At this point, I realized I needed to take a more analytical approach to my game. So, I delved into Hold Em Manager much more deeply than I ever had before. My self-assigned task was to sort my results – per holecard combination – from each of early, middle, cutoff, button and blind positions, in each of unopened, limped and raised pots – and then build ranges for each based on my historical success at the $0.50/$1.00 level.
What I discovered was that I was playing a tighter game than was necessary, primarily because the bottom end of my range in most situations were still showing a material profit. So, I’ve been expanding my ranges – slowly – with the intention of identifying the optimal cutoff points. The immediate results have me playing slightly more aggressively, as my last several sessions have resulted in statistics in the 14/13 range as opposed to the 12/10 area. I expect that this will continue to expand with further analysis, ideally, to something where I’m playing a 16-18% VPIP. I believe this would likely be an optimal range for fullring.
A related benefit is that I’ve been able to identify specific holecard combinations that have given me unexpected trouble in certain scenarios. Exploring these scenarios has helped me identify several post-flop leaks in my game, primarily related to inappropriate bluff attempts and failure to identify areas where my opponents could conceivably be strong.
All of the foregoing has led me to take a much more active approach to my play, and the results thus far have been promising. Since starting a week ago, all of my sessions have been winners, and I’m now sitting squarely back at my $15.7K resistance level. (I’d actually be a bit beyond that, but I had a fairly unsuccessful slate of tournaments on Sunday – failing to cash in six of the eight MTTs that I played.)
Speaking of tournaments… I had a rather rude welcome to the Sunday Million. I’d never played in one before, primarily because I felt the $215 buy-in was a bit too steep. But given my relatively successful tournament record, and the deep-stack nature of the Sunday Million, I’ve recently decided to start using my VPPs to buy into these events, hoping to score a significant cash for zero financial outlay.
Well, I was looking forward to this one all week. It felt like taking a leap from the minor leagues to the pros. A 10K starting chip count, reasonable blind structure and potential quarter million payday if the cards ran my way. So I had my full pot of coffee brewed, my complement of undercard tourneys up and running on the left monitor, my nine ring games going on the right, ready to settle in for long haul ahead… and then… four friggin’ hands into the tournament, I was felted by top set over middle set. I’ve told myself that everyone would have gone broke in that spot, considering the inflated preflop pot (raised and a few callers) - and since the top set was sitting under the gun, I thought there was a reasonable chance he was overplaying a premium pair on the 9 high flop. 7-out; next shooter…
* * *
On a personal note, I’ve been feeling a little down of late. My personality is such that I tend to lead a fairly solitary existence; my current girlfriend once remarked that I reminded her of Richard Nixon towards the end of the Frost/Nixon movie, where he asked Frost, in earnest, if he actually enjoyed being around people. She’s right; for the most part, my preferred pursuits are largely constructive/competitive, and I’ve never been one for socializing to a great extent. I think this is one of the reasons I’m so attracted to the internet version of this game, for obvious reasons.
While I still feel like a fifteen-year old in spirit, I’ve actually turned forty this year. And while forty isn’t particularly old from a life standpoint (or even from the standpoint of the brick and mortar game), it might as well be the age of a dinosaur from the internet perspective. Most of the people I’m playing against are years, and even decades, younger than I am. In my estimation, this makes it somewhat difficult to establish or become part of a network of players who get to know and support each other as they develop their respective games. Yes, mine is a fairly solitary pursuit, as are most of the other things in my life.
I’ve never had children, nor have I ever had the type of relationship in which one would consider having children. The women that I’ve been involved with have been those who “fell into my lap”, so to speak – as opposed to those who I might actually look to get involved with. That’s not to say they aren’t great women, they just haven’t really been “right” for me.
I have a female friend who is one of the few women I’ve known in my life who I feel I have a great deal in common with, and with whom I enjoy spending time immensely. (Of course, she’s already taken.) She recently commented to me that she’s looking forward to getting married and having children; not necessarily now, but at some point in her life. I remember responding in a somewhat surprised fashion, saying something along the lines of “wow, I thought you were more like me in that regard”, in reference to my stated position that marriage is an institution that doesn’t make sense, considering it’s unnatural to spend one’s entire life with a single significant other.
As I get older, I’m beginning to realize the drawbacks of that position. Perhaps it would be a great thing to have someone there who’s a true soul mate, someone you genuinely enjoy being with on a regular basis. I suppose I’ll never know, as I just don’t see this happening in my future…
Current Bankroll: $15,894.31
Month To Date: 50,096 hands; up $912.00; 1.82 bb/100
Year to Date: 185,618 hands; up $3,103; 1.67 bb/100
