Category Archives: Poker Personalities

Posts about people in poker

Swedetooth vs Röfls in HU4RLZ Challenge

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The much anticipated “Duel Down Under HU4RLZ Challenge” is just around the corner.  For reasons only Dr. Phil could understand, Swedetooth decided to challenge Max Röfls to a showdown that is expected to be nothing short of a complete beatdown.

Seriously, what is he thinking?

For those of you that don’t remember Swedetooth is that break even donk that somehow managed to win the Sunday Mega-Millions a few months ago for $1.2 Million.  Since that point, he donated a substantial portion of that roll to TurkeyJerkey.  Yes, the same TurkeyJerkey that lost $2 Million in 80 hands back in October.

The challenge was issued as the result a bar spat at Aussie Millions.  Reports have it that Swedetooth took exception to some needling from Röfls and issued the challenge.

WHAT…THE…FUCK!!!!

Dude, are you serious?  Röfls has 6 bracelets, all in different games.  In addition, he wrote “Let There be Triple Range Merge,” which is only the 2nd most successful poker book behind Super System.  Rumor has it that Doyle has asked him to write the Hold’em chapter on Super System III after Doyle finally passes away in 2013.  He is Phil Ivey lite.

In all fairness, I have contacted a few of my fellow media colleagues and various pros to get their take on the upcoming match.  Here is what some of them had to say:

@Kevmath – “Normally I would say that on any given day that a pro could take down a heads-up challenge.  The problem is that I grew my micro-roll playing Swedetooth, so I know how much he sucks.  He has about as much chance of winning this as Daniel Negreanu does of being invited to the Duke family dinner.”

Gary Wise – ESPN (@Garywise1) – Is this the same guy that was the first guy knocked out the Aussie Millions?  If he couldn’t beat TurkeyJerkey, what makes him think he can beat a legitimate pro?  A win by Swedetooth would not be an upset, it would be the biggest travesty in live poker.

Phil Hellmuth – I was joking around the other day and asked some friends, “Would you rather back me in Stud or put money on Swedetooth to beat Röfls.”  My stud games at the WSOP are now rolled through 2015.

Doyle Brunson – I once said that sometimes you have to go out on a limb because that is where the fruit is.  Well, this kid Swedetooth is about to be plucked.

Barry Greenstein – Max should consider giving his winnings from this challenge to charity.  I mean seriously, how good can you fell about taking money from a kid who couldn’t buy a combo from McDonalds with his lifetime poker winnings.  Use the money to buy some Happy Meals for children.

The Jess and BJ show set the line on number of hands played at 95.  Jess Wellman took the over and BJ Nemeth decided to take the under.  He said that Swedetooth would last about 60 hands.

Personally, I have to agree with BJ Nemeth.  I think that this will be a short match with Swedetooth leaving penniless.  Röfls should come into the match to WWE Chairman Vince McMahon’s theme song of “No Chance In Hell” as that song sums up Swedetooth’s chances.

Anyone disagree?  It won’t matter if you do cause you will be wrong.  Trust me.

Disclaimer:  The Food and Drug Administration had nothing to do with this blog post.  Why would they?  It is about a online animated series.  The views, quotes, and opinions expressed in this blog are about as real as Pamela Anderson’s boobs.  And please, would the guy in Oklahoma that keeps sending me week old socks please stop?  It’s just creepy.

Tunica, Online Poker, and Holy Crap – I Played a Home Game

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I got back late on the 5th from my trip to Tunica to cover the WSOP-C for PokerNews.com.  It was a decent trip overall.  I didn’t play poker but twice.  I played one cash game and finished ahead and busted out of the only satellite I played in.  The satellite was just for giggles mostly and to say that I at least played at the circuit this year.

The tournament had a decent turnout, but the numbers were still down from last year.  The field that came out was a strong field nonetheless.  Gavin Smith, Bill Edler, Matt Stout, Kathy Liebert, Allen Kessler,  “Captain” Tom Franklin, and Jason Potter all came out. There were also some tournament regulars there as well that you see all around the circuit.  Heading down to three tables, it looked like we might have a pro stacked final table.  In the end, only Matt Stout and Mike Leah were the only true professionals at the table.  We all were pulling for Stout to take it down, but he was knocked out in third.

