So, it is 8 am on my day off. I haven't been able to sleep in for two weeks now. I feel stuck. Everything is at a standstill, I'm just waiting for April. I don't even care about my birthday really. I don't plan on doing much, hopefully I'll be able to stay home though. I want to see the world. I want to have the freedom and money to go places with the people I love, and have nothing to worry about as far as finances. I know I can make it happen. I have the results. My game is continually improving everyday and just this week I found I'm crushing the 1/2 dollar games. Yeah, I skipped two levels from the 25c/50c and moved straight to the 1/2 dollar games. This is 6 max of course. It just feels so natural.
When I'm in the zone, I feel like no one can stop me. I am spot on with every single read, every single move. I know when to change gears, pull back and wait. And I know when to put the pressure on by turning up my aggression. I haven't found a single player who has really earned my respect. They're all the same. They either play super tight and allow me to run right over them or they play loose and call me down without a hand. Somehow I always have a hand at the right time, or my luck factors in.
I think some people are just born lucky. Like certain people (Me) are much luckier than others. I've had down days, where the cards seem like they want to eat me and my bankroll alive..but they don't last very long and always are followed by a huge streak of crazy luck. Thats why a lot of people don't respect my play. And I prefer it like that, catches them off guard. Easier for me in the long run. I don't rely on my luck, I make it. Simple as that. I create spots to get lucky, and when it happens, it is such a rush. Reminds me of Doyle Brunson, he was always saying how you have to use your luck to your advantage and get creative. You can't play abc poker all the time, especially up at the higher stakes.
I was never good with abc poker to begin with, the first thing I ever got down in poker was aggression. To most players, thats the thing they struggle with, thats what they learn last. I believe I have an advantage when it comes to that, it is just finding the balance in between that I need. Once I get the balance of it all down, its pure art. There are so many skills that you need to get to the highest levels of the game, so many things that factor in. I know I'm talented, but it takes more than that. Just like any athlete who dreams of going to the olympics, you won't get there just because you know you're already good. It is the ones who constantly push themselves, who constantly strive to be better that make it.
There are days where I know I'm playing perfect poker. Where you just feel in the zone completely, you know what to do before your opponents do it, you know what they are going to do and you plan ahead, You know what they think you'll do, You're constantly thinking 3 steps ahead, you're completely aware of your image at the table and how it affects the rest of the players... thats 3rd level thinking, like an intricate game of chess. Only a few players get to that level. Even fewer hold onto that level. I'd almost say that poker on the highest levels is deeper than chess. There are just so many factors that play in and when you are at the top of your game, as I said, it is pure art.
I feel like I'm right on the edge of it. Some days its there and other days I'm so close I can feel it and yet one little mistake takes me away from it. Of course, when you're playing against really bad players (many of them are) you can't use 3rd level thinking because they are too stupid to notice you. They only play their cards. And that has always been a problem for me too. It is so much easier to play against average to good players than to play against bad players who are too stupid to make the right move, to be manipulated. With completely bad players, its just basic abc poker. You can't get creative, because they don't have the knowledge or observance to notice you at all. Patience plays a big part there. Maybe that is why it feels easier as I move up the limits, better players making it easier for me to outplay them simply because they are more aware of the game. This must sound pretty crazy to an outsider. It is hard to explain the whole concept. You have to actually play the game to really understand... and even then I doubt half the players online even get this.
You know what really bothers me? People who try to argue that poker is just all luck. That the only edge any professional has is their reading skills. Being able to fold their hands. Well, you know what, keep on thinking that people, because that just gives those of us who are serious about the game an even bigger edge. It is true that reading people is something that you need in order to be at the top. Being able to notice you're beat and fold to a better hand is also something you need to learn, but it is my understanding that people fold too much. They are too afraid. They play by the book. They make the "correct play" in every spot, rather than thinking outside the box. That is why there are so many average poker players. That is why I take your money. :P Sometimes the correct play is not the winning play. Every situation is different. Poker is a game of people, a game of incomplete information. You can't always fold KJ suited in early position. You can't always limp in with a good hand in your small blind. You have to constantly be adjusting.
