Mark's Poker Blog

The Worst Play I have Ever Made In Poker

I made the worst play in the history of poker on Monday night. I was playing in a 10/20 NL holdem game, with some of the toughest players in San Antonio. I bought in for $1000, which made me a short stack. I limped in and another player made it $100 to go, which is a pretty typical pre-flop bet. I should add that this player is a very good, very solid player, so any dope would put him on a strong hand. I decided to call with A9 of spades. Well the flop came Q72 (or something like that), with what I thought were two spades. This is a self-dealt game and every player has their own way of throwing the community cards out. In this case, the dealer threw them out in a way where the Q was mostly obscured. Well, I was at the end of the table and I have pretty bad vision. My wife is constantly on me to go get contacts, but I am too lazy. I always have to stare at the flop when I am at the end of the table. For some reason, I did not do it that hand.

Anyway, I figure I flopped a monster, where I had the nut flush draw and an out with my ace (if he bet at me). So I check, he bets $300 and I immediately put him all in. I threw my call into the pot, moving the cards, and stacked my remaining, soon to be gone chips, about $800 more. As I was doing this, I noticed that the Q was actually a club. My opponent reluctantly called, thinking he was beat, but in reality, was way, way ahead. The turn teased me with a 9, but no more spades and no ace. I sheepishly said "you are good" and watched my money disappear.

I made it worse by buying in again and pissing that away on several additional big flush draws. The story has a happy ending though, I bought back in yet again and ended up about $1800. A buddy who went with me was kind enough to pay me off twice when I hit full houses.

Does anyone else want to share their worst play ever?

Tournament

I held my $500 buyin tournament on Saturday. We had 27 players, which is down from last time. I had a lot of regulars doing Fiesta and going to the Spurs game. I had a few new players though, so I think the next one will be back to normal.

I got some chips early. I had AT of diamonds and was in a hand with another guy who is pretty loose. Flops comes up AQJ, with two diamonds. He and I get it all in. He has broadway, but no diamonds. Turn is a blank, river is a 6 of diamonds, so I double up.

I ended up 4th. I had a decent number of chips, but made a stupid move against the chip leader. Blinds are 500/1000. I make a big raise, he calls. Board is all hearts. He checks, I move all in with a straight draw. He calls immediately with Q2 of hearts. Terrible play on my part. I definitely could outplay some of the guys left, but made a donkey move. Oh well, I shouldn't win my own tournament anyway.

Roger got 5th, I got 4th, Clayton got 3rd, Ray and Randy chopped first.

Goofy Game

There is a regular 2/5 no limit game on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I play the Friday game maybe once or twice a month, the Wednesday game maybe once a month, and rarely play the Sunday game. This is a pretty good game. It is good when several of a handful of players are there to liven it up.

I showed up late and they had a full table with two people waiting. I asked one of the players how it was going and he remarked that everyone was trying to get the last of one guys money before he leaves. There is one guy there, who is quite loose. He generally only plays a few hours, win or lose (smart man). I decided to make a side bet with the guy for his stack (he had a small stack of about $320 or so). I bet him the flop would be black (2 or 3 black cards). He took the bet. The flop came up with 3 black cards, so I took his money and he gave up his seat. When I sat down, everyone gave me dirty looks, because it took me all of 60 seconds to get the guys money :)

Of course the moral of this story is that when you have a super loose player at the table, if you wait around to get the nut hand to break him, you will generally miss out, because someone willing to gamble with him will beat you to it.

Anyway, the game was decent. I got stuck pretty good, but came back by getting AA against QQ against an aggressive player. I ended up doubling up on that hand. I cashed out a winner, but less than the $300 I got the first minute after I walked in.

No Tuesday Game

Our normal Tuesday game did not make. Too much going on I guess. I guess I may have to play tomorrow then.