I got several compliments on my coverage of the event.  A couple of different people came up to me at the final table and was quoting my blogs back verbatim.  Matt Stout even gave me a shout out in the shout box.  That was appreciated.  Hopefully I will get to cover some other circuit events before the beginning of the WSOP.  Considering that it took 6 months to get this one, the prospects don’t look bright.  However, I am available if needed.

Lately, I have been trying to pull the same type of stunt that both Chris Ferguson and Daniel Negreanu have been doing.  They both started out at micro stakes and tried to build up a bankroll.  The difference is that I am trying to do so in Stud 8 or Better.  I have discovered that I may be in for a long road to hoe.  My sessions have been up and down lately and it is becoming apparent that I need to stick to a tighter strategy.  I have been tinkering with my game a bit in NL and in Stud 8 and I notice that in Stud 8, I am leaking off chips.  Typical beginner leaks that I know are there but I have been ignoring because the leaks may cost me literally a buck at the most when I have them.  Of course, when I am hitting, I am hitting decent.  The problem is that I cannot play like that long term in a limit game and hope to be successful long term.  Honestly, I have already decided what I am going to do, but I just wanted to ramble a little bit.

For the first time in almost two years, I played a home game last night.  A friend of mine hosted five other people and we played a “Dealer’s Choice” home game.  Of course, every hand I dealt was Stud 8.  With the exception of myself and one other player, all of these players were utter novices to poker.  One didn’t even know a flush lost to a straight.  As a result, I played very very loose to begin with.  How loose?  I called with a J-10-9 offsuit in Stud 8 on third with 3 low cards up.  That’s how loose.  I ended up making a straight and nobody made low.

This group play uber loose and somewhat aggressive at times.  They also played a wide mix of games.  The oldest guy at the table played 5 card Draw and 5 card Stud almost every time.  I didn’t play a single hand of 5 Stud.  The guy that didn’t know a flush beat a straight liked to play this wierd Indian Cross poker.  I basically only played the deal unless I hit the board super hard.

The hand that I won the biggest pot on was a variation of blind man’s bluff.  Yes, I am talking about where you take a card and put it on your forehead and bet according to what you see.  Well, the first card was dealt and I looked around and the highest card I saw was a 10.  At this point, I am thinking that I will stick in this hand and take a 2nd card and see what develops.  There is a raise and everyone calls.  Then a 2nd card is dealt.   I take a look around and the best hand is 10-6 out of the other 5 players.  I decided that I would pump the pot at this point, and I did.  I got four bets out of the remaining 4 players in the hand.  When we showed down, I just said “I win” before even looking at my cards.  Everyone was in shock.   I explained that everyone had a 10 high or lower and the odds of my not having a face card were long.  Also, I picked up a non-verbal tell from another player that told me that he feared my hand against everyone else’s.  Oh by the way, my hand was J-10.  I beat them with Jack high!!!

I was up probably double my buy-in and then gave a little of it back on a couple of hands where I had a 4 low in stud 8 and couldn’t catch.  I still finished up 3/4 of a buy-in.  In the end, I called it a night when every hand was being played with wild cards.  When there are wild cards, that eliminates the skill factor and makes it a total game of luck.  The good thing is that I picked up some tells and betting patterns of players.  The next time I go to play in two weeks, I’ll probably do as well or better.

A New Year, My West Coast Trip, and Changes

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James in Virginia City

First, I realize that I have not updated this blog since November. I just haven’t taken the time to do so. So, with that being said, I thought I would take some time and give you an update on my trip out west and my life in general.

Overall, my trip out west turned out well. The first day was a little shaky due to my plane getting grounded due to engine problems. However, after arriving to Vegas 8 hours late, I got to my hotel. The rooms at the 4 Queens were much nicer than I expected for the amount I paid. Nice pillow top beds and big plasma TV’s. Room service was also reasonably prices. Other than Subway, I mostly ate room service. (Subway ended up being higher than room service was on some occasions. Go figure.)

