67152921	Nov 09 21:01ET	$35,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	324	160	–	You made 2 rebuy/add-on for $200
67342773	Nov 09 20:01ET	$65,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	766	680	–
67141057	Nov 09 19:31ET	$33,000 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$100.00 + $9	309	184	–	You made 1 rebuy/add-on for $100
65517722	Nov 09 19:06ET	Sunday Mulligan		$200.00 + $16	1128	337	–
67913231	Nov 09 19:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	1057	810	–
67913231	Nov 09 18:02ET	FTOPS Event #9		$300 + $22	5370	2249	–
63163321	Nov 09 16:31ET	October TLB Freeroll		$0	200	1	$12,000	Winner’s Choice Prize Package.
64964654	Nov 09 16:01ET	$80,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$150.00 + $13	481	344	–	You made 2 rebuy/add-on for $300
67196118	Nov 09 15:01ET	$50,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	1134	367	–
62634821	Nov 09 14:02ET	FTOPS Event #8		$240.00 + $16	3499	1753	–
67877962	Nov 09 14:01ET	$27,500 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	2135	1597	–

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $2202

Today’s winnings/losses = +$12,000

Today’s net profit/loss = +$9798

        There was a lot of big tournaments that went down on this particular Sunday including FTOPS #8 and #9, Sunday Mulligan, $80k Rebuy, etc…  It’s too bad that I didn’t cash in any of these tournaments.  Luckily, I was entered into a freeroll for being in the top 200 of the FullTilt Tournament Leaderboard for October.  I’m actually more proud of winning this tournament than winning $60k getting 3rd in FTOPS # 7, even though the monetary value is vastly different.  There are two reasons why I’m more proud of winning this tournament:

1)  Despite the fact that a tournament field of 200 players is really small compared to my usual tournaments, these aren’t just your average “Joe” players.  It’s comprised of 200 of the top-earners of October or even some of the best players in the world.  So the skill level in this tournament is abnormally tough and to plow your way through them is definately a daunting task.

2)  This is a winner take all tournament, which means the only person who actually wins is first place and first place only.  There is no money bubble, no value in making the final table, and no top 3 finishes.  It didn’t change my overall strategy too much since I always shoot for a first place finish in all my tournaments, but inevitably it does take some minor adjustments.

So working my way through a tough field of 200 players and coming out on top is something I am very proud of.  Winning this tournament basically buys me into any $10k buy-in World Poker Tour, European Poker Tour, or World Series of Poker Main Event tournament of my choice as well as $2000 in spending cash for traveling expenses, hotel accommadations, etc…  There are a lot of upcoming tournaments I could choose from, here are some I am considering:

- EPT Prague

     December 9-13, 2008
     Hilton Prague Hotel
     Prague, Czech Republic

- Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic

     December 13-19, 2008
     Bellagio
     Las Vegas, Nevada

- PokerStars Caribbean Adventure

     January 5-10, 2009
     Atlantis Resort
     Paradise City, The Bahamas

- Borgata Poker Classic

     Jan 25 – 29, 2009
     Borgata
     Atlantic City, New Jersey

- LA Poker Classic 

     Feb 21 – 26, 2009
     Commerce Casino
     Commerce, California

- Foxwoods Poker Classic

     Apr 4 – 9, 2009
     Foxwoods Resort & Casino
     Mashantucket, Connecticut

- EPT San Remo

     April 18-23, 2009
     Casino Sanremo
     San Remo, Italy

- EPT Grand Final

     April 28 – May 3, 2009
     Monte Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort
     Monte Carlo, Monaco

There are more tournaments I could play but these ones caught my eye.  I could go two ways in choosing which tournament I want to use my free seat in.  I could go the cheap way and play local at the LA Poker Classic or Doyle Brunson Five Diamond Classic, by just using the $10k for the seat and pocket the extra $2k that’s supposed to be for travelling expenses.  Or I could use the travel expenses and go out of state or even out of the country.  I’m leaning more towards going out of the country since I’ve been meaning to travel now that I have the money to and plus I think it would be a good experience to travel and play in another country.  So right now my first choice would be the Pokerstars Carribean Adventure in the Bahamas, it’ll be a nice relaxing vacation and a lot of poker, in other words the NUTS!  But we’ll see how it goes, anything can happen from now till then.  I’ll definately update my blog on my final decision where I wanna go in future posts, for now I’ll just keep making more money!

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
62634701	Nov 08 16:01ET	FTOPS Event #7		$100.00 + $9	1,893	3	$60,600	You made 3 rebuys/add-ons for $300.00 .

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $300 (buy-in won by satellite)

Today’s winnings/losses = +$60,600

Today’s net profit/loss = +$60,300 

       Well today is a pretty monumental day as you can see from my results in FTOPS # 7.  This would be my biggest cash to date beating out my $34k first place win in the $100k Guranteed a month ago.  Quite frankly, I only got about 4-5 hrs of sleep the night before and I was falling asleep as I was playing, but as soon as I made it deeper I started to focus more.  This tournament was such a rollercoaster swinging from 10BB to 25BB, back down to 8BB and up to 30BB, but in the end it all worked out.  I couldn’t ask for a better final table because a lot of the players were knocking each other out, moving me up in the money very quickly.  Ended up taking 3rd place for $60k and am very content and happy with my results but my ultimate goal is to win one FTOPS event and get that FTOPS Championship avatar as well as a lot of respect in the poker community.  This is only 4 out of 14 FTOPS tournaments events I am playing, so 10 more to acheive my ultimate goal.  I will be playing in FTOPS #8 and FTOPS #9 tomorrow, so stay tuned for updates on the results!

