maxv2 HU Blog

Finally Updated My Blog!

2011-09-07T06:40:00.003-04:00

Hey guys, finally put together a design of my own!

check it out @ http://www.maxv2poker.com

7/20/11

2011-07-20T13:43:00.002-04:00

So the action seems to be outrageously slow before 6pm nowadays. Thinking until US signups start up again, only winning players will continue on the site. Clearly outside of the US pokerstars has a stronghold on the market, so it doesn't seem like there's any new population joining the merge network at the moment. Also, my recent vacation to Maine has disrupted my month. Even though I'm winning I've sort of been put off by my recent downswing in 6-handed double ups. Making it a lot more difficult to get in volume. While I'm clearly a winning player in them. I'm just not really interested in playing them long term as I greatly prefer HU. I am however planning on heading down to the Hard Rock tonight to play the daily $75 tournament for fun. Just want to see what it's like and get a feel for the card room.

JET

2011-06-27T22:11:00.002-04:00

I declare that hero calls must now be referred to as Jason Terry Irrational Confidence calls. Mandatory.

Looking good!

2011-06-26T03:33:00.002-04:00

So, I've been moving around stakes on merge. Was 6-tabling low stakes 6-max double ups for a while to develop my game a bit. Feeling pretty comfortable and have a pretty solid sample size to show I'm a winner so I've been playing more 50-118's. Also been mixing in 50-100 HU's and running great all of a sudden. Not sure if it's due to an increase in the player pool and getting softer games (definitely) or that I'm playing really well (maybe true....we'll say it's both). Anyways, I'm pretty happy and will start putting in more serious volume now that I've been able to run my initial deposit up over 5500ish. Jealous of Beeschnuts though who's run his up to 13k+. Damn you!

Relaxation

2011-05-18T06:55:00.002-04:00

Been moving at a pretty slow pace poker wise, mostly focusing on moving in a couple of weeks. I'll post some pictures of my new place once we get moved in, should be around May 25-June 1st when we're finally set up. Pretty excited, moving into downtown Delray Beach. As of right now I have about 2500 on Merge, hopefully we can get into a comfort zone soon.

Back to reality

2011-05-07T03:21:00.008-04:00

And here I thought that I would be able to pump out $450+ days every day at $50's on merge...think again! Went 25-22 today for $0 (+40 rake back). Joking aside, I know the realities so this wasn't anything new. Nice to grind from down a couple hundred and get back to even, I missed the feeling of accomplishment when doing so. As you can see, I was running way above EV (and still am running a decent amount above). So we'll see if we can get some more profitable days going over the next week. GL everyone.

Bankroll: $1840
May total: +685
(pre-rakeback and bonuses)

Side note: Dirk Nowitzki is playing exponentially better then any body in the NBA right now...this guy is putting on a show.

Pokerstars New Lobby Structure

2011-05-06T13:49:00.004-04:00

My initial response is that I obviously like the lower rake, and greatly dislike the addition of multiple lobbies. I feel like multiple lobbies are a main contributor to what's killing Heads Up Cash tables. Retract my statement about there being less action, looks like it's picked up greatly. Maybe I'm wrong? Would rather be wrong in this situation of course.

We're back

2011-05-04T18:25:00.002-04:00

So, I've started playing on the Merge network. Deposited 1k through Western Union, and we're off! with a tiny bankroll. Yesterday I took a hit playing $50's of about -280 I was +80 trying out the software before that. So today I started -200ish, I played quite a few regs but was able to string together a nice run at the end of the session to end up +460 for today. So that puts me at a bankroll of $1300 after rakeback. Let's see if we can make this happen! GL to everyone else

Got my money!

2011-04-29T11:52:00.002-04:00

As I personally suspected Pokerstars came through again. Getting my money (and I assume everyone elses) money back in an extremely timely fashion. Speaking with Rypac, he believes that the massive amount of public outcry urging legislators and senators to make this happen had a lot to do with how fast our money has gotten to us. So I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who took the time via twitter or petition make their voice heard. Gl everyone!

Respect for Kobe

2011-04-26T13:08:00.003-04:00

I hate Kobe, but have to give respect where respect is due. To refuse an MRI and tell his training staff that he's playing is pretty hardcore. Again...I hate you, but I appreciate what you bring to the game.

