Dublin Poker

Welcome to possibly the worst week of my life...

I am absolutely speechless at what has happened to me this week. At the start of the week I decided to get back into online poker as I had won a few tickets into big games, and I believed my luck had finally changed. Big mistake, as you can see from my posts below. I quickly decided to end this comeback due to an absolutely sickening run of bad beats, which I for some reason I feel the need to keep moaning about.

I've decided I'm going to stick to satellites only, which limits my games to 1 or 2 a week. However, I learned that even this is maybe too much. I sat down at the $10 rebuy on PPP yesterday to try for a ticket to the Irish Open feeder. Only 19 players. I played no hands in the first hour, as I hadn't seen a card over 10. Fair enough, I wasn't going to get annoyed, at least I'm not getting bad beats. I finally picked up eights and when some lad raised I only had a few hunderd so I pushed. He had 55 and hit a 5 on the turn. REBUY. Nothing again until I picked up queens. Reraised a lad and he plipped A5. Flop 234. REBUY. Still card dead, but somehow managed to fluke my way to the final table without winning showdown. Topped up along the wayJust stole a few pots.

Noticed there was another boardster at the table, pretty shortstacked aswell. He queried why I was playing, and laughed about how I was jinxed. Nice one. After a few hands I picked up 77, he went all in for about 1/3 of my stack. I called, and he flipped over KQ. Flop comes KKx.... "ul" he types...

I rob a few more pots and we['re soon down to 6. There's 3 tickets for $103 and 4th gets $55. I get into a showdown with a shortstack with AK, he has AJ. Jack on the river. "lol" types the boardster. Yes indeed, quite funny... Soon the shortstack is out and we're down to the bubble. I am forced to push on A10 and am against J9. Flop comes 10 8 Q.... AGHGHGHGHGHHGHG ! ! !

"ul" "wp".... sure that helps. 5 showdowns, ahead in all of them and I lose them all. Now I shouldn't even be getting annoyed about a $10 game and yet I feel like smashing up the house. I have to go for a walk to cool myself down. I'm sure the boardster just thought I was on a bad night... If only he knew. Why am I even getting annoyed about this? I lost a measly $30, and yet I can't think of anything I hate more in my whole life than online poker. I absolutely hate it. It brings out a horrible side of me that I fcuking hate.

Anyway, enough about that, I'm finished with online. It was my own fault for going back to it. I can't win at it and I don't think I'm ever going to figure out why...

The main reason I'm writing this is because of what happened tonight. I went down to my local, Barcode, with a few friends, to play a 20 euro rebuy they had on. I really didn't want to go due to what has happened this week online, but a friend wanted to go, so I said I'd head down. I forgot the Fitz were running it, and it was a nice surprise to see Luke there taking names.

We started with 1500 in chips, and although it was a pub tourney, it relaxed me to know that Luke was running it. It didn't take long to realise that the standard was low. Very, very low. There was a few Fitz regulars but them aside, I'd say about 80% of the players had never played before. I had to keep explaining the rules to people, and hand rankings etc. It was really annoying, but I felt that at least I should be able to outplay most of them. I didn't want to bluff too much, as most of these players felt it impossible to let go of any pair.

I had built up my stack pretty big by the break, just by raising big on the river when I knew I was ahead. Got called basically every time. I was on of the chip leaders at the break, with about 10K. Topped up and got an extra 3K. I had gotten this far without having to take any real risks. We were down to the last 40 people now, and with the average spend at about 70 euro, the fund looked like it was going to be big.

First hand after the break I get JJ. Flop comes down 45J rainbow. Lad bets out 3K, and I flat call. I think he has KK or QQ now, as he is itching to put his chips in. the turn brings a 2 and I bet 5K. He has about 4,500 behind, and thinks long and hard before folding AA! I'm about to say great fold, when he comes out with "I would have called 4K but I don't want to go home yet..." emmmmm ok? I don't know whether this was a good fold or he just didn't want to get knocked out...