Full Tilt Poker Tournament #62634701 FTOPS Event #7 NL Hold’em
Buy-In: $100.00 + $9.00
1893 players 
Total Prize Pool: $600000.00
Start Date: November 8  4:00 PM ET

Dear 4XTRADER,

You finished the tournament in 3rd place.
There has been $60600.00 added to your account.

    Only had time to play the FTOPS #4 today since I will be going out later in the evening.  It was a $322 buy-in with one rebuy (optional) and one add-on (optional), ninety-five percent of the time I do both.  Even though I woke up late for this event by 20 minutes, I can honestly say I couldn’t have played any better in this tournament.  Missing the first 20 minutes is not a big deal as the blinds are low and it’s hard to build big pots anyway, so I wasn’t bothered by that at all.  I was completely focused and by the early-middle stages of the tournament I had a precise read on all of my opponents. Not to mention, that it was indeed a tough table as it was filled with some non-name pros I play with on a daily basis.  But I chipped up very well and stole blinds with good accuracy.  Being as though it was a tough table it was very hard to double up and as blinds went up everyone floated around the 10-25BB range with the exception of one player who had 30BB.  When most of the table has this kind of stack size it becomes a game of “I know that you know”.  For example, it gets folded to an observant player in MP and he opens the pot up for the standard raise of 3x but, I notice the person in the BB is short-stack and has been playing very tight so I re-raise with any decent looking hand and steal the pot away from the initial raiser.  A lot of gamble is involved at this stage and with these stack sizes, so you just got to pick the right spot and hope for the best.  The player to my immediate right is a very creative player and I have played with him in numerous occasions and was thankful I was on his left.  My final hand came down to us two in a blind vs. blind situation.  I believe I made a very good call for all my chips but it was just really unfortunate how it concluded:

——————–
HAND #1
——————–

Full Tilt, 250/500 blinds, 50 ante NL Hold’em Tourney, 8 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

UTG+2: 13,125 (26.3 bb)
MP1: 15,019 (30 bb)
BTN: 4,642 (9.3 bb)
SB: 9,980 (20 bb)
4XTRADER (BB): 8,465 (16.9 bb)
MP2: 11,760 (23.5 bb)
MP3: 11,093 (22.2 bb)
CO: 11,190 (22.4 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is BB with
MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO folds, UTG+2 folds, MP1 folds, BTN folds, SB completes, 4XTRADER checks

Flop: (1,400) (2 players)
SB checks, 4XTRADER bets 900, SB raises to 4,100, 4XTRADER raises to 7,915 and is all-in, SB calls 3,815

Turn: (17,230) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
River: (17,230) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
Results: 17,230 pot
4XTRADER showed (two pairs, Aces and Jacks) and lost (-8,465 net)
SB showed (a straight, Eight to Queen) and won 17,230 (8,765 net)

   My thought process here was that even though I only had bottom pair with the worst kicker, I felt like I was ahead cause at most he would have a pair of Queens or sharing the Jack.  I elimanated the possibility of him having an Ace in his hand simply because I really thought he would try to steal my blind preflop with an Ace-rag with blinds so high and our stack sizes, he’s creative but not creative enough to limp here with an Ace in this spot.  If he had a pair of Queens I think he would’ve put a bet out there to keep me from catching any sort of weird draw I might have and if he had a Jack there’s a good chance we might be chopping by the river since I don’t think he has higher than J9o.  So I make a good sized bet into the flop and he re-raises an amount that basically says he’s committed to a call if I go all-in.  Instantly, I thought it was a draw of some sort and my first guess would’ve been a flush draw.  It takes me a while but I end up makin the call with bottom pair and turned out to be way way ahead as he’s pretty much drawing to a 9 only.  This is the part of poker you can’t control, like I said above put your chips in at the right spots, and hope for the best.  Unfortunately, this was the worst I was hoping for.  I wonder what would’ve happened had I checked the flop and waited till the turn to bet, being that the Ace on the turn improves my hand and makes him think twice about semi-bluffing a gut-shot with only one more card to go, I wonder… This hand is up for discussion, anybody?

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
62634254	Nov 06 21:01ET	FTOPS Event #3		$500.00 + $35	729	506	–
66436063	Nov 06 20:01ET	$65,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	540	397	–
67196156	Nov 06 19:46ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #11		$150.00 + $13	47	38	–
66748426	Nov 06 19:31ET	$33,000 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$100.00 + $9	191	158	–	You made 1 rebuy/add-on for $100.00 .
67644195	Nov 06 19:11ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$24.00 + $2	72	16	–
67519719	Nov 06 19:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	713	250	–
67449518	Nov 06 18:51ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$24.00 + $2	81	73	–
66441805	Nov 06 18:31ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$100.00 + $9	207	147	–
67449503	Nov 06 18:01ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$24.00 + $2	72	57	–
66736964	Nov 06 18:01ET	Turbo $40K Guarantee		$200.00 + $16	291	221	–
66729737	Nov 06 17:01ET	$30,000 KO Guarantee		$120.00 + $9		295	–
67621862	Nov 06 16:34ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #9		$11.00 + $1	36	36	–
64965981	Nov 06 16:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	175	13	$668.75	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
67617748	Nov 06 15:31ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #19		$69.00 + $6	9	1	$216	Entry to tournament #62638745
67196118	Nov 06 15:16ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #11		$150.00 + $13	54	34	–
64979149	Nov 06 15:01ET	$50,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	421	203	–
67491354	Nov 06 15:01ET	$13,500 KO Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	939	629	–

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $1890

Today’s winnings/losses = +$884.75

Today’s net profit/loss = -$1005.25

         I would consider today an “Eh” day cause I feel like it wasn’t that eventful.  Although, I did run deep in the $40k rebuy, I made one mistake that caused me to not make the final table or top 3 even.  Won my seat to FTOPS #19 which leaves me with one more seat to win, FTOPS #22.   I’m still experiencing a little bit of bad variance like I was in the beginning of the week but not as bad.  If I were to grade my play for today it would probably be a “B”, so that combined with a small amount of bad variance reflected my results.