The Grand convention area inside of the Golden Nugget was a nice place to hold an event. I enjoyed my time at the Nugget. I wound up finishing 9th in one H.O.R.S.E. event and finished 5th in the Mixed Event. Unfortunately, the 5th place finish did not garner me any money due to only 21 players registering for the event. The event paid 3 spots. The H.O.R.S.E. event paid 9. While it appeared I just squeaked in the money, that was far from the case. Two players were much shorter than I was when we got to the money, but as things turned out, the short stacks kept doubling and I stayed card dead. I could have made the final table if I folded the last hand I played, but thats how it goes.

The same week I cashed at the Nugget, I finished 4th in a H.O.R.S.E. event at Green Valley Ranch. Again, I had enough chips to make the top three but the guy in 4th place went on an amazing run of cards. I can’t complain too much. I played well, made the final table, and cashed.

After Vegas, I went to Los Angeles for a few days. I decided to play in two events at the Bike. The first was an Omaha 8 or Better event. That event I never could get anything going and went out on back to back hands when my kings full ran into aces full and then my flopped set of kings was outdrawn by a Royal Flush. I was all in on the flop in the Royal Flush hand. Hey, if I am going to lose, thats the way to lose. The next day, I played in an Omaha 8 weekly tourney at Hawaain Gardens and finished 12th in that one. Unfortunately it paid 10. That tournament had an insane structure where with 20 players left, the chip leader of the tournament had only 10 big bets. The big stack at my table had 4. I had 2 big bets and I had 4,500 chips.

The Limit Holdem tournament at the Bike was the last event I played in L.A. This event had its ups and downs, but I went on a big of a run about mid way of the event to build a nice stack. I was able to make the money in the event and eventually finish 12th place. If I would have won one more pot late in the event, I would have made the final table as we made the final table about 10 minutes after I busted. It was cool though. I played well in the event and got my 15th pro cash. I don’t know what it is about Vegas and Los Angeles that makes me perform so well, but I seem to step up my game out there.

My goal for the trip poker wise was to cash twice with 1 final table at the Nugget and to cash once in L.A. I wound up making 1 cash and 1 final table in Vegas. Of course, I ended up playing 3 fewer events than I had planned. I played 3 events as opposed to 6 events. The cash at Green Valley I don’t count since it does not count towards lifetime stats. Since I played fewer events in Vegas, I consider myself as hitting my goal. The L.A. trip, I met my goal.

After leaving L.A., I drove out to Reno to check it out. Reno is basically a smaller version of Vegas. It was ok, but I only played in one casino out there. I played at the Peppermill, where I played a couple hours at $3-$6 Omaha 8. It was a decent game, but after a couple of hours, I was bored. The Limit Holdem table had 15 names on it, so I left. The next day, I decided to head out to Virginia City, NV.

First, I stopped at the Fandango Casino in Carson City, NV. I had to pass a couple of hours before I could check into my hotel, so I decided to play in the Noon No Limit tourney. $35 with rebuys to the final table. I get into the room to play and the guy running the event is familiar. I ask him how I might know him and he tells me he used to run the tournaments at the Bike. RUBEN!!!! I then remember him and reminded him about how I was the guy that wanted to play stud satellites all the time. He then remembered me. We both asked each other, “What are you doing out here.” I told Ruben about my reasons, and I found out from him that he was retired and just took the job at the Fandango cause the area was so laid back. He was right. This was a 3 table poker room and we didn’t fill the tables. As far as the tournament, I was one of the chip leaders until a hand with 11 players left where a guy went all in against me with middle pair against my top pair. He got lucky and paired his kicker and I was crippled. I then managed a double up just shy of the final table. I did not rebuy since I didn’t want to waste any more money on a tourney that will pay only three spots. My final hand, I get 9-2 in the big blind and see a free flop. I flop top pair and push. Unfortunately, my opponent held Q-9 and busted me. This is the same guy that got lucky against me earlier. Anywho, while I wasn’t happy with how things turned out, I couldn’t complain too much. Just before the tournament, I hit two four of a kinds on a video poker machine. It paid for my buy-in to the event and then some.

