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This time, my three-day journey in Texas Hold'em ended in a disastrous defeat. On the first day, playing at a 25/25 table, I flopped top two with AQ but was ambushed by a hidden set of threes, resulting in a loss of 400 big blinds in a single pot. Even several semi-bluffs failed as my bluffs were called, leading to losses. By the end of the day, I had lost 13,000, and without much sleep, I flew to Hangzhou.
As soon as I landed, I jumped into action. That night's game was the strangest I've ever seen, as noted by a long-time poker buddy. Everyone was hitting sets left and right, and small pocket pairs were abundant. My friend hit three of a kind seven times that night, including two sets of fives and a four of a kind, while I hit a set of aces early on, only to be crushed by a set of sevens by another player. Strangely, I hadn't seen aces or kings in over ten days, but that night, I got them three times each. Despite this, I ended up losing a total of 14,000 and left the table at 6:30 in the morning feeling bewildered. I didn't suspect foul play in dealing, just the strange nature of the game.
The next day, I woke up after 3 PM, had some congee, and started playing again. One table kept going until the next day, still at 25/50 stakes. I started with a 10,000 buy-in and steadily accumulated chips, winning about 10,000. However, a bad fold fueled by curiosity led to regret and a failed all-in bluff, resulting in another loss. In another hand, my tens lost to ace-queen despite buying insurance, adding to the losses. Later, my pocket nines lost to fives on a 4682 board, and I didn't buy insurance, losing another 10,000. Finally, with less than 2,000 chips left, I went all-in with threes, only to be called by a forum member with queens. Despite advising him against buying insurance, he did, and I ended up losing. Overall, I lost 10,000 that night, but I won a bet with another friend, earning back 5,000.
Reflecting on the three days of games, I learned several lessons:
- Tilt is a professional poker player's worst enemy. A tilted player is more dangerous than a fish because they may resort to reckless bluffs and self-destructive plays.
- Know when to leave. By 4 AM, there were only eight players left at the table, six of whom were from out of town, and four of them were acquaintances. With no good games left and high rake, it was time to leave, but my non-professional friend insisted on playing, resulting in more losses.
- Maintain composure and respect all opponents. Playing too loosely due to seat dynamics led to many lost pots and a failed session. Even my friends complained about my overly aggressive play.
- Fatigue is detrimental. Lack of sleep and poor nutrition took a toll on my performance. Smoking in the room made matters worse, and wearing a mask affected my breathing and clarity of thought.
- Leave when the fish dry up. The rake at live games in China is often high, and when the fish are scarce, it's time to move on. Even if I enjoyed some high-stakes games with heavy rake in the past, it's not worth it when the local players are tight and organized private games are inaccessible. |
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Post time 26-4-2024 07:15:24