Floating Down The River, er Turn

Just got back from my weekly poker strategy meeting at the local bagel shop. The Guru couldn't make it to this get-together, so instead the inmates ran the asylum for a pleasant, informal afternoon of talking cards. We started (as usual) with a round the table discussion of how everyone's week went playing poker. A couple of the regulars (SolarTed and Paycheck Lee) both reported some big wins, which is always rewarding to hear. Following this, I presented a few slides on the concept of "floating" someone on the flop as a bluff (see slides, below). We then wrapped up the meeting by playing some 5/10-cent stud-hi full-ring cash. We did pretty well, making a profit of $1.50 for the 30 or so hands we played. The numbers actually should have been closer to $2.50, but a little bit of success syndrom permeated our play at the end. As one of the regular stud players (Jeri, aka Dr Wartson) noted, "Stud is all about paying attention and minimizing losses."

My own game has been up and down. I lost a ton of money earlier this week, but then had a nice session yesterday, and then another really nice one this morning, which in itself resulted in a big $40 up-tick in the 'roll after just 25 hands of $1/2 limit full-ring. I had two calling stations at my table that seemed to just want to give their money away. Couple that with the amazing hands I was dealt (nut flush, nut straight, a set, two pair) and I walked away a big winner. Now, if I could just figure out how to keep one of these winning streaks going for more than two days, I'd be all set. The Guru has said before how the worst thing that can happen to him is to win three days straight in a row; success syndrome tends to hit and he frequently gives back most of his gains after consistenly winning. After reviewing my own PT graphs, I think something like this might be happening to me, too. It seems that after 2-3 days of winning, I invariable give a sizable fraction back in the subsequent 2-3 days. It's not true success syndrome (which, for most players, typically manifests itself as looser play preflop), but it's akin to the same thing; i.e., I seem to maintain the same tight VPIP numbers PF, but my WTD and W$SD numbers get worse when I experience the syndrome. In other words, I think I chase too much and have more trouble getting off losing hands if I've had earlier success. Weird. The human mind is an odd beast, ain't it?

In other poker news, it looks like our friendly fascist feds are really cracking down on money transfers to online poker sites, with stories of bank accounts being seized popping up all over the news and TV. If I had personal bank account that had ever been used to transfer any money to/from a poker site, I think I would be worried. So far, the feds seem to be going after the bigger fish, but fascist pigs always seem to have a way of turning into hogs after they've tasted blood. Bastards.
All-in for now...
-Bug