        One key asset that deviates skill level from a good player to a great player is that a great player is able to recognize what a bad play is and when they make it.  Of course, there is more than one way to win a specific hand in poker but there is always an optimal way to play that yields higher expectations or expected value (+/-EV).  Making +EV plays doesn’t guarantee you will win that specific hand in that specific situation but what it does entail is that in the same situation played over hundreds, thousands, or hundreds of thousands of times, making that +EV play will be profitable in the long haul.  This is just EV in a nutshell and can be broken down into even finer detail but the point is, that a great player will often make more +EV plays than good players and will also recognize their -EV plays and fix them for the next time the situation arises.  There is an optimal way to play poker so don’t be the guy who just blames their losses on bad variance.  Study to differentiate a bad play from a good play, recognize to eliminate from your own gameplay, and don’t let results decide the grade of your play.  Here is the play I made that cost me a final table finish and it’s not because I lost the hand, it’s simply because I didn’t fully analyze my opponents course of actions and his stack size:

——————–
HAND #1
——————–

Full Tilt, 800/1,600 blinds, 200 ante NL Hold’em Tourney, 6 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

BTN: 34,170 (21.4 bb)
SB: 39,755 (24.8 bb)
BB: 52,039 (32.5 bb)
4XTRADER (UTG): 70,652 (44.2 bb)
MP: 10,676 (6.7 bb)
CO: 27,600 (17.3 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is UTG with
4XTRADER raises to 4,200, MP folds, CO raises to 10,000, BTN folds, SB folds, BB folds, 4XTRADER calls 5,800

Flop: (23,600) (2 players)
4XTRADER checks, CO checks

Turn: (23,600) (2 players)
4XTRADER bets 14,200, CO raises to 17,400 and is all-in, 4XTRADER calls 3,200

River: (58,400) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
Results: 58,400 pot
CO showed (three of a kind, Kings) and won 58,400 (30,800 net)
4XTRADER showed (three of a kind, Sevens) and lost (-27,600 net)

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
67555480	Nov 06 01:44ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #4		$10.00 + $1	18	10	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $20.00 .
62633143	Nov 05 21:02ET	FTOPS Event #1		$200.00 + $16	5124	579	–
64962748	Nov 05 21:01ET	$100,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	486	47	$900.90	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
66626290	Nov 05 20:01ET	$32,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	1,604	1,508	–
66426013	Nov 05 20:01ET	$65,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	767	255	–
66622424	Nov 05 19:31ET	$33,000 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$100.00 + $9	274	37	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
67393777	Nov 05 19:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	771	25	$212.79
66610594	Nov 05 18:01ET	Turbo $40K Guarantee		$200.00 + $16	246	101	–
66603180	Nov 05 17:01ET	$30,000 KO Guarantee		$120.00 + $9	320	110	–
64965816	Nov 05 16:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	156	53	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
66554600	Nov 05 15:01ET	$50,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	347	3	$6,246
67364121	Nov 05 15:01ET	$13,500 KO Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	854	135	–	You collected $4.00 for 1 Knockout.

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $1756

Today’s winnings/losses = +$7423.69

Today’s net profit/loss = +$5667.69

       Played my absolute best today and the results prove it.  I woke up today and made it my goal to run deep in my tournaments and make one final table.  Still stuck about $3k on the week but I definately needed a day like this to heighten my spirits and get back into the winning mode.  Unfortunately, I didn’t cash in FTOPS #1 event but I did run pretty deep and played well.  I could’ve coasted into the money but I learned not to play just to get in the money, I play only to take first place.  There were still a couple bad beats I experienced in key spots but as long as it’s not a day full of bad beats, like the past 2-3 days.  At one point today I was deep and had a decent stack in 5 tournies simultaneously.  So my results might have been a little better than what it turned out to be because I haven’t fully adjusted to focusing on all my tournaments.  Usually, I’ll be deep in 1 or 2 tournaments and it’ll still be in the early stages of the other 3-4 tournaments, so it’s easier to focus on the deep ones and auto-pilot the early ones.  With more experience it should become easier.  I plan to have an FTOPS Championship avatar by the end of this month, maybe it’ll be tomorrow in FTOPS #3!

