/5 NL: +1632
Bankroll: +1860