I can't think about it for too long when I pick up AK. I raise it up to 1000 (blinds 200/400), and get four callers. Flop comes K 10 2 with no flush and I raise 2K. An absolute DONKEY who had been at my table all night decides to push for about 5K. Folded around to me and I call the extra 3K. A nice pot now of almost 15K. I'm a little worried he might have 10 2, but thankfully, the DONKEy has K 5. He's smiling at his mate and announces "pair of top kings(?), beat that mister!". He's amazed when I flip over AK, and grabs his jacket in disgust. Turn is a blank, and OF COURSE the river is a 5. He doesn't even realise he has won????? We have to explain how he has 2 pair.... "but the ace....". I am raging inside, but simply collect up the cards and say, nice hand... It hurts being beaten by someone who doesn't even realise they have won

Now Luke had said hello to me, and the lads had asked how I knew him etc. Over the space of the game I had been telling them about the Fitz, and what games they hold, and what games I've played etc. This DONKEY decides to throw this in my face after this hand and announce "haha, I took Mr bigshot casino's chips". I feel like ramming those fucking chips down his throat, but restrain myself...just... I am confident I can take those chips back if I just keep my cool. I'm still a fair bit above average on 10K. I look over my shoulder and notice Luke standing near to the table. I think he saw the hand as he has a sympathetic look on his face.

THE NEXT HAND, I pick up Ad Ac. I actually think to myself how horrible it would be to go out on this hand, after the week I've had. I decide I don't want to play them and raise it up to 2,500. I get 3 callers. Flop comes down Kd 7d 5d. The DONKEY who I doubled up instantly checks his cards, and his eyes fix on the left one. Jesus could you be more obvious...

I want to get the hand over, or take my chips back from that bloke. Its checked to me and I push for my last 7K. Folded around to that a lad who thinks for ages before folding. Then the DONKEY instantly calls with Kc Jd. That wasn't obvious... That stupid smile is on his face again, as if he has just outplayed Andy Black heads up in the WSOP final... DONKEY DONKEY DONKEY ! ! ! ! !

The lad who folded shouts, "I knew it! I had JJ, I knew I was behind, it was the 'blue' that scared me". (yes, some people still call it a 'blue'...). More importantly though, this lad was now dead to the one remaining Jack or 2 remaining Kings. And if the flush comes out he's gone. The pot is over 25K, and I have the chance to take most of my chips back off this lad. I stand up and take a deep breath, praying that I just win ONE showdown. Please just let me win a fucking hand where I am ahead. The turn comes down ....... Jc. I sink into my chair and deal the river, a non diamond 6. I'm out and I'm in absolute shock. I turn around to see Luke.... speechless. again probably thinking I am just on a bad night... If only HE knew... I have now made possibly the worst player in the tournament chip leader. Admittedly, it wasn't a bad move compared to the previous hand, but I he was a mile behind after I turned over the aces... why the fuck couldn't they just stand up?

UNBELIEVABLY, at a table of 8, EVERY one of them thought I had won the hand??? They thought aces beat two pair. I had to AGAIN explain how I had lost. At this point he just smiled at me and grabbed for my chips. At this point I nearly lost it. I told him he was the luckiest donkey I had ever met and fucked the cards on the table. I have never done anything like this in a live game and i feel like a total arsehole for doing it. I just cannot believe what a week I have had. I don't think I have won one showdown all week. As far as I can tell, it couldn't have gone any worse. The only hands I can recall winning are when I robbed pots, or bet on the river with a made hand. Every single showdown I went into, no matter how far ahead I was, I lost.

I lost twice to a three outer, in the space of three hands. Unbelievable. I'm not surprised that I left Luke speechless. A man who you think would have seen it all, until he saw me. You know there's something wrong when you leave a man like Luke lost for words.

EDIT: Someone just pointed out the second one was a one outer! AGHGAHGAHGAHG! ! ! !

I have no-one to blame but myself. I'm a fcuking idiot for playing online again. It triggers something inside me which makes me want to fcuking kill somebody every time I play it. This doesn't even come close to how I'm feeling now..

http://media1.break.com/dnet/media/content/patiencechild.wmv

I only lost about 100 euro this week, and yet it has probably been the most stressful week of my life. I feel sick thinking about the games I have played in this week. Absolutely fucking sick...