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
67440169	Nov 05 03:05ET	$69 + $6 Sit & Go		$69.00 + $6	45	32	–
67315330	Nov 05 03:01ET	Turbo Hundo		$100.00 + $9	213	152	–
67311637	Nov 05 02:01ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #19		$24.00 + $2	18	16	–
66539933	Nov 05 02:00ET	$18,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	243	213	–
66537747	Nov 05 01:31ET	$12,500 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$30.00 + $3	213	123	–	You made 1 rebuy/add-on for $30.00 .
67307060	Nov 05 01:01ET	$17,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	674	446	–
67307059	Nov 05 01:01ET	Turbo Fiddy		$50.00 + $5	385	257	–
67302322	Nov 05 00:11ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #19		$8.00 + $0.80	27	14	–
65895286	Nov 04 21:01ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #22		$300.00 + $22	58	46	–
66502188	Nov 04 20:31ET	$22,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$30.00 + $3	307	131	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $60.00 .
66498212	Nov 04 20:01ET	$32,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	1,588	30	$106.71
66425890	Nov 04 20:01ET	$65,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	596	382	–
66494131	Nov 04 19:31ET	$33,000 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$100.00 + $9	208	95	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
67221855	Nov 04 19:10ET	Super Sat to FTOPS Event #22		$69.00 + $6	6	3	–
67263103	Nov 04 19:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	798	575	–
65895356	Nov 04 18:31ET	Super Sat to FTOPS Event #22		$50.00 + $5	12	4	–
67221811	Nov 04 18:16ET	Super Sat to FTOPS Event #22		$69.00 + $6	21	11	–
67255362	Nov 04 18:01ET	$21,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	1,139	389	–
66482055	Nov 04 18:01ET	Turbo $40K Guarantee		$200.00 + $16	294	135	–
65895333	Nov 04 17:26ET	Super Sat to FTOPS Event #22		$10.00 + $1	18	3	$13.30	You made 8 rebuys/add-ons for $80.00 .
67373162	Nov 04 17:06ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$84.00 + $7	6	1	$256	Entry to tournament #62634821
66474213	Nov 04 17:01ET	$30,000 KO Guarantee		$120.00 + $9	386	261	–
67243967	Nov 04 16:31ET	$18,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$30.00 + $3	283	150	–	You made 6 rebuys/add-ons for $180.00 .
67339117	Nov 04 16:19ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$84.00 + $7	6	5	–
67240361	Nov 04 16:01ET	$22,500 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	378	96	–
64965725	Nov 04 16:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	166	53	–	You made 5 rebuys/add-ons for $500.00 .
67357927	Nov 04 15:22ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$12.00 + $1	54	19	–
67291380	Nov 04 15:21ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$150.00 + $10	9	1	$535	Entry to tournament #62634254
67234537	Nov 04 15:11ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$69.00 + $6	12	4	$60
67233428	Nov 04 15:01ET	$13,500 KO Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	976	116	–	You collected $12.00 for 3 Knockouts.
66554553	Nov 04 15:01ET	$50,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	377	112	–

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $3608.80

Today’s winnings/losses = +$971.01

Today’s net profit/loss = -$2637.79

       Unfortunately, the bad streak continues.  The same theme of “Lose tournaments, win satellites” as yesterday is the theme for today.  I won seats to FTOPS #3 and #8, which leaves me with seats to 10 out of the 14 tournaments I will be playing.  FTOPS #17 and #24 are not having any satellites, so I will have to buy-in direct to those tournies.  The only seats left for me to win are for FTOPS #19 and #22.  FTOPS #22 is gonna be the hardest to win because it’s the highest buy-in tournament in the series with the buy-in being a total of $5200,  the satellites alone are $300-$500 buy-in and are filled with all top-tier players.

      One big problem I’m noticing in the trends of my tournament play is that I play more tournaments when I’m running bad as opposed to when I’m running good.  A big part is due to all the satellites I play for FTOPS but yesterday I played a total of 24 tournaments in one day and today I played an abnormal amount of 31 tournaments.  It should be the opposite and I should play more when I run good and play less when I run bad.  One reason why I think I play so much is because I truly believe that the more I play the faster the variance will turn around, this could be true or false.  Either way, I hope I’m running so bad now so that I can run white hot during the FTOPS events.  Starting tomorrow at 6PM PST I’ll be playing in FTOPS #1, wish me luck!   I’ll leave you with some disgusting hands to look at so you can see for yourself how bad I’ve been running:

——————–
HAND #1
——————–

Full Tilt, 150/300 blinds, 25 ante NL Hold’em Tourney, 8 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

UTG+1: 8,225 (27.4 bb)
UTG+2: 9,253 (30.8 bb)
4XTRADER (MP1): 5,675 (18.9 bb)
MP2: 19,827 (66.1 bb)
MP3: 3,965 (13.2 bb)
CO: 9,302 (31 bb)
SB: 5,887 (19.6 bb)
BB: 9,876 (32.9 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is MP1 with
UTG+1 folds, UTG+2 folds, 4XTRADER raises to 900, MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO folds, SB calls 750, BB folds

Flop: (2,300) (2 players)
SB checks, 4XTRADER checks

Turn: (2,300) (2 players)
SB checks, 4XTRADER bets 1,400, SB calls 1,400

River: (5,100) (2 players)
SB bets 3,562 and is all-in, 4XTRADER calls 3,350 and is all-in

Results: 11,800 pot
SB showed (a flush, Queen high) and won 11,800 (6,125 net)
4XTRADER mucked (three of a kind, Kings) and lost (-5,675 net)



——————–
HAND #2
——————–

Full Tilt, 200/400 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 3 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

4XTRADER (BTN): 5,100 (12.8 bb)
SB: 4,330 (10.8 bb)
BB: 4,070 (10.2 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is BTN with
4XTRADER raises to 5,100 and is all-in, SB folds, BB calls 3,670 and is all-in

Flop: (8,340) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
Turn: (8,340) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
River: (8,340) (2 players, 2 are all-in)

