Ahhhh.....Party Poker
The funnest thing I did all weekend was FINISH the Party Poker bonuses I was working on. By the end I wasn't enjoying the play at all, but I am loathe to leave free Party money on the table, so I ground it out.
It all started well enough. I decided to go back to my best game - FRLHE - as I consider that my best opportunity to make some money from poker. Flopped a boat early and got paid for it, so I was up about 20 BB to start my Friday evening. All downhill from there. Finished that session down 8 BB. Took another whack at limit holdem Saturday afternoon and then again Saturday evening. I finished down on 11 of the 12 tables I played. With about 500 hands left to clear the second bonus I was looking at being only about $50 profitable if I stayed even the rest of the way, and cleared both bonuses. I switched to NL circusing to grind off the rest on Sunday afternoon. I managed to lose another $28 in the process. I finished both chases, and can bank a whopping $22 for my efforts. Ugh.
Went over to Ultimate Bet to work on my NL game. Played a few hundred hands of $50 max buy-in. Finished down about $8. Cards seemed about average. So did the players. I tried one semi-bluff on a gut-shot draw (with backdoor flush draw) on a board that looked pretty benign, but my pot-sized bet got min-re-raised. I called it and then folded to an all-in turn bet when I failed to improve. Other than that I was pretty much nut-peddling, but I don't think my betting was getting as much action as it might have if I was more clever. I am learning.
I woke up too early this morning and decided to play some more NL. First hand from the BB I get a free look with A2s. I flop top pair and the flush draw. I check the flop and MP bets the (small) pot. LP calls it, and so do I. Turn is a blank, and MP again bets the pot. LP folds, and I call it again. River is my nut flush card, and the board is not paired. I bet out $5 hoping for a call. MP comes OTT all-in. I call, and MP shows that he rivered the str8 he had been betting into. He had been playing short-stacked so I didn't double, making only about $14, but that was still pretty cool. Good way to start the new week. Let's hope that continues!