Relaxing

2011-04-23T13:40:00.002-04:00

So during this forced vacation, I've been just hanging out making sports bets and finishing up my last college course. Kind of glad I ended up with some time away from cards, because I probably wouldn't have finished this final paper otherwise. I've been making a ton of sports bets, I would've posted my picks but was severely afraid of a jinx. I made a promise to myself that instead of playing E-Roulette which I could find myself addicted too even though it's not nearly as fun as actual casino roulette, I'd bet everything in my bodog account at all times on various playoff basketball and baseball games. Well, it worked out! I was able to turn $120 into $955 over the last couple days. I've never been successful at gambling outside of playing cards, so this is pretty miraculous to me. I'm going to cash this out and consider this a "paid" vacation haha. Anyways, hope everyone else is doing well. I've signed up for lock poker under the name maxv22 and have a deposit pending at the moment. So hopefully I'll see everyone back at the tables!

What are your plans? Poll

2011-04-20T03:04:00.002-04:00

Interested to see what everyone is planning to do. If you have any ideas that you think I should add to the polling list, please comment. Hope everyone is doing well. GL

Coaching

2011-04-18T19:45:00.004-04:00

So since I am now unable to play. I was curious as to whether or not anyone would still be interested in my services as a HU SNG coach. I'm willing to cut my rate down to 80/hr in hopes of generating more interest until online poker is officially back running in the United State. My AIM is: allorlebanon and my email is maxlud23@gmail.com and my Skype is maxv20 if interested. Thanks.

Wow

2011-04-15T19:29:00.002-04:00

So we've definitely been dealt some interesting news lately as most of you know. This has put a lot of us in a very strange place. Personally I have to rethink whether or not I want to continue my life as a professional poker player now that it's become a much more difficult endeavor. Luckily I've finished up school with my Bachelors and paid off all debts through poker earnings and have a decent amount of money saved up to live off of for a while. From what I can gather we're in for an extended hiatus from online poker. I'm interested to hear peoples thoughts on smaller poker sites succeeding (bodog, lock poker, etc) Not sure where they stand in this process. The optimist in me says "it should only be like 3 months, just wait it out" while the pessimist in me thinks this process could take 1-3 years. I'm rooting for the former....good luck to everyone and their own personal situations relating to all of this. Hope everyone gets their money safely. GL

Nice day

2011-04-12T02:11:00.002-04:00

Haven't had a notable day in a while, but I just got down with a 28 game session going 17-8 with 3 chops for +850. Most of it (about 700) was off the same guy. I ran pretty well in general, played what I thought was pretty solid poker as well. Not many hands I feel I misplayed today, so that's always a good thing. Gl everyone!

livb112/Adonis112

2011-04-10T03:59:00.002-04:00

So I'll begin my top 10+ list break down at the top. I really enjoy his trash talk, probably the guy I would take in just about any reg war...ever. I mean the guy has made his career on beating anyone/everyone at 5k's, I'm guessing for the most part he wouldn't back down from anyone. Yeah he probably follows the same reg avoidance tactics as everyone else, and there's probably players who have given him problems over time, however you can't argue with his ridiculous results. Does anyone even come close? I'm guessing that most, if not all, Heads up Sit N Go regs would agree with me on this one.

Variance always wins!

2011-04-09T18:26:00.003-04:00

Talk about knowing what's coming. I was lazy the last couple days with poker because I've been apartment shopping. Results were great $700 one day going 10-3 $500 another going 8-3...I knew it was too good to be true. I told myself I needed to catchup games/wise or else variance would own me...well it did the very next day lol. I was never down more then 900 yesterday, but it took me 122 games to break even...122!! It was crazy, but I'm glad I did it. I'm back over pace now and looking for some more of those...easier sessions...hopefully! Also I'll start breaking down each individual player on my top 10+ list, think it'll be interesting.

Top 10 People I enjoy watching play

2011-04-05T01:37:00.007-04:00

You could call it a top HU SNG Pokerstars list if you want, but I couldn't resist after seeing HUsng.com make one of these.

1. Adonis112
2. treezer
3. Iftarii
4. whaassuuppp
4. iCeVeNoM
5. la_gachette
6. BCM11
7. trader0811
8. Hokiegreg HU
9. PlauZee
10. ricestud / fishenzon / JMProdigy / pistons87 / primordialAA

Maybