Friday, February 20, 2009

Heading To Florida

Not a very exciting week here in Botswana. I am heading back to the United States this weekend for a Trip to Florida. A buddy of mine, Gary is picking up a car in Florida and bringing it back to New Jersey. I am meeting him in Philadelphia and then we are both flying to Florida and driving back.

I did find out the United States Stimulus package does have grants for Green Energy to be used in Botswana. Our village has applied for those grants. They said it could take a month or two to hear back.

I played some poker this week 8.82 hours and won $320.65 which works out to $36.37 dollars an hour. I had a few nice winning hands which I display below. I did not lose any big hand, just a bunch of middle of the road hands. I am happy with my play this month bringing my total so far to just under $1,000.00. I hope you enjoy the hands.

Got real lucky with this hand



POKERSTARS GAME #25115066755: HOLD'EM NO LIMIT ($1/$2) - 2009/02/19 9:55:15 ET
Table 'Posnania' 9-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: Jan82 ($418 in chips)
Seat 2: jackk frost ($200 in chips)
Seat 3: alix gia ($34.35 in chips)
Seat 4: adecus754 ($199.95 in chips)
Seat 5: studboy1 ($200 in chips)
Seat 6: DUG ($209.25 in chips)
Seat 7: daniela249 ($239 in chips)
Seat 8: threestars ($100 in chips)
Seat 9: Hoffke1970 ($136 in chips)
daniela249: posts small blind $1
threestars: posts big blind $2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DUG [Qs Tc]
Hoffke1970: folds
Jan82: folds
jackk frost: folds
alix gia: folds
adecus754: calls $2
studboy1: folds
DUG: calls $2 Normally would not play this hand but for 2 bucks it is worth it.
daniela249: calls $1
threestars: checks
*** FLOP *** [Ks Qc Qd]
daniela249: bets $10
threestars: folds
adecus754: calls $10
DUG: raises $35 to $45 My guess is one of both of them has a King. So I will over bet to make it look like I have K also which might get me a caller.
daniela249: raises $192 to $237 and is all-in This tells me he has a Q. So is my kicker better. He could have QK but would he go all in with a full house. He could have AQ but if he had that he should have raised preflop. He could have QJ. So those three combination's would beat me. And Q2 – Q9 I am ahead. So I have to call since there are more hands I am ahead of then there are that I am behind.
adecus754: folds
DUG: calls $162.25 and is all-in
Uncalled bet ($29.75) returned to daniela249
*** TURN *** [Ks Qc Qd] [Td] Lucky turn for me as you can see below.
*** RIVER *** [Ks Qc Qd Td] [5c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
daniela249: shows [Qh Ad] (three of a kind, Queens)
DUG: shows [Qs Tc] (a full house, Queens full of Tens)
DUG collected $429.50 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $432.50 | Rake $3
Board [Ks Qc Qd Td 5c]
Seat 1: Jan82 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: jackk frost folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 3: alix gia folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: adecus754 folded on the Flop
Seat 5: studboy1 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: DUG (button) showed [Qs Tc] and won ($429.50) with a full house, Queens full of Tens
Seat 7: daniela249 (small blind) showed [Qh Ad] and lost with three of a kind, Queens
Seat 8: threestars (big blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 9: Hoffke1970 folded before Flop (didn't bet)


Other guy picked the wrong hand to bluff on



POKERSTARS GAME #25042625087: HOLD'EM NO LIMIT ($1/$2) - 2009/02/17 9:42:01 ET
Table 'Tjilaki' 9-max Seat #7 is the button
Seat 1: CoolSerb ($407.75 in chips)
Seat 2: Body Man D ($203 in chips)
Seat 3: kurbli ($200 in chips)
Seat 5: Spagiari ($219.70 in chips)
Seat 6: rishatra ($200 in chips)
Seat 7: DUG ($255.45 in chips)
Seat 8: junior1308 ($197.85 in chips)
Seat 9: jamba83 ($251.70 in chips)
junior1308: posts small blind $1
jamba83: posts big blind $2
Moldal: sits out
rishatra: posts big blind $2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DUG [Qs Qd]
CoolSerb: folds
Body Man D: folds
kurbli: folds
Spagiari: folds
rishatra: checks
DUG: raises $6 to $8
junior1308: folds
jamba83: folds
rishatra: calls $6 This guy is loose could have anything.
*** FLOP *** [6h 9c 7s]
rishatra: checks
DUG: bets $12
rishatra: calls $12 wonder what he has.
*** TURN *** [6h 9c 7s] [Jh]
rishatra: bets $28 Now he is betting. Did he call with 8 T and hit a str8.
DUG: calls $28 If he was not loose I might fold.
*** RIVER *** [6h 9c 7s Jh] [9d]
rishatra: bets $34 I just have a feeling this is a bluff.
DUG: calls $34
*** SHOW DOWN ***
rishatra: shows [Qh Td] (a pair of Nines)
DUG: shows [Qs Qd] (two pair, Queens and Nines)
DUG collected $164 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $167 | Rake $3
Board [6h 9c 7s Jh 9d]
Seat 1: CoolSerb folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: Body Man D folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 3: kurbli folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 5: Spagiari folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: rishatra showed [Qh Td] and lost with a pair of Nines
Seat 7: DUG (button) showed [Qs Qd] and won ($164) with two pair, Queens and Nines
Seat 8: junior1308 (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 9: jamba83 (big blind) folded before Flop

The perfect play



POKERSTARS GAME #25075632478: HOLD'EM NO LIMIT ($1/$2) - 2009/02/18 6:26:58 ET
Table 'Hesperia III' 9-max Seat #8 is the button
Seat 1: DUG ($192 in chips)
Seat 2: elorap ($204.40 in chips)
Seat 3: work4tokes ($45.80 in chips)
Seat 4: kypux ($103.25 in chips)
Seat 5: Gnodrog ($261.40 in chips)
Seat 7: apfush ($35 in chips)
Seat 8: datpiff ($29.80 in chips)
DUG: posts small blind $1
elorap: posts big blind $2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DUG [Ts 6s]
work4tokes: folds
kypux: calls $2
Gnodrog: calls $2
apfush: folds
datpiff: folds
DUG: calls $1 Small Blind worth a buck to see a flop
deledio joins the table at seat #6
elorap: checks
*** FLOP *** [9d Td 6c]
DUG: checks Nice flop hope someone bets.
elorap: checks
kypux: checks
Gnodrog: checks
*** TURN *** [9d Td 6c] [Tc] Awesome turn now I have a Full House
DUG: checks Hope a diamond or club comes on the river and gives someone a flush.
elorap: checks
kypux: checks
Gnodrog: checks
*** RIVER *** [9d Td 6c Tc] [7c] Bingo,
DUG: bets $2 Make a weak bet to entice a raise.
elorap: folds
kypux: raises $8 to $10 Bingo
Gnodrog: folds
DUG: raises $11 to $21
kypux: raises $11 to $32
DUG: raises $122 to $154 He is committed and will go all in.
kypux: calls $69.25 and is all-in
Uncalled bet ($52.75) returned to DUG
*** SHOW DOWN ***
DUG: shows [Ts 6s] (a full house, Tens full of Sixes)
kypux: mucks hand
DUG collected $207.50 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $210.50 | Rake $3
Board [9d Td 6c Tc 7c]
Seat 1: DUG (small blind) showed [Ts 6s] and won ($207.50) with a full house, Tens full of Sixes
Seat 2: elorap (big blind) folded on the River
Seat 3: work4tokes folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: kypux mucked [2c Ac]
Seat 5: Gnodrog folded on the River
Seat 7: apfush folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: datpiff (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)


