Thursday Thrashing

Beginning Bankroll: $9.35

Another session in which the poker gods were having fun at my expense. I actually played yesterday morning, but was too busy (then too tired) to report on it here afterwards.

I bought in on a 6-handed LHE speed game--$.02 and $.04 limit--for 80 cents. Like the night before, I just was not getting any cards unless someone else got something just a bit better. And on the few occasions when I actually did catch something really good, the rest of the table had nothing and therefore didn't pay me off.

Yeah, we all go through that. Even the top pro players only win about 60% of the sessions they play, from what I've read. But it does get irritating when you're at a table and the same guy always has you beat. There's always one player who has the goods every time and his chip stack just grows and grows and grows. Why am I never that guy? I have to grind and grind and grind, lucky to hit anything better than 1 pair for hours at a time. I know, I have had some nice winning sessions, so I shouldn't complain, but it is always a grind. Being patient does test your patience in this game.

One thing I've learned at these micro limits online is that it usually isn't worth it to raise pre-flop. When I do, I just start a call-fest, and my stack shrinks that much faster when I whiff on the flop. Part of being a winning player overall is limiting your losses on your bad hands, so I like Ted Forrest's advice (see his chapter, "(Don't) Play Like Ted Forrest" in The Full Tilt Poker Strategy Guide, Tournament Edition) that it's OK to limp and see flops cheaply, to see more cards and get a better idea of where you stand before committing chips (or money) to the pot.

Thanks for reading today's report (on yesterday's action), and good luck at the tables (unless you're at mine)!

Ending Bankroll: $8.58, down $0.77