Happy Days
It's funny how, when things are going bad, you want to tell everyone about the bad beats and incredible suckouts that seem to be clinging to you at certain periods. I know I do.
But on the other hand, I find good runs harder to talk about. Not sure why, but right now I am in one of my best ever runs since I started playing about 2 years ago.
So, as we approach the end of December, Poker Office shows (for the month of December):
Hands 4578
Won 17.45%
Saw Flop 38.23%
Won per hand 0.19c
Won $860.36
BB/100 hands 22.13
Won flop seen 36.19%
Showdowns won 49.38%
Obviously, I'm delighted at a return of 860$ in 4 weeks, and hope this continues for as long as possible, but I'm going through my stats to pinpoint the cause of the upturn. Not one single tournement entered, not even a SNG, so can't say a final table finish has contributed.
One thing that stands out is that 85% of the above hands have been at the 50$ buy in (50c big blind) rather than the 20$ (20c) buy in that dominated the rest of the year. Maybe this level is a bit less fishy, which helps the stronger hands stand up much more often than at the lower levels where a 5 x bb blind is called (a 5 x raise is only 50c at the lower levels).
I'd like to say that my play has really tightened up, but my flop seen % does not back this up. I am playing at 6 or 8 max tables, and 2 hands of SB and BB make up a big part of this %.
Position doesn't seem to be a problem, as Poker Office shows every starting position in profit, except place 7 (the button is break even, surprsingly).
What I am picking up a lot, is the way my opponents play their hands, and Poker Office excels here. Knowing how your opponents play their open or gutshot str8 draws, flush draws, 2 pair or made str8s/flushes makes a massive difference. Which players slow play their big hands, who likes a check raise and who bluffs when a flush draw is on the table - all this information is at your fingertips, if you take the time to explore.
In all this good news, there are only 2 negative things to report:
AK - I am staggered at how often AK can't stand up against Ax or any two random cards. Poker Office shows AK v Ax will win 36% of times. Love to understand how this works so if anyone can explain, I'd be grateful?
QQ - Another surprising anomally, every time my raise has been called by a lower pocket pair, it has gone on to hit a set. 26 times this has happened, though I have hit a Q on 4 occasions to take the pot.
Strange quirks, but I guess over virtually 4500 hands, there's bound to be the odd few weird things I suppose, and overall, I have no complaints.
Anyway, I'm off to the tables, where I hope I can keep my run going and post similar results for 2007. Good luck, and best wishes for 2007 all.