It's that time again!

Blogger Tournament at Pokerstars.com

I played in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker 2010

Contemplating the 8-game SCOOP

Although I have only played one 8-game mix tournament so far (which netted me a $33 ticket to the upcoming SCOOP events), I am seriously contemplating taking a dive and giving it another go at the $33 SCOOP 8-game mix being held May 13th at 14:00 on the PokerStars clock (which is unfortunately 1:00 PM for me). Being as I have a full-time job as a normal working individual, I may find it hard to get out of work for a poker tournament though. Although I know How to Play Pot Limit Omaha (which is a game I find extremely entertaining) and How to Play 7 Card Stud (which is a game I can't stand), I don't think that I can rationally justify the time away for mixing it up with some of these entertaining times. Why is it that the SCOOP tournaments just assume that everyone interested in them is a degenerate that can play at any time of the day? :D

I guess maybe I better keep looking for a better option outside of the work day...

Getting excited for the 2010 SCOOP

With the schedule being released for the 2010 SCOOP Poker Tournament offered over at PokerStars and with my two $11 tickets and one $33 ticket, I am perusing through to see what tournaments would be the best. I think I am going to play Event 19, the 2-7 triple draw event for sure, but other than that, I am not sure. Any suggestions on easiest field?

Here is the complete schedule:

Event 1: No-Limit Hold'em with Re-buys Six-Max
May 3, 2010
Low: $5.50 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
Med: $55 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed
High: $530 buy-in, $1,000,000 guaranteed

Event 2: Fixed-Limit Badugi
May 3, 2010
Low: $16.50 buy-in, $25,000 guaranteed
Med: $162 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
High: $1,575 buy-in, $75,000 guaranteed

Event 3: Pot-Limit Five-Card Draw
May 4, 2010
Low: $11 buy-in, $25,000 guaranteed
Med: $109 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
High: $1,050 buy-in, $75,000 guaranteed

Event 4: No-Limit Hold'em Heads-Up Match Play
May 4, 2010
Low: $16.50 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $162 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
High: $1,575 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 5: No-Limit Hold'em
May 4, 2010
Low: $11 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $109 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed
High: $1,050 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 6: Mixed Hold'em Six-Max
May 5, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $400,000 guaranteed

Event 7: Seven Card Stud
May 5, 2010
Low: $33 buy-in, $25,000 guaranteed
Med: $320 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
High: $3,150 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed

Event 8: Pot-Limit Omaha Heads-Up Match Play
May 6, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $25,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed

Event 9: No-Limit Hold'em
May 6, 2010
Low: TBD buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: TBD buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed
High: TBD buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed

Event 10: No-Limit Hold'em Ante-Up
May 7, 2010
Low: $16.50 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
Med: $162 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
High: $1,575 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed

Event 11: Fixed-Limit Omaha High-Low
May 7, 2010
Low: $55 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
Med: $530 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed
High: $5,200 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed

Event 12: No-Limit Hold'em 2x Chance Turbo
May 7, 2010
Low: $16.50 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
Med: $162 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed
High: $1,575 buy-in, $750,000 guaranteed

Event 13: No-Limit Hold'em Shootout
May 8, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $15,000 guaranteed (Quadruple Shootout)
Med: $215 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed (Triple Shootout)
High: $2,100 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed (Double Shootout)

Event 14: Pot-Limit Omaha with Re-buys Six-Max
May 8, 2010
Low: $16.50 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $162 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
High: $1,575 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 15: No-Limit Hold'em Big Antes
May 9, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $750,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $750,000 guaranteed

Event 16: No-Limit Hold'em Two Day Event
May 9, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $1,500,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $2,000,000 guaranteed

Event: 17: Pot-Limit Hold'em, Pot-Limit Omaha
May 10, 2010
Low: $16.50 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $162 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed
High: $1,575 buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed

Event 18: No-Limit Hold'em Four-Max
May 10, 2010
Low: $33 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed
Med: $320 buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed
High: $3,150 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 19: Deuce-Seven Triple Draw
May 11, 2010
Low: $11 buy-in, $25,000 guaranteed
Med: $109 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
High: $1,050 buy-in, $75,000 guaranteed

Event 20: Seven Card Stud High-Low
May 11, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed

Event 21: No-Limit Hold'em
May 11, 2010
Low: $11 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $109 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed
High: $1,050 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 22: Razz
May 12, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed

Event 23: No-Limit Hold'em with Two Re-buys & One Add-on
May 12, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 24: Eight-Game
May 13, 2010
Low: $33 buy-in, $75,000 guaranteed
Med: $320 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed
High: $3,150 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed

