Epiphany: I know bupkis.

It took me a while to figure this out.

I have played live for 6 years and recently made the exclusive conversion to the intarwebz with the goal of one day quitting my job and going pro.

The best advice I have seen so far came off the noob stickies, basically telling me to dedicate myself to learning the game.

Bullshit, I know this game...right?

Wrong.

I started my BR at $50 and fluctuated back and forth. Got as high as $65 and moved up to $0.5/0.10 before I had read about BR Management, so I didn't know any better.

The more I have read over the last couple days the more I have realized I didn't know shit. After a particularly bad streak and dropping my BR to about $42 I decided to get back down to where I should be for the size of my BR.

One thing I have learned is that I was trying to incorporate too much of what I learned too fast, I was getting somewhat confused, was not playing the same hands consistently and that contributed to my losses greatly.

After reading and deciding on a good base pre flop strat (19 hands etc.) I seem to have settled down a bit and hoprfully can begin the climb to freedom

Wasn't sure if this was too much like a blog for my second post, but meh, hope it works.

So are you going to keep updating this thread with the things you learn as your bankroll grows?

First 110 hands using what I have learned at $2NL, and I have mixed feelings.

I didn't catch but 6 playable hands (other than AXs for the flush draw). I am sure that won't be normal. What I read said 20% hands played is about the max I want to achieve, but I think 5% played is on the low end of that spectrum.

I think my VPIP of 10% reflects how tight the 19 hands system has me playing, but when I watch the outcome of the hands I would have played before that I don't now and see the flops bust it raises my confidence and resolve to stick with it.

I know 110 hands isn't shit for a sample # but it still gave me a little bit of confidence I am on the right track. The table was a bit slow, only about 70 hands/hour, though that only served to draw things out a bit and force me to stay patient. Feels alot like a SnG at this point, Stay patitent and let the LAGs bet themselves out of their stack. But meh, again, 110 hands doesn't prove anything I guess.

Originally Posted by Parasurama

So are you going to keep updating this thread with the things you learn as your bankroll grows?

Yea, that was the plan, though I am not sure if that's a breach of ettiquette.

Originally Posted by scotladd

Originally Posted by Parasurama

So are you going to keep updating this thread with the things you learn as your bankroll grows?

Yea, that was the plan, though I am not sure if that's a breach of ettiquette.

idk why it would be a breach of etiquette, it sounds like a pretty cool idea to me. GL sir, and I would advise moving out of the 19 hands strategy as quickly as possible.

Originally Posted by Parasurama

GL sir, and I would advise moving out of the 19 hands strategy as quickly as possible.

Now that you have his attention, perhaps you could explain that statement. He's trying to get a base game to build on. Why not start with the infamous 19 hands?

Originally Posted by PlayToWin

Originally Posted by Parasurama

GL sir, and I would advise moving out of the 19 hands strategy as quickly as possible.

Now that you have his attention, perhaps you could explain that statement. He's trying to get a base game to build on. Why not start with the infamous 19 hands?

I said as quickly as possible. It's fine if that's where he wants to start but I don't think it's a good idea to stick to it for very long because it will stunt his poker growth.

Originally Posted by Parasurama

I said as quickly as possible. It's fine if that's where he wants to start but I don't think it's a good idea to stick to it for very long because it will stunt his poker growth.

agreed, 19hands is a fine place to start. Start to add to it though, by stealing for starters. and then, step at a time. Which steps? dunno. I've got a bunch of ideas though - reading ISF's beginner article is worthwhile too.

Well I was thinking about when to actually move beyond the 19. I think I need to get a good sample set of hands (10k) with the 19 just to make sure my numbers (hands played, VPIP etc.) are where they should be. Since "where they should be" seems to be subjective to a few different factors I figured they should at least fall into acceptable range.

From what I have read, noob's biggest mistake seems to be playing too many hands, hence the wisdom of the 19. Though if I am not playing enough (5% played like I saw yesterday) it leaves me to consider what are the next hands in that evolution?

I am already playing all PP's, AA-AJ, KQ, KJ, and QJ. I assume the next couple I would add when I am ready would be AT, JT and maybe T9s?

*edit* As a thought is there any good essays on post-flop-strategy/betting? I found 1 or 2 I thought were informative, but from what I have seen, it seems to be mostly on pot odds and implied odds.

If I thought my pre flop skills were lacking, my post flop skills are a joke. I am still working on betting half pot when I have TPTK, but it takes some balls, learning to allow myself aggressive play seems to be the toughest challenge.

Either way, it is something to consider as I grind out my first 10k.

Originally Posted by scotladd

Well I was thinking about when to actually move beyond the 19. I think I need to get a good sample set of hands (10k) with the 19 just to make sure my numbers (hands played, VPIP etc.) are where they should be. Since "where they should be" seems to be subjective to a few different factors I figured they should at least fall into acceptable range.

From what I have read, noob's biggest mistake seems to be playing too many hands, hence the wisdom of the 19. Though if I am not playing enough (5% played like I saw yesterday) it leaves me to consider what are the next hands in that evolution?

I am already playing all PP's, AA-AJ, KQ, KJ, and QJ. I assume the next couple I would add when I am ready would be AT, JT and maybe T9s?

*edit* As a thought is there any good essays on post-flop-strategy/betting? I found 1 or 2 I thought were informative, but from what I have seen, it seems to be mostly on pot odds and implied odds.

If I thought my pre flop skills were lacking, my post flop skills are a joke. I am still working on betting half pot when I have TPTK, but it takes some balls, learning to allow myself aggressive play seems to be the toughest challenge.

Either way, it is something to consider as I grind out my first 10k.

I think the most important thing to figure out after you sticking with your 19 hand chart is to learn about position, and how important it is to your raising/limp hand range.

Oh, and good luck!

Edit: If you're really commited to learning about poker, and want to bump up your learning quicker, I recommend a micro-stakes subscription to GrinderSchool... The videos on there are just great, really. Especially check out Jyms videos, (his set odds one is great), but they're all really good.

Originally Posted by scotladd

Well I was thinking about when to actually move beyond the 19. I think I need to get a good sample set of hands (10k) with the 19 just to make sure my numbers (hands played, VPIP etc.) are where they should be. Since "where they should be" seems to be subjective to a few different factors I figured they should at least fall into acceptable range.