Good game

We had a good game this weekend. Lots of $$$ and quite loose. I broke even. Still having a hard time in my own game. Lost one big pot. My regular dealer hurt his foot, so he couldn't deal. I called another guy, who came over, made some $$$ dealing and then joined the game. He is a super-tight player. He was to my left and I was the small blind, he was the big blind. Everyone folds to me and I have AK of spades. I make it $100, he smooth calls. Flop is KT6, with two spades. I check, he bets $300 and I put him all in for another $800 or so. He calls with a set of tens. Turn pairs the board to end the drama. A spade comes on the river just to rub it in. I guess I should have just called and seen the turn. Oh well.

Loose/aggressive players

Loose/aggressive players play a ton of pots and play them very aggressively. They play many different starting hand combinations, including "favorite" hands, which are lousy, but with which they won a big pot on the past. It is very difficult to put a player like this on a hand, since they could be playing anything. These players will raise, re-raise, etc. preflop with many different hands. They count on winning because they are aggressive and/or because they will suck out on you and when they do, they generally will get paid off.

Obviously, a loose/aggressive player plays aggressively after the flop. They bet, raise, make moves, and go allin inexplicably. They count on their aggression to win pots. They count on people not making big hands against them. Because they play so many hands, they often get paid off to the maximum when they do hit a hand.

IMHO, loose/aggressive players are either the best or toughest to play against. If you find a truly bad loose/aggressive player, they will just about hand you their money. If you get a strong hand against them, they will pay you off. They will often make terrible bluffs at players. Bad loose/aggressive players are often big draws at games, because everyone knows they will be throwing money away. Occaisionally they will have big nights, where they get big cards or hit miracle hands, but they are usually the big losers. This style forces them to make a lot of decisions and since they are bad, they make a lot of bad decisions.

Note that if you are at a table with a bad loose/aggressive player, and you want more than your fair share of their money, you will have to either get a lot of good cards or gamble. A lot of weak players are all thinking the same thing - "let me get a monster hand against this maniac". The problem is that you have to get big hands before all your opponents do. There is nothing worse than seeing one of your opponents bust the maniac and then he/she leaves.

However, loose/aggressive players can also be the toughest to play against, if they are good players. A good loose/aggressive player forces their opponents to make decisions and gamble if they want to have a chance at their money. These players differ from bad loose/aggressive players, because they know when to push and when to back off. They can outplay their opponents and therefore, want to be in as many hands as prudent.

While a bad loose/aggressive player will make random monster/all in bets at you, they are usually ill-timed or suspect based on the board and how the hand was played. A good loose/aggressive player (this is true as well for any aggressive player) is always a risk to make a big move, but will generally make them when the conditions are right.

If you disagree with me saying that a good loose/aggressive player is the best to play against, consider this - if a professional sat down at your home game, what style do you think he would play? Would he sit around and wait for big cards? Hell no! He would be very aggressive and play a lot of pots, figuring he/she could make better decisions. He would know when to push and when to back off.

Also, think about the players you like the least to play against. They are probably loose/aggressive players. They are certainly aggressive players. They are the guys you fear when you bet into them with a decent, but not monster hand. They are the guys you always fear will make a big bet/raise at you, that makes you make a tough decision. These are the guys you want to be like right?

Long Drive To Play Cards

Since I was planning to take today off, I decided that I wanted to play last night. I am not aware of any games running in SA on Thursday. There used to be a decent 2/5 game, but it isn't running anymore. I called a buddy, Omar, who told me that he and a couple of others were driving up to College Station (aggie land) to play in a game up there. There are some guys up there that run some great games. They have been down to SA before and played in my tournament. I decided to to.

The drive from SA to college station was a lot longer than I realized. It took over 3 hours. That is a long way to drive to play cards.

The game was 2/5. Apparently these guys run games several nights a week, and also spread 5/10 and occaisionally 10/20 (this is all no or pot limit). The game was decent. I think it normally plays bigger, but some guys weren't there due to Easter. The hosts there were very nice and it was a good game. I would definitely go back, but the drive is just too much.

Tight/aggressive players

Tight/aggressive is the way most people and books recommend you play. A tight/aggressive plays a small number of hands, more when in position, and plays them aggressively. This sort of player will often raise preflop, even if they could just call. They are not afraid to get their money in, if they feel like they have the best of it.

