Liberating My Thinking

 

I have made a good start to March 2024 after some inconsistent form. Firstly, I have qualified again for the Sunday Million via the freeroll Power Path route. I will be playing late March or early April and will be thrilled to repeat my cashing performance from last November. I then enjoyed a decent win on 11^th March, my wife’s fiftieth birthday! I came 1^st of 275 in a $3 progressive bounty tournament including a whopping 18 eliminations! The total return of $173. A week later I came second in the same tournament. 2^nd of 270 with a return of $89 including a more modest 6 eliminations. Understandably I am playing this tournament as often as I can, perhaps 5 or 6 times a week. During the victory I made good use of big stack, using controlled aggression. However, in truth, the key factor was good fortune, winning more than my fair share of coin-flips, allowing me to keep wielding my big stack.

I love getting these winning e-mails like this from Pokerstars:

Dear Kartajana,

You finished the tournament in 1st place. Congratulations!
A $2.87 USD award was credited to your Stars Account upon reaching the money, and the remaining $63.24 USD award was credited when you finished the tourney.
You have also received USD 106.53 in Knockout Bounties for this tournament. You won bounties for the following players: slimJD245, wagnerjsilva, AlisRagnar, momola1970, Nr.1_Serg, MWWW18, bk_odnodnevka, thaabest, Luck3y_8, Slim8r, biglolANGEL, MAFIAAZUL338, dyna140, stellalouise, elchapohani, G. Costa12, OOIngo, KOWJAIMAI, Kartajana
Note: As you won the tournament, you also won your own bounty.

I have been focusing on some new thinking recently prompted by the teachings of BlackRain79 – Essentially focusing on good play, maximising returns in my good poker sessions and minimising losses in my bad ones. When I am playing confidently and well I now play for longer and perhaps at higher stakes. When I am a little tired or frustrated and not playing good poker I stop firing up new games and wind down the session or play at lower stakes. It’s not rocket science but it seems to be working even though I am not implementing it consistently. However, the effect is to feel more positive about both winning and in particular losing sessions. OK I lost but it could and should have been worse. This has genuinely been a liberating approach for my poker.

Good Luck

Jason (Kartajana)

Sunday Million Result

 

Remember, remember the fifth of November. This has nothing to do with the gunpowder plot of 1605. No this was the day in 2023 that I played the Sunday Million, the most famous weekly online poker tournament. Over ten thousand players, no doubt including plenty of pros, playing/battling for the $1 million dollar prize pool. Not only did I play, but I played well, enjoyed it and landed my largest haul since my return to poker. What a result!

Rewind a couple of weeks before the tournament, I had absolutely no plans to play it. However, via a series of satellite qualifiers, initially using a free 50 cent entry I built this up to $1.50, then $10, then the $109 required for bigger tournaments. I could have used it for the chance to win entry to some of the Pokerstars regional live tournaments in the UK. I have never played live though so realising that I could use my token to play the Sunday Million and also seeing that the following Sunday worked well for me in terms of timing and family commitments, a plan was made to play. I was also very attracted to the fact the Sunday Million is now a progressive bounty tournament, meaning that even if I didn’t make the final 15% of players to cash I had a chance of winning at least $25 for any player I knocked out.

The early stages of the tournament went well, especially given I am not used to playing so deep, with 50,000 chips initially and thus plenty of room to manoeuvre. Quite soon I hit a significant hand, my Jacks catching another Jack on the flop against Aces. My opponent could not let them go as I pressed my advantage and so I had an early double up and the boost of a $25 knockout. A perfect start for an inexperienced player at this level. It meant I had a lot more chips than most and I had already achieved one of my goals, to turn my entry into real cash. The next few hours I progressed cautiously but confidently in the right moments and managed to build up my stack, keeping above the average and taking out another couple of players. There were only a couple of small setbacks where I tried but failed to take out a couple of short stacked players.

As we closed in on the bubble I did tighten up a little as we neared a massive personal poker objective – to cash in the Sunday Million. In truth I have only played twice before and had never really come close to cashing so I was thrilled at this growing realisation. Not only that I had a competitive stack. More importantly, I was playing well, relaxed and enjoying myself, determined to press on once the bubble burst. Despite the presence of more experienced high level players this is ultimately the same game for all and at times I can play it well. Having played for four or five hours I made the final 1500 or so players and cashed for $87.48. I had a workable stack and had already made a further $193.75 in knockout bonuses. Having already achieved my initial goals and more my new aim now was to push on try to qualify for day two of the tournament. At around 2am UK time the game is paused and the final c150 players return at 6pm Monday to fight for the big cash prizes. At this point I got aces for the first time and was able to achieve a significant double up. I now had around 900,000 chips and was in the top one hundred players!