From what I have read, noob's biggest mistake seems to be playing too many hands, hence the wisdom of the 19. Though if I am not playing enough (5% played like I saw yesterday) it leaves me to consider what are the next hands in that evolution?

I am already playing all PP's, AA-AJ, KQ, KJ, and QJ. I assume the next couple I would add when I am ready would be AT, JT and maybe T9s?

*edit* As a thought is there any good essays on post-flop-strategy/betting? I found 1 or 2 I thought were informative, but from what I have seen, it seems to be mostly on pot odds and implied odds.

If I thought my pre flop skills were lacking, my post flop skills are a joke. I am still working on betting half pot when I have TPTK, but it takes some balls, learning to allow myself aggressive play seems to be the toughest challenge.

Either way, it is something to consider as I grind out my first 10k.

Start with understanding the continuation bet; post your thoughts about why it's powerful, what types of flops you should be continuation betting, and the importance of position.

Betsizing follows naturally from an understanding of pot odds and implied odds.

Ok, I'll read up on continuation bets. Do I need to educate myself on pot and implied odds afterwords i.e. for the next step in learning or is that something I need to pick up and implement at the same time?

Cards have been cold for about 13 hours of playtime lately. I have tried swapping tables, running multiple tables etc. Anything to get a swap in luck.

aokrongly said the hardest part of playing the 19 is sticking to them. I think his words were to the effect of "laser like focus" is needed.

That's really what seems to be the hard part. I have been losing for 2 days straight (other than an occasional pot here and there when I play the monsters, but that seems to be really all you play with those 19). Of course that's no big deal, but it has served to be a decent test of my focus. I have only slipped up maybe 2 or 3 times and made plays I shouldn't have, and most led to mistakes I shouldn't have made and knew better than to make.

The main issue I see is again, a lack of focus, I should have folded that shit when I knew I didn't have it.

I keep mulling over expanding my 19 hands but each time I watch what flops when I have folded KTs, T9s etc. I am reminded of why I shouldn't play that shit.

I think the biggest lesson I am learning right now is that when the cards are cold the 19 keeps me from getting raped playing rags. Yea, I am steadily losing cash of these last two days, but it's a slow leak compared to 3 or 4 massive loses chasing draws.

Either way, in the long run I feel I will definately benefit from this. I am trying to gain some experience with continuation bets, but gawd, I have to catch something worth betting first LOL.

Oh well, tomorrow is a different day, right?

As a side thought, I figured it would be good when I was looking over the beginner's list of leaks and figure out what my main problems were.

I think this is the most glaring hole I have atm.

5) Calling flop and turn bets - Unless you are calling for a good reason (e.g. based on a play you plan to make on a later street or because pot odds demand it), it is generally better to fold or raise than to call. As with every rule there are exceptions, and poker should definitely not be boiled down to raise or fold . Just be wary of turning into the dreaded "calling station."

But meh, when one has shitty post flop skills, I guess a problem like this is probably expected and probably goes hand in hand with my growth to becoming an agressive player.

Though a quick mistake, this one was pretty obvious, and a prime example of times when I know I don't have it, but I roll with it anyway.


Button ($0.63)
SB ($7.83)
BB ($2.68)
UTG ($2.24)
UTG+1 ($2.11)
MP1 ($3.24)
MP2 ($0.54)
Hero (MP3) ($0.71)
CO ($4.72)

Preflop: Hero is MP3 with J, A
4 folds, Hero bets $0.08, 3 folds, BB calls $0.06

Flop: ($0.17) Q, 6, 3 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.08, BB raises to $0.16, Hero calls $0.08

Turn: ($0.49) 5 (2 players)
BB bets $0.49, Hero folds

Total pot: $0.49 | Rake: $0.02

WTF I was doing calling after the flop is beyond me. Just because I am trying to become a more aggresive player doesn't mean I should have called it. Still kicking myself for that one.

When he raised the pot 75% it should have been screaming at me to fold. I have been using the 60% rule for continuation bets when playing TPTK and I should have used that to realize it was time to get the fuck out.

Someone will surely correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't see anything wrong with that hand as played.

Originally Posted by Lucothefish

Someone will surely correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't see anything wrong with that hand as played.

Flop bet was too small. If you're trying to knock someone off a drawy board, you need to bet more, not less. closer to .17 cents with out going over, = better.

Calling the RR is just bad. He's got outs to outs, and an over. and getting 4-1 on his call, but you can't guarantee he's gonna get 10-1 here on what's left of his outs against his opponents refined range (bluffs are now a part of this range, because of the undersized bet on the flop)

there's your correction.

So I was correct in my assesment of calling a RR without a made hand is a mistake? Or were there other factors I should have taken into account?

Originally Posted by scotladd

So I was correct in my assesment of calling a RR without a made hand is a mistake? Or were there other factors I should have taken into account?

Lots of other factors.

Lets say that there's 4 dollars in the pot, it's checked to you, you bet 4, and your opponent shoves over 8. Meaning you need to call 4 to win 16. You're getting 4-1 on your call. You can call with unmade hands that figure to win around 25% of the time.

Calling a check raise is typically bad for business unless you have the nuts or an extremely powerful hand, when the check raise isn't a shove.

In this situation, though, the check raise may have been because your opponent felt weakness because you bet less than half the pot.

Typically any bet you make should be between 50% and 100% of the pot. 66% of the pot should be your default if you don't know exactly what to bet.

Few interesting point today.

I began as I usually do, I had a table I had selected open, then opened the FTR articles, and began reading in between hands. My cold streak seemed to have stopped which I noticed within an hour. Instead of continuing my BR's slow leak, I was keeping my head above water.

The main difference was the fact I wasn't drawing rags like I had been for 3 days. Alot easier to win and/or bluff confidently and in a consistently profitable manner when you have something to play with.

Secondly while reading an article on table selection I decided to drop my current table. Even though it was slightly profitable, I wasn't playing to slightly profit, I was playing to profit well. I used the article's suggestions, picking a table with a high % of players on the flop and a good size pot average. In the end, I doubled my nightly buy in within a short amount of time. Though this obviously doesn't mean I have greatly improved my game by adjusting my table selection, I do believe it will make a difference in the long run.