Results: 8,340 pot
4XTRADER showed (a pair of Sixes) and lost (-4,070 net)
BB showed (three of a kind, Fives) and won 8,340 (4,270 net)



——————–
HAND #3
——————–

Full Tilt, 150/300 blinds, 25 ante NL Hold’em Tourney, 5 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

SB: 3,400 (11.3 bb)
4XTRADER (BB): 3,765 (12.6 bb)
MP: 6,925 (23.1 bb)
CO: 3,120 (10.4 bb)
BTN: 10,880 (36.3 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is BB with
MP folds, CO folds, BTN calls 300, SB raises to 900, 4XTRADER raises to 3,740 and is all-in, BTN calls 3,440, SB calls 2,475 and is all-in

BTN shows

SB shows

Flop: (10,980) (3 players, 2 are all-in)
Turn: (10,980) (3 players, 2 are all-in)
River: (10,980) (3 players, 2 are all-in)
Results: 10,980 pot
4XTRADER showed (two pairs, Kings and Eights) and lost (-3,765 net)
BTN showed (three of a kind, Eights) and won 10,980 (7,215 net)
SB showed (two pairs, Tens and Eights) and lost (-3,400 net)



——————–
HAND #4
——————–

Full Tilt, 20/40 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 8 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

MP3: 3,573 (89.3 bb)
CO: 5,305 (132.6 bb)
BTN: 5,483 (137.1 bb)
4XTRADER (SB): 2,790 (69.8 bb)
BB: 3,524 (88.1 bb)
UTG+2: 2,766 (69.2 bb)
MP1: 4,056 (101.4 bb)
MP2: 3,308 (82.7 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is SB with
UTG+2 folds, MP1 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO folds, BTN folds, 4XTRADER raises to 100, BB raises to 3,524 and is all-in, 4XTRADER calls 2,690 and is all-in

Flop: (5,580) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
Turn: (5,580) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
River: (5,580) (2 players, 2 are all-in)

Results: 5,580 pot
BB showed (a pair of Sixes) and won 5,580 (2,790 net)
4XTRADER showed (high card Ace) and lost (-2,790 net)



——————–
HAND #5
——————–

Full Tilt, 40/80 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 3 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

SB: 2,835 (35.4 bb)
4XTRADER (BB): 2,355 (29.4 bb)
BTN: 3,810 (47.6 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is BB with
BTN folds, SB completes, 4XTRADER checks

Flop: (160) (2 players)
SB checks, 4XTRADER bets 100, SB calls 100

Turn: (360) (2 players)
SB checks, 4XTRADER bets 280, SB calls 280

River: (920) (2 players)
SB checks, 4XTRADER bets 500, SB raises to 2,375 and is all-in, 4XTRADER calls 1,395 and is all-in

Results: 4,710 pot
SB showed (three of a kind, Fives) and won 4,710 (2,355 net)
4XTRADER mucked (two pairs, Jacks and Sixes) and lost (-2,355 net)



——————–
HAND #6
——————–

Full Tilt, 30/60 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 9 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

SB: 3,405 (56.8 bb)
4XTRADER (BB): 2,145 (35.8 bb)
UTG+1: 6,850 (114.2 bb)
UTG+2: 2,740 (45.7 bb)
MP1: 3,845 (64.1 bb)
MP2: 1,781 (29.7 bb)
MP3: 3,275 (54.6 bb)
CO: 2,585 (43.1 bb)
BTN: 3,374 (56.2 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is BB with
UTG+1 folds, UTG+2 folds, MP1 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO folds, BTN calls 60, SB completes, 4XTRADER raises to 300, BTN calls 240, SB folds

Flop: (660) (2 players)
4XTRADER bets 440, BTN raises to 1,620, 4XTRADER raises to 1,845 and is all-in, BTN calls 225

Turn: (4,350) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
River: (4,350) (2 players, 1 is all-in)

Results: 4,350 pot (4,350 rake)
4XTRADER showed (two pairs, Kings and Nines) and lost (-2,145 net)
BTN showed (three of a kind, Nines) and lost (-2,145 net)



——————–
HAND #7
——————–

Full Tilt, 40/80 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 6 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

BB: 9,389 (117.4 bb)
4XTRADER (UTG): 10,500 (131.3 bb)
MP: 7,445 (93.1 bb)
CO: 4,460 (55.8 bb)
BTN: 9,601 (120 bb)
SB: 6,294 (78.7 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is UTG with
4XTRADER raises to 160, MP folds, CO folds, BTN calls 160, SB calls 120, BB calls 80

Flop: (640) (4 players)
SB bets 400, BB folds, 4XTRADER calls 400, BTN folds

Turn: (1,440) (2 players)
SB bets 500, 4XTRADER calls 500

River: (2,440) (2 players)
SB bets 600, 4XTRADER calls 600

Results: 3,640 pot
SB showed (three of a kind, Fours) and won 3,640 (1,980 net)
4XTRADER mucked (a pair of Nines) and lost (-1,660 net)

——————–
HAND #8
——————–

Full Tilt, 1,200/2,400 blinds, 300 ante NL Hold’em Tourney, 8 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

BB: 39,843 (16.6 bb)
UTG+2: 33,282 (13.9 bb)
MP1: 65,428 (27.3 bb)
MP2: 62,393 (26 bb)
MP3: 81,573 (34 bb)
4XTRADER (CO): 78,348 (32.6 bb)
BTN: 76,601 (31.9 bb)
SB: 82,118 (34.2 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is CO with
UTG+2 folds, MP1 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 folds, 4XTRADER raises to 8,000, BTN folds, SB folds, BB raises to 39,543 and is all-in, 4XTRADER calls 31,543