After the game, I go on to Virginia City. If you want to experience how things used to be, go to Virginia City. When they say you are stepping back in time, they mean it. You will not find ANY franchises anywhere in this town. The gas station is probably 50 years old. It was a lot of fun to stay in this town. I played a lot at the local saloons. They had some video poker machines with great odds and some that still paid coins. I only had one losing day in Va City playing video poker and I won overall for the trip there. One day, I literally went around to every Saloon that was open and hit for a minimum of 30 bucks at each one. The Saloon owners were not happy with me that day. I also took some old western style pics while I was there. One of them is above.

After Virginia City, I went back to Vegas and spent a few more days before coming back home. I didn’t play anymore poker on the trip and mostly just played Video Poker. Anywho, the trip was a blast overall and I just mostly hit the highlights.

Now on to the new year. The theme for this year for myself will be health and music. On the 5th, I started working out with a personal trainer to help me lose weight. I have let my way get and stay out of control for much too long and I plan to take back the control. My goal is to get under 300 lbs eventually. I started at an insane weight of 425.6 pounds. My initial goal is to get under 400. So far, I am doing well as I am down to 417 as of today. That’s 8.6 pounds thus far. I am both dieting and exercising with the assistance of my personal trainer Tara. I truly feel that with the plan I am on, I will succeed this time. I will keep updates on this blog and let you know my progress.

The other part of this year’s theme is music. I have officially started taking piano lessons at the Mendez Academy of Music in Lynchburg, Va. Erin gave me some lessons at one point and I will now take them to another level and try to learn the piano properly. I have always wanted to play but thought it would be too difficult. Erin proved me wrong and so now I want to learn how to play.

I will continue with my poker writing. I have to fund my changes of course. As far as my poker playing, I don’t know when I will be playing in another event. I think focusing on my health will be my biggest concern. If I don’t have my health, poker becomes irrelevant. The next trip I will take will probably be the World Series of Poker in June. When I go, I will probably only go a couple of weeks as I will be working 4-H camp this year.

Anyway, I have a lot of busy and interesting times ahead of me. Keep reading as I will keep you updated about my journey.

Lack of Updates, WSOP Main Event Final Table, Vegas, and the Election

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Yes, I know I haven’t updated this page in quite a while. That is totally my fault. I have been mega busy working. I have a couple of clients that have been keeping me very busy and at one point I had over 100 poker articles to write. I actually completed all of them and this week I have been slacking in comparison to the past two to three weeks. Of course my “slacking” still made me more money than a lot of people make a week. Yes, that sounds like bragging, and it is.

So we have a new President of the United State. Barack Obama won in convincing fashion over John McCain. I voted for McCain, but not without seriously considering Obama. I was leaning his way all the way to almost the end. Taxes and certain statements he made started me to lean McCain. Everyone that is buying into the “only the $250,000 and up crowd will see more taxes” need to do your research. Now, things may change and the plan may turn out better than what my research indicates. In a way I hope so. This isn’t because Obama won, but because the country typically prospers economically under a democratic president. There are certain points to Obama that I did like as well, so it wasn’t a “Obama bad, McCain good”type of vote. My research indicates that I would be potentially better off under Obama than McCain, and therefore I voted as such.

Now, with that being said, this election showed me the flaw in our current electoral system, especially for my state. In my state, the overall popular vote was significantly influenced by about 6 areas. In Missouri, the vote for the entire state was influenced primarily by Kansas City and St Louis. Due to the fact that these areas are much more heavily populated, the balance of power is shifted such to where if a candidate is a heavy winner, such as Obama was, then the state stands a chance to go to that candidate.