I have been trying to work on my CB skills, and really the only way to do that is through experience. I read what I could find on the subject and was happy with what I played with an exception or two.

Lastly, math is just plain amazing. The more I read and study the math of poker the more I understand. It's like learning a new language. The more I study the more I comprehend. I know this seems like a no-brainer, but in live cash games, 90% of the players I played with/against had no concept whatsoever of pot odds, CBs or fold equity. I still am just tipping the iceberg here, but good lord, it makes me wonder how I played live for 6 years and didn't lose my house.

I guess if my competition was as inept and as uneducated in poker mathematics as I am I wasn't really in danger of losing much. The blind leading the blind in a sense.

GL with all this. Definately look to open up your range, especially from the button and CO.

Just bare in mind that, especially when 1 tabling, you're at the mercy of your cards when it comes to VPIP/PFR. You can easily go an hour with very few playable hands, and then go another hour when you're flooded with them. Stats are for 1000's of hands, not 100's.

What would the next progression of the 19 be when I had better position as you are suggesting? I assume JT or T9s?

As for multitabling I have experimented with 2 at a time, for a novice like myself how many would you suggest grinding with?

As for the hand stats being broken down by the thousands, I do understand that. For myself (and other beginners I assume) it is something I must remind myself of daily. I read the article today on the "Biggest Secret in Poker" which basically explained that poker is a long term enterprise and that helped put it in perspective.

I keep telling myself (if you read the first few posts I think i mention it a few times, mostly to drill it into my own head lol) that I need to worry about my VPIP and PFR numbers when I have a good sample # to examine.

Beating myself up over a 3 day cold spot is pointless and almost counter productive. As long as I stick to the gameplan I have decided on I believe it will be profitable in the end. I just have to be dilligent about staying focused and not be tempted to play with marginal hands just because KJo hasn't been panning out.

That's the roughest part, remaining focused.

Had my first completely profitable session today. 3 tables running in $2NL. Bought in each table for 50BB and left with about 35% more cash than I bought in for, wasn't in the red at any table.

I know that really doesn't mean anything in the long run, but I count it as a small victory. Now to just keep it up.

Insignificant or not, it at least gives me confidence that I have been benefiting greatly by studying here. I know one session on one day doesn't mean shit, but I think it surely means I am on the right track and has served to motivate me to study even harder.

It might only be peanuts, but it's nice to come out ahead, instead of breaking even and being frustrated watching the wins from one table being offset by losses at another. It is also nice to see my horrid bb/100 coming up slowly but surely.

This has been my second straight sizable profit day. I had two seperate multitable sessions, both were very profitable, but I did lose money at a couple of the tables.

I bought in at $10nl this morning on three seperate tables at 50bb. At the end of the 3 hour session, I left just over 130% more than what I sat down with.

At the second session, I repeated the performance and left with 125% more than what I sat down with just in winnings from one table. The other two tables were rather shitty, I broke even at one and lost my ass at another. I am not sure what to chalk that up to other than variance, as I played all three tables alike.

All in all, yesterday and today have repaired my BR to what I started with. I really feel that the study is paying off. I have been rigorously applying the 19starting hands, without straying as a foundation. I definately see the value in aggression and bet stealing now. Yesterday I did well with it, but today really illustrated it's effectiveness to me.

Bet sizing seems to be key as well, though I still need some work with CBs I think. The couple tables I had overall losses at were mostly attributed to CBs with unmade hands where my villain had flopped his set. The only part of the day I was disappointed with was the fact I folded 2 or 3 monsters (KK, AK and a Khigh flush) that turned out to be winners in the end. I can't really complain though, I feel I folded with good reasoning behind each hand, mostly on reads I had from their bets.

Overall I would say the 2 or 3 monsters I folded were made up for quite well with agression and better bet sizing. Yes, maybe a week ago I wouldnt have folded those hands, but last week I wouldn't have been up so much either from the other hands I stole or intimidated my way into.

Good job, now start buying in full

I don't even know bupkis. So you know more than I do.

Originally Posted by Parasurama

Good job, now start buying in full

Ok, why am I doing that? Not that I think I shouldn't I am just trying to understand the reasoning. 50bb seemed to work well, I assume full buy ins will increase my profit range?

Originally Posted by iopq

I don't even know bupkis. So you know more than I do.

I detect sarcasm methinks:P

A post earlier mentioned I need to post thoughts on, and work extensively with continuation bets.

In my opinion the CB is one of the biggest improvements to my game. It is quite misleading and intimidating if you have already bet correctly preflop. If rags come out on the flop, you can easily take down pots with authority if you have bet correctly preflop as well with effective CBs. It also goes a long way to establishing a dominating table precense, expanding the effectiveness of future CBs.

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.10 BB (9 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($7.61)
SB ($15.37)
BB ($4)
UTG ($3.90)
UTG+1 ($9.85)
MP1 ($9.39)
MP2 ($6.22)
MP3 ($26.94)
Hero (CO) ($1.63)

Preflop: Hero is CO with J, A
1 fold, UTG+1 calls $0.10, MP1 calls $0.10, 2 folds, Hero bets $0.50, 3 folds, UTG+1 calls $0.40, MP1 calls $0.40

Flop: ($1.65) K, 8, 9 (3 players)
UTG+1 checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets $0.82, 1 fold, MP1 calls $0.82

Turn: ($3.29) J (2 players)
MP1 bets $3.29, Hero calls $0.31 (All-In)

River: ($3.91) 8 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $3.91 | Rake: $0.19

Here I feel that good c-betting led to this pot, though I believe my 50% cbet after the flop was about 20% less than it should have been.

On this next hand I wasn't sure that a strong CB was the right play, I was undecided. I had played with the villain for a bit and had established a pretty dominant table precense with him. I did not feel a CB would keep him in the hand, especially with the flop being as polarizing as it was. This was a hand I never would have played as strongly if I had not read about betting TPTK and hand reading. Even though AK had me beat, since his CB was so small, I was positive I had top kicker.