BB shows

Flop: (82,686) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
Turn: (82,686) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
River: (82,686) (2 players, 1 is all-in)
Results: 82,686 pot
BB showed (a straight, Seven to Jack) and won 82,686 (42,843 net)
4XTRADER showed (two pairs, Jacks and Nines) and lost (-39,843 net)

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
65642594	Nov 03 21:01ET	$1K Monday		$1,000.00 + $60		217	–
67257259	Nov 03 20:46ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$12.00 + $1	54	39	–
66370746	Nov 03 20:31ET	$22,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$30.00 + $3		133	–	You made 4 rebuys/add-ons for $120.00 .
66366682	Nov 03 20:01ET	$32,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2		646	–
66425793	Nov 03 20:01ET	$65,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	591	198	–
66362578	Nov 03 19:31ET	$33,000 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$100.00 + $9	205	139	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
67264875	Nov 03 19:16ET	Satellite to $1K Monday		$265.00 + $16	9	5	–
67137254	Nov 03 19:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	714	98	–
65642604	Nov 03 18:31ET	Satellite to $1K Monday		$100.00 + $9	189	1	$1,060	Entry to tournament #65642594
66692213	Nov 03 18:26ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$24.00 + $2	18	17	–
66350441	Nov 03 18:01ET	Turbo $40K Guarantee		$200.00 + $16	223	83	–
67129695	Nov 03 18:01ET	$21,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	1,050	218	–
66342640	Nov 03 17:01ET	$30,000 KO Guarantee		$120.00 + $9	356	142	–
67237834	Nov 03 16:56ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$12.00 + $1	54	21	–
66692141	Nov 03 16:56ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$10.00 + $1	30	6	–
64965097	Nov 03 16:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	146	54	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
67114110	Nov 03 16:01ET	$22,500 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	356	182	–
67225412	Nov 03 15:44ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #4		$10.00 + $1	18	1	$322	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $20.00 . Entry to tournament #62634365
67232971	Nov 03 15:39ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$12.00 + $1	54	49	–
66595608	Nov 03 15:37ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$150.00 + $10	9	7	–
66576546	Nov 03 15:16ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #11		$150.00 + $13	37	1	$1,060	Entry to tournament #62637930
66692804	Nov 03 15:11ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$69.00 + $6	12	10	–
64979037	Nov 03 15:01ET	$50,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13	444	370	–
67106876	Nov 03 15:01ET	$13,500 KO Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	965	319	–

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $3625

Today’s winnings/losses = +$2442

Today’s net profit/loss = -$1183

     Yesterday, I rightfully admitted that I didn’t just run bad but I played bad as well.  Today I just ran completely and utterly horrendous.  I played my A-game but could not catch a break for the life of me.  I didn’t just lose all my races and coin-flip situations but I would get my chips all-in preflop in very favorable and dominating situations but my opponents would hit their 2 or 3 outers on me by the river.  Granted, I ran well in my satellites and finally won my seat to FTOPS #11, but doesn’t potentially increase my bankroll in present time.  I also won a seat to the $1k buy-in event FT hosts every Monday for a minimal amount of $100, but that ended up as a wash as I didn’t get any traction in the tournament itself, no surprise…  I admit that this is the first day I’ve ran this bad in a while and probably was a long overdue but hopefully this bad variance only lasts for a 24 hour period and will run deep from here on out, especially with the FTOPS events starting this Wed. Nov. 5th.  Here is a small sample of how horrible I ran today, and trust me when I say this is a small sample:

——————–
HAND #1
——————–

Full Tilt, 60/120 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 9 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

CO: 4,165 (34.7 bb)
BTN: 7,225 (60.2 bb)
4XTRADER (SB): 7,090 (59.1 bb)
BB: 6,780 (56.5 bb)
UTG+1: 4,045 (33.7 bb)
UTG+2: 10,505 (87.5 bb)
MP1: 8,085 (67.4 bb)
MP2: 8,960 (74.7 bb)
MP3: 6,060 (50.5 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is SB with
UTG+1 folds, UTG+2 folds, MP1 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO folds, BTN folds, 4XTRADER raises to 300, BB raises to 900, 4XTRADER raises to 7,090 and is all-in, BB calls 5,880 and is all-in

BB shows (three of a kind, Jacks)

Flop: (13,560) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
Turn: (13,560) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
River: (13,560) (2 players, 2 are all-in)

Results: 13,560 pot
4XTRADER showed (a pair of Aces) and lost (-6,780 net)
BB showed (three of a kind, Jacks) and won 13,560 (6,780 net)

Comments:  With blinds still small and +50BB effective stack sizes for my opponent and I, I could’ve smooth called his 3-bet reraise and maybe got him off the hand once the Ace hits the flop but in a blind vs. blind situation I like to assume my AK is way ahead of his 3-bet range thus, taking the more aggressive line and 4-bet push for all my chips.  I don’t mind my play but it’s just unfortunate he hits the two outer on the turn for +100BB pot.