Event 25: Pot-Limit Omaha High-Low
May 13, 2010
Low: $11 buy-in, $75,000 guaranteed
Med: $109 buy-in, $150,000 guaranteed
High: $1,050 buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed

Event 26: No-Limit Hold'em with One Re-buy & One Add-on
May 14, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $1,000,000 guaranteed

Event 27: Fixed-Limit Hold'em Six-Max
May 14, 2010
Low: $55 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $530 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed
High: $5,200 buy-in, $300,000 guaranteed

Event 28: No-Limit Omaha High-Low Turbo
May 14, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed

Event 29: Pot-Limit Omaha
May 15, 2010
Low: $55 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
Med: $530 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
High: $5,200 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed

Event 30: HORSE
May 15, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $50,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $100,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $200,000 guaranteed

Event 31: No-Limit Hold'em Six-Max
May 16, 2010
Low: $22 buy-in, $20,000 guaranteed
Med: $215 buy-in, $750,000 guaranteed
High: $2,100 buy-in, $750,000 guaranteed

Event 32: No-Limit Hold'em Heads-Up Match Play Two Day Event
May 16, 2010
Low: $270 buy-in, $250,000 guaranteed
Med: $2,600 buy-in, $500,000 guaranteed
High: $25,500 buy-in, $750,000 guaranteed

Event 33: No-Limit Hold'em Main Event Two Day Event
May 16, 2010
Low: $109 buy-in, $1.000,000 guaranteed
Med: $1,050 buy-in, $3,000,000 guaranteed
High: $10,300 buy-in, $5,000,000 guaranteed

Going on a bit of a poker hiatus...

Well, it's been about a year into the endeavor of frugality now, and things have been going decently for the most part. I recently redeemed enough points for the hat I described about 10 months ago and also some iron man points for a jacket. Woot...

However, the cash game action has been a real downer lately. I won't bore with bad beat stories, but the pace of Rush poker really makes them come at an increased rate. Getting it all in good and losing three consecutive buyins to three outers is fantastic. Which is why playing poker is clearly a game of skill. The skill to suckout on me I guess.

Looking forward to redeeming my PokerStars SCOOP tickets compliments of the blogger tourneys last month, otherwise there will likely not be much transpiring here. Unless of course I get into discussing the home game action. :D

January 2010 recap

I figured I would give a quick update on the advancement of the endeavor for January. Here are the results, mostly thanks to Rush Poker :D

WBCOOP 2010 Recap

So, being firmly entrenched in the frugal poker endeavor, I am always looking for a way to start/build the bankroll with no risk. Thanks to a heads up by the illustrious Oh Captain, I was notified that PokerStars (which I have $0.00 of real money at) was holding a series of freerolls for active bloggers. (Amazingly this blog qualified even with the lack of action for >6 months). I ended up actually participating in three events, without making it on for the main event on Sunday.

The first event that I participated in was on Wednesday, January 27th at 5 pm in my time zone. Although I missed the first 45 minutes, I sat down with still a little over 1000 in chips. Two hands later, I was over 4000 and after folding for about 5 more hands, I busted both of the remaining players (because in my table of 9, only 3 were actually playing) with pocket kings... From there it went relatively decently until my AK was broken by J10 getting the Ace high straight on the turn, leaving me with a draw to a full house, which of course was not fulfilled. But...

PokerStars Tournament #280000003, No Limit Hold'em
Freeroll
1843 players
$5096.50 USD added to the prize pool by PokerStars
Total Prize Pool: $5096.50 USD
Tournament started 2010/01/27 18:00:00 ET


Dear deebakes,

You finished the tournament in 81st place.

You have won an admission ticket to 'SCOOP - $11 Entry'. This ticket allows you to participate only in a tournament of this type. Tickets are not redeemable for cash or Tournament US Dollars; if you register and then unregister from the tournament, your ticket will be returned.

To view your available tournament tickets, go to Requests > Tournament Tickets in the main lobby.

