Harthron - The Internet Grinder

[harthron]

After beating out 5000 people in a tournament a friend said I should start tracking my success and failures. So what better than using a blog like this on one of my favorite sites.

[harthron]

I started playing in 2003 right after Chris Moneymaker won the WSOP. I played in a home game tournament with about 16 people. We didn't know what we were doing but I made it to the final table then lost right away. The game started at 4pm and went until 6 in the morning, that's what happens when you don't increase the blinds or break up the tables.

We've come along way since then, running monthly tournaments with 20 plus people there each month.

[harthron]

After my first tournament I was hooked. I started reading books and took up playing on PartyPoker with $50. I lost that quick in Sit & Go's. So I brought in another $50 and started playing $.50/1.00 limit games, I also brought $50 to Ultimatebet & PokerStars. I mainly read books on low limit play & ITH. Thanks to the books I played for the rest of 2003 & 2004 on those funds and by playing low limit games nothing above $.50/1.00 I turned my bankroll into a $1000. Then I decided to read ITH again and noticed a key point I missed which was chasing bonuses. So I started chasing some bonuses over the last couple of months some sites were very successful some other sites I discovered the play was so tight that I figured everyone else was chasing bonuses at these sites too. So I decided to go back to my favorite sites PokerStars, Ultimatebet, PartyPoker, PokerRoom, & Doyles. I also may go back to Pacific, Paradise, PokerChamps & Bodog one day.

At this time I'm getting away from the chasing bonuses but playing tournaments. I love tournament play, I perfer B&M games versus internet but it's still thrilling to make it to the final table online as it is when you are playing in a room full of people. Online I usually play the $1, 3, & 5 games at this time. And I play $40 B&M tournaments.

By now you probably realize I'm a low roller and by choice. I'm not a gambler, and I hate losing money. Don't get me wrong when I'm at the table with my chips I will mix it up. But I control my losses at limit games, I set a certain amount I will lose at a sitting, and when I'm winning I set a dollar amount I won't fall back to before I leave the table.

I have five kids so I love the internet because I can play and still be around for them. And they like it when I go play in a tournament because when I finish in the money I take them out the next day to a movie with my winnings. Online I've won two 1,000+ people tournaments, taken a 3rd through 9th place on several others. I have more 9th places than anything, but hey at least I've made the final table alot. As for B&M tournaments I've won 1 tournament and have more 2nd places than i care to talk about, a couple of 3rd's, and many 4th through 6th. I've made alot of final tables and probably should play more B&M games but family is important to me so I get play one once every other month or so. No online I get to play one or two a week at night once things settle down in my house I can play $1 or $5 tournament and when I make the final table I'm just a little tired at work the next day, but I try to play in these tournaments on Friday or Saturday nights.

Well that's my story for now. I plan to enter my tournament results on this blog and my thoughts about my play even when I don't make it to the final table. In fact I'll be playing in a tournament online in about 20 minutes from now.

[harthron]

Well I haven't played that much poker this week. I only played 2 online $1 buy-in tournaments but didn't finish in the money.
This week was the start of our Thursday Night Game. My poker friends have been thinking and talking about having a weeknight game other than our once a month tournaments. I talked to all of them and everyone wanted to have a regular game. So Thursday we had our first games. We played 3 $10 buy-in no limit tournaments paying first and second place. We had 9 players show up which was perfect for me. I was worried I would get 16+ and then it would be like one of our large Saturday tournaments.
We increased the blinds each time the button got back to the original dealer spot. Each of the three games took less than an hour and half. I played really well all three games taken 3rd in two and second in the middle game. All three games I had to make a come back in chips and all my friends were impressed with my play and in coming back in all three games.
Everyone had great time and can't wait until next Thursday.

[harthron]

This week once again busy with the family but I got to play 4 $1 no-limit tournaments with really no luck. Placed in the money once but that just got two buy-ins back.

We did have another Thursday game with 8 players. First game I was getting good cards but no one would play back at me when I brought in a bet. I was going three times the blind. In the end I took third place in that game, was really blinded off. The second game I was out fourth but never caught any cards to do anything. The third game I decided only to go in for a raise two times the blind and got played with. I knocked one guy out in two hands and tripled up in a quick amount of time. Then I doubled up two players who were short stack and ended up out flopping me both times. Of course those two gave their chips to my biggest threat in the game. When we were down to five players I knew it would be him and I heads up. When we were heads up he started with about a four to one chips lead I ended up getting even with him, it was a good match. He ended up winning with a heart flush in the end but I gave him a good match and I was happy with my play.