——————–
HAND #2
——————–

Full Tilt, 100/200 blinds NL Hold’em Tourney, 9 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

MP2: 965 (4.8 bb)
MP3: 5,799 (29 bb)
CO: 9,745 (48.7 bb)
BTN: 5,086 (25.4 bb)
SB: 4,408 (22 bb)
BB: 5,360 (26.8 bb)
UTG+1: 7,639 (38.2 bb)
UTG+2: 5,435 (27.2 bb)
4XTRADER (MP1): 6,770 (33.9 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is MP1 with
UTG+1 folds, UTG+2 raises to 535, 4XTRADER calls 535, MP2 folds, MP3 raises to 1,535, CO folds, BTN folds, SB folds, BB folds, UTG+2 folds, 4XTRADER calls 1,000

Flop: (3,905) (2 players)
4XTRADER checks, MP3 bets 1,760, 4XTRADER raises to 5,235 and is all-in, MP3 calls 2,504 and is all-in

MP3 shows

Turn: (12,433) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
River: (12,433) (2 players, 2 are all-in)

Results: 12,433 pot
4XTRADER showed (a pair of Queens) and lost (-5,799 net)
MP3 showed (a flush, Queen high) and won 12,433 (6,634 net)

Comments:  I was a little weary of the early position raiser which explains my smooth call of his 2.5xBB raise but then a player in middle position puts in a small reraise.  I had a good read that this player was loose and aggressive and felt like he was trying to pick up the dead money.  After the initial early position raiser folds, I decide to take a flop getting almost 3-1 on my money.  I flop top pair/top kicker and felt like there was almost zero chance I was beat, so I get him to put all his chips in the middle by a check/raise all-in.  At least a 3-2 favorite, he goes runner-runner for a Q-high flush.  Dandy!

——————–
HAND #3
——————–

Full Tilt, 120/240 blinds, 25 ante NL Hold’em Tourney, 6 Players
Hand History Converter by Stoxpoker

4XTRADER (UTG): 15,194 (63.3 bb)
MP: 8,000 (33.3 bb)
BTN: 4,374 (18.2 bb)
SB: 6,155 (25.6 bb)
BB: 19,589 (81.6 bb)
CO: 10,449 (43.5 bb)

Pre-Flop: 4XTRADER is UTG with
CO folds, 4XTRADER raises to 650, MP folds, BTN folds, SB folds, BB raises to 2,100, 4XTRADER calls 1,450

Flop: (4,470) (2 players)
BB bets 2,650, 4XTRADER raises to 5,300, BB raises to 17,464 and is all-in, 4XTRADER calls 7,769 and is all-in

BB shows

Turn: (30,608) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
River: (30,608) (2 players, 2 are all-in)
Results: 30,608 pot
BB showed (a full house, Queens full of Sixes) and won 30,608 (15,414 net)
4XTRADER showed (two pairs, Kings and Sixes) and lost (-15,194 net)

Comments:  This was the worse hand of the night, not only because my opponent rivered a two outer, but because of how good of a chip position I would be to potentially making the final table.  I believe at this stage there was about 80 people left in the tournament.  In a way I regret smooth calling his 3-bet reraise preflop and not just pushing all-in, but I’ll play this hand this way from time to time for balancing purposes.   Had I known he had QQ and probably would commit all his chips preflop, I would’ve just pushed.  I got him to do exactly what I wanted to do which was commit all his chips in on that favorable flop but I’ve always had this theory about how FT hates slow players and min-raisers.  Who knows? Maybe I would’ve won the hand if I pushed all-in preflop or instead of min-raising the flop.

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
67017221	Nov 02 22:06ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #3		$24.00 + $2	18	17	–
66246033	Nov 02 21:01ET	$35,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	300	49	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $200.00 .
67004619	Nov 02 20:16ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #16		$20.00 + $2	12	4	$47.60	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $40.00 .
66238068	Nov 02 20:01ET	$32,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2		1,522	–
66425727	Nov 02 20:01ET	$65,000 Guarantee		$150.00 + $13		505	–
66445008	Nov 02 19:46ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #11		$150.00 + $13	46	45	–
66234060	Nov 02 19:31ET	$33,000 Guarantee (1r+1a)		$100.00 + $9		235	–	You made 1 rebuy/add-on for $100.00 .
65517506	Nov 02 19:06ET	The Sunday Mulligan		$200.00 + $16		214	–
66995827	Nov 02 19:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6		220	–
66991212	Nov 02 18:21ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #16		$10.00 + $1	18	5	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $20.00 .
65767454	Nov 02 18:02ET	$750,000 Guarantee		$200.00 + $16		1,515	–
66988893	Nov 02 18:01ET	$21,000 Guarantee		$24.00 + $2	1,633	538	–
67112118	Nov 02 17:44ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #4		$10.00 + $1	18	13	–	You made 1 rebuy/add-on for $10.00 .
67113263	Nov 02 16:54ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #8		$3.00 + $0.30	36	5	–
65895168	Nov 02 16:31ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #22		$500.00 + $35	103	51	–
64963234	Nov 02 16:01ET	$80,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$150.00 + $13	460	243	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $300.00 .
66975212	Nov 02 16:01ET	$22,500 Guarantee		$69.00 + $6	793	53	$147.73

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $2619.30

Today’s winning/losses = -$2423.97

    Sundays are inevitably the most expensive day of the working week for me due to all the extra higher buy-in events like the $750k Guarantee, Sunday Brawl, Sunday Mulligan, etc…  I spent a little more than I usually do on Sundays.  Took a shot at winining a seat to the $5k buy-in FTOPS Event #22, and that obviously didn’t go too well.  Cashed in only two tournaments for a very miniscule amount compared to how much I spent on buy-ins.  I’m not too worried about how much I am stuck overall today because I know I’ll be able to make it back in the next couple of days.  I’m really bothered that I knew I wasn’t 100% focused from the minute I woke up due to the excessive amount of alcoholic beverage intake and festivities this past weekend.  I can rightfully admit that I performed sub-par today and shouldn’t have played as many tournies than I did.  For future references, I should work on recognizing when I’m not completely focused and have that determine on how much I spend on tournaments.