What should we do? I like what Nebraska and Maine do. First, they give the vote representing the two senators to the overall popular election. Then, the rest of the votes go by who won the popular vote in the particular district. For instance, look at Virginia. Lets say that a candidate wins the overall popular vote. He would get the two votes automatically. Next, the other 11 votes would be divided up according to who won the popular vote in the particular district. Lets say that the candidate won 6 of the districts. Then he would get 6 of the electoral votes and the opposing candidate would have gotten the other 5. I like this better as it prevents a few areas from swaying an entire state and actually makes the individual vote count more.

Now, I am not saying that using this system would have won McCain the election. It probably would not. It would have made it closer and a little more in line what the country actually thinks. I’m sorry folks, but from what I am seeing, the majority of the county was not overwhelmingly in favor of Obama. If you were in a big city or a highly liberal state, then yes, but in other states, such as Missouri and Virginia, the state was clearly not head over heels for Obama.

The WSOP Final table is tomorrow. I’m still of the opinion that this was a bad idea for the game. We will finally get to see tomorrow who will play heads-up and then Monday who will win. I shouldn’t say this, but I am rooting for some type of screwed up abnormality so that they won’t do this again. However, ratings are up and if ESPN decrees it’s good, it will likely be back.

Just a couple of weeks now before I head out to Vegas. I am looking forward to it. I tried playing some last night and did so-so. Of course, I was playing tired and played too distracted. Still managed a 2nd and 1st place finish out of three games played. My stud game play seems to be getting better in all realms. I hope this translates into strong H.O.R.S.E. finishes in Vegas as I am playing two H.O.R.S.E. events. I will be staying at the 4 Queens downtown. I’m also really hoping that this event draws decent. I would hate to go all that way for a bunch of tourneys that don’t draw over 50.

I’m Horny, and You Can Be Too!

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Why am I horny?  Besides being male?  I have a good reason to be, but I digress.

I’ve been doing some freelance writing lately.  Trying to pick up some writing contracts.  So far it has been slow going, but I have one guy that is using me to write some poker related content.  I’m also waiting to hear back from a couple others.

I’m no longer obsessed with Holdem.  Thanks for asking.

Did anyone here ever see the episode of Press Your Luck where the guy won over 100k.  He memorized the light and slide patterns.  I watched the episodes and it was blatantly obvious that something was up.  The guy got his money, and apparently was an idiot in how he spent it.  I guess he got a life Whammy.  :-)

For those of you wanting to see more Melissa Castello, she will be covering the APPT in Macau.   Yay Melissa!

Also thanks to Amy Calistri for adding me to her blogroll.  (You know some of you other folks could do the same.  Slackers.)

I’m Not Wearing Underpants

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Why do the trees wave at you in the morning time? Their branches wave back and forth as to say, “Hey! Look at me and how chipper I am at 9 am.” Don’t they know I am not a morning person? I mean c’mon, don’t you think they would have better things to do?

Do you ever stop and try and figure out what dogs are saying when they bark at you? I do. Sometimes, I will try and bark back at them in the same pitch and voice. Sometime they stop and look at me like I’m crazy. They just need to learn how to speak English and make things simpler. Yo no hablo woof woof.

Cards are in the air. One time, I would love to see a dealer go, “52 Card Pickup!” and toss the cards everywhere. Then the saying would actually fit.

I’m still waiting for my Egg McMuffin Jolyn.

Have you ever seen a pink and purple polka dotted elephant wearing an athletic V-neck top? I have. And I was sober.

I was talking to the floorwoman (see egg mcmuffin above) one day and she told me about the first time they held the Roshambo tournament at the World Series. At the time she was a dealer and the only Roshambo she ever heard of was SOUTH PARK ROSHAMBO. Suffice it to say she REALLY wanted to see how that was going to go down.

Gluing a phone to a camera does NOT make a camera phone.

Pink Monkeys are not blue.

And last but not least,

Wet Dogs Smell Pretty.

Who Cares About Barbara Enright?

