Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Ding a ling! I won me another league tourney on Full Tilt Poker :)
My play in the poker league this season has clung to the pendulum of extremes. I either place in the top ranks, or bust out first. I suppose I like it that way - much less wasted time on the losing runs. With just 3 games left to finish out the season, I don't think there's any shot at placing in the top 3 (even if by some miracle I won the remaining games), but I'm pleased with the games I have done well in.
Last night, I was not expecting to win the thing. I knew I'd go deep, as I caught some cards early on and had a healthy stack. But somewhere around the 3/4 mark, I coughed up far too many chips on a hand where I was clearly beat but tried to push my opponent off of his hand. I gave up on the river when it became clear that his hand was much too strong to fold (I had second pair), but easily lost over half of my stack with the over-zealous pushing.
Then, the luck train rolled through and I split an all-in where I was a huge dog when the board came a straight, and from there on out I was back in business. It's strange how there is actually some form of momentum in poker, even though the cards coming down the line are completely random.
When it got down to 3 players, it was a tight race. We traded chips for what seemed like an hour, until finally I took out the 3rd place player and went heads-up with a 3:1 chip lead. My opponent basically blinded out, with no real massive swings, and I took the game.
I think the thing that contributes the most to my "good" poker days is, ironically, running. All of my wins in this league so far this season have come after I'd had a great run. I've only been running for 10 weeks (having just completed the Couch to 5K training program last week), but it really does seem to help me focus and think much more clearly. My brain feels "on" after a good run, and what better to do with an "on" brain than play poker?
I'm pretty proud of my play on those "on" days this year, and I'm pretty proud of completing the Couch to 5K program - so here's my shameless badge of honor (for the running part, anyway):
I'm running in what will technically be my second 5K race this weekend on Father's Day. I did a 5K at the zoo during Week 5 of my 9-week Couch to 5K training, and ran/walked it for a finishing time of 46:48. I am hoping to run the entire 5K on Sunday and beat my previous time. (Hey, it still counts as a Personal Record, even if it's only my second race!) If anybody finds themselves out in Oswego, IL on Sunday morning, come check out PrairieFest and cheer on the runners (and me!)
Maybe getting off the couch and beyond my degenerate ways is helping my poker game. I'll take it! All I know is, I feel better than I ever have before - both in life and in cards. Who knows what the future holds! But I'm looking forward to it :)
