Have you guys been following this crazy poker scandal involving Mike Postle and his "questionable" play during Stones Live Poker streams? I urge you to check out Joey Ingram's Twitter feed for an extremely thorough breakdown of the allegations. Mad props to Joey for the countless hours of research that he (and others like Doug Polk and Haralobos Voulgaris) have put in on this topic. His posts on the topic start around September 28th, so scroll down his feed quite a bit to get the full picture.
While nothing has been proven, the accusations against Postle are serious, in that he had access to hole card information while playing on the stream. He won something like 62 out of 69 sessions he played and is up in the range of $250k playing mostly $1/3 and $5/5 NLHE since 2018. I've watched some of the Stones Live Poker footage -- I'm honestly surprised it is still available -- and it's sketchy as hell.
What are your thoughts on the scandal? Have you ever been a victim of cheating at the poker table?
Friday, October 4, 2019
Monday, September 30, 2019
Krazy Joe's $100 Deepstack - 9/28/19
There were 22 runners for this tournament. My 7-handed opening table had the following players, sitting to my left: Mike Cassidy, Jill Stevens, Bill, Mike Adkins, Kathy
Ellis and Kerry Z. I was familiar with Kerry, Jill and Kathy, but hadn't played with Mike, Bill or Mike before. We started with 30,000 in chips and we played 20 minute levels.
25/50 - Kathy raised to 150 and I called in the SB with Ts9s. There were 4 or 5 players to the flop, which was J 8 7, rainbow. I decided to slow play my straight and Jill led out for 400. Mike A called and I raised to 1,600. Both players folded. My raise size was probably a bit too much. Had I raised to 1,200, I may have gotten a call or two. A bit later, I raised to 225 with AJo and Mike A called. Flop A T 2, rainbow. I bet 400 and Mike called again. Turn [A T 2] K. I bet 600 and got another call. River [A T 2 K] 6. We both checked and Mike turned over pocket 7's and I dragged a small pot. I ended the level with 33,075.
50/100 - At first, I wasn't sure about this table draw since I hadn't played with half of my opponents, but everyone was showing down EVERY hand. So much information was being shared that Kerry and I just sat back and absorbed it all, waiting to pick our spots. Kerry was my toughest opponent at this table by far and I had the advantage of position on her. Jill and Kathy were playing pretty tight and the three gentlemen at my table weren't very good. I just needed to wait for the right spot against them. I ended the level with 32,425.
75/150 - I raised to 400 with 7c6c and Mike A called. Flop Kd 4d 4x. Mike check-called 700. Turn [Kd 4d 4x] 5c. I picked up an open-ended straight draw, but slowed down a bit to see what fell on the River. Mike either had a pair of Kings or a flush draw. River [Kd 4d 4x 5c] Xd, putting a third diamond out there. Sure enough, I check-folded to a decent size bet and Mike indeed had the flush. I ended the level with 30,225.
100/200 - Another quiet level with nothing to report except that I folded Kh6x to a preflop raise that would have turned into a Royal flush. The board ran out Ah Qh Jh Th 8h and another player made the lower end of the straight flush with the 9h! Not only would I have stacked him, but I would have gotten to draw for the Queen of Hearts! Instead, he got to draw for the promotion but didn't hit.
150/300 - Last hand of the level, Kathy Ellis limped in. I raised my button to 1,300 with 98o and Kathy was the only caller. Flop J J 8. I bet 1,600 and Kathy called. Turn [J J 8] J. I bet 2,500 and she folded. I ended the level with 33,675.
200/400 - Still card dead. The best hand I saw after 1.5 hours of play was AJo. I headed into break with 33,475.
BREAK (10 MINUTES TO COLOR UP THE GREEN $25 CHIPS)
300/600 (600 BB ante) - With antes in play, it was time to become more active regardless of the hands I was getting. Unfortunately, I lost 10,000 in the first orbit and was down to about 23,000. To my surprise, I looked down at the best hand I've seen thus far -- pocket Jacks -- and raised to 1500. Mike A called and immediately went all in on a Ten-high flop. It was 13,7000 to call and I'd have about 10k left if I lost the hand. I called and he turned over KcQc. I faded the overs and busted Mike from the tournament. I ended the level with 53,000.
400/800 (800) - Halfway through the level, we combined to two tables. I moved from the Octagon table to the Browns table with Matt, Chaz, Mike Murray, Rob Bell, Coach Ron, Kerry, Kathy and Molly. Basically I moved from the best table imaginable to the worst, with several great players that all had decent stacks.