[harthron]

Well I had my first Thursday Night poker night win. I took 3rd in the first and third games, a player that just is lucky won those two. You know the type, he doesn't know when to bet, lay down a hand, your basic calling station. But he will be back to lose what he won and more in the long run. The game I won I dominated from beginning to end and even in the two games I lost I played great, the guy just got lucky by playing ace anything or didn't raise with AK, that hand stung.

So after Thursday night I was feeling good and couldn't wait until the big Saturday tournament. Saturday couldn't come quick enough, you know the feeling.

So here is when things went bad. Friday night I stay up late watching some horror movie I don't even remember, just doing the late night tv thing. Big mistake, because the wife wakes me up at 7 in the morning to help move her mom in the new house. What was I thinking about sleeping in until 9. So we move the mother-in-law and to be honest it goes great, we are done by lunch. But instead of going home to take a nap since I'm tired I talk to the relatives about football, my second love now next to poker. And before you know it the guys are showing up to play poker.

We get started about 4:30 with $120 in chips blinds start at $1 & $2. I have my buddy Joel to my left who I know I can muscle out of pots and next to him Chris a tight player easy to read. He always seems to make it to final tables but rarely wins any money. Next to him is Ken "I have Outs" Chan, my best friend when it comes to poker. We talk poker everyday, read poker, breath poker, the two of us have become the best out of our gang and we know it which makes him very dangerous. To my right is Brad, I've never played with him and find out soon he is aggressive and loose just like the player right to him Brian. The one guy I want to see busted out of this first off. He is loose aggressive and will play anything like he has poket aces everytime. If he gets chips early he's dangerous will be in position to win. The thing is Joel and Ken also know Brian's playing style and they all want him busted first.

We increase the blinds every hour. The first hour chips fly towards to Brian and Brad who are both playing their aggressive styles. But Ken, Joel, and I are keeping them honest and making them show hands hitting low straights and low flushes. So we have a read on them good. The second hour Ken goes on attack first busting Brian for most of his chips by hitting a king high flush on the flop and slow playing while Brian plays his trip 9's to aggressive. Brian is crippled and I know he will be going all in as soon as he hits a hand. Sure enough he goes all in with poket 10's and Chris calls with poket 9's and hits the flop tripping up. Brian is gone and Joel, Ken, & I all feel good.
Shortly after that Ken traps Brad slow playing and showing weakness with a full boat. It was classic and a thing of beauty how Ken played the hand, great acting, one of the best poker acting jobs I've seen. So there goes Brad.
Now something wierd happens, something that has never happened to me in the game this early on. We start hour three with the blinds at $4/$8. And for some reason I think I'm short stacked, I'm not, I have over $80 in chips. Sure compared to Ken sitting there on the other side of the table from me who is sitting on over $350 in chips I'm short stacked but over all in the tournament with players at the other tables I'm fine. But Brian is sitting to my right now dealing for our game and just keeps whinning about his loss, his bad beat. Joel to my right who keeps saying we are both short stacked but we both have $80 in chips. Sure everyone else has more chips than the two of us but we really aren't short stacked not at the blinds just being $4/$8.

So being tired, not focused, and thinking I have to go through Ken to win this thing. I decide to raise it up to $24 early with KJ suited hearts, my favorite suit. Everyone folds to Ken in the big blind and he puts me all in for my last $50 in chips. I should have folded, I knew he had Ace-Face. He made the same move on me on Thursday night with Ace-ten when he was big stack. I call, I'm stupid, should have folded, Ace Jack diamond suited. Ace hits the river and I'm out 9th place missing the final table by one spot. I haven't missed the final table in a year in any tournament I've played at in anyone's home game.

Of course Sunday I was mad and thought about my mistakes. I played horrid and I can't wait to play Thursday again to get things right until then I'm back on-line playing $5 No-limit multi-table games. Maybe I can place in the money over the next couple of days to feel better.

[harthron]

I can't believe almost a month has gone by and I haven't posted anything. I've been super busy with work putting in about 11 hours a day at work, so many nights I get home and just don't have the concentration to play in a tournament. I have been playing .50/$1 limit cash games on-line building up my bankroll. But only really playing an hour maybe once or twice a week.

Now I still have been running Thursday night games and have been running well winning at least one game a night. I really have a good read on the regulars now and I've been mixing up my game just enough to keep them guessing.

But the game I have to record is about a Friday night game after my fantasy football draft party. I thought we would have about 8 players but we ended up with 16.

[harthron]

I really need to start posting more of my games, it's been over a month since I've posted and I've played a lot of poker since then. I've been doing pretty good on my Thursday night games winning at least 1 of the 3 games we play so I've been freerolling it. Of course I need to start putting my winnings away instead of just adding the money to my normal spending cash but I guess always having money in my pocket is not a bad thing.