And even if I sit here and tell you exactly what you need to do to improve your game, chances are it won't help you too much. You have to have a "feel" for the game. It is quite hard to explain. When you're in the moment and faced with a tough decision it comes down to your experience for one, but another thing that many people overlook is your natural intuition. It is something that you develop with experience of course, but some people have more of a feel for the game than others. Sometimes you just KNOW that the guy has pocket aces, even before you play the hand. Or that the decent hand you have is going to end up as a bad beat. Call me crazy, but its just a natural instinct. This happens to me sometimes but when I'm really playing my A game I'm absolutely on fire. I know people who have amazing instincts for the game. And as I said earlier, some people are naturally lucky. I know I've avoided many bad beats simply because of other players acting before me and changing the dynamics of the current game..hence changing my decisions. Its all about the people and situations.
Okay enough of my "insight" and rambling, I'm sure there are many people who may disagree with me on certain things I've said. That is completely fine with me. But this is only a small bit of what it takes to make it. I'm going to get there. Oh yes :)
Oh, and one last thing. It really bothers me how the moment a man finds out you're a female player, he wants to run right over you. It makes me laugh too. Goodluck with that guys, not happening here. Although, there are so many female players who really have no business playing because they are just so.. weak. Don't get me wrong, I've seen a few pro's who definately know what they are doing at the table, like, Jennifer Harmon, Evelyn Ng, Annette Obrestad, Joanne Liu, and Mimi Tran. I respect their games but that is only 5 people out of thousands. I'd like to point out that Annette is the only one who started online at an early age (like me) and made the switch over to live poker easily. I believe online players have quite an edge over the rest. There is tougher competition online, constantly a new challenge. We also see a lot more hands than live players. I'll always be partial to online play. Its just so much more convenient. I hear most of the highstakes action is moving online too.
Anyways I should end this post :P Next time I'll post more of my results. I really need to find a good statistics program for the Cake network. Please message me if you know of one. (Poker tracker doesn't support it as far as I know.. not sure about Holdem Manager)
-Sydney-
When I'm in the zone, I feel like no one can stop me. I am spot on with every single read, every single move. I know when to change gears, pull back and wait. And I know when to put the pressure on by turning up my aggression. I haven't found a single player who has really earned my respect. They're all the same. They either play super tight and allow me to run right over them or they play loose and call me down without a hand. Somehow I always have a hand at the right time, or my luck factors in.
I think some people are just born lucky. Like certain people (Me) are much luckier than others. I've had down days, where the cards seem like they want to eat me and my bankroll alive..but they don't last very long and always are followed by a huge streak of crazy luck. Thats why a lot of people don't respect my play. And I prefer it like that, catches them off guard. Easier for me in the long run. I don't rely on my luck, I make it. Simple as that. I create spots to get lucky, and when it happens, it is such a rush. Reminds me of Doyle Brunson, he was always saying how you have to use your luck to your advantage and get creative. You can't play abc poker all the time, especially up at the higher stakes.
I was never good with abc poker to begin with, the first thing I ever got down in poker was aggression. To most players, thats the thing they struggle with, thats what they learn last. I believe I have an advantage when it comes to that, it is just finding the balance in between that I need. Once I get the balance of it all down, its pure art. There are so many skills that you need to get to the highest levels of the game, so many things that factor in. I know I'm talented, but it takes more than that. Just like any athlete who dreams of going to the olympics, you won't get there just because you know you're already good. It is the ones who constantly push themselves, who constantly strive to be better that make it.