Unfortunately, that would be my peak position. The blinds were now starting to get much bigger and I had less wiggle room. Soon the game was largely all-in or fold which simplifies things a little but also makes you more dependent on getting good cards. Better, more experienced players than me would not need them and simply pick spots to push or put pressure on others. I survived a bit longer winning a 99 v AJ race but soon after my 77 lost to AQ and I was out in 301^st place (out of 10262), an hour or so too early to make day two. I got a further $129.92 for my finishing position giving me over $400 in total plus a massive boost to my poker confidence. My bankroll is now over $1600 and I will try more concertedly to qualify for the big one again. In the results e-mail Pokerstars send they always say we hope you had fun. Most importantly, I really did. I am looking forward to the next one. 

Take care

Jason (Kartajana)

 

High Lights

 

In the last month or so I have won a couple of multi-table tournaments as my return to poker continues. Both are regular games that I play almost daily. The results were as follows:

1^st of 256 players, $3 buy in. $140 return

1^st of 307 players, $1 buy in. $58 return

Nothing life changing but when you are first out of three hundred or so players at anything it naturally feels good and is a boost to confidence. It is also a boost to my bankroll as my return winnings now surges past $1000. I have also played in a few higher buy in games without making an impact. I will keep pushing forward though in my search for more highlights.

Good luck at the tables.

Jason

Poker Zone

 

A year into my return to poker I finally pushed through the $500 profit level that had eluded me thus far. A fourth place in a $3 tournament featuring 290 players snagged me just short of $50 dollars and that feeling of satisfaction from achieving a medium term goal. The journey over the year has been far from constant progress though and it was only really in the last couple of months that my form has been particularly strong. I have struggled with variance, confidence, fatigue and my ability to reach the zone – that mystical place of optimum poker playing. Lately I have found it quite often with success leading to further success. A good mind set is so important to playing poker well.

In the $3 tournament above one of many key hands demonstrates my improved zone like approach. With the final table now active I was one of the shortest stacks, even though I had just doubled up. I was trying to sneak up the ladder a spot or two but now maybe I could push for more. I was dealt 88 in first position with eight players remaining. Given the stack sizes and blinds an all in shove was a completely legitimate move, perhaps the only and obvious move. Usually aggression pays. However, I now maybe had more time to take a more cautious approach. I folded and what occurred in the hand without me showed I would have been out in eighth place. Something inside me, some weird combination of intuition, math, patience and control told me to fold. This is the zone my friends. Buoyed by this significant fold I was able to progress much further and secure fourth place and a satisfying score. 

The key question, a year on, is what now? More of the same steady progress or do I push on to try to achieve more at slightly higher levels. I can’t devote much more time to poker but I could test myself at the next level up and see if my return is greater. Of course, I have the solid option here of dropping down a level during a bad run. I will progressively give it a go and see where I can take my poker in 2023 and beyond.

Play well and good luck.

Cheers

Jason

Not Raking It In!

 

The definition of the phrase raking it in means to earn a lot of money. Unfortunately this is not what I am doing following my return to poker. Sure I am making some progress (and still playing with other people’s money) but ironically it is partly the Pokerstars fees (the rake) that is holding me back. I can’t seem to hit the $200 level which is my current target and where I feel I could step up confidently to playing $5 games as standard. Over the summer I have re-engaged with my old friend’s variance and tilt. Ultimately re-reading some of Jared Tendler’s work has helped me back on track somewhat. In life and in poker I am a big fan of injecting logic. As such it felt a good point to evaluate my game, to assess what is good and where I can improve. Why do I play and why does it matter so much that I win. Indeed, at times I am trying so hard to win these low stakes games that I forget to enjoy them. A week’s family holiday (me pictured at Zafiro Cala Mesquida, Majorca) facilitated a natural break from my online poker and an honest analysis of my game.

This traditional swot analysis of my game revealed some interesting points. The key one being that just because I am an above average player I can’t just turn up unfocused or tired and expect to win, even low stakes games. I also need to be as focused as possible, constantly gravitating towards the mythical “in the zone” state. I need to remember this is when I am playing well and with confidence not just when I am winning coin flips! I need to work on my game, checking ICM push/calls I am unsure on before and after sessions. Just using feel is not enough and weakens my confidence when things don’t go my way. I need to be clear on my aims, on why I play and have a plan in terms of types the games and levels I play at. I really need to embrace warm up games at lower levels rather than jumping in to tougher action. I also need to spread the timings of my games to balance intensity and restrict the potential impact of internet drop outs. Most difficult of all I need to focus on playing well above all else – if I lose but played well I should be happy! If I play badly but get lucky I should be disappointed in myself! Like I said, most difficult of all. If I can stay focused and make progress my next blog post should feature a roller-coaster style chart heading higher.  

Take care and good luck. 

One Hundred And Eighty

 

Poker is fun, fascinating and frustrating, usually all at the same time! I have been back playing for a couple for months now and generally I am loving it. I certainly look forward to every session. However, performance and profit wise I am not consistently achieving my goals and this very fact is probably impacting on my performance and profit at times. Welcome back to poker Kartajana, 2022 style!