500/1000 (1000) - I limped in late position with Ad7d. Chaz made it 3000 from the SB and Rob and I called. Flop 7h 2h 2s. Chaz led out for 3,500 and Rob folded. I want to see where I'm at and make it 8,500. Chaz called. Turn [7h 2h 2s] Ts. To my surprise, Chaz leads into me for 9000 and now I'm in the tank. My only real options are to move in over the top for about 36k or fold. If I just call, the River could be awful and I could have an even tougher decision to make on that street. Going all in over the top would be another 27k to Chaz with 36k in the pot. I put her on an over-pair to the board and didn't think she'd fold to an All In, so I mucked. She later told me she had a pair, but didn't specify what it was.
Later in the level, Rob raised to 4200 and I called from the BB with 88. Flop 9 3 3. He led out for 2500 and I called. Turn [9 3 3] A. Not the card I wanted to see. He bet 3500 and I make the correct fold, as according to Rob he had an Ace. I ended the level with 27,800.
600/1200 (1200) - Kerry raised to 3,600. I look down at KcQc and raise all in for 27,800. She folded pocket Jacks. A few hands later, Kathy raised to 3,500. With two black queens, I could make it 8500 or so, but she's been playing pretty tight so this could be a good spot to double up. I move in for 31,000 and she insta-folds. I ended the level with 43,500.
800/1600 (1600) - I ended the level with 39,000.
1000/2000 (2000) - I donked off 11.5k to Matt when it folded around to me in the SB and I raised to 6,000 with T2o. He called from the BB and insta-called my 5500 flop bet on a 9 6 4 board. I gave up from there and folded to a big bet on the River. I ended the level with 15,300 and would have to make something happen pretty quickly after the break.
BREAK (10 MINUTES TO COLOR UP THE BLACK $100 CHIPS). I also lost a $5 hand of 7 Aces.
1500/3000 (3000) - Five minutes into the level, I have 21k when we combine to the Final Table of nine. To my left is Matt, Caryn, Doza, Rob Bell, Jill, Chaz, Mike Murray and Kerry. Chaz was the button so I'd be ponying up almost a third of my stack (6,000) for the BB and ante on the second hand of the FT. I folded the first hand of the FT and am fortunate to pick up KcQc in the BB the next hand. Rob opens to 15k and I call, leaving 6k behind. Flop K 8 8. I bet my last 6k and double up when Rob's AJ doesn't improve. I ended the level with a much healthier 42,000, but with the blinds and antes so high, I had to remain aggressive.
2000/4000 (4000) - Last hand of level, I go all in from cut-off with A4o and everyone folds. I ended the level with 44,500. Kerry, Mike Murray and Matt have busted, leaving 6 left in the tournament. 4 players get paid with a cool $1,000 up top for the winner.
2500/5000 (5000) - UTG with KTo, I move all in for 44,500 and Rob and Chaz call. Flop looks great for me, T 8 5. Rob creates a side pot by betting 10k and Chaz calls. Turn [T 8 5] blank. Rob bets 20k and Chaz folds pocket 9's. My heart sinks when Rob turns over TT for a flopped set and I'm drawing dead.
Overall, I'm not satisfied with my 6th place finish out of 22 players, but I'm generally pleased with my play considering I was card dead for 5 hours. Best hands I saw all night were QQ and JJ (twice). Didn't see AA, KK, AK or AQ once and lower pocket pairs were even hard to come by. I had 88 (lost vs. Rob), 44 (folded UTG preflop during later levels) and 22 (folded to a raise preflop in later levels).
*shrug*
That's poker. Onto the next tournament...
25/50 - Kathy raised to 150 and I called in the SB with Ts9s. There were 4 or 5 players to the flop, which was J 8 7, rainbow. I decided to slow play my straight and Jill led out for 400. Mike A called and I raised to 1,600. Both players folded. My raise size was probably a bit too much. Had I raised to 1,200, I may have gotten a call or two. A bit later, I raised to 225 with AJo and Mike A called. Flop A T 2, rainbow. I bet 400 and Mike called again. Turn [A T 2] K. I bet 600 and got another call. River [A T 2 K] 6. We both checked and Mike turned over pocket 7's and I dragged a small pot. I ended the level with 33,075.
50/100 - At first, I wasn't sure about this table draw since I hadn't played with half of my opponents, but everyone was showing down EVERY hand. So much information was being shared that Kerry and I just sat back and absorbed it all, waiting to pick our spots. Kerry was my toughest opponent at this table by far and I had the advantage of position on her. Jill and Kathy were playing pretty tight and the three gentlemen at my table weren't very good. I just needed to wait for the right spot against them. I ended the level with 32,425.
