EK Make Final!

Yep EK Thistle cuffed Dunipace 3-0 last night to make the final at Firhill next month.Its on Oct 4th which is the day after Mrs A and I get back from the Gran Canaria but wild horses won't keep me away.Great for the town too.I just hope that the East Kilbride public turn out for the game and get behind the team.Steven Mclung ( known as Dunga after the great Brazil player) scored a hatrick to get us there.Neilston are the other finalists and it should be a cracking game.


Thanks to http://tripjax.blogspot.com/ for your kind comment on my post yesterday.I wrote about playing a more carefree game in tourneys because I consider my buy in money as spent.

On reflection I think part of the reason I don't think like that in ring games is due to a lack of discipline on my part and its something I'm going to have to work on if I want to be long term winner at this game.

When I have a bankroll of over 1k I can play quite carefree poker at .25nl but I'm always wary that that translates into more complacent poker. That was why when I reached $1k previously in March I took out a chunk ( bought fridgefreezer and washing machine).This was after hovering around the same total for what seemed like ages. Playing .25nl with only $400 in my account seemed to increase my focus substantially.

The answer for me is to play 2 tables at .25nl or one table at $1nl where the fact I only have aprox 10 buyins helps keep me focussed.

The problem with that is that playing $1nl means the bad beats hit harder and steam control becomes more difficult.On balance though and as I've won at that level over 10k hands I think playing there isn't harming my game.

At .25nl this means I have $50 at the tables but I'm less tempted to make loose calls and chase.

Another danger I've noticed in my game is that I love scooping really big pots. Now while I very much doubt thats unique to me as a poker player( lol) I've got to be careful to ensure I can keep playing my A game at .25 or even $1nl when I've played in much more exciting games and won larger pots.

When you've won a $500 pot but don't have the bankroll to play at at that level consistently it can be hard to stay properly interested when the average pot is suddenly $5-$10.
That must be why they say you should grind your way through each level only moving up when your bankroll can stand the swings and is probably the reason most players only progress very slowly if at all up the levels.

I'm still in my first year playing though and I'm glad I've played at .25,.50,$1 and taken shots at $2-$5 and occasionally $5-$10.

All the money ( my many millions) I have online is profit and while I'm not exactly heading for poker superstardom I'm reasonably happy with my progress after 10 months.When I started out I was worried about becoming a sad gambling addict who would sell his Granny for a game and promised myself that I would spend no more then £50 ( $100 aprox) per month on my hobby.I haven't had to do that and for that I'm grateful to all the players out there who are worse than me! ( all 3 of you lol)

Back to scooping big pots and maybe thats the part of gambling that leads people to addiction.That heart thumping moment when you put your money in ( hopefully with the best of it) and wait for the virtual shuffler of your site of choice to determine your fate.The moment of joy when you know you've outwittted/sucked out on your opponent and the chips come your way may also be what makes the game so compulsive.I'm sure it releases the same endorphins as serious drugs like Heroin.

"I don't know just where I'm going But I'm gonna try for the kingdom, if I can
'Cause it makes me feel like I'm a man When I put a spike into my vein And I'll tell ya, things aren't quite the sameWhen I'm rushing on my run And I feel just like Jesus' son"-Velvet Underground "Heroin".

Lost $35 last night at Interpoker but once again I don't feel too bad about it.I hope I'm moving away from feeling like I'm the biggest fish in poker when I lose a session and the biggest shark when I win and am starting to be able to look more objectively at how I actually played the hands that counted.

Last night the fish who called my "no pot odds for you fishy" post flop bets hit their hands almost every time.One guy even made a straight flush v my top pair which he showed when I folded to his all in river bet.Every continuation bet was reraised etc.You know the drill.

Apologies for the rambling nature of this post.Can't promise tomorrows will be any better though....