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Barbara Enright Wins Again

 

During the main event of the World Series of Poker, I mentioned to one of my field reporters that Barbara Enright is in his section and he should follow her. He replied that he knew and jokingly said, “Who cares about Barbara Enright?” Well lets see, just a majority of the poker world and the Poker Hall of Fame. That’s all. Enright just took down her third title of the year on sunday when she won the Ladies Event at Legends of Poker. So far this year, Enright has three wins, 6 final tables, and a cash at this past World Series of Poker. Maybe it me, but that sounds like someone worth following.

 

Great job Barbara, keep up the great work. Let’s see a deep run in the LOP Main Event!

The World Series of Porno

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We really had some fun with names this past World Series of Porno, I mean World Series of Poker.  For your amusement, I am going to dramatize a hand between some players.

Zelong Dong Comes Up Short

Zelong Dong limped in from early position.  Strong Wang then raised from middle position.  Woody Deck sat upright directly after the raise and then made the call.  Dong called as well.   On a flop of A-5-6, Zelong Dong checked and Strong Wang splattered some chips in the amount of 2,000.  Woody Deck made the call.  Zelong Dong called.   The turn fell the 4 of clubs and Zelong Dong checked to Strong Wang, who again bet out in the amount of 4,000.  Deck folded and Dong called.  The river fell the 2 of diamonds and Zelong Dong checked out Strong Wang for a moment before checking.  Wang bet out 12,000 and Dong decided to look him up.  Zelong Dong showed A-5 for two pair, while Wang showed A-3 for the wheel.  Strong Wang yanked in the pot.

All That I Learned, I Learned at the WSOP

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A lot of interesting and strange things happened at the WSOP this summer.  Some good and some bad.  Below are some things I discovered:

Harrahs truly does try and accommodate all players.  We had deaf players, legally blind players, players in wheelchairs, players with no arms, and even a quadriplegic.  (With that being said, the media is TOO SENSITIVE in trying not to offend handicapped players.)

Mike Matusow is just as insane off the camera as on.  (Proven by him coming up to me and randomly ranting about his chip stack during a break.  Why did he come and rant to me personally?  I made eye contact I guess.  I don’t know.)

David Singer complains a lot….

John Phan would get a ticket in Oklahoma for playing too slow.

People take $10,000 whims….

Blogs do indeed take on people’s personalities.  (I wrote some blog entries during one event and for two days people came up and TOLD me that I wrote that.  Didn’t ask me.  They told me.  And most didn’t even know my name.)

The phrase “One time” is probably the most overused phrase in history.

Followed by “bad beat.”

Followed directly by “ship it.”

Playing connect four is so much fun, but YOU play alone, cause you’re a virgin.

People have a hard time grasping the concept as to why a decent poker player would rather do something other than play poker.  (You have no idea how many times I was asked why I didn’t play.)

Younger players need to learn more about the history of poker beyond Doyle Brunson, Stu Unger, and Johnny Chan.

Jean-Robert Bellande may appear to be a jerk but he does have an honorable side.  In the Limit Shootout, he was heads up and his opponent did not return on time from break.  He refused to take his seat and let the dealer pass the blinds around until his opponent arrived.

“If you don’t lose a hand heads up, you will eventually win a tournament.”  – Words of wisdom from Tom Schneider referring to Daniel Negranu’s bracelet win.

I Have Returned

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Home

 

 

This past Monday, I returned from my stint at the World Series of Poker as a blogger for PokerNews.com. It was a fantastic experience, one which I hope to get the chance to do again sometime. Playing in the World Series is a lot different from reporting the World Series. I actually enjoyed the later more this time. One reason is that I didn’t have the stress associated with playing. The last two years, I was burnt out by the time the World Series was over. This year, I could have continued on past the time my contract expired. I was glad to be done though. By the time 4-H Camp time arrived, I was sort of regretting my decision. I ended up figuring out later on that was just due to my missing camp. I talked with several people about camp, and things went well. Step will be taken to where I can attend next year. There is a small hole in me that is noticeably missing due to not attending camp. At the same time, we must make sacrifices in our lives at time to make our overall life better, or at least put ourselves in said position. Continue reading →