75/150 - I raised to 400 with 7c6c and Mike A called. Flop Kd 4d 4x. Mike check-called 700. Turn [Kd 4d 4x] 5c. I picked up an open-ended straight draw, but slowed down a bit to see what fell on the River. Mike either had a pair of Kings or a flush draw. River [Kd 4d 4x 5c] Xd, putting a third diamond out there. Sure enough, I check-folded to a decent size bet and Mike indeed had the flush. I ended the level with 30,225.
100/200 - Another quiet level with nothing to report except that I folded Kh6x to a preflop raise that would have turned into a Royal flush. The board ran out Ah Qh Jh Th 8h and another player made the lower end of the straight flush with the 9h! Not only would I have stacked him, but I would have gotten to draw for the Queen of Hearts! Instead, he got to draw for the promotion but didn't hit.
150/300 - Last hand of the level, Kathy Ellis limped in. I raised my button to 1,300 with 98o and Kathy was the only caller. Flop J J 8. I bet 1,600 and Kathy called. Turn [J J 8] J. I bet 2,500 and she folded. I ended the level with 33,675.
200/400 - Still card dead. The best hand I saw after 1.5 hours of play was AJo. I headed into break with 33,475.
BREAK (10 MINUTES TO COLOR UP THE GREEN $25 CHIPS)
300/600 (600 BB ante) - With antes in play, it was time to become more active regardless of the hands I was getting. Unfortunately, I lost 10,000 in the first orbit and was down to about 23,000. To my surprise, I looked down at the best hand I've seen thus far -- pocket Jacks -- and raised to 1500. Mike A called and immediately went all in on a Ten-high flop. It was 13,7000 to call and I'd have about 10k left if I lost the hand. I called and he turned over KcQc. I faded the overs and busted Mike from the tournament. I ended the level with 53,000.
400/800 (800) - Halfway through the level, we combined to two tables. I moved from the Octagon table to the Browns table with Matt, Chaz, Mike Murray, Rob Bell, Coach Ron, Kerry, Kathy and Molly. Basically I moved from the best table imaginable to the worst, with several great players that all had decent stacks.
500/1000 (1000) - I limped in late position with Ad7d. Chaz made it 3000 from the SB and Rob and I called. Flop 7h 2h 2s. Chaz led out for 3,500 and Rob folded. I want to see where I'm at and make it 8,500. Chaz called. Turn [7h 2h 2s] Ts. To my surprise, Chaz leads into me for 9000 and now I'm in the tank. My only real options are to move in over the top for about 36k or fold. If I just call, the River could be awful and I could have an even tougher decision to make on that street. Going all in over the top would be another 27k to Chaz with 36k in the pot. I put her on an over-pair to the board and didn't think she'd fold to an All In, so I mucked. She later told me she had a pair, but didn't specify what it was.
Later in the level, Rob raised to 4200 and I called from the BB with 88. Flop 9 3 3. He led out for 2500 and I called. Turn [9 3 3] A. Not the card I wanted to see. He bet 3500 and I make the correct fold, as according to Rob he had an Ace. I ended the level with 27,800.
600/1200 (1200) - Kerry raised to 3,600. I look down at KcQc and raise all in for 27,800. She folded pocket Jacks. A few hands later, Kathy raised to 3,500. With two black queens, I could make it 8500 or so, but she's been playing pretty tight so this could be a good spot to double up. I move in for 31,000 and she insta-folds. I ended the level with 43,500.
800/1600 (1600) - I ended the level with 39,000.
1000/2000 (2000) - I donked off 11.5k to Matt when it folded around to me in the SB and I raised to 6,000 with T2o. He called from the BB and insta-called my 5500 flop bet on a 9 6 4 board. I gave up from there and folded to a big bet on the River. I ended the level with 15,300 and would have to make something happen pretty quickly after the break.
BREAK (10 MINUTES TO COLOR UP THE BLACK $100 CHIPS). I also lost a $5 hand of 7 Aces.
1500/3000 (3000) - Five minutes into the level, I have 21k when we combine to the Final Table of nine. To my left is Matt, Caryn, Doza, Rob Bell, Jill, Chaz, Mike Murray and Kerry. Chaz was the button so I'd be ponying up almost a third of my stack (6,000) for the BB and ante on the second hand of the FT. I folded the first hand of the FT and am fortunate to pick up KcQc in the BB the next hand. Rob opens to 15k and I call, leaving 6k behind. Flop K 8 8. I bet my last 6k and double up when Rob's AJ doesn't improve. I ended the level with a much healthier 42,000, but with the blinds and antes so high, I had to remain aggressive.