Cheers,

DUG

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Watch DUG Play Poker Live

I have had many readers ask me to bring back my live web cam so they can watch me play poker. I have added the web cam screen below. Whenever I am playing poker I will make sure it is turned on. Otherwise it will show the view out of my trailer of the water falls near the stream by my village. I hope you enjoy.

Live WebCam from Botswana (may take a minute to connect)



Watch live video from lifeofdug's channel on Justin.tv

Below is a list if Players I won money from or lost money to in January 2009.


PlayerAmountPlayerAmountPlayerAmountPlayerAmount
elorap$527.95Paaapaa$12.00blixtpelle-$3.00savo001-$36.00
x.sebi.x$526.30ROIDRAGES088$11.85dymarko-$3.00pistolero91-$36.00
Co8888$330.00Innocent10$11.80dustinvan-$3.00vincenzo01-$36.25
tiltbad$328.10floxizz$11.65Klairic-$3.00fourboys1-$36.30
ZebAtlas$325.15KKmurdock_hd$11.40blameluck-$3.00SirDocMad-$36.60
DCPMOM$253.85LOS OCHOA$11.30Kinslayer44-$3.00Milwaukee2-$37.95
Mooogie$241.70FourAcesNow$11.20Y_max-$3.00silverfox377-$38.90
jjjooo$223.15RUK1tje$11.15TheXC-$3.00Elvis_Bokito-$39.00
1snowy$219.85KingBoromir$11.00I_h8_p0ker-$3.00LogenX-$40.00
onedown1111$201.00SmartFAB$10.80hongzhong-$3.00leighsy-$40.00
zrlevin$194.70bostonhitman$10.80DownTownMike-$3.00kastortroj-$40.00
Decroglie$192.05magicmike$10.70Inƒamous-$3.00Good2Golf-$40.00
magodeoz84$191.65fab811$10.707.2.08 phil-$3.00BrainSurgent-$40.00
Sandhop$175.55HerbieX101$10.65Achilles1980-$3.00ZonaVx-$40.45
Terrific TMS$172.50runkkari$10.65wildogg2k5-$3.00petermann14-$40.70
Sickcallguy$163.45Kaiser Ronal$10.60mjrnt-$3.00Trolb-$40.95
HeraclioT$162.00thebull242$10.50Michael_M112-$3.00Joe Di Gi-$41.00
Virtucon$161.65Tim'sQTpie$10.45bradster38-$3.00The Piper-$41.00
McFiddish$155.90ItsWayneman$10.40AceBonG-$3.00PizzaFlitza-$41.00
Mattes007$155.65DonPLinc.$10.35lydia12345-$3.00vicy8-$41.10
badgers_uk$154.95noworky$10.15AK_Poker007-$3.30levincenzo-$41.50
Lieut Yang$146.15Callmecaller$10.10labumzerKing-$3.55Corbijn-$41.70
Hawkeye-P.26$141.95jl372$10.10BallsDeepNM-$3.60xoliveoilx-$41.80
Nostromo9366$139.55chokudori$10.00LISTEN-$3.65sarahbellum-$42.00
erod13$136.15horsens p$9.95bet2live-$4.00OrsaGoldhill-$42.00
Serge888$134.00Lundsild$9.75McShoot3r-$4.00mrmonster-$42.05
Mr BenO$132.60Davidos$9.60sisyphus_rex-$4.05Amykos-$43.10
FakieThis$132.45Stiebsie$9.50KillsAids-$4.50gior_3434-$43.95
AlexB182s$131.70Peg2006$9.45imoo88-$4.50xxWARNERxx-$44.20
acegee$$$128.70TheFore$9.45Riverturn69-$4.50godsey34-$45.00
mr.flopswell$123.45JoeIngram1$9.30C1fer-$4.50McAlonso-$45.05
lifegoezon$122.25Sirreve$9.25spelv30-$5.00Ruudiitais-$45.15
Bogeysave$121.00F10PPY$9.15JulienSottas-$5.00drtrevorkian-$45.65
Federer1414$120.25maglehoj$9.05BigPatt22-$5.00schwarmann-$46.15
tycusiyo$120.20UHave_3_Outs$9.00Irexes-$5.00tiago garga-$46.20
Iberico$114.85thomas41on1$9.00swivet-$5.00slapnuts3-$46.45
ncooper03$112.55superdobly$8.95AARiverman72-$5.00HSV1896-$47.00
Yugless$112.50ibiza007$8.90sako71-$5.00van sant-$47.85
pokervl$104.15Edje turbo$8.80Ghisi-$5.00AngKev-$49.00
Crazy Porto$96.00siglos78$8.75micula213-$5.00medhy44-$49.10
matthewp2003$95.25blinded_r$8.706R1CH1ER1CH9-$5.00FunkyJesus-$49.50
chtwu$92.75goemonthe3rd$8.70FANATICOS-$5.00holdemking72-$49.65
Polinikis$92.00MMMbang$8.65Schemeny-$5.20MaxxieW-$51.25
fesar$89.80houston422$8.50LickerGigolo-$5.35noworkteam1-$51.75
bwh123$89.50al gatto$8.35hoer25-$5.40Kreche-$52.25
jwsg1958$86.50survival$8.15HuGaDaS-$5.508fivesuited-$52.25
pokergod2500$86.25szexab$7.50Sharknebulah-$5.60Magdup-$52.55
TheLife$85.90buehl111$7.50ARP79-$5.65T-rickieb-$52.75
VICOMA1983$85.40pamela1987$7.45aBuSingPoKeR-$6.00gonghoe-$52.80
Rudder1ess$84.60TwoSmeets$7.40lllFSlll-$6.00WCGplayer-$53.15
joschaa$84.00funkyworms$7.00jackk frost-$6.00EITAN133-$53.50
campeone$79.05Click&Loose$6.95dickkemp-$6.00Cagliara-$54.50
CHOUKINET$77.00wegzumgluck$6.80ttg8tr-$6.00iceman6767-$54.90
Tricoloren$77.00pythoneer$6.65T@PiSNoIr-$6.00hajal-$55.00
Blueberrix$74.85hazerone$6.65IamTazz-$6.00gosha15-$55.00
nick7300$73.00rogier$6.65sperxxxx-$6.00afc4lif-$55.00
eYeLovErAgS$72.50tireuw$6.55hiphop4ever1-$6.00NarcoCop-$55.00
slickster998$71.00HEDIZZ$6.50CK the 1-$6.00Foxbat3-$55.00
ottintrepid$70.80JJ Pizz$6.40ahks-$6.00johnsonmil-$55.15
2007pipo$69.90bwusalat$6.40goingwell-$6.00cooltools-$55.55
HaLoHaLo$69.20FIRSTPLACE$6.35Nitewin-$6.00leomaniac-$55.85
FirstBrummer$68.10ahh_snap$6.25MaKiaVeli-$6.00amquiguy-$56.20
ChipRick$68.00migueljose80$6.20El_Majico-$6.10thorsten63-$56.95
KidsGotSkill$66.00BruceOxner$6.15bdiddy1007-$6.10vamparis-$57.00
kast295$65.55T-Ghost_Q$6.05rionon-$6.10bahydi-$57.10
Afghani Boy$65.15BiggySpot$6.00jvxxx-$6.15schweinix-$57.50
Bohlicious$65.15k4ci$6.00jryan421-$6.15TimStone-$57.85
lessharm$64.85monkeysdad5$5.95kelz85-$6.25IownUfella-$58.25
