Well, I’m doing pretty well, found life difficult over the first several days, but now I’m 3k up, which is very pleasing indeed.
Last night I profited again, but it wasn’t without a struggle, in fact that’s an understatement, it was a complete rollercoaster ride and due to the mental stress it caused me (my head was pounding by the end), it has forced me to reevaulate the way I approach the game.
I’ve been playing daily from 2am to 8am, so approximately 6 hours per night. Now that’s not too long, but when you don’t take breaks and you experience the fluctuations I do, it can really wear you down.
I’m not playing badly, but I’m wary of burning out. Due to not wanting to be kicked off my table after building up a stack, I’ve been avoiding breaks, and this not only means I’m robbing myself of any mental hiatus, but I’m also not eating. At the moment, I’m on one meal a day, which is no where near acceptable, and the last time I checked, I was down to a rather disconcerting and paltry 9 stone.
Starting today, I’m going to start piling on the pounds (hopefully), and get myself back up to that 11.5 stone I once was. Also, I’ll ensure that I take at least one break during that 6 hour playing period, even if it means leaving the game temporarily. It may cost me money, but at least I’ll have my insanity.
So why was it such a rollercoaster ride? Well, when you start off 1k up, end up 1k down before finishing the session 1k up, you certainly get your money’s worth in entertainment. At $2/4, I don’t know many players who experience as many double throughs (and double downs for that matter) as I do, not to mention the eye-opening 2k fluctuation.
Perhaps it’s because I’m not afraid to stick my chips in or maybe I gamble more than others, who knows? Part of the reason last night, however, was certainly a result of losing my biggest ever pot, around 1.5k I think it was in the end.
I don’t really have too many complaints. I raised to $21 with Pocket Aces, received two callers, and was outdrawn on a 2-5-5 flop by A-5 - how he can justify calling $21 preflop with that hand though is beyond me.
Anyhow, seeing as I couldn’t put anyone on 2-2 or A-5, I considered this to be a safe flop and so decided to check. Mateyboy bet each street, and I called, confident I was ahead. The problem was that he moved all-in on the river for around $475 when the pot was something like $375. I wouldn’t normally call this, but the board had double paired with twos and fives. His all-in was either nuts or a bluff, as he’d probably check any other hand. Due to my passive play, I hadn’t represented an overpair, so a bluff seemed like the only explantion – just what I’d wanted him to do.
Well, I finally made the call and, of course, he turned over the five for his full house. I probably played the hand terribly, but at least I was brave enough to go with what I thought. Shite happens, time to move on, next hand.
Anyhow, by the end, I’d somehow managed to maintain my composure and pull back a 1k deficit, eventually turning it into a 1k profit. I was pretty chuffed to be anywhere near the black considering the huge pot I’d lost, so I guess it shows I’m playing well.
So, another day, another dollar. I’m earning, but I’m starting to tire mentally, so I guess the sensible thing would be to take a day or two off – or, at a pinch, I could just keep on playing…