I had a Friday night game with 18 players showing up for a $40 buy-in game and was out 15th. I kept getting pocket pairs but the problem was the 2 guys to my left kept getting higher poket pairs. The good thing was I played with great senses and got away from the hands before it cost me a lot of chips. But like I said I kept running into pocket pairs, alot of them and sure did the 2 to my left, always better so I was out quick.

So for the first time ever I got to play in the side game which I came back from the short stack and turned into the uni-bomber Phil Laak and won the game making it fun for everyone at the loser's table as they lost their chips to me.

Last week I played in a couple, really 4 inline freerolls at once. The first time I ever did that, play 4 games at once. I've played at once which I didn't like doing but I had a blast doing 4 making 3 final tables beating out 2000 players in each event. One of the games I made the final table and didn't even know I was that close until a message said welcome to the final table. I was short stacked on that one but I made it without an effort. The other two I was hitting cards and playing really well until I made the final table. One I just kit bad luck at the final table. One table I put in a raise of four times the blind with pocket queens because I don't want the short stack next to me to play, I want one of the blinds to call, but know the short stack goes all-in the blinds fold and I call. He has K3 suited, he could have went around the whole table since he was one off the button. Sure enough I'm rivered with him hitting the flush. So that sucked. Next hand pocket jacks I put in a raise of three times and the big stack puts me all-in with AQ and hits the queen on the river and I'm out at 6th place. The other final table I'm disappointed with my play. I'm at the table with a boat load of chips, 3rd in chips. I'm in the big blind with poket kings. The player across from be puts in a bet three times the blind. I raise it up and he calls. Flop KJT I bet the pot he raises I call knowing I'm beat. Turn nothing, I check he bets half the pot, I call like a dummy. River nothing, I check and he is a gentleman and checks to let me see the AQ. But I'm crippled and out a couple of hands later not even remembering what I went out with. I knew he had me beat after the flop but I called him anyways. I can say I have gotten away from hands like that especially playing at the table where I can see the guy. I've laid down monster hands knowing I'm beat and have been right everytime. On the internet it's hard to lay it down.

Yesterday I played a few low buy-in tournaments but had no luck even making into the money on any of them. Close everytime but no reward on any of them. At least today I played a $3 limit tourney and made it to the money finishing 61st place from a filed of 600.

[harthron]

So we skipped this Thursday night poker game. I was just to busy to host a game this week, but I have recruited a new player to the game so another guy to my list. I have 30 people on my invite list for weekly and monthly poker games so I feel I have a good variety of people to play against face to face.

Last night having the poker bug i played in a $5 MTT will 1000 entries with a prize pool of over $4k. I got short stacked but fought my way to just about to finish in the money. The play is typical now everyone is folding to raises because everyone wants to finish in the money. Now I know I could have lasted the 3 spots to make my buy back but I don't care about that I want a chance to make it further in the game. So finally I get a good hand, I'm three off the button with poket eights so I go all in which is a little less than 3 times the big blind. Everyone folds except the small blind who calls, which I start think I'm in trouble now probably a higher pocket pair or Ace with a face. But no Jack three suited. I'm like what, why call with this hand? He wasn't even the big stack, the big blind was by far. Well sure enough a jack hit the flop and I'm done. Oh well that's poker. The mistake I made last night was slow playing some of my big cards up front instead of forcing big raises I let the small bets at the table to stay the common theme and lost some big hands to made straights and flushes on the river I have to stop slow playing when I'm in the blinds online, I know I wouldn't do that face to face so why do I do it online?

I've had great luck for the last week playing limit games online paying for all the tourneys I entered this week and still up on my bankroll as well. I keep thinking about that maybe I should bring all my money to one site and play at higher limits. I never play higher than $.50/1.00 limit games for fear of taking a big hit on my bankroll even though I have over a grand spread out 12 sites. I have no more than $150 at any one site. I just like variety of playing at different sites.

[harthron]

Well I had my Thursday night game as well as a Saturday tourney. It's been days of being out drawn or not making my draws. We got in 2 $10 games and i was on a freeroll for those. A friend paid my first one because I gave him some books I no longer wanted. I took second place in that one so it paid for my buy-in on the second game. I made a couple of errors in the second game and was out early but I learn from my mistakes.
Saturday was horrible, I would have queens and someone would get kings. I was out super quick and played in two side games were I finished thord in both where a guy on my left kepting hiting and drawing his ace, three hands in a row on me in one game. We even said we should call him "Ace" because I kid you not he was hitting them left and right.
The thing I hated to most last night was not my luck but that my wife had a chance to win the tourney against a guy that thinks he can play but can't. He got lucky early and just sat on his chips he was the chips leader and my wife was taking a little by little when he hit the big blind special with two pair after the flop. My wife had a pocket pair better than anything else left on the board. She called his big bet and he took her from the chip leader to crippling her in the end. I hope she learned a lesson, she really could have won the thing if she would of thought it out for a bit.