The_Puma_xxx$64.70TyB4Cut$5.75wsophereicum-$6.30btui7-$58.60
Scott14$64.40SUKKER882$5.70The Oxbow-$6.30D3LFY-$60.00
finitofl$59.50clw123$5.70peddi304-$6.50MOY26-$60.00
JC-TheGuide$58.90Spy_Lord$5.35martimax-$6.50erich1974-$60.55
kwes-tro$58.30Sackaaa$5.05BoerMarco-$6.5587_owarroS-$61.70
cole_ford$58.25LKlap11$5.00StAnger1337s-$6.55hanker2020-$61.70
UAgainst Me!$57.90Ebi1974$5.00bedias-$6.70Poloten4ik-$62.00
dng_ps$57.85kalimpka$5.00highdelberg-$6.95greenwich-$62.30
peloteur$57.80Pocketcooper$5.00Dave0100-$7.00doc007111-$63.00
NineOne0ne$57.00CEJM 2008$4.95azubic-$7.00scvfighting-$63.30
Sodom$56.25CASTIELLO$4.95AcesWild143-$7.00rredoctober-$64.00
thret$55.80cpehh$4.90Maria_2909-$7.00Hamertje-$65.55
kudelek$54.70amboss1972$4.90LuckySOB-$7.00PrettyPolly-$66.00
Wheels79$54.60paulitschMC$4.80kronenbourg2-$7.25penelopeburg-$67.05
luebcke81$54.30sh1n0bi$4.70VIKSTO-$7.60matthias2102-$68.50
sergei11$53.60efourdee$4.65bigkobby-$7.60Pfropfen-$70.35
bluejean47$52.75Peter Sauk$4.60toka1985-$8.00Larivor-$70.65
Alphteam$52.65bbjoker88$4.50stierl-$8.00Swtwtr25-$72.90
L1n0x$52.50darkesthaven$4.45possborus-$8.00777442-$74.65
[M69]$52.45franaloha$4.40OShatterhand-$8.05Gnodrog-$74.75
GRAND 66$52.30heihun$4.30skoren19-$8.35dnul60-$75.10
djp94$52.00ivoz$4.10NoMoMistake-$8.45RobertFripp2-$75.35
GEMINl$51.60BucVegas$4.05RoloTomasi81-$8.50xTJaxx-$78.30
antonello77$51.10LoliBluff$4.00Hopp1-$8.60Nazarius-$79.80
Redstar18$50.95BigOwen$4.00Billy_Low-$8.65Mr yellow 99-$80.00
ela144$50.30Levinas$3.90liutaurasu-$8.70henkel34-$81.35
tomekz$49.80bjohelg01$3.80xCASH81x-$8.85Akke P.-$82.10
ur_suspect$49.55Man Laws$3.80legendkil111-$9.00kurokitty-$84.00
bukithepro$49.55MR.Roy2$3.70Misza80-$9.00MakeIt3Bets-$84.60
OMGBentley$49.15MrKGBoreoman$3.65Mäki AA-$9.00Flippin'eck-$84.75
dark198391$49.10gwadakira$3.55gerum1802-$9.10wknr1-$84.90
Platon79$49.00CMulls14$3.50AR_GTAm-$9.20TomasQ-$85.00
gilou43x$48.45mbk88$3.20vmx70-$9.35TN_Tigger-$85.00
pete royal$48.05lydia12345$3.10gl79-$9.40longballrick-$86.00
Crazy Marius$47.50king_noth_$3.00JuantotheC-$9.50pornomario6-$86.50
jejemomo$46.85hizintak$3.00ChipRick-$9.50captainkegg-$89.20
Artielpc$46.30Atika$3.00Canadien1993-$9.50RichyRichDic-$91.30
hondizls$45.95jolicoeur75$3.00jessyj-$9.65zemmelke-$91.30
LIONHEARTFF8$45.60greg1983007$2.95o'mightyquin-$9.70Ty_Twadd-$92.40
Abevs883$45.50genan$2.70Timoshi-$10.00JavaElf-$93.00
studboy1$45.30Huxleyy$2.65Bas Mackey-$10.00tobydrago-$97.30
leetenkey$44.65dutchden$2.65ghrman-$10.00magico75-$98.65
M[4][4]$44.55PPMari$2.50guetcec-$10.40Weak Tite-$99.15
Ullahau$44.30vhunter$2.45Metsfan512-$10.60silted-$100.00
pauloaffonso$42.70Gvillebill$2.25TonyF74-$11.00fourcowboys-$100.00
beetge$42.001ee7$2.20davidi24-$11.00devalpin-$102.60
kalash75$42.00pizzatron$2.00forfit49-$11.00DoublePotODD-$103.20
bearnais$41.85Hgh_Ssociety$1.90Romantic1987-$11.405fish-$103.25
bigd10125$41.50TaewYn$1.90utellme12-$11.55Kalka555-$104.00
Michael171$41.10oktay007$1.90jasonbarton-$11.60generalpoker-$105.50
vandep$41.00JuantotheC$1.80El Greco XIX-$12.00fkoopmans-$106.40
ThFischer$40.60wreddrick$1.80dillin.stone-$12.00vinivici9586-$106.55
Maxi_dp4$40.50Bananazoo$1.75hodzsipécs-$12.00AcezRez-$107.30
jrockhaf$40.20RoyalLouwis$1.65surji-$12.00DannyHK-$109.20
sicdrop$40.00pizzatron$1.60glissdaddy-$12.00Nielis90-$109.35
Koldan$40.00coachviking$1.60Keshniel-$12.00Lilcharlie27-$109.90
apfush$39.70mrcl921$1.60Mucky12-$12.00minuut-$110.90
tme03$39.15bantje22$1.55MetalMiah-$12.00msv83-$112.00
bbvg84$39.15+oisn$1.50Churchy1000-$12.05borelaar-$117.00
lanobudi$39.15PokerBumLA$1.50NoLimit4Me1-$12.15JCBxxx-$117.20
Kaiward$39.05Bamak007$1.452009hhh-$12.25Giorgiodjojo-$117.75
aref1981$39.00JaRoJr$1.45Jovanella-$12.25Swtwtr25-$119.05
conrad STYLE$38.90elniñoVII$1.40Billardär-$12.30sofac-$120.00
OleLucky$38.80CasperBolt$1.40Fabel79-$12.40Maxine4444-$120.80
mrtayz$38.00treemonkey39$1.20abi_2000-$12.50chuckk-$121.95
BEFF-01$37.50Sanogo18$1.00gravity_lens-$12.75mac-13579-$122.00
azad_pp$37.40kilmarta$0.90stopme10-$13.00brtnboarder-$125.00
Meff1$36.65bam999$0.90edzwoo-$13.00Maxhilde-$129.00
johnny79$36.00Dave Carlson$0.70getdaragzout-$13.10Churchy1000-$132.00
Nostromo9366$36.00Sn0wking$0.507thChakra-$13.50markwin11-$134.10
SetzerMason$36.00Plus_Jun$0.50pkyman-$13.60darrins25-$138.10
l8rr$34.80Alexmdm$0.15IMSOUNLUCKY2-$13.80Krazynguyen-$141.00
Mark018$34.45Pappi$0.10EPiPeN11-$14.00fietsframe-$141.60
Tixmaster$34.20NopTheFlutz$0.10JoeDirt45-$14.00L C P-$150.00
AAAGOODFLOP$34.05LChong$0.00bibi13100-$14.00breit72-$156.75
Esquire686$34.00jinfi$0.00Baobab_Poker-$14.00studboy1-$167.90
Trabitoni$33.55kufelOne$0.00fripotin-$14.00nufanstar-$171.00
stevetAA$32.75xTJaxx$0.00nagongar-$14.00downgoesdown-$171.30
Berbera$32.05wilkie$0.00cukman2-$14.50egordo-$172.65
chrisemo$31.65VACBlack$0.00filaa-$14.50gbhprods-$177.00
IAMCANDY$31.60yugor$0.00max_c32-$14.70Luxuswasser-$181.80
