Weeee for steaks!

Two guys I have percentages in have binked in the past 24 hours. My slices aren't vast but I'll have turned $50 into $450.

It has been so long since I had a return from someone's BAP. It also means my Stars account will be topped up as it had dwindled to under $50. I'll no doubt spunk it all away trying to sat in via Steps to live stuff.

So thanks Paddy and S4ooter!

Amsterdamned

My plans to play a €100 tourney in Amsterdam failed. I arrived at the New Holland Casino at 7pm and the game kicked off at 8pm but all the 100 seats had been sold in advance. I never considered this might happen as it doesn't happen to regular casino games in the UK. It also turned out to be a €100+10 single rebuy. I only had one free night amongst the four I was in Amsterdam so I didn't get the chance to check out games in other parts of the city. There were cash tables in another room, but the cheapest was €2/€4 NLHE, so I gave it a miss. Also, the players I saw walking around looked like they knew how to play.

Playing in Amsterdam was central to my New Year's poker resolution to play poker in three different countries this year. I will be going to Tanzania in a few weeks with a poker player but I dont know if a HU match will be sufficient for me to count that country. Can I also include Scotland later in the year as they are hosting both a UKIPT and (I hope) a CBMPT and chances are I'll play one of them.

So now no poker is planned until Bolton for the APAT team champs this weekend. Well, I might be at the local pub tonight for the £3 buy-in two-30-player-games-in-an-evening-crapshootalolament and I'm playing a live £20 STT tomorrow.

Deep and weep

I played a proper live deepstack game at the weekend: 30k in chips with 4x60mins and then 30 min levels. All this for £25. Not too bad at all.

I was optimistic about my chances but I busted after about 5 hours. I was on the wrong end of a few coolers. My exit had me flopping a flush and he had a set. We got it in on the turn only for the river to pair. Earlier I had lost a fair chunk when I was the one who had the set and he made his flush. In another hand I turned a set but had to lay it down after a guy had raised-pre with J9 and then called a reraise and my magical set-making T on the turn filled his gutter-ball. Poker is a sick game.

It was fun though playing so deep and I wish I could have done a bit better.

Looking to the coming weeks – on Thursday I’ll be playing a €100 freezeout in Amsterdam. The following weekend I’ll be playing the APAT UK team championships in Bolton and then it is the turn of Star City for another team game. For both of which I’ll be representing the Gambling Network Forum. They should all be cracking fun.

2011

I've set myself some 2011 goals:

Play two UKIPT events
Play a live event with over a £500 buyin
Learn how to play from the SB
Win 10 times in Gala
Play in three different countries
Final table a CBMPT
Final table an APAT
Win a live game with over 100 runners
Play more sats/steps and get a WSOP package
Win a monthly title in the pub league
Get staked less and use my online roll to fund live entries
Finish €5k in proft on PCUK

All simple, right? If I achieve half of them I'll be happy enough. 2010 was a fantastic year for me - I had some CBMPT success and my win rate in my local Gala was approx 1 win in 6 games (with average fields of approx 60). I'm not going to assume that 2011 will be even better, cos 2010 could have just been a luckbox year, but some success would be very welcome. I've got the 2011 goals off to a reasonable start though with two wins from three games at Gala.