2006/03/04 - Number 2

Ok so the first thing is a new titling system - basically date order with year first then month then day. This is how I date all my photos and the folders they are in and is the easiset way to sort things in date order by a mile - try it out.....

Now to poker- eventually...

Let's recap the last week shall we.

My usual friendly limit game I play on Wednesdays (I work retail so I get Wed and Sunday off) has just transformed into a friendly game of "Asshole" or "Presidents and Assholes". For the uninitiated, it is a great game of tactics. I cant be bothered explaining it here but you can find the rules here "http://www.pagat.com/climbing/asshole.html".

I have a couple of problems with this.

1) I WANT TO PLAY AS MUCH POKER AS I CAN!

2) The Wednesday boys play the very ordinary, most boring and least skillful version of this game. I was actually unaware that the version I have always played is a variation - I actually thought their version seemed like a watered down baby version but it seems they play the standard form.

Skip to the next red bit to miss the details of this game and my opinion on it

The variations I have always played are

Following Suit

In this variation, a single card can only be beaten by a higher card of the same suit. This makes it much harder to get rid of single cards.

and

Single-round play

Each player gets just one opportunity to pass or beat the previous play. Whoever played highest then leads again.

Now for those that play the game, I can assure you that without these two rules the game is VERY arbitrary and the skill factor is almost non existent.

It can be very hard to improve rank when these variations are in play but with some skill it is always possible...

Like poker where positioning is important, the single round allows the lowly asshole a way to gain control and start a hand by dumping low cards.....

I WONT GO ON ANY MORE ABOUT THIS - BUT SUFFICE TO SAY I THINK MY WEDNESDAY JAUNT TO THE FACTORY MAY BE OVER.

The first thing to say is that I spent hours trying to come up with a table or schematic that would allow me to easily track all the hands I played... I failed miserably so I gave up on that.

My next idea was to catch a pic of the player with the hand that knocked me out to post here - but I forgot my camera so two strikes there - still I think this idea has merit and think if I can remember my camera I WILL do this...

So anyway, comes Saturday and I have decided to be aggressive. Now for the last month I have not seen a hand and when I have I have been short stacked and my winning start has been cracked by the flop if not the turn or river.

Unbelievably, I start getting A J suited, pocket 10s, A K, pocket 3s, K Q suited etc...

We had 29 people this week and a prize pool of $1450 of which about $550 went to the winner and even 6th got money back ($50 buy in with $2000 chips).

I bet big and raise with all these hands and the upshot is I was out within 15 minutes or so.

Now my excuse is I was genuinely feeling sick (I kept feeling "lucky" because the garden bed was within 5 or 6 steps so I could vomit) but the fact is I played very badly.

I bought into 2 more losers games ($20 each time) and came second in the second one to win my $40 back (for all the poker bloggers out there I was taken down heads up by Daniel - a nice guy and I believe very good player - with The Hammer ) I will try to post a belated photo if I can...

Speaking of "The Hammer" check out all The Grub's Poker Blog - CLEVER WRITING AND VERY INTERESTING

So Sat night I finished $50 in the red after fighting my way back from $90 down... Not great but coulda been worse.....

Home by 2.30 am and ready to play again....

Tired now though, more to come soon...