CaIIer$31.15travarn$0.00Hollatchrboy-$15.00m2nguyen-$182.25
OCV2$30.50jdallasdave$0.00bjao-$15.05BlackFortuna-$195.00
Maschi82$30.40BigBanz13$0.00Marcin7878-$15.20stutzdude-$200.00
elgrenhornet$30.05_973.LIO_$0.00b9fireheart-$15.25souperplus-$219.80
badflop1$30.00timmybuys$0.00William614-$15.45ponchoko-$227.30
Hoffke1970$29.50big WOMpus$0.00Keshniel-$15.50zrlevin-$247.65
fish 69er$29.35UmaWorman$0.00TYJohnRambo-$15.50IntenseDawg-$250.70
traff21$29.10888argo888$0.00Burkinator99-$15.5513_Xerxes_13-$258.00
nobodyisperf$28.85ajrhodes$0.00Philyann-$15.60Tarannon-$335.40
Howgozit$28.80Bbickes$0.00henkynl84-$15.80Skebe-$493.00
yo-Just$28.35qikflipa$0.00Iskender79-$15.90
9tbigbrain$28.1513_Xerxes_13$0.00amazinmets73-$16.50
deiniolenkid$28.00Crazy Bear$0.00jani1182-$16.50
cutter421$27.95Glory7$0.00rev93coach-$16.65
gridhusker$27.55ozzieowen$0.00Patjeritzel-$16.65
skilldream$27.15newrunner26$0.00kbchris10-$16.70
Valse_Triste$27.05Nadl in red$0.00Kaa60-$17.00
pimcy2000$27.00steffel500$0.00czyrsk23-$17.00
miamiste$27.00mwood9999$0.00DonCorleonnn-$17.40
ment52$26.60Fluminho$0.00Goatnapper-$17.45
stab09$26.50Watte$0.00zweihuhn-$17.50
PbI6AK$26.45MisterKriss$0.00Pole2k-$17.50
Poemarbla$25.80jortom2$0.001_lokidog_1-$17.50
ESTPatrick$25.70red kk-$0.15pseftis-$17.55
Call Honey$24.50daz2007-$0.20walter1953-$18.00
rusia26$24.45DEGyuz-$0.20Deceit1-$18.00
cclianne$24.30ksusha2008-$0.30shishanyao-$18.00
Hellfire2222$24.30Zeptheman-$0.40BSabean89-$18.00
TheGraveWolf$24.20TBCrepNY-$0.45wakelife23-$18.75
PitTinnitus$23.75Upay4college-$0.50Monro Mead-$18.95
sourlemur$23.40Jessy880-$0.50Doublesize-$19.00
tellmama$22.80HellNative-$0.50IRISHNIGHTS-$19.00
WhamBam39$22.05^CALLABRIA^-$0.50all_in_4tw-$19.25
Lahsi7$22.05Mantheman-$0.50ariolis30-$19.95
Muri9999$21.85sm0kelm-$0.55yugor-$20.00
dragonik007$21.70CTrane-$0.60Mr.Feze-$20.00
TheLife$21.60Roca Baton-$0.70steffel500-$20.20
heidewerner$21.50tenderized-$0.90sellar-$20.50
vinivici9586$21.30elielyce2-$1.00JO B1 KENOBI-$21.00
alladin123$21.20Anand19-$1.00Stannka-$21.50
camarami$21.10Der.Typ#1-$1.00freexAAA-$21.50
jtodb222$21.05uglyowl-$1.00Monchichi85-$21.80
Ahiles785$20.85trainger-$1.00Bloemdinho-$22.00
Sacrifice51$20.75traffic26-$1.00yeshwana-$22.00
AFD92$20.60JAZMICK-$1.00spongy7-$22.00
newrunner26$20.60Istinkbad-$1.00Caspertron-$22.00
Zween78$20.45stolze-$1.00Mahler2-$22.00
jacko1250$20.35snipper333-$1.00JaceStar-$22.55
Joe Katcher$20.25trout2020-$1.00STOTH-$22.85
imoo88$20.15RingoC-$1.00superGPS-$23.00
Airwolff0815$20.05dimsumboy-$1.00AlwaysTruant-$23.10
cash135$20.00Pellote-$1.00xo*Kisses*xo-$23.50
refeohknarf$20.00PeanutRock-$1.00Spanni77-$23.60
CimkoPro$19.30mendosaaaa-$1.00Scugalen-$23.90
Larivor$19.10FATDAN44-$1.00FangdenRaab-$24.00
ryanj9352$19.05IknowIwin-$1.00makuzu-$24.00
Dr. Fells$18.75@lienware-$1.05I_h8_p0ker-$24.20
IRRATTICUS$18.55yeshwana-$1.15Rokuban-$24.65
kingmrp$18.30Leafs98-$1.50abco22-$25.00
v214$17.75diever#1-$1.50^CALLABRIA^-$25.00
EurekaKid$17.60vermine-$1.50BERLIN2812-$25.40
FMDeKuip$17.55icancyrcrds-$1.50alpur333-$25.50
Jellyshark$17.10Sharukh10-$1.50Ervel-$25.70
denitz21$17.00Pudde2-$1.50triman1951-$26.00
VoodooSG$16.75truplaya_177-$1.50heilikPS-$26.00
fetig2836$16.70Gina1988-$1.50Snaphook-$26.05
xCASH81x$16.65NoLuckSam-$1.50mikedallas23-$26.25
Nide29$16.60niqlas-$1.50dryath-$26.45
mikedallas23$16.25frankiboy71-$1.50StonedMensch-$26.55
ting40$16.25$H4DOWM4$73R-$1.50samiw-$26.55
Sonderling$16.00yoshmitsu-$1.50IchLiebeDich-$27.80
mexmex$15.55apfush-$1.50justiceAA-$27.85
BigJer300$15.35WojtasPolak-$1.60siIver11-$28.00
Tomaszek$15.25Sig Pig 88-$1.65johnico22-$28.60
edcv#$15.20bmaverick04-$2.00bornAlooser-$28.80
ussmees$15.05Dak9885-$2.00cn_chayanne-$28.95
Carletheman$14.90snooshy80-$2.00GERAKLmeat-$29.15
Federer1414$14.80pvjhh-$2.00A PokerPhool-$29.40
LAWLSHOVE$14.50ADZ122-$2.00huiser-$29.45
Blindstieler$14.45mecky1337-$2.00rascio73-$29.70
pro-frog$14.35farshmashine-$2.00wido71-$30.00
Alvinius$14.30Fantomet-$2.00thomasajax-$30.00
fileasfog$14.30fantenero69-$2.00Fundy88-$30.00
pv1031$14.20Ervel-$2.00Choco86-$30.25
humpallot$14.15Zycho_flo-$2.20FrenzyPanda-$30.30
coolzero35$14.00jcwd77-$2.25Guetsi-$30.45
Nole91$14.005fish-$2.45Danielpepino-$31.00
leebur$13.60antiboydino-$2.50peppecochino-$31.80
shipitkkthx$13.30BobNoWay-$2.50BriPC23-$32.35
BillyKone$13.25Walli54-$2.50parkaz-$32.40
EMPshockwave$13.15Seadoo777-$2.50DrMania27-$33.00
Plusch$13.15ccegchu-$2.50Naato88-$33.00
Peoplez3:16$13.05Wilkall-$2.50cap. marb-$33.25
TrifilaraG13$13.05ypayfomydope-$2.65Ede Pastete-$33.35
Sephirot88$12.95hodge05-$2.65zagagolfer15-$33.55
BigAl316$12.90pfkaok-$2.70iagrandpa44-$33.55
soltan-poker$12.80Vzcouver-$2.75velvetmadman-$34.00
marceli55$12.80Luxuswasser-$3.00mvra-$34.00
TYROMPER$12.60lucky27cuss-$3.00ypayfomydope-$35.25
josanza$12.30Bogeysave-$3.00ElDynamo-$35.50
fees22$12.25LordAnublz-$3.00kissthefrog1-$36.00

