Tao of Poker

On Thursdays I Ramble On...

"Disciplined and calm, to await the appearance of disorder and hubbub amongst the enemy... this is the art of retaining self-possession." - Sun Tzu

Where to begin? How about poker on TV. Caught most of the live poker from Turning Stone Casino. The element (that many of you have been discussing) of the anti-climatic final hands of WPT events is something that unfortunately makes even the best events seem like a sitcom or hour long TV drama. But then again, if you really wanted to know who won what WPT events, all you had to do was look it up somewhere on the web. The results are out there and available, but you watch attentively anyway. Some of you serious poker nerds watch the repeats with the same enthusiasm. It's OK, I won't out any of you... and I'm not trying to say how much cooler I am than the rest of you... I'm a geek, albeit a different type of geek. I'm the guy who's doing the NY Times crossword in ink, while watching Dawson's Creek, yapping on my cellphone with my attorney, and playing in a multi-table NL tourney on Party Poker.

Last night's event was interesting because you never knew how long that kid was going to last heads up with Phil Ivey. No time constraints. I was pulling for the kid for sure. By the way, I have never been to Turning Stone. I think AC and Foxwoods are closer.

Alfred Hitchcock once said that his movies were about real life with all the dull parts cut out. I guess that's what the WPT is all about. They cut down a four or five hour event into a nice easy to swallow two hour caplet for attention deficit, channel surfing, couch potatoes.

Still on Tilt?

I played solid the rest of last weekend (Omaha hi/lo SNGs) and was pleased with a decent performance at the Blue Parrot. This week on Party Poker has been mediocre for me. There's still a lingering hangover affect after my tiltish behavior when I lost three $20 SNGs in less than 15 minutes on last Friday (embarrassingly witnessed by BG's brother Bob). I'd like to think that I was adhering to the Iggymeister's theory on doubling up in the first level. But we know better. The friggin' Hilton Sisters once again captivated me with their beauty. And I could not lay them down. Who said AKo was an overrated hand? Made a bad move and went all-in when I flopped a King.

I had not seen one of my hidden personalities in some time. I've never given him a name, but I refer to him as a drunken Russian sailor on shore leave in Bangkok... drunker than Al Can't Hang on St. Patty's day... making bad moves and more focused on more booze and hookers than figuring out implied pot odds after flopping an open-ended straight with five people still in the pot. That's one of my alter-egos and we try to keep him behind locked doors... and away from sharp instruments.

OK, so I lost two $20 SNGs yesterday and I played for two hours and barely broke even today on the NL ring tables. The only highlight was playing with Lord Geznikor for a little bit. My poker play is tepid, at best. I seem to be folding hands to bluffers and calling hands against nutholders. One or two hands either way... and I'm looking solid right now.

My problem is evident... I'm lacking patience and discipline. It's funny how you always buck up when the bankroll starts fading away... just like Sharon Stone's career.

I had a thought on the subway the other day... Who would win in a thumb wrestling match? The Poker Penguin or HDouble?

And before you ask, that was in my head before I hung out with Puff the Magic Dragon.