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.10 BB (9 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($12.05)
SB ($1.01)
BB ($2.50)
UTG ($9.59)
UTG+1 ($3.90)
Hero (MP1) ($11.29)
MP2 ($4)
MP3 ($10.81)
CO ($1.24)

Preflop: Hero is MP1 with A, Q
UTG calls $0.10, 1 fold, Hero bets $0.50, 1 fold, MP3 calls $0.50, 5 folds

Flop: ($1.25) A, A, 3 (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 bets $0.80, Hero raises to $3.65, MP3 raises to $10.31 (All-In), Hero calls $6.66

Turn: ($21.87) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($21.87) J (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $21.87 | Rake: $1.09

Who is bupkis?

Originally Posted by scotladd

Originally Posted by Parasurama

Good job, now start buying in full

Ok, why am I doing that? Not that I think I shouldn't I am just trying to understand the reasoning. 50bb seemed to work well, I assume full buy ins will increase my profit range?

It does at least three things:
- It magnifies your edge (or lack thereof). A winning player will win more and a losing player will lose more with a full stack.
- It helps you develop your postflop play. Shortstackers often end up shoving preflop or on the flop, which means they don't have to make any decisions on the turn or river.
- It helps you learn by grinding through the lower stakes. You don't go around putting 20BB on 50NL tables thinking its the same as putting 100BB on 10NL tables, because its the same amount of dollars, and then getting your a$$ handed to you on a platter.

By the way, how big is your roll again? If I read an earlier post correctly, you were playing 3 tables of 10NL with a roll of like $50 - not good. I thought you had read some stuff on BR management.

You are correct in the correction to my stakes. I had been playing 2NL but couldnt find an open table yesterday so I bought in 3 10nl tables at 50bb.

A clear lack of focus to the system I have chosen to adhere to. I will be moving back to 2nl today at full stacks.

Originally Posted by scotladd

Originally Posted by Parasurama

Good job, now start buying in full

Ok, why am I doing that? Not that I think I shouldn't I am just trying to understand the reasoning. 50bb seemed to work well, I assume full buy ins will increase my profit range?

If you don't feel confident with full stacks, you may want to wait a while. But realize that, even if you have the biggest stack, you are only really risking the amount of the next biggest stack since if they go all-in, the most you can do is call.
Another reason you may want a full stack is so you can get maximum value out any monster hand you get. If you have top Full House, it kinda sucks to double up with only a little stack when you possibly could have doubled up your much bigger stack.

I moved back down to 2NL today and had mixed results. Overall for the day I lost about 20%. I bought in for max at 3 seperate tables. I did well playing with discipline, I just lost my ass early at 2 of the three tables to suckouts.

I have gone back and rethought the hands and the bets and the only real leak I think is the size of my preflop raises. I was betting 4xbb and getting called by suited connectors, low PP's and the like only to have them hit. I happened about half a dozen times and dropped my stacks tremendously. I was playing good hands (QQ, KK, AK etc.) I was just getting called and out drawn. *shrug* It happens I guess. If my bet sizing had been what it should have been, I probably would have performed better.

I did manage to drop about 10 bucks in a relatively short amount of time, it was a bit discouraging, but I adjusted my preflop raises and I slowly began regaining ground. The problem was I had taken such a hit right off the bat, I spent alot of effort just striving to make even for the day.

I am not sure if the fact I bought in for max today was what hurt me. I feel it might have, but I am not nearly adept enough to assess that at this point. I will continue buying in for max and see how well I perform.

Just as having two wonderfully profitable days doesn't mean shit in the long run, having one crappy day doesn't either.

Gotta stay psoitive

Originally Posted by PlayToWin

Originally Posted by scotladd

Originally Posted by Parasurama

Good job, now start buying in full

Ok, why am I doing that? Not that I think I shouldn't I am just trying to understand the reasoning. 50bb seemed to work well, I assume full buy ins will increase my profit range?

If you don't feel confident with full stacks, you may want to wait a while. But realize that, even if you have the biggest stack, you are only really risking the amount of the next biggest stack since if they go all-in, the most you can do is call.
Another reason you may want a full stack is so you can get maximum value out any monster hand you get. If you have top Full House, it kinda sucks to double up with only a little stack when you possibly could have doubled up your much bigger stack.

I appreciate the advice. I have spent some time reading your current OP and it seems like I share alot of the same experiences you do. I have managed to glean some good advice. I think the best thing I picked up so far was leaving after 3 bad beats at a single table.

I had a rough day today, went back for a second session and managed to finish the day down about $.70 after being down nearly $10 at one point. Sometimes, just reading a little can help refocus me I think.

Pretty much broke even today. No real shock there, just did not have the time to put the hands in, so I couldn't expect too much. No bad beats which was a plus.

Only 2 losses I had that stick out were plain mistakes so I don't count as bad beats. If I had played them right they would have paid off, but I played them wrong trying to be cute and got burned. I had pockets 9s on one hand, flopped my set and tried to slow play it to milk the villain knowing full well I should have bet into him hard, he made his straight on the river. In fact I just made a post today saying that trips off PP's should be bet hard to avoid suckouts. Once again I need to focus.

Second hand was an ATs that I was able to limp into with position. Board came out and made a striaght to the 7, villain had not been betting till the river. I figured he didn't have the 8 and my A kicker was good. Pure idiot play. I knew better and I paid for it.

Though it did serve to reinforce I must remain focused. Can't make shit for profit if I don't make +EV decisions.

if the board is 34567 you kicker doesnt count for shit, as your best 5 card hand is the straight thats out on the board. so if he shoved and you called, you were only ever going to split the pot at best.

gl with your OP, loads to learn here. make the most of it.

Yup, I realized this and wasn't thinking in terms of 5 cards. I had 3 tables going and was watching WPT on FSN, so I paid for my distraction.

In effect, I shoved for the chance to get half of my money back. I felt quite retarded.

/facepalm

Once again, focus is my friend. I will learn eventually :/

Cards were dead tonight. Just couldn't make a set to save my life. It happens though. All it means is I am due for a streak. Lost my first AA hand though. 4200 hands, I have seen it 21 times and tonight was my first loss. It's bound to happen though, there isn't a monster hand out there that is invincible, all of them will be outdrawn at some point.