Friday, February 13, 2009

Week of February 9th the Elders go to the Casino

We did a lot of planning for our village this week, now that we have two compost toilets operational we started advancing our energy plan. We have seen nice success with the solar panel on the compost toilet and feel we have the space and the correct amount of sunlight to put up a solar array. We feel one large solar array will take care of our energy needs. We have decided we do not want to go with batteries to store the energy, as our overall plan dictates that we have a zero or negative carbon foot print. The manufacturing of batteries and the disposal of batteries has a huge negative impact on the environment.

We are not in a very windy area of Botswana, but the winds do pick up in the evenings. So to take care of our energy needs when the sun is not shining, we will use win power, we feel that one large windmill will do the trick. We only need to power two refrigerators, one the medicine man (herbalist) uses and the other one we store beer in. Both refrigerators will stay cold for some time without power. The other use of the energy is to power my computer and two we plan to buy sometime in the future for the school. The plan is to buy laptops so they have battery back-ups built in. We know our plan may leave gaps during the day or more likely at night that we may not have power at times, but we all agreed this plan was much better then what we had today and would work for us for a very long time.

Another issue that has been brought up to the elders is water, we have plenty of water as a large stream flows by our village, the issue is the women and children have to carry jugs of water up each day to the village (see pictures). So as we look at windmills for energy it has been suggested that look to see if any can be used to power a mechanical pump, powerful enough to pump water from the stream to the village. So we have added this to our list of needs on the energy plan.