[harthron]

Well over the last two Saturday's I've played in 5 live sit-in-go's. One was a $40 buy-in with 13 people. I was in a tough spot between the 2 Brian's, one loose and aggressive and the other a solid player. So I couldn't come into a pot without a raise on my part. Plus at this table we had 2 young guys just learning the game. I couldn't get at their chips at all. Brian Z on my left was getting the most out of them with his loose agressive game and both have played with him and they were intimidated by him. Brian S on my left surprised me by playing very loose and entering almost every pot. In the end I just made it to the final table of 7 and was the first one out. Nothing I could really do in this game except maybe bluff more with raises pre-flop because I wasn't getting any good starting hands. Just wasn't my game.

Later that night I played a $20 game with just the good players at the house and I won that going heads up in the end against Brian Z. Trapped him in the end with his over aggressive play with no cards. So in the end I made my buy back from the first game and had a little extra I think about an extra $40 for the night so I was happy leaving that night.

Yesterday I invited some friends over to play $10 buy-in games and had at total of nine players. Perfect for one table and we got in 3 games in which I took 2nd, 3rd, and 1st so I finished up $30 covering my wife's buy-ins. The great thing was in the 2nd and 3rd games I came back from the short stack in both games and finished in the money and winning the third. Most of the players were mad at Wayne because both times I moved all-in short stacked in these games I got 3 callers and instead of him checking it down he would bet them out of the pot and I would win and in both games people folding hands that would have beat me. If I would have won the 2nd game I think Joel would of hit Wayne.

Online I've been playing sit-in-go's which I haven't done for like 2 years when I started playing. I've placed in everyone I've played except 2 in which I took 4th and 5th so I've been playing good cards over the last 2 weeks and feeling good about my tournament play.

[harthron]

I can't believe it's the new year already and January almost done. So what have I done lately?
I've been having my Thursday night games of course. But since a game I held right after Thanksgiving which had a great turnout. Over 16 players for a Friday night game. I cleaned up that night but than I couldn't win a home game. I had a New Years tournament game(s) with 20 people showing up to play the day after New Years Eve which was great. But no luck for me.
So I hope things have turned the corner. This weekend I went to a new friend of mine to play in his home game with a few people from my game he invited. Of course my friends group were all talking about this young cocky kid that wins all there games. So I wanted him at my table bad. No luck until the final table he comes in and sits down, chip leader of the tournament and I'm short stack at the final table. Within minutes I turn the tables on him. I'm raising while he is in the blinds and he can't defend them. I'm taking his chips away left and right and before you know it I'm calling his all in and knock him off the final table first. It's amazing sometimes what motivates. My goal was just to beat this young kid and I look around and look and I'm the chip leader by far. I don't miss a step from there knocking out player by player. Even when I get heads up and lose more than half my stack to a player who never raises pre-flop so how could have I put her on ace-queen. But I was not going to let her beat me, I'm a much better player than her I thought. So I grinded it for an hour before I had the chip lead again and won the game. My so call crew took over that house game winning 3 out of the 4 games. Winning the 2 main games. Of course we were called ringers, and the young cocky kid thought the game was fixed. We were coming into their game so how are we going to fix the game, LOL!!!
So I'm back! I can't wait until Thursday night with my own group again.
I've been studying the game much more and learning more from the pro's of course. I've changed my game up to be more aggressive on middle/trouble hands pre-flop where I would have limped in a month ago. I playing more of a style to win the tournament than survive into the money. I have felt good about my play but I was questioning myself of not making any money until last Saturday. I made enough money Saturday to get back to even for the month and play for my games this Thursday. So that was nice.
The great thing about my game is my history in the past was to play good hands and I would play very aggressive pre-flop and post flop. Now I've loosened my starting requirements but not my aggressive pre-flop and post flop play so I'm not getting into many battles over pots. So this Thursday I'm going to really attack my game like I did against this player I played on Saturday.