The experience of playing in 2022 is somewhat different from when I played the game between 2005 and 2015. There is very little in the way of friendly conversation or respectful acknowledgements. I have had a total of one such interaction, so long gone are the days of nh (nice hand) and gg (good game). Instead the Pokerstars software allows us to virtually attack/wind up our opponents by the use of throwable virtual objects. At the age of fifty one I am past launching a virtual rocket or fried egg at one of my rivals. Also it is clear that in this ironically mature phase of poker that many of its players, usually the worst ones, are convinced the game is rigged. Despite this, they play. Indeed it would seem a good 20% of the players don’t trust the software. The other 90% think statistics are subject to both error and manipulation! In truth, variance can be very tough at times, but I genuinely do trust the software, in the sense that over infinite time we would all get our fair share of the good and bad luck that inevitably is out there. I have, in addition, researched the performance of a lot of the regulars I now play. Some are good, some are not but I have concluded, especially at this level, none of them are to be avoided at all costs. It is they that should avoid me, he writes confidently!

In terms of my challenge to play $2 sit n gos in April things started well. Then things stagnated to leave me with only small progress. By the end of April I had played 180 of the $2 nine man sit n gos so far this year allowing me to neatly examine my performance from a finishing position point of view. If the game was purely random a player should finish in each place 20 times. I am thus using my skill and managing my luck the best I can to secure the top three spots, paying out 50%, 30% and 20% of the entry fees. The chart makes interesting reading.

My highest finishing positions are the top five spots which is encouraging but I definitely need more first places. I showed my son the chart and he asked an interesting question. Do you not get frustrated when you come ninth, knowing that you are one of the better players? My answer was no, unless I had made a mistake in my decision that saw me exit the game. I explained not being frustrated at losing was a key to my success playing poker. I made maybe a modest $40 playing these games which is way below where I feel I should be. I should maybe play another 180 to prove it, to both myself and anyone else that cares! How to make progress in future is certainly a key thought. How do I turn lower positions into cashes and thirds into wins. Probably I need to be more cautious early and more aggressive late on. Being more patient in my heads up matches could also help.  

My return to poker so far has been very encouraging though. Every session I see players making obvious mistakes. I am making the odd one or two but am hopefully learning from them. I am having fun making an average of $2 per session. So it looks like I am saying good bye to Fortnite for now – Taxi please to the nearest poker game! I ended April with a nice win of $25, first in a forty-five player $2 sit n go. I still enjoy the thrill of a final table so mixing in some of these games helps keep me balanced when I am playing lots of single table games. One familiar poker nemesis has returned though. Internet connection problems still exist all these years later. My connection seems to occasionally reboot at 11pm which has cost me on a couple of occasions now. I have now withdrawn my initial deposit so I am playing with other players money. My profit balance moving into May is $115 and the new month has started well. I am back reading my old poker books which hopefully remain extremely relevant in 2022. If this return to poker is to be worthwhile I need to move my bankroll up much further. I intend to stick at the $2 level for now though, build my confidence and funds to get ready to move up a level or two.  Watch this space.

Cheers

Jason (Kartajana)

 

Challenging Times - Kartajana Poker Is Back For 2022

 

The first challenge was to jump through various Pokerstars hoops, at least twice, to be even allowed to play. It too me six weeks, off and on, just to prove I was me! Even allowing for the significant time gap, the fact that I was using a new laptop and growing security concerns online, this was far from ideal. I nearly lost patience and fell at the first hurdle.

So why am I back playing poker? The main reason is a practical one. My son has moved rooms in our house and as a consequence I cannot play Fortnite on his X-Box when he has gone to bed. I need an alternative diversion. In truth I have been planning to return to poker for a while. The time was right, my initial ID challenge has been completed and I am ready to play. I deposited $25 with the aim of quickly turning that into more. I was fascinated to see if, after many years, I could still play. The answer was yes, it all quickly came back to me and in a good way. It was like meeting an old friend. It was great remembering to be disciplined, both patient and aggressive in the right moments, trying to embrace the devil that is variance but most of all to enjoy playing whilst zig-zagging your way to profit.

So what has changed on Pokerstars since I have been away? Not a lot really, some of the sit n go games are structured differently and there are less players overall but I can still get quick action at my chosen levels. Significantly, there are Brazilians everywhere on Pokerstars. Poker has taken off there in a big way and that is great news as it means new players. New players learning the game at my chosen lower levels means only one thing – poker profits potential. Now at the age of fifty, can I turn this new poker adventure into ongoing profit, making a steady profit each month on my chosen games whilst having fun? Generally I plan to play a regular game say ninety percent of the time but also mix in a few higher level sit n gos plus a few MTTs. In April I am challenging myself to play 100 $2 sit n gos and see what I can achieve. Then, if successful, I will perhaps move up to the $5 level and test the difference.

I have been playing again for a few weeks now prior to my April challenge and am enjoying the action and have made a modest $50 profit playing some low stakes games. The only negative so far has been an upsurge in back pain as I spend extra time now hunched over a laptop. I will report again in early May about my progress.

Take care and be lucky

Jason (Kartajana)