The next phase is to start investigating what is available and what the cost will be. We have also been notified by the Botswana Government that the Stimulus Package the United States might pass has grants for African villages that are investing in Green Energy sources it looks like we might qualify for some of these grants. You got to love the politicians in the United States, if they can think of a way to spend money they will.

If you would like to make a donation to any of these projects please just hit the donate button, we are just looking for pennies to help out.





Two of the top elders Nami and Chuata got burned out by all this planning and depressed by the thoughts of what the costs might be. We have rebuilt our treasury somewhat through donations, but it is not at the two year surplus we now required. To help reduce their stress and to help raise funds I suggested we go to the Casino that Big Bill Ludwick and I went to a few months back. Nami is a math wiz and I thought he would be able to make it into the money at the tournament.

We took the bus to Gaborone and went to the Grand Palm Casino. As I mentioned before there is a lot of corruption at this casino and you do not want to win, but coming in the money is fine. Chuata got knocked out fairly earlier, I made it to one before the money, Nami made it to 13th and won $380.00 U.S. Dollars, this is a fortune for our village and took a lot of stress off the elders. The elders know I am a professional poker player and were confused as to how Nami was able to go further then I.

At some point I will explain why I am good at cash games and not very good at tournaments, but we will save that for another day.

As far as on-line poker this week, with all the planning I did not get to play that much, but still had a very nice week. I player 7.58 hours and won $325.50 which gives me an hourly of $42.92. I had no big losing hands and I had one big winning hand where the poker gods paid me off real nicely. See hand below.




POKERSTARS GAME #24771267841: HOLD'EM NO LIMIT ($1/$2) - 2009/02/09 20:15:13 ET
Table 'Gyptis VII' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: Spuckie ($207.30 in chips)
Seat 2: HowHai ($201.05 in chips)
Seat 3: John_Kerry ($198.70 in chips)
Seat 4: MeleaB ($212.60 in chips)
Seat 5: dps813 ($192 in chips)
Seat 6: kilmarta ($200 in chips)
Seat 7: johnny79 ($316.10 in chips)
Seat 8: DUG ($283.40 in chips)
Seat 9: icp2044 ($53 in chips)
dps813: posts small blind $1
kilmarta: posts big blind $2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DUG [Ac Ah]
johnny79: folds
DUG: raises $6 to $8 Table has been somewhat tight so I make a standard raise hoping for a caller.
icp2044: folds
Spuckie: folds
HowHai: calls $8 Good
John_Kerry: folds
MeleaB: calls $8 Not so good
dps813: calls $7 Did not want three callers
kilmarta: folds
*** FLOP *** [2d 9c 6h] ok flop a possible straight draw if someone called with 78. My biggest worry did someone call with 22, 99 or 66.
dps813: bets $15
DUG: calls $15 Good chance someone has TT so I want to keep the betting going.
HowHai: raises $29 to $44
MeleaB: calls $44
dps813: folds
DUG: calls $29 I have to call look at my odds about 5 to 1. The pot is now close to 200.
*** TURN *** [2d 9c 6h] [8d] This card does not scare me.
DUG: checks Let the aggressor keep betting.
HowHai: checks
MeleaB: bets $70 What I expected he is committed now so I will get him to put all his chips in.
DUG: raises $70 to $140 I could of went all in, but I knew this would do the same thing and confuse him, I sure hope he does not have pocket 99’s
HowHai: folds
MeleaB: raises $20.60 to $160.60 and is all-in
DUG: calls $20.60
*** RIVER *** [2d 9c 6h 8d] [As] Awesome river, see below the poker gods were on my side.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
DUG: shows [Ac Ah] (three of a kind, Aces)
MeleaB: mucks hand
DUG collected $499.20 from pot Almost a $500.00 pot.
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $502.20 | Rake $3
Board [2d 9c 6h 8d As]
Seat 1: Spuckie folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: HowHai folded on the Turn
Seat 3: John_Kerry folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: MeleaB (button) mucked [9d 9s]
Seat 5: dps813 (small blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 6: kilmarta (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 7: johnny79 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: DUG showed [Ac Ah] and won ($499.20) with three of a kind, Aces
Seat 9: icp2044 folded before Flop (didn't bet)

Cheers,

DUG

Monday, February 9, 2009

Thanks to Chephart Yosh the second Compost Toilet is complete

This week was a busy week we completed our second compost toilet. We got a very generous donation from Chephart Yosh that allowed us to build our second compost toilet. (see picture) As you can see we went with a different model this time, this model was about half the cost of our first toilet and does not require any ventilation since it is much more open. With the moderate climate in Botswana this should work fine. We had a meeting with the village elders and we are going to try these two models for a month and then decided which version to use for the next three toilets.

With the cost overruns for our first toilets we are still trying to re-build our treasury. If you would like to donate to DUG’s village any amount would be appreciated, just pennies will help. Just click on the donate button.


Please Donate to DUG's Village




Poker this week was good, won $254.30 I played 17.87 hours to give me an hourly rate of $14.23. I still have some work to do to make up for the hit I took in January, but I am confident I will make up ground. Below are my worst and best hands for the week.

On the worst hand it may look like I made the right decision to call his all in bet. While I had the best hand right then, I had a 45% chance to win. So I was betting $163.00 to win $406.00 so it clearly was the right move. At the same time jolicoeur75 made the right move since he was 53% chance to win with a 2% chance to tie. He had 9 outs with 9 unknown clubs for a flush, any 3 (4 or them) for a straight, any Ace (3 of them) for a pair of Aces. That gives him 16 outs. They poker gods were on his side this hand.

BEST HAND (detail or the hand if below)


WORST HAND (detail of the hand if below)