I was happy with my play overall though. I focused and refused to make any questionable plays. None of my calls were unjustified, I just never made a set to call with really. I caught playable hands preflop, I just couldn't pair anything, caught PP's preflop about a dozen times and didn't catch a third once.

I have resolved myself to playing as close to mistake free as I could and I think I succeeded in that. Now to just continue. Except for the hand I lost with AA, the rest of my losses came from preflop raises that flopped rags, and continuation bets that were raised.

Now to just maintain that kind of focus and get back on track. I did manage to pull out some recovery in the end so my BR really didn't take much of a hit. Either way, if I keep playing this way I should begin to see my first real improvements I think. I have been to0 concerned with playing aggressively and not concerned enough with making post flop +EV decisions.

*EDIT* Oh yea, I did checkout grinderschool and took out a subscription (i believe adamthepirate suggested it), so hopefully, between the laptop on the oilrig and the house I can put some time in there and further the learning process a bit.

bro you work on an oilrig? that's sort of balling.

I remember something I read on the internet about how the author hates it when people say "I work hard, and I play hard" when all they do is work their 9-5 and go out to clubs/bars on weekends because one of his friends worked on an oilrig for like a month, which is supposed to be a very difficult job, and then would go back to land with all of the money he was paid and blow it all in a few nights of drinking, gambling, and hookers--this was a guy who really worked hard and played hard.

Yea lol, alot of guys out here are like that. Some of them you would think are losers and dirtlegs because they are broke all the time. They make 120 grand a year, but they blow 400 bucks a night at the club. It's kind of comical sometimes.

They will cash a 6 thousand dollar paycheck and 4 days later can't pay for their lunch. Of course, if I did that my wife would stab me. Plus wee ones keep my down to earth, 3 kids are expensive:P

Another card dead night. I played well I think, just couldn't pull a flop to save my life. I am not positive but I think I may have a leak with my betsizing, and I definately have a leak with CBs. I understand the concept but I obviously do not have the practicality down.

My group one (preflop raise with unimproved hand CBs) are AA-JJ, KQ, KJ, and QJ. I think those KQ, KJ, and QJ may to too weak and need to be moved to group 2 (preflop raises, but CBs only when improved).

I am raising 5xbb preflop and seeing way too many suckouts. I definately think my bets after flopping a set are too small. I was raising potsize after a set and that was not working. I changed to 2x the pot and that seemed to do the trick.

Either way, I am down another 2 BI's tonight. I finished a couple tables up by a half buy in, but my losses outwieghed my winnings obviously.

Got to stay positive. Only two down days, nothing to be worried about, the BR has taken a hit but meh, that's why I am supposed to follow good BR management right? To absorb the bad days.

Should I consider playing 6max tables? I am currently grinding on 4 full rings at a time.

You'll get more feedback in the BC if you post hands or even just questions.

Originally Posted by scotladd

My group one (preflop raise with unimproved hand CBs) are AA-JJ, KQ, KJ, and QJ. I think those KQ, KJ, and QJ may to too weak and need to be moved to group 2 (preflop raises, but CBs only when improved).

That might be a good idea. Two overcards aren't much good after the flop.

Originally Posted by scotladd

I definately think my bets after flopping a set are too small. I was raising potsize after a set and that was not working. I changed to 2x the pot and that seemed to do the trick.

Did what trick? Are you trying to get people to fold? With a set, you need to milk all the money you can. With a set, I generally bet about 70-90% of the pot on each street. It's good to keep villian in the hand with worse cards. Bet more if you know the guy can't fold or if there's a flush draw on board. If you're in position, sometimes it's good to let villian bet and just call a couple streets or check-raise.

Originally Posted by scotladd

Should I consider playing 6max tables? I am currently grinding on 4 full rings at a time.

I don't know. I've never played FR.

Originally Posted by PlayToWin

Originally Posted by scotladd

I definately think my bets after flopping a set are too small. I was raising potsize after a set and that was not working. I changed to 2x the pot and that seemed to do the trick.

Did what trick? Are you trying to get people to fold? With a set, you need to milk all the money you can. With a set, I generally bet about 70-90% of the pot on each street. It's good to keep villian in the hand with worse cards. Bet more if you know the guy can't fold or if there's a flush draw on board. If you're in position, sometimes it's good to let villian bet and just call a couple streets or check-raise.

My main concern is suckouts. It seems when I do not make the bet large enough I leave the hand open and draws chase. 2 or 3 times in the last two days that happened and I lost the pot to straights and once I lost it to a river draw after slow playing it.

I learned my lesson on that one, won't be slow playing again. The magic number is one that let's the top pair, or two pair hands still think they have a shot, but forces the draws out. Lately, 67-100% (the ranges I have experimented with) of the pot does not seem to be high enough.

Well as long as your opponents are paying over the odds for their draws, then that's +ev for you whether they hit or not.

As a rough guide, go about 2/3 pot heads up, and full pot 3-way or more. If they are willing to pay that amount to chase a flush then the times that they miss will pay for the times that they hit. You aren't looking to push draws out here, just to make them pay more than they should. If they fold their draws to your flop bet then you've just lost value.

Go for as much as you think that particular villain will call given their range, but no more.

Originally Posted by Lucothefish

Well as long as your opponents are paying over the odds for their draws, then that's +ev for you whether they hit or not.

Only true if he doesn't put any more money in after their draw hits

Originally Posted by Parasurama

Originally Posted by Lucothefish

Well as long as your opponents are paying over the odds for their draws, then that's +ev for you whether they hit or not.

Only true if he doesn't put any more money in after their draw hits

Thankfully most $10nl players practically announce their draws to you so this isn't such a hard thing to do.

Originally Posted by Lucothefish

Well as long as your opponents are paying over the odds for their draws, then that's +ev for you whether they hit or not.

As a rough guide, go about 2/3 pot heads up, and full pot 3-way or more. If they are willing to pay that amount to chase a flush then the times that they miss will pay for the times that they hit. You aren't looking to push draws out here, just to make them pay more than they should. If they fold their draws to your flop bet then you've just lost value.

Go for as much as you think that particular villain will call given their range, but no more.