You earned 18.98 tournament leader points in this tournament. For information about our tournament leader board, see our web site at http://www.pokerstars.com/poker/tournaments/leader-board/

The second event I played in was on Friday night, January 29th. Because I am a degenerate, I signed up for this 8-game tournament, having no experience with most of the mixed games on a website at the least, and I don't think I have ever played Limit Omaha H/L (what a screwy game this is). Since I had no experience (and because I reached my Full Tilt Iron Man goal for the month of January), I played some play money 8-game at PokerStars on Thursday to get a sense of how discards are handled in 2-7 triple draw (which I crushed at in the tournament) and a little more Stud experience, while quadrupling my play money chips. I did okay in the stud versions during the actual tournament, and by okay I mean not losing a ton of money and probably breaking even in the end. Where I felt I had the biggest edge was in the PLO (which I have played a ton at Full Tilt) and the 2-7 triple draw, which I need to play more in the cash game after I get knocked out of my monthly poker group :) When was all said and done, here are the results:

PokerStars Tournament #280000005, 8-Game
Freeroll
1536 players
$5096.50 USD added to the prize pool by PokerStars
Total Prize Pool: $5096.50 USD
Tournament started 2010/01/29 19:00:00 ET


Dear deebakes,

You finished the tournament in 23rd place.

You have won an admission ticket to 'SCOOP - $33 Entry'. This ticket allows you to participate only in a tournament of this type. Tickets are not redeemable for cash or Tournament US Dollars; if you register and then unregister from the tournament, your ticket will be returned.

To view your available tournament tickets, go to Requests > Tournament Tickets in the main lobby.

You earned 32.52 tournament leader points in this tournament. For information about our tournament leader board, see our web site at http://www.pokerstars.com/poker/tournaments/leader-board/

23rd place! WTF! I'll take it for the first actual 8-game mixed action of relevance.

The last tourney was the Saturday No-Limit Hold Em event. Pretty blah for the most part (again missing the first 30-45 minutes with responsibilities) and played conservatively and again made the "ticket" group:

PokerStars Tournament #280000006, No Limit Hold'em
Freeroll
1939 players
$5096.50 USD added to the prize pool by PokerStars
Total Prize Pool: $5096.50 USD
Tournament started 2010/01/30 15:00:00 ET


Dear deebakes,

You finished the tournament in 100th place.

You have won an admission ticket to 'SCOOP - $11 Entry'. This ticket allows you to participate only in a tournament of this type. Tickets are not redeemable for cash or Tournament US Dollars; if you register and then unregister from the tournament, your ticket will be returned.

To view your available tournament tickets, go to Requests > Tournament Tickets in the main lobby.

You earned 17.52 tournament leader points in this tournament. For information about our tournament leader board, see our web site at http://www.pokerstars.com/poker/tournaments/leader-board/

Two $11 tickets and one $33 ticket to this years SCOOP. Can't wait to look at the schedule and figure out how I can perhaps make the frugal endeavor reap benefits over at Stars! Wish me luck...

Welcome to the era of ADD poker!

So I received an email yesterday informing me about a new option of poker at Full Tilt called "Rush Poker"...

"Rush Poker* is the greatest innovation
since poker started on the Internet."
Chris Ferguson, Full Tilt Pro

Hi deebakes,

Prepare yourself for Rush Poker*: the world's fastest poker game.

Available exclusively at Full Tilt Poker, Rush Poker* is a revolutionary new poker format. The ultimate high-speed game, Rush Poker* is designed to minimize your wait time between hands and keep you in the action. Are you ready for the most intense poker action in the world?

Rush Poker

How Rush Poker* works

Join a Rush Poker* game and be part of a large player pool, facing a different table of opponents every hand you play. As soon as you fold your hand, you'll be rushed to a new table for your next hand. To play even faster, use the Quick Fold button to move to another table, even if the action hasn't reached you yet.

Rush Poker

How to find Rush Poker* tables

Look for Rush Poker* tables in the Basic View and Standard View of the Full Tilt Poker game lobby. Learn more about Rush Poker* by watching the Rush Poker* Video Tutorial and reading the Rush Poker* details page.

Join the action to experience the world's fastest poker game. Rush Poker

"This is what poker should be: a game of action."
Andy Bloch, Full Tilt Pro

Being a sucker for the shiny new object, I figured I would give this a shot a 0.05/0.10 9-handed. After 15 minutes, I went from $10 to $40! I think this might be the end of multitabling...

I SERIOUSLY recommend this for everyone, but be careful. I noticed that people were either WAY up or near busto, without much in between. Push the edges and you may just be golden! Here are some links too 1 and 2 .

It's time for PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker! PokerStars.com is the home of Free Online Poker Games, bloggers can play for free in the exclusive WBCOOP tournament, register here to play: WBCOOP

Registration code: 272692

Happy 2010

So I realize it has been a little bit since the last post, but have not been reaping the huge profits I was hoping for... The bankroll is indeed still going in the right direction though:



I also redeemed a little over 9K in FTP for a really sweet sweatshirt, that is currently coming in very handy in my neck of the woods...



Back on the horse for 2010 and hoping to put in some good hand hours. Good luck to the rest of you degenerates that read this drivel...

D