POKERSTARS GAME #24590416386: HOLD'EM NO LIMIT ($1/$2) - 2009/02/04 13:30:09 ET
Table 'Dardanos' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: DUG ($197 in chips)
Seat 2: barc58 ($80 in chips)
Seat 3: herby25 ($122.65 in chips)
Seat 4: BoBo1959 ($307.90 in chips)
Seat 5: ChipRick ($200.80 in chips)
Seat 6: brtnboarder ($200 in chips)
Seat 7: ibiza007 ($200 in chips)
Seat 8: Cookeman ($226.80 in chips)
Seat 9: Renton555 ($209.35 in chips)
brtnboarder: posts small blind $1
ibiza007: posts big blind $2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DUG [8h 8s]
Cookeman: raises $4 to $6
Renton555: calls $6
DUG: calls $6
barc58: folds
herby25: calls $6
BoBo1959: folds
ChipRick: folds
brtnboarder: calls $5
ibiza007: folds
*** FLOP *** [Qh 2h 8d]
brtnboarder: checks
Cookeman: bets $24
Renton555: calls $24
DUG: raises $71 to $95
herby25: folds
brtnboarder: folds
Cookeman: raises $125.80 to $220.80 and is all-in
Renton555: folds
DUG: calls $96 and is all-in
Uncalled bet ($29.80) returned to Cookeman
*** TURN *** [Qh 2h 8d] [6h]
*** RIVER *** [Qh 2h 8d 6h] [Jd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Cookeman: shows [As Qc] (a pair of Queens)
DUG: shows [8h 8s] (three of a kind, Eights)
DUG collected $435 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $438 | Rake $3
Board [Qh 2h 8d 6h Jd]
Seat 1: DUG showed [8h 8s] and won ($435) with three of a kind, Eights
Seat 2: barc58 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 3: herby25 folded on the Flop
Seat 4: BoBo1959 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 5: ChipRick (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: brtnboarder (small blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 7: ibiza007 (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 8: Cookeman showed [As Qc] and lost with a pair of Queens
Seat 9: Renton555 folded on the Flop

POKERSTARS GAME #24524266755: HOLD'EM NO LIMIT ($1/$2) - 2009/02/02 9:51:56 ET
Table 'Mauritia III' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: alladin123 ($88 in chips)
Seat 2: DUG ($218.45 in chips)
Seat 3: SwimLILFISHY ($244.55 in chips)
Seat 4: aceacet ($175.45 in chips)
Seat 5: lllFSlll ($95 in chips)
Seat 8: AFV75 ($200 in chips)
Seat 9: jolicoeur75 ($203 in chips)
aceacet: posts small blind $1
lllFSlll: posts big blind $2
ArCaNiS23: sits out
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to DUG [Jh Js]
AFV75: folds
jolicoeur75: raises $6 to $8
alladin123: folds
DUG: calls $8
SwimLILFISHY: folds
aceacet: folds
lllFSlll: folds
*** FLOP *** [2c 5c 4c]
jolicoeur75: bets $14
DUG: raises $18 to $32
jolicoeur75: raises $163 to $195 and is all-in
DUG: calls $163
*** TURN *** [2c 5c 4c] [7c]
*** RIVER *** [2c 5c 4c 7c] [6d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
jolicoeur75: shows [Jd Ac] (a flush, Ace high)
DUG: mucks hand
jolicoeur75 collected $406 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $409 | Rake $3
Board [2c 5c 4c 7c 6d]
Seat 1: alladin123 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 2: DUG mucked [Jh Js]
Seat 3: SwimLILFISHY (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: aceacet (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 5: lllFSlll (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 8: AFV75 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 9: jolicoeur75 showed [Jd Ac] and won ($406) with a flush, Ace high


Cheers,

DUG

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Playing Pocket Pairs the Do’s and Don’ts and My Pocket Pairs for 2008

First a couple videos to educate you and entertain you.



Video of KK vs QQ vs AA


Phil on playing small pocket pairs



What are Pocket pairs? In No-Limit Texas Holdem you are dealt 2 hold cards. These are 2 cards that only you can see. Then there are 5 community cards that are dealt face up. Everybody sees these cards and can use these cards. Whoever can make the best 5 card hand using their 2 hold cards and the 5 community cards wins the game.

When your 2 hold cards pair, you have 2 cards of the same value (strength), it is known as having a pocket pair you have a pair in your pocket.

There are many different strategies on playing pocket pairs. I will review my strategy and then out line another strategy I have seen played.

I break pocket pairs in to several categories.

Top Premium Pocket Pairs AA and KK
Premium Pocket Pairs QQ and JJ
Top Pocket Pairs TT and 99
Medium Pocket Pairs 88 – 66
Bottom Pocket Pairs 55 – 44
Garbage Pocket Pairs 33 – 22

I break pocket pairs into more categories then most poker players. There are no set rules on playing pocket pairs as with any hand much depends on your position at the table, what action has happened so far, what the other players are like at the table, loose, tight, passive, and aggressive. Do you want to help create a certain image?

The below hand is a good example of how I played my pocket pair differently then I normal would because I wanted to have an effect on the table, and the player and my position set this up perfectly. Let me explain, and then you can run through the hand.

I had been at the table for about 20 hands and besides the blinds I had not played a hand. Justiceaa was very loose and called or raised almost every hand. NopTheFlutz was a very good player and very tight. So when everybody folded to Justiceaa and Justiceaa made a 4 blind raise, I knew there was a high probability that his hand was worse then mine, since most random hands are worse then TT. When NopTheFlutz just called the raise, I new he had some kind of draw, if he had a hand like JJ, QQ, KK or AA he would have raised, as I said NopTheFlutz was a good player and I am sure he knew that Justiceaa would call any raise, so if he had a very strong hand he would have raised to reduce down the number of players and build the pot. If I did not know much about these players I would have just called, but I raised for 2 reasons. 1) I knew Justiceaa would call and NopTheFlutz would fold, I was somewhat confident the Big Blind and Small Blind would fold unless they had KK or AA and maybe AK which was not likely. 2) I wanted to go to showdown, so that the table would see I am willing to make a huge over bet with pocket ten’s.

The way other players perceive you is important to understand and control, so in the above situation I was playing to win the hand, but also the circumstance was perfect to make it look like I am willing to make a very large raise after a raiser and caller with only pocket Ten’s, which under normal circumstances I would not do. But because of this play in future hands when I make a big raise the perceived range of hands that other players would put me on is now wider then what in reality I might have. View the hand and you will understand my strategy.



Let me break each category of Pocket Pairs down for you and how I would play them.

Top Premium Pocket Pairs AA and KK

Pocket Aces and Kings will win about 90%, and 85% of the time, when against one other player (heads up) in fact if you look at my statistics below you will see that last year I had Pocket Aces 260 times and won 92% and Pocket Kings 253 times and won 79%. The key here is when playing against one other player. The chances of winning go down exponentially for each additional player in the hand. So what you want to do is build a big pot, but at the same time only have one player in the hand before the flop comes.

I have seen players limp in time after time from early position with both AA and KK, only to get 8 callers to follow them. The flop then comes 3h 3d 4c and they lose their whole stack to the Big Blind who had 3c 4h. I also have seen players make a big raise from early position only to have everybody fold to them and then be all upset that they only won the blinds. Out of every 213 hands you should get one pair of Aces and one pair of Kings, so it is important you play them correctly.

Another important fact is to accomplish the above goal while concealing to the other players what your cards are. Look at the below hand.