Ok, this seems quite logical to me. 67%+ is about my normal raising expenditure, so I will adjust my betting when in a multiway pot and go from there.

Wow, just...wow.

3 days on a downswing now, and I am getting destroyed. I am down about 55% of my BR. Not real sure what the issue is. I am seeing copious amounts of suckouts. I don't want to increase by betsizing to try and push the draws out for fear of unwittingly tilting myself.

One thing is clear, I need to worry more about flop texture with my post flop CBs. I may move my aggression to later streets as was suggested at one point. I am not lossing every hand, my losses are just offsetting my winnings. I may scale back to two tables instead of four, I dunno.

Either way, it may be time to take a break.

Losing over half your bank roll in three days is pretty bad. I think there is something in bankroll management about stopping play after losing 5%. If I were you I'd take a day or two off so you don't try to win it all back quickly, cos odds are you won't. Also, if you are running bad I would definitely cut back on the tables. You will do less damage to your roll. Hope you get through this ok.

Played a short session today down 1.5 BI's.

Wasn't a good session 0bviously. Didn't really catch much and rode a couple hands farther than I should have. 70% of my losses came from a villain holding 96o who didn't know how to fold. I bet my AQs by the book and he caught his straight on the river. Not much I can do about hands like that.

Either way, trying to get used to playing on the wife's laptop (sitting in a hotel in Louisiana). That probably contributed somewhat to it. I am not used to the fingerpad mouse and playing was slightly uncomfortable. I should probably play 3 tables next time instead of 4 do to that factor. Either way, glad to be getting some hands in again

OK, after several refresher reads concerning beginner strategy, assessing the differences in my stats over the last week compared to prior stats, and looking at what I had changed that began my downswing I have come up with a few conclusions.

1. I do not have the post flop skills to sit down with max buy ins yet. Someone posted that going from 50bb to max BI will magnify my strengths or weaknesses and was dead on. My main weakness is post flop discipline and that was glaringly obvious.

2. I am calling post flop way too much, with way too little, ignoring my odds and ignoring my reads half the time.

3. Full Ring > 6 max for my skill level. I assumed with less players in the pot I would see less suckouts and that just was not the case.

4. Fold fold fold. I read an article on NLH betting and folding when RR'd. Forgetting that has cost me a ton.

What it all boils down to was pretty much spelled out in "The Newbie Circle of Death". I played a little and had some minor success so I thought I could start calling bullshit and that's what I got in return, bullshit.

After tightening back up and focusing (once again) I managed to turn things around a bit. I had two sessions that were not losing sessions. The first I finished about even. The second I finished up two BI's.

Focus needs to be my main priority. Not aggression, not CBing everything. Focus.

Finished up about 3 bucks today. Not spectacular but it sure beats dropping 20% of my BR daily.

I watched about 4 hours of Jym's videos and picked up alot I think. I really drove home the fact I am still too loose, especially at 2nl. Specifically with KQo, KJo, and QJo. I think I play them way too much, namely from early and middle position. My position play definately needs some attention so I will be spending some time studying that more.

Either way, tightening up and waiting for hands, as long as I make sure to get the money in at the right times seems to be helping. But meh, we will see.

Looks like you've made some progress in the past few days - well done!

For now stick to FR. Pre-flop, stick to the premiums in early and middle position, add in a few more good hands in late position, and always open-raise. Post-flop, don't be afraid to fold if you think you're beat.

Remember that post-flop calling is often the worst play, especially if your post-flop skills are suspect. At 2NL, in most cases you should bet or raise if you think you're best, otherwise check/fold. And quit worrying about suckouts - they happen, but if you consistently get your money in while you're ahead you will finish up ahead. If you get sucked out, remind yourself that you actually played the hand well because you got your money in good, and if he keeps playing like that you will eventually take his stack.

Once you can beat 2NL/5NL consistently and have more experience in post-flop play, you can start to open up a little more.

Good luck!

It's good to know you're turning things around, well done.

At $2nl, you could run at 10/10 and still be profitable, so don't ever think you're playing too tight. Post flop skill comes with patience and practice, so don't panic there either.

I'll be watching this OP, good luck

Originally Posted by TonyB73

Remember that post-flop calling is often the worst play, especially if your post-flop skills are suspect.

Wonderful! I put this on a post-it above my monitor.

Finished up 2 bucks tonight. Dropped like my third hand. Had KK, villain called my 5bb raise with 59s. Called my CBs and hit his flush and pushed on the river. At that point I had put too much into the pot and took a pretty big hit. Lost another hand when I pushed with QQ on a Q rag rag flop, villain caught a backdoor flush.

I feel I played the hands well, not much I can do about suckouts. Spent the rest of the night working my way back, and eventually finished up. So even though my losses came from 2 big hands, I can't complain, those were really my only weak points, the rest of my session was just steady pot-draggin.

Staying tight and vacating the hands if I don't think I have the best hand seems to be working wonders. Table selection seems to be helping too. Picking my tables keeping position on the big stacks is noticeably beneficial. Jym's said in one of the videos I watched today "leaving bad tables will make you money" and that really is apparent.

Let's hope this continues.

Finished up $6.75.

It was a good day, not a single big loss, laid down a couple hands that I thought just were not the best and I feel good about it. Staying focused and protecting my stack is working well.

Best hand was $1.73 vs. Worst Hand at a -$.13

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (7 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($3.61)
SB ($3.94)
Hero (BB) ($3.95)
UTG ($3.95)
MP1 ($1.02)
MP2 ($2.24)
CO ($5.40)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Q, A
4 folds, Button calls $0.02, SB calls $0.01, Hero bets $0.12, Button calls $0.10, 1 fold

Flop: ($0.26) A, 7, 4 (2 players)
Hero bets $0.26, Button calls $0.26

Turn: ($0.78) 5 (2 players)
Hero bets $0.78, Button calls $0.78

River: ($2.34) 4 (2 players)
Hero checks, Button bets $0.74, Hero calls $0.74

Total pot: $3.82 | Rake: $0.19

Only thing that concerned me here was his draws, but I felt is he hit them he would have raised me at some point instead of simple calls.

