Report from the Felt Vol. 1, Issue 2

To people who know me, it was no small secret when I took a break from online poker. I didn't announce the break to anyone who'd listen or spam Facebook relentlessly to let everyone know. That isn't my style. When I went on my poker break, it was more incognito. People, however, could tell that something was up with poker. No longer was I talking about poker at every moment, trying to pull anyone with the vaguest notion of what poker is into my exciting world. Even though I was very excited, I was not overconfident. Everyday I marveled at the fact that I was able to win anything at all in poker. Playing online always seemed like an automatic losing proposition. It always seemed like the game I could never completely grasp. That excited feeling didn't go away, but rather, I did suffer a blow to my confidence that forced me to step back from the game and hit the books (and forums)!

I found some serious initial success playing 6-max cash games, but in a series of hands, I found myself down three buy-ins. Three buy-ins, gone as if I never had them. And how? I didn't completely understand. I shared some key hands with an online pal of mine, and he pointed out that perhaps I should rethink how I played Top Pair-Top Kicker. I put in some time, read some online sources he sent me, and sure enough, he was right! My post-flop play had improved tremendously, but there were still serious holes in my game. At that moment, instead of going back to the tables and maybe tilting away some more money, I decided it was time to hit the books hard and sharpen my edge.

Two weeks passed before I was ready to take my place at the tables. I started getting the poker itch. It came on slowly. At first, I found myself drifting more and more to Youtube, where I'd watch some poker videos. Then, I thought about what I would play when I returned to my game. Right before I returned, I was dying to play. However, something was still missing. Several days passed, and I caught a video of Ted Lawson:



Now before I offer up my commentary, even though I've been a fan of poker since 2005, I never really followed the World Series of Poker. I was only a fan of the games themselves. It wasn't until very recently that I began to watch WSOP videos and catch up on everything I had missed. When I initially saw this video, I thought that Lawson was the biggest idiot and/or donkey (and in reality, he might be). Just an idiot with money, it seemed. However, I was really surprised when I saw this next video from the same 2008 WSOP event:



I was completely surprised to see him take down that same tournament. Three tournaments all time? Yeah, it's likely that Lawson got lucky, but really, you have to get lucky to win any tournament with a large field. I kept watching. That's when I saw the bit at the end when he was asked the question, "So this is your first tournament at the World Series and only your third tournament overall, did you feel like you might be in over your head or thought it might be your day?" His response? "Well, the truth of it is, I expect to win..." That's the attitude I wanted to have! Even though I couldn't really draw inspiration from his play, his top-notch attitude is ultimately what put him in a position to win the tournament (with the aid of favorable situations and cards and everything else that goes into a WSOP bracelet). If an outmatched amateur can have this attitude at the WSOP, surely the worst of my opponents do. Feeling inspired, it was time to return to the felt!

I've seen success since i've returned, playing Sit N Go's of all things. I haven't complained at all about 'bad play' or 'suck outs' and really, I'm playing my A-game right now. I hit a hot streak when I came back, which surely helped, but even over some rocky sessions, I haven't even felt close to tilting. Later this week, I'll go over what Sit N Go's I've been playing, and also give everyone a review of a book I'm reading (Sit 'N Go Strategy: Expert Advice for Beating One-Table Poker Tournaments by Collin Moshman). I'll also share some of my own thoughts about Sit 'N Go play. Until then, see you at the tables!