Finally "made" time to play...

So, after a two-three week absence from the ring games, I finally "made" time to play. Part of the reason I've not "made" time to play ring is due to the bad run of cards I'd come across. Otherwise, unwinding from the holidays, working the business end of the Rayz site, soccer, STEELERS FOOTBALL, and (insert excuse of choice here) have been the other reasons I've neglected to ring it out. I'd managed several MTT's (mostly unsuccessful in finding cashage), and quite a few Head's up challenges (pretty much owned the tables) without being able to drag myself to the cash tables. I know others have had the same going on recently.

That being said, I've ran quite well in the past two days 2 to 4 tabling the $1/$2 shorthanded limit tables. Pokertracker has provided me with several good laughs, as its identifying donks who are playing 70% of the flops or more. And of course, they're grossly negative on their BB/100 hands rate.

There was this one individual yesterday that raised every pot preflop that he was in (Read: the pot was raised preflop 73% of the time). I had an established table image, showing down quality hands and discussing tight-aggressive play with the group at the table (which by the way, I'd been privledged to meet some quality individuals the past couple days - always a reward to me at the end of a session to "slow it down" and take 1 table and just be social while playing). Anyways, I had decided that anytime I was planning to enter the pot when this clown raised, I was reraising him. This naturally caused me to be a bit more selective than I already am, and play hands that were either better from a starting hand standpoint, or would be hands capable of holding up in a classic head's up format.

This moron was apparantly not used to being bet into, as I think he has enjoyed a short-lived career of pushing person after person out of the pot. So, when he and I were heads up, which often my reraising him allowed us to be heads up, I punished the donk. Flop would come, I'd bet when I hit, I'd bet when I missed, I threw the check-rayz in there quite a bit. I reraised his donk ass. Essentually, I threw the kitchen sink at him and sent 'em the bill.

Either he was a total idiot, or his ego committed him to try to finally "beat me." Unlike him, I was able to set it down if it just seemed impossible that I was ahead in the hand. I felt like I took the maximum money from him that I could. He, however, could not set his hand down... ever. Well, not til we busted him, that is. Then, I don't think he could afford to play any longer. Either that, or he just finally had enough. I'm not sure who he thought he was dealing with, but he sure the hell was not gonna push me around at MY table.

Without this guy, it would have been an "average" winning session. However, said donk did inflate my win rate quite a bit, and I will not complain about that one bit! I must say though, I suspect it was "smart play" on my behalf, not just "lucky cards" that allowed me to own this biatch. I knew when to enter the pot against him. I knew well enough to re-raise him when he opened with a raise to a pot I was in. I knew to be the aggressor. And finally, I knew when to lay down and fight the battle in the next hand. All in all, great session.




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