Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. That better.

Ok gang! Things are looking good and i feel back on track.

As you know, i wanted to attempt to build a bankroll through the lowest level sng's upwards. However i was struggling even amongst the babies and frankly, was ashamed of myself.

I had 20 dollars, lost it and re bought 10 dollars here and there - well, now i have just stopped to write this at....."tum te tum" $57 dollars. Nearly triple the original buy in. This is not just a good run, i am finally killing these low limit sng's, and so i bloody should be. I have read so much about, and watched the game for more hours than is probably healthy. My losing streak nearly drove me to quit but no more. Nay sayers may say that i only wrote yesterday about how much i suck at these games. Things in my head feel different though. In the last few days i have been contacted about 3 jobs, all of which i should be able to do. I received a £150 cheque this morning which i had forgotten was coming. I have a (semi) proper job interview tomorrow and am still to meet regarding my company. I have just remembered (duh!) that on top of all this, this afternoon i was given the all clear by the Cardiologist. They said blood- good, thyroid- good, haemoglobin -good. They had originally worried that my cholesterol was high. It turns out that it actually is. The reason it is, however, is because my "good" cholesterol is very high, subsequently raising my overall level to a number above average (5.4 i think). Basically they are not worried and claim that what i was experiencing was not heart related. I honestly believe that a positive mental state is key to life (and playing a good game of poker).


Back to "the poke". There is a lot of talk about not bluffing in the low limits. This i believe is true, but only to a certain extent. For example, if a 3rd card of a suit hits the river and you could (but don't) have the flush - your bet here, more often than not, would be called by AK on a A high board and therefor be a waste of chips. At this level i obviously make mistakes, play like shit and therefore lose, but, BUT!, i was making too many "complicated" plays on the basis of; if he has "x" and thinks i have "y" (he is clearly doing equations and should be paying more attention to the game). This is the "bluffing" that is incorrect. The bluffing that does work is aggression pre flop. If it is all limped to you and you hold a playable hand- raise it. Position is great to have, but even that isn't such a big deal at this level, it just makes the process easier. When you raise they may fold and you win the pot there. If they call - (they are not going to re raise!) - chances are you have the best hand anyway and a continuation bet will see you take the hand on the flop. On the occasions they play back at you - fold. What you have lost in chips here you will make back 10 fold later. Give them their moment of power. Later when they don't have cards they will fold their blinds repeatedly. The other great thing about this is that even blind people will eventually realise you are raising a lot. I can't tell you how great this part is. They are angry and want to win a pot so play back at you. Do they wait for great hands to do this? Not necessarily. By this time i can fold and pick a better spot because i have so many chips, i can call with my (often better) hand and be ahead and win, i can call thinking I'm ahead, find out I'm behind and still win. If i lose, it doesn't matter, i can afford it and if the present play patterns continue i will wait until they are beaten down again and repeat the process.

Basically ladies and gentlemen i am switching the laptop on expecting to win. That is a good feeling.

Good luck, and if you are out there - I know you are - leave a message.