Tight/aggressive players will often take advantage of position, as much as they do cards. They will usually play many more hands, especially against the blinds or if weak players have limped into pots.

In general, the best poker players are aggressive. Whether you are loose or tight, playing aggressively is the way to win. You will win small pots by being aggressive, by pushing out weak players or obtaining value from your hands. You will make the maximum amount from bad players, who are aggressive as well, who chase bad draws, or who play poor hands. While your aggression creates risks - you may get drawn out on or run in a weak player with a monster hand, the fact that you don't play a ton of pots prevents you from having to make a lot of tough decisions. You will generally be in hands where you have strong cards and a good chance to win a showdown if it gets there.

Tight/aggressive players will make moves. However, they generally won't be crazy and will often be designed as much as for advertisement as to win a hand. Making and showing a move will help the tight/aggressive player get paid off when they have a big hand.

Any player who truly plays a tight/aggressive style is probably a good player by definition. Playing tight is the best way to increase your odds of winning consistently and it keeps you out of hands where you have to make a lot of decisions. Most people say the best players are tight aggressive. I generally agree, but find GOOD loose aggressive players the most difficult to play against.

Tight/weak players

Another type of player is tight/weak. These types of players are very tight and only play premium hands. They will occaisionally play suited connectors or small pairs if they can limp in. They generally won't play speculative hands if there is a raise or re-raise. When they do raise or re-raise (yikes), they generally have a monster hand. There is a sub-class of players here who are super-tight and only play monster hands. They will sit at a table all night and play just a few hands.

Post flop, a tight/weak player will generally release immediately if they miss the flop or have to pay too much for a draw. These players will bet a hand, but they will generally not be to aggressive with anything other than a monster. They will bet hands like top pair or a big draw (maybe), but generally weakly. When faced with a big raise/re-raise, they will often fold the best hand. They generally have to have the nuts or close to it before they will make a big raise themselves. If one of these guys makes a pot sized bet or an all-in bet, run and hide. These guys rarely ever make moves. When they do, they don't involve much risk.

Tight weak generally buy in with a small or the minimum stack. They just aren't willing to risk a lot of money. Playing a small stack does make them a little dangerous (really just irritating), because they will get themselves pot committed on virtually any hand they play and this prevents you from making any sort of moves against them.

Most tight/weak players think they are more aggressive than they really are. They might talk a good game or try to over-advertise a bluff, but astute opponents won't go for it. Tight/weak players rarely win or lose big. They often get blinded away or slowly lose their money seeing flops. They don't generally use position well, so unless they get great cards, they have no outs. They won't lose a lot of money, but it is very rare that they will win a lot either. No good player will ever pay a tight/weak player off. The only time they will win big is when there is a hand-over-hand situation or someone plays stupid. Tight/weak players depend on bad players, because they are the only ones who will pay them off.

Loose/passive players

I argue that this type of player is always bad. A loose/passive player is also known as a calling station. This player is in way too many pots. They play lots of starting hands, including in holdem, any ace, any two suited cards, any two face cards, and of course any hand most other players would play, including a pair, suited connectors, etc. Pre-flop, they will call most of the time with these hands, including when there is a moderate raise. They generally will whine a little if there is a raise preflop, because they love to limp in with almost any hand. They rarely raise. If they do raise preflop, you know they have a monster. They almost never reraise.

After the flop, they continue the same bad play. If they have any sort of hand or any sort of goofy draw, like 3 to a flush or a gut shot, they will call all day. These players rarely win - they generally throw money away to players with superior hands. You can destroy players like this by being patient and using value bets. They are usually smart enough to fold to a big pot sized or all in bet though. Sometimes these players get lucky, hit their longshot draws, and suck out on you. However, they often won't bet their hands fully, so they don't get paid off. They also win when foolish players try to bluff them. Never bluff a calling station. They may lay a hand down if you make a huge bet at them, but they are not smart enough to fold a hand to a bluff that looks like a minimum or value bet.

I know quite a few players that fall into this category... Some of them bring lots of money. Don't be in this category. There is almost no situation where this style of play is good.