As for online I've been playing a lot of sit-n-go's and making it into the money 3 out of 4 games. I haven't played in any tournaments over 18 players over the last couple months but I'm now thinking about to really starting to enter satalites for big games, the WSOP and WPT events. Something I didn't do to often last year except against the huge fields. So I'm thinking of trying the way Moneymaker and Raymer did it, smaller fields with bigger buy-ins. This is the year I take it to the next level. I've built my bankroll using bonuses on the cash games. So I will now play cash games to build enough funds for my buy-in for the tournament I want to play in so I really will be on a freeroll and not hurt my bankroll that I spent so much time building up over the last year.

[harthron]

Wells last night's game was great. The first 10 person tournament we played in at my place had me perplexed. We had 2 tables five each and once we got to six that would be the final table. I was getting really bad hands, not even marginal hands where I could play from the back, and to be honest non I could even play from the front even if I wanted to. Getting hands like 4 2, 7 2. No face cards. So with the blinds going around the table so fast I had to pick spots and would put in big bluffs and I would get no callers. I even did this would good hands and no callers. If I got one caller which is wanted I wanted they would drop after the flop. I never seen the turn card if I was the one entering the pot with a raise. Needless to say I was really blinded out, taking 7th place. So I took a break and went upstairs laughing to one of my daughters. "These guys won't play with me, they are to scared to go against me." So I took a break, ate some food and went back down and dealt the final table and sat out the side game that was waiting to start the next tournament.

So the next game I had the bounty on my head. We added a little extra into or Thursday night poker. We each pay $2 into the pot going into splitting it into 2 pots. If you knock out the person who has the bounty on their head you win $1 for each player that entered the game so say ten player $10. But this is where it gets fun, if the person with the bounty on their head wins the game they get the $10 plus all the other $1's that were put into the 2nd pot. We just started this three weeks ago. So the time we started the second game we had $38 in that pot plus I could win another $8 since we had eight players playing in the second game.
So they all want to knock me out of course. So I start out with the deal and as luck or unluck would have it I don't get a playable hand and I don't put a single chip into play until the big blind gets to me. Of course someone points this out. So I decide I'm going to play tight and raise big when I come into pots. So they all think I'm trying to protect the bounty. As the game goes I pick spots and steal plenty of blinds, and when I'm in a pot with a player I play big so they folded after the flop. I only put myself in threat of getting knocked out once with an calling an all-in from another player but I had the best hand. The chip leader was to my left and he had alot of chips, at least 3 times anyone else at the table, I was 2nd in chips. So I decided I will attack the other players and think about getting his chips heads up. But a funny thing happened somehow I got most of his chips not paying attention to him but the other players. He would lose a hand to them and I would take the chips from them. Before I knew it I was chip leader and a massive chip leader. I knew I had the game won as long I continued to play solid. Sure enough I won the game taking out the final 2 players in one hand when we all shared kings but the turn and the river tripped my 9. Winning the game and the Bounty and the winning bounty pot! Finishing up $98 for the night, not bad for a Thursday night game with the guys. I can't wait until next Thursday.

[harthron]

Well my Thursday games are in full swing with a variety of players showing up. It's really exploded. I didn't win any games this week but I did last week and my wife took 2nd in two of our sit-n-go's so I was happy for her.

What was cool was on my monthly Saturday tournament I had a pro player show up to my game to play. Now he is a local pro and a cash player converting to tournament play now. He was the third player out in the tournament but we had a side cash game going where he made so money. What impressed me most was how he could hold a conversation and catch everything that was going on at the table. I felt good about my play against him and I think he respected a couple of my friends play, he didn't walk over the game. I home he continues to come and play in our Saturday tournaments.

As for my poker results I've been holding my own in live games and I'm up on my winnings colum versus my payout. But for online I've been finishing in the money in almost every sit-n-go I play. So I'm loving it! Like today there were only 2 I didn't finish in the money and I played in alot today. I only stopped because I just got tired of playing. Nice having a day off of work and actually make money at home. One day.

I've also given up playing limit poker online and now just playing pot limit and no limit. It was just to much of a grind for me and I'm making alot more money in a quicker amount of time. I grinded it out two years at limit starting only with $25 playing 1 & 2 penny limit games and worked my way up the limits. I've made over $1500 online, not a bad return on that $25.

The only thing I feel bad about now is some of my poker friends have decided to see if they can make money online except they want to start at higher limits and in doing so have lost a lot of money. They just don't have the patience to build a bankroll. So some of them now can't afford to play on Thursdays because they lost so much money online.

I guess that is my one word of advice to a new player with a low amount to start out with "Patience." I know it's easier said than done and my buddies say I have more patience than all of them put together. But that is the key. Be patient when you win and be really patient when you lose especially to players that shouldn't have been in the hand at all.

[harthron]

I will use this as well as the following to post updates on my play.

http://harthron.blogspot.com/