Now Studboy1 made a huge mistake. His limp in was a bad choice. As I mentioned above limping in with Aces or Kings can be a big mistake, what happens if you do not get raised? So you only want to limp in if you know there is a loose aggressive player at the table that has a high probability of raising. This particular table was tight and had good solid players, so a raise was only coming if a player had a very good hand, pair above 10’s, AK, AQ and maybe AJ. If he would have just made a standard raise of say 3 – 5 blinds, he still might have gotten a caller (me) but I would not known where I stood.

Instead he got one raiser ar_gtam and then I called him. So why did I just call? Remember I have a few goals, build the pot, disguise my hand, and get down to just two players. By calling I am guaranteed to succeed at 2 of the goals, build the pot and disguise my hand, I have about a 50/50 chance of getting down to 2 players and I have no idea if Studboy1 would call or fold.

Now the biggest mistake Studboy1 made was making a big re-raise after I called. He was going to accomplish 2 goals, but at the same time he was telling us all what cards he had. The only cards you would limp in with and then re-raise a raiser and caller are KK, AA, QQ, maybe JJ and maybe AK. So Studboy1 built the pot, reduced the players to 2 and showed me his cards.

The rest is history. If he would have just called, then checked the flop as he would have been first to act and then raised us when one of us bet he might have won the hand by representing he had called the preflop bet with pocket Tens, Pocket 7’s or even Pocket 3’s. He might have gotten one or both of us to lay our hands down. Instead he lost 200 dollars.

So when playing pocket AA’s and KK’s my strategy is to get down to just one player, figure out what cards they have, and keep betting while you are ahead and check or fold if you are behind. Remember if you go to the river the average winning hand is 2 pair, so if you have just your pair of Aces at the river you are below average.

Premium Pocket Pairs QQ and JJ

These cards can kill you, while they are nice hand to have I do not like going past the flop with them and if an Ace or King shows on the flop I make sure I test for someone hitting the flop. I follow the same strategy as Aces and Kings as far as getting down to 2 players and building the pot. The one exception is I might check the flop with pocket Aces and Kings (slow play) depending on my position at the table to the other player, where with Jacks and Queens I rarely would.

The biggest difference between Queens and Jacks vs. Aces and Kings, you can fall in love (not fold no mater what) with Aces and Kings and over time you will still be ok, if you fall in love with Queens and Jacks over time you will go bankrupt.

With all four hand Aces, Kings, Queens, and Jack, If I am first to act I limp in about 10% of the time and raise 90%, I need to do this so other players can not read me. My raise is anywhere from 3 blinds on up, just depending on what I think I can get called by just one player or get a raise by a player.

Top Pocket Pairs TT and 99
Medium Pocket Pairs 88 – 66
Bottom Pocket Pairs 55 – 44

I will talk about all these hand together and give you the slight differences. The key to these hand are you would love to hit a set (3 of a kind) on the flop. While Ten’s and 99’s can stand on there own, if there are no high cards on the flop, it would be very hard for pairs below eights to win by the river without hitting a set, or be part of a straight or maybe even a flush. I raise 70% of the time with tens and nines if I am first to act and call about 30% of the time. I will call most preflop bets unless it is a huge re-raise. I will fold to an all in bet from a short stack unless I know the player and believe they might go all in with anything.

Eights to sixes, I will just call 80% of the time and raise 20% of the time if I am first to act. I will only call a raise if the player has in his stack 20 times what his raise is and I also have that much. The reason for this is that I will hit a set 1 out of 7 times on the flop. So in order to be getting the right odds to win over time, I need to make sure when I hit my set and get at least 7 times the raise added to the pot before the river. I believe this will happen about 1 out of 3 times I hit my set, this is the reason I like to see 20 times the raise in the players stack.

Fives to fours, I call 90% of the time and raise 10% of the time if I am first to act. Again I will only call a raise if the player and I both have 20 times the raise in our stacks, for the same reasons as above. You need to be very careful with pocket 4’s and 5’s as they can easily be counterfeited. What that means is you think you have a pair, but two higher pair end up on the board so your cards just become the kicker. See the below hand and you will understand, until the river my opponent had the best hand, but after the queen hit on the river the only hand he could bet was a pair of 2’s or 2 3. Any other hand beat him. Watch the hand and you will understand.



All or these hands are hands you must not fall in love with. This next hand is an example of a player falling in love with pocket tens. Remember a mistake in poker is when you would do something different if you knew what cards were in your opponent’s hand. When I made the re-raise on the flop, d3lfy gave me the right odds to call his all in. If he would have waited for the turn and it was not a spade it might have been a tougher call for me.

Preflop I called because of the great odds (4 to 1) I was getting I knew the small blind would call and I would have position after the flop. After the flop I hit my 9 but that did not mean I had the best hand and I was pretty sure it was not best. The larger then pot size raise by d3lfy said he had a hand, most likely and over pair, and I want to chase any draws away. At that point he was a favorite 51% to 48% a coin toss. If he has QQ, KK, or AA it he was a much greater favorite as 3 of my outs (q’s) would be gone. If he would have just called instead of pushing all in, he may have saved himself 18 dollars when the spade hit on the turn, he might have felt pot committed at that point, it is hard to say. Or if he did not fall in love with his Ten’s he might have put me on a pair of 9’s, 7’s or 5’s all or which would have had him crushed.




Garbage Pocket Pairs 33 – 22

Simply the name says it all, fold 90% of the time play 10% and fold or check to the river. If you hit a set someone could have a better one, if you hit a straight someone could have a better one, if you hit a flush some most likely has a better one. The follow hand says it all.
Pocket 3’s




I have seen some players play another strategy with pocket pairs they play them all the same. If they are first to act they raise to 4 blinds, no matter what the pocket pair. After the flop they make a pot size bet no matter what the flop is. If they get raised they will fold unless they have a premium pair or better, or hit a set. If there was a raiser before them preflop then they will make a 3 times the pot raise, after the flop they will do just as above. Since they play all pairs the same way it is very hard to play against them. I have not tried this strategy so I can not tell you if they make money at it or not.

Cheers,

DUG

P.S. Below shows my win / lose with pocket pairs for last year 2008.

HandTimes DealtWin %Amount Won
AA26092.31%$4,086.55
KK25379.84%$1,657.50
QQ22275.68%$651.25
JJ24872.58%$732.40
TT22754.19%$9.40
9923342.49%-$258.35
8825844.19%$460.40
7724442.21%$118.15
6624139.42%-$281.35
5525732.30%-$207.10
4423523.40%-$331.40
3326817.91%$245.30
2225211.51%-$66.15