2000/4000 (4000) - Last hand of level, I go all in from cut-off with A4o and everyone folds. I ended the level with 44,500. Kerry, Mike Murray and Matt have busted, leaving 6 left in the tournament. 4 players get paid with a cool $1,000 up top for the winner.
2500/5000 (5000) - UTG with KTo, I move all in for 44,500 and Rob and Chaz call. Flop looks great for me, T 8 5. Rob creates a side pot by betting 10k and Chaz calls. Turn [T 8 5] blank. Rob bets 20k and Chaz folds pocket 9's. My heart sinks when Rob turns over TT for a flopped set and I'm drawing dead.
Overall, I'm not satisfied with my 6th place finish out of 22 players, but I'm generally pleased with my play considering I was card dead for 5 hours. Best hands I saw all night were QQ and JJ (twice). Didn't see AA, KK, AK or AQ once and lower pocket pairs were even hard to come by. I had 88 (lost vs. Rob), 44 (folded UTG preflop during later levels) and 22 (folded to a raise preflop in later levels).
*shrug*
That's poker. Onto the next tournament...
Thursday, September 26, 2019
2019 Poker Update
Thought I should provide an update before I hit the full year mark since my last post (November 2018). 2019 has been relatively quiet on the poker front. I’ll start with the CPMG 2019 Tournament of Champions. As some of you know, there was talk of the tournament being scrapped this year for various reasons, but I volunteered to track the TOC points and donate a prize for the winner of the tournament. For the prize, I ended up purchasing a custom engraved bracelet, pictured below. The bracelet quality is much sharper than I expected and I’m excited to award this to the winner of the 2019 TOC. Remember you can qualify for points through December 15th. Julie agreed to host the tournament sometime in January.
I haven’t played poker or hosted many games this year. In fact, I’ve only hosted twice. First was a $50+10 bounty tournament on January 4th that drew 22 runners; my best turn out yet. I didn’t do well in the tournament, but put my new (at the time) cash game chip set to use and eked out a small profit.
I also hosted a $0.50/0.50 Dealer’s Choice cash game in June that had a great turnout. We had a full table of 9 for much of the night and played a variety of games, some that I’ve never played before. Adam Rhodes introduced the group to fun games such as Scrotum 8, Scarney, Drawmaha, SOHE and more. We also played games you’ll recognize such as PLO, PLO8, Stud and 2-7 Triple Draw. It was a lot of fun and I was the big winner of the night. Bought in for $80 and cashed out $613 (+533). Not bad for a low stakes cash game!
A week after the cash game, on July 5th to be exact, Parma got hit with a massive rain storm that dropped over 4 inches in less than an hour. Unfortunately, this caused the city sewers to back up and our basement flooded. We lost a lot of things, including 2 of my poker tables, but I was able to save my 2 best tables. Everything was cleaned and sanitized immediately after the flood, so I can still host. We've just been busy and I haven't been able to get a proper game going.
I've played a few times at Julie's house and a few times at Krazy Joe's new house as well. Joe really went all out with his set up. I also joined Doug Poker downtown at the JACK for one of the High Hand promotions. We played O8 to improve our chances of hitting the High Hand. I've always been pretty pessimistic about this promotion, but to my surprise I hit quad Aces and it held for a nice $500 win! The timing was perfect too because someone hit a straight flush a few minutes later.
I've also been dealing regularly at a local home game, which has been fantastic since I'm trying to save extra money to help one of our teenagers get a car. It's a $1/2 PLO/NLHE rotation that plays more like a $2/5 game. I've seen some of the sickest pots at this game... believe me, the action is insane.
Hopefully I get around to posting more updates. I plan to host a handful of games before the end of the year, especially since I have ZERO TOC points.
More to come soon!
I've played a few times at Julie's house and a few times at Krazy Joe's new house as well. Joe really went all out with his set up. I also joined Doug Poker downtown at the JACK for one of the High Hand promotions. We played O8 to improve our chances of hitting the High Hand. I've always been pretty pessimistic about this promotion, but to my surprise I hit quad Aces and it held for a nice $500 win! The timing was perfect too because someone hit a straight flush a few minutes later.
I've also been dealing regularly at a local home game, which has been fantastic since I'm trying to save extra money to help one of our teenagers get a car. It's a $1/2 PLO/NLHE rotation that plays more like a $2/5 game. I've seen some of the sickest pots at this game... believe me, the action is insane.
Hopefully I get around to posting more updates. I plan to host a handful of games before the end of the year, especially since I have ZERO TOC points.
More to come soon!
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