    The reason why this is a BIG month poker-wise is because FullTilt is hosting their FTOPS (FullTilt Online Poker Series) events starting Nov. 5th.  All the tournaments are different styles and the buy-ins vary from $100 – $5000 and first place in these tournaments range from $100k – $2M.  Any top finishes in these events can definately be life changing.  I will be playing in 14 out of the 25 events and have already won my seat by way of satellites to 10 of the them.  Immediately after the last FTOPS event on Nov 16th, I’ll be flying back to Vegas to play in the Venetian Deepstack Tournament Series for a week and come back Nov. 23rd, just in time for Thanksgiving.  So hopefully today isn’t a good representation in how I’m going to run the rest of the month and I can get deep in any of these tournaments to increase my bankroll drastically.  Here is my schedule for the FTOPS Events and Deepstack Series: (Events highlighted in orange are events I already qualified for through satellites)

FTOPS Events (Nov 5th – 16th 2008):

Nov. 5th, Wednesday 6PM – FTOPS Event # 1 – NL Hold’em 6-max - $1M Guaranteed – $216 buy-in

Nov. 6th, Thursday 6PM – FTOPS Event # 3 – NL Hold’em Shootout – $300k Guranteed – $535 buy-in

Nov. 7th, Friday 11AM – FTOPS Event # 4 – NL Hold’em 1 Rebuy/1 add-on – $600k Guaranteed – $322 buy-in

Nov. 8th, Saturday 1PM – FTOPS Event # 7 – NL Hold’em Rebuy – $600k Guaranteed – $109 buy-in

Nov. 9th, Sunday  11AM – FTOPS Event # 8 – NL Hold’em KO 6-max – $600k Guaranteed – $256 buy-in

                            3PM – FTOPS Event # 9 – NL Hold’em – $1.5M Guaranteed – $322 buy-in

Nov. 10th, Monday 6PM – FTOPS Event # 11 – NL Hold’em – $1.5M Guaranteed – $1060 buy-in

Nov. 11th, Tuesday 6PM – FTOPS Event # 14 – NL Hold’em Turbo - $500k Guaranteed – $216 buy-in

Nov. 12th, Wednesday 6PM – FTOPS Event # 16 – NL Hold’em 6-max Rebuy – $1M Guaranteed – $322 buy-in

Nov. 13th, Thursday 11AM – FTOPS Event # 17 – NL Hold’em Shootout 6-max – $250k Guaranteed – $216 buy-in

Nov. 14th, Friday 11AM – FTOPS Event # 19 – NL Hold’em – $400k Guaranteed – $216 buy-in

Nov. 15th, Saturday 11AM – FTOPS Event # 22 – NL Hold’em 6-max Two day Event – $2M Guaranteed – $5200 buy-in

Nov. 16th, Sunday 11AM – FTOPS Event #  24 – NL Hold’em KO – $500k Guaranteed – $129 buy-in

                              3PM – FTOPS Main Event – NL Hold’em – $2.5M Guaranteed – $535 buy-in

Venetian Deepstack Tournament Series (Nov. 17th – 23rd, 2008):

Nov. 17th, Monday 12PM – NL Hold’em – $330 buy-in

Nov. 18th, Tuesday 12PM – NL Hold’em – $330 buy-in

Nov. 19th, Wednesday 12PM – NL Hold’em – $330 buy-in

Nov. 20th, Thursday 12PM – NL Hold’em – $330 buy-in

Nov. 21st, Friday  12PM – NL Hold’em – $540 buy-in

Nov. 22nd, Saturday 12PM – NL Hold’em – $540 buy-in

Nov. 23rd, Sunday 12PM – NL Hold’em Main Event - $2500 buy-in

Wish me luck!

ID	Start Time	Name		Buy-in	Entrants	Position	Won	Notes
65897133	Oct 31 22:16ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #11		$150.00 + $13	32	11	–
66764383	Oct 31 21:36ET	Super Sat to FTOPS Event #11		$10.00 + $1	18	10	–	You made 4 rebuys/add-ons for $40.00 .
66762489	Oct 31 21:21ET	Satellite to FTOPS Main Event		$20.00 + $2	28	12	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $40.00 .
66779396	Oct 31 16:46ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #11		$350.00 + $22	9	5	–
66841950	Oct 31 16:44ET	Satellite to FTOPS Event #4		$10.00 + $1	27	13	–	You made 2 rebuys/add-ons for $20.00 .
64963942	Oct 31 16:01ET	$40,000 Guarantee (Rebuy)		$100.00 + $9	133	85	–	You made 1 rebuy/add-on for $100.00 .

Total spent on buy-ins (incl. rebuys)  = $893

Today’s winnings/losses = -$893

I thought I would be able to play a few satellites to the FTOPS (FullTilt Online Poker Series) events starting in Nov. before I partake in some festiv activities later in the evening for Halloween.  Some last minute costume shopping errands arised and time was limited.  I ended up donking off my chips in marginal situations just to either get knocked out or double up.  I try not to play when I know I have things to do later in the day but today was a little unexpected, which cost me a little under $1k.  Be back tomorrow to play in the usual tournaments plus the $750k, Mulligan, and maybe Brawl.