Second highest pot:

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (9 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($1.43)
SB ($7.16)
BB ($4.33)
UTG ($1.46)
UTG+1 ($1.19)
MP1 ($0.75)
MP2 ($4.02)
Hero (MP3) ($4.21)
CO ($0.78)

Preflop: Hero is MP3 with A, J
4 folds, Hero bets $0.10, CO calls $0.08, 2 folds, BB calls $0.08

Flop: ($0.29) 3, 6, 4 (3 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.32, CO calls $0.32, 1 fold

Turn: ($0.93) A (2 players)
Hero bets $0.96, CO calls $0.35 (All-In)

River: ($1.63) 2 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $1.63 | Rake: $0.08

I feel on both pots I could have drug more from the villain. Given my reads and my hand strength (namely the weak flop on the second hand) I think I played them correctly, but it is quite possible I am wrong.

On the second hand, as with the first, I felt that the villain had draws, but if they were actually viable draws they would have raised instead of called.

Work on bet sizing, think about the equity of your opponent's range, what draws he may have, effective stack sizes, and stackot ratios (SPR).

In the first hand I'm not sure what draw you're afraid of, you have the best draw on the turn. You can bet less on both flop and turn, this is a very dry flop. c/c on the river only makes sense if you think he has a missed draw that he'll bet. The flop is dry, you have the nut flush draw, the only hand that could have been drawing is 56, which has gained some showdown value increasing the likelihood that he'll check behind or call a bet with it. His hand looks a lot more like a weaker ace than a draw. b/f river like $1.85 is good.

In the second hand again you don't need to bet so much on the flop, your opponent has a SPR of 2:1, this means you can comfortably get the money in with a 1/2 pot-sized bet on the flop. Think about what you would do if you actually held the hand you're representing on the flop--an overpair. Would you want to bet full pot when you know you're never folding (considering villain's stack size) and you can commit villain with smaller bets? Turn as played is standard.

EDIT: you could post reads but these are my lines against unknowns

Finished down 1 BI today.

No big deal. I took down my fair share of pots and stayed focused, I was just card dead, unfortunately, the other guys weren't. Saw a couple bad beats today. Flopped a set of Js while the villain flopped a nut straight then slow played it. That was about 70% of the nights losses in one hand. The others were simple suckouts.

No real nasty hands I don't think. I just kept getting burned. I am pretty sure Para has it dead on the nose though, my betsizing is a leak. A few of those suckouts may have eliminated with proper betsizing.

I'll dig through PT3 and see if I can find a couple examples of where I think I made some mistakes tomorrow. At the moment I am crashing, I had to stay up to get on a midnight schedule. Off to Louisiana for a week tomorrow evening, so I may take a break for a week. Maybe that'll help

Picked up a couple books off ebay as well, those should prove interesting reads (one of Slansky's) and hopefully will contribute to some more improvements.

Played another session before I leave for Louisiana. Still not sure if I will be staying in a hotel there or driving back and forth, job site is about an hour away.

Finished up $4.34

Session felt good, drug some good pots early, helped that I was catching cards. I am at 9200 hands played since I got serious about poker, so hopefully in the next session or two I will be able to post some stats for my first 10k.

shove the river in the AQ hand, c/f the flop in the AJ hand

gl2usir

Finished down a BI today.

I probably would have finished up a BI but I made a few ridiculous plays and was spewing hard. Either way, I feel it was a horrid session and I only dropped 1 BI, I guess I should be happy about that. Better than losing 20% of my BR in one session like I had been before.

Here are some examples of the hands that I played with ignorance:

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (8 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($2.35)
SB ($7.08)
BB ($0.78)
UTG ($1.39)
UTG+1 ($1.37)
MP1 ($3.92)
Hero (MP2) ($3.03)
CO ($0.80)

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with A, A
2 folds, MP1 calls $0.02, Hero bets $0.12, 2 folds, SB calls $0.11, 2 folds

Flop: ($0.28) J, 10, Q (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $0.23, SB raises to $0.99, Hero calls $0.76

Turn: ($2.26) 5 (2 players)
SB bets $2.28, Hero folds

Total pot: $2.26 | Rake: $0.11

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (8 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($1.54)
SB ($0.21)
BB ($1.52)
UTG ($1.68)
UTG+1 ($0.51)
MP1 ($2.36)
MP2 ($3.74)
Hero (CO) ($3.74)

Preflop: Hero is CO with A, J
2 folds, MP1 calls $0.02, 1 fold, Hero bets $0.10, Button raises to $0.30, 3 folds, Hero calls $0.20

Flop: ($0.65) 8, 3, A (2 players)
Hero bets $0.44, Button calls $0.44

Turn: ($1.53) J (2 players)
Hero bets $1.29, Button calls $0.80 (All-In)

River: ($3.13) 5 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $3.13 | Rake: $0.15

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (9 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Hero (Button) ($3.90)
SB ($1.62)
BB ($2.61)
UTG ($1.84)
UTG+1 ($0.80)
MP1 ($3.08)
MP2 ($2.10)
MP3 ($4.11)
CO ($1.86)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 10, K
2 folds, MP1 calls $0.02, 3 folds, Hero bets $0.10, SB calls $0.09, BB calls $0.08, MP1 calls $0.08

Flop: ($0.40) 7, Q, 5 (4 players)
SB checks, BB checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets $0.30, 2 folds, MP1 calls $0.30

Turn: ($1) 4 (2 players)
MP1 checks, Hero bets $1, MP1 calls $1

River: ($3) 8 (2 players)
MP1 raises to $1.68 (All-In), Hero calls $1.68

Total pot: $6.36 | Rake: $0.31

2nd hand villain called with trip 8s.

3rd hand villain made his flush on the river. WTF I was even doing in that hand is beyond me. KTs isn't even in my normal playing range. Prime example of lack of discipline. I was trying to play more from late position. Though that shouldn't include calling down with anything. Huge donk hand, I was actually quite ashamed to post that one.

Stats for my first 10,203 hands:

VPIP: 14.29
PFR: 6.98
W$WSF: 31.32
AF: 2.48
AFq: 38.73
ATTtoSteal: 9.36

Not sure if I left out any of the essentials, but let me know and I can post whatever. Any critique is welcome.

