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A Couple of Final Tables
Have had a couple of decent runs in the weekly Saturdays with Pauly tourney (a $10+$1 PLO event on Stars) the last two weeks. Was runner-up a week ago (out of 29), nursing a short stack for pretty much the entire tourney in order to survive to the end. Yesterday I finished 6th (of 23), unfortunately missing the cash as only the top three spots paid.
Last week I spent pretty much the entire tourney in near-desperation mode, having made a boo-boo early on that kept me at the bottom of the leaderboard for most of the way. Wasn’t quite as bad this week, though by the time we reached the final table I again found myself with one of the short stacks.
Deal or No Deal
Last month I made Silver Star over on PokerStars. This month I haven’t done much at all with my newly-minted status, other than accumulate FPPs at a higher clip. Haven’t entered any of the tourneys or bought any items in the FPP store that are reserved for us Silvery types. Am actually closing in on maintaining my Silver Star status through May, though I have to admit it doesn’t strike me as something I need care about all that much.
“Cash Plays” Worth a Listen
People listen to poker podcasts for various reasons. Some prefer the strategy-theory-type shows. I like those, though I often enjoy the less heady ones, too. Generally when poker podcasters talk strategy they focus on NLHE and/or tourneys. As it happens, NLHE is my least preferred game, and probably 90-95% of my play is cash games.
Still, I sometimes like listening to the discussions on those shows. One that I’m really starting to enjoy is Bart Hanson’s new one over on PokerRoad Radio called “Cash Plays.” He focuses on Hold ’em, though will discuss other games, too. And it’s all ring games; no tourneys. Good stuff.
The Biggest Slowroll Ever
Have been contemplating that crazy ideer to delay the WSOP ME final table three friggin’ months Stewman told us about on Friday. Don’t know about you, but it sorta feels to me like that long wait for a resolution amounts to one big ol’ slowroll. And who likes being subject to that?
The Hard-Boiled Poker Radio Show
I must have a secret, unconscious urge to seek out situations where I risk extreme embarrassment. Yesterday I posted a picture of my two-year-old self on the blog dressed as a cowboy (with tiny holster, toy gun, and unbelievable striped pants). Today I’ve launched a new poker podcast. When will it end?
This podcast thing has been in the works for awhile, actually. Thought I’d pass along the info here, in case anyone is interested. The main idea for the show is to present old time radio shows that feature poker and/or gambling as a primary concern. Will include other short subjects as well, which lead up to the feature presentation (the old radio show).
In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb
Actually March came in like a lion, grazed around a bit like a wayward calf, swung back and forth like an orangutan, laid down for a while and hibernated like a black bear, got spooked like a horse after a car backfires, then went out like a screaming cheetah. Hard to fit all that in a subject line, though.
Such are the fluctuations one can endure when engrossed in an online poker bonus chase. Today I sit with a little over 1,400 VPPs, meaning I need to pull down less than a hundred today and tomorrow to claim that Silver Star on PokerStars.
Funny Business
A couple of funnies to pass along. Some of you may have seen this stuff — if not, you’re in for a treat.
One, I have to share with you the absurdist wit of Julius Goat.
He has several hilarious series in progress over on his blog, “The Goat Speaks.” One involves sharing excerpts from his ongoing Stupid/System, a work destined to change the way poker is played and discussed for ages to come.
Here are links to the first five ground-breaking entries:
001: Key Terms
002: Basic Considerations
003: Counting Outs
004: Post-Flop Play
005: Managing Pot Odds
Vegas Summer in the Cards
Super busy week for your short-stacked friend. Spent the better part of it in windy San Francisco, where I managed not only to play a little live poker but also blogged all week (thanks to a sweet wireless connection in the hotel). Got involved a bit in some interesting PPA-related dialogue as well (see below). The big news, though, was that I found out I am heading to Vegas for the 2008 WSOP to help out with the PokerNews coverage. Will be there for pretty much the whole sucker.
More details on that to come. Meanwhile, here’s what all happened at Hard-Boiled Poker this week:
Whatcha Gonna Do With That Shiny Silver Star?
Found myself directly inspired by bigbamboom’s Supernova quest to give myself a much more modest challenge, namely to reach “Silver Star” status over on PokerStars. I usually only put in 10-15 hrs. a week online — and often am splitting that time between three different sites — so I’d never really bothered to consider any of the promotional incentives out there for frequency of play. But I’d played a number of sessions on Stars during the first week of March and when I looked I realized that 1,500 FPPs was something I could reach without too much trouble by month’s end. Am sitting at exactly 847 FPP (or “VPP”) at the moment, meaning I’m over halfway there.
That Was The Week That Was
Made an ignominiously early exit in yesterday’s Saturdays with Pauly PLO tourney. Was actually at Poker Kat’s table for my brief time in the tourney. Had an unfortunate early hand go down in which I had limped from LP with Q-Q-x-x and saw a cheap flop with just the two blinds. Flop was Q-8-4 rainbow and when both blinds checked I decided to check behind and see if I could pick up more than just the 60 chips in the middle. The turn was another eight, giving me the big boat. Both checked again.