There are days where I know I'm playing perfect poker. Where you just feel in the zone completely, you know what to do before your opponents do it, you know what they are going to do and you plan ahead, You know what they think you'll do, You're constantly thinking 3 steps ahead, you're completely aware of your image at the table and how it affects the rest of the players... thats 3rd level thinking, like an intricate game of chess. Only a few players get to that level. Even fewer hold onto that level. I'd almost say that poker on the highest levels is deeper than chess. There are just so many factors that play in and when you are at the top of your game, as I said, it is pure art.
I feel like I'm right on the edge of it. Some days its there and other days I'm so close I can feel it and yet one little mistake takes me away from it. Of course, when you're playing against really bad players (many of them are) you can't use 3rd level thinking because they are too stupid to notice you. They only play their cards. And that has always been a problem for me too. It is so much easier to play against average to good players than to play against bad players who are too stupid to make the right move, to be manipulated. With completely bad players, its just basic abc poker. You can't get creative, because they don't have the knowledge or observance to notice you at all. Patience plays a big part there. Maybe that is why it feels easier as I move up the limits, better players making it easier for me to outplay them simply because they are more aware of the game. This must sound pretty crazy to an outsider. It is hard to explain the whole concept. You have to actually play the game to really understand... and even then I doubt half the players online even get this.
You know what really bothers me? People who try to argue that poker is just all luck. That the only edge any professional has is their reading skills. Being able to fold their hands. Well, you know what, keep on thinking that people, because that just gives those of us who are serious about the game an even bigger edge. It is true that reading people is something that you need in order to be at the top. Being able to notice you're beat and fold to a better hand is also something you need to learn, but it is my understanding that people fold too much. They are too afraid. They play by the book. They make the "correct play" in every spot, rather than thinking outside the box. That is why there are so many average poker players. That is why I take your money. :P Sometimes the correct play is not the winning play. Every situation is different. Poker is a game of people, a game of incomplete information. You can't always fold KJ suited in early position. You can't always limp in with a good hand in your small blind. You have to constantly be adjusting.
And even if I sit here and tell you exactly what you need to do to improve your game, chances are it won't help you too much. You have to have a "feel" for the game. It is quite hard to explain. When you're in the moment and faced with a tough decision it comes down to your experience for one, but another thing that many people overlook is your natural intuition. It is something that you develop with experience of course, but some people have more of a feel for the game than others. Sometimes you just KNOW that the guy has pocket aces, even before you play the hand. Or that the decent hand you have is going to end up as a bad beat. Call me crazy, but its just a natural instinct. This happens to me sometimes but when I'm really playing my A game I'm absolutely on fire. I know people who have amazing instincts for the game. And as I said earlier, some people are naturally lucky. I know I've avoided many bad beats simply because of other players acting before me and changing the dynamics of the current game..hence changing my decisions. Its all about the people and situations.
Okay enough of my "insight" and rambling, I'm sure there are many people who may disagree with me on certain things I've said. That is completely fine with me. But this is only a small bit of what it takes to make it. I'm going to get there. Oh yes :)
Oh, and one last thing. It really bothers me how the moment a man finds out you're a female player, he wants to run right over you. It makes me laugh too. Goodluck with that guys, not happening here. Although, there are so many female players who really have no business playing because they are just so.. weak. Don't get me wrong, I've seen a few pro's who definately know what they are doing at the table, like, Jennifer Harmon, Evelyn Ng, Annette Obrestad, Joanne Liu, and Mimi Tran. I respect their games but that is only 5 people out of thousands. I'd like to point out that Annette is the only one who started online at an early age (like me) and made the switch over to live poker easily. I believe online players have quite an edge over the rest. There is tougher competition online, constantly a new challenge. We also see a lot more hands than live players. I'll always be partial to online play. Its just so much more convenient. I hear most of the highstakes action is moving online too.
Anyways I should end this post :P Next time I'll post more of my results. I really need to find a good statistics program for the Cake network. Please message me if you know of one. (Poker tracker doesn't support it as far as I know.. not sure about Holdem Manager)
-Sydney-
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