Finished up over 3 max BIs ($13.58) over 629 hands today. Was as high as $18.60 at one point. Very productive session obviously. Second best session I have had.

My stats ran about the same today as they have over the previous 10k 13.35/9.22/4.31, ran a little more aggressive today, but that wasn't a cause so much as a product. I was catching cards, easy to be aggressive when you have cards.

Either way, I would not say I played perfectly today. I should have layed down a couple hands that I did not, mainly the 2 or 3 I called down that dropped me from 18-13 bucks for the day. As for the others, I feel I played the way I should have. Even laying down a couple monsters to slightly lesser monsters, just because I did not feel I had the best hand. Better than calling only to get burned I figure.

Let's hope this upswing continues. All I can do is continue playing with focus. Main thing is focus, it's what I lack when I lose and what I have when I win. But that's just my opinion.

Finished up $7.36 today.

It was an interesting day, I saw a few bad beats. I had Kings full of sixes and lost to quad Kings. Had an A high flush and lost to a boat. Those were the worst two. No worries, that's how it falls sometimes.

This was an interesting hand here. Villain was wicked agro at 82/52/4.23. Was my first real experience playing against a guy who was such a monster. He had some wicked success and ran his stack up to 15 bucks or so. I wasn't catching a hand whatsoever so I was biding my time. First I was waiting for the seat to his left to open and I quickly swapped to it. Then I waited for my hand. Here is what I caught:

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (8 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($0.97)
SB ($4.38)
BB ($5.36)
UTG ($1)
UTG+1 ($4.72)
MP1 ($3.94)
MP2 ($17.88)
Hero (CO) ($4.11)

Preflop: Hero is CO with Q, J
3 folds, MP2 calls $0.02, Hero bets $0.10, 3 folds, MP2 calls $0.08

Flop: ($0.23) 7, 3, 9 (2 players)
MP2 bets $0.23, Hero raises to $0.46, MP2 raises to $15.04, Hero calls $3.55 (All-In)

Turn: ($8.25) 4 (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($8.25) 7 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $8.25 | Rake: $0.41

Not long after that, I caught a very similiar hand with yet another flush. He rolled with it again. He made me for the flush when I raised on the turn. Normally I wouldn't have raised, and would have tried to get the rest of his money in on the flop, but I knew this guy was about as agro as I had seen. When he pushed I spit cola through my nose.

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (7 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($4.09)
SB ($5.37)
BB ($0.85)
UTG ($7.47)
MP1 ($15.27)
Hero (MP2) ($7.69)
CO ($0.80)

Preflop: Hero is MP2 with K, A
1 fold, MP1 bets $0.09, Hero raises to $0.28, 4 folds, MP1 calls $0.19

Flop: ($0.59) 7, 4, 2 (2 players)
MP1 bets $0.61, Hero calls $0.61

Turn: ($1.81) J (2 players)
MP1 bets $1.83, Hero raises to $3.66, MP1 raises to $12.92, Hero calls $3.14 (All-In)

River: ($15.41) 10 (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $15.41 | Rake: $0.77

I probably won't see a guy like this for a long time. You can bet I will be watching for him though, and sitting at every seat I see open to his left.

Broke even today (basically even +$.25 or so). Was card dead, and couldn't put in the time for enough hands to work out of it. Only put in 300 hands or so.

Can't really complain, my losses were from unmade hands after CBs to reraises and the like. I made up for it with the few hands I caught. Scheduled to go to Louisiana in the morning again (last job got cancelled but another came up so I'm off again lol). Might stop by the Coushatta Casino over there when I am off if I get a chance, see how what I have learned helps me in my live game. Haven't played live since I got serious and began studying poker. Should be fun

4th session since my last post. Finished down 3 buy ins and decided to stop the bleeding. Last 3 sessions were good, each one finished up about 1.5-2 buy ins when I finished.

This session I was just card dead. Flopped an Ah straight only to get called by a straight flush draw who made his hand on the river. Only made one other hand, maybe two the entire session. Really bad string of busted draws. I had good outs and don't feel I was making bad calls, especially for the odds I was getting, I just wasn't catching.

It's no bigee, I have seen this before. One thing I have learned is to take the good with the bad. Tomorrow's session can, and probably will be a whole new story. Worst case scenario I just look back and when I was down to 14 bucks and pulled my way out of that by playing tight and protecting my stack, and one bad session doesn't seem so bad.

This one burned:

Absolute/UB Cereus No-Limit Hold'em, $0.02 BB (8 handed) - Absolute/UB Cereus Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

Button ($4.26)
Hero (SB) ($3.88)
BB ($4.23)
UTG ($4.37)
UTG+1 ($3.86)
MP1 ($2.59)
MP2 ($4.07)
CO ($2.56)

Preflop: Hero is SB with K, A
1 fold, UTG+1 calls $0.02, 3 folds, Button calls $0.02, Hero bets $0.12, 2 folds, Button calls $0.10

Flop: ($0.28) 10, 6, Q (2 players)
Hero bets $0.20, Button calls $0.20

Turn: ($0.68) J (2 players)
Hero bets $0.68, Button raises to $2.72, Hero calls $2.04

River: ($6.12) J (2 players)
Hero raises to $0.84 (All-In), Button calls $0.84

Total pot: $7.80 | Rake: $0.39

Do I not call the turn there?

Pre flop he is a 3-2 dog, after the flop, I am the 3-2 dog. After the turn I have like 80% equity versus his hand. Do I check the river bet? If I check and he pushes I still think I would have called, pot commited with a made hand.

Making some adjustments. Finished up about 1/8 Bi or so today. Not great by any means but definately a turn around from my 3 BI cooler. I read some of illfavor's OP and took the time to look at my PT3 stats and I think I have identified the issue.

I was slowly but surely getting more loose and more aggro. My PFR nearly doubled my norm over 3 days and my VPiP was over 20 for the first time in since I started getting serious about poker.

I have been working on position play and it is really opening my eyes but I need to make sure it doesn't open my hand range too much. Playing from Mp3 is not the same as playing from the BU unless I have bought the BU with a preflop raise.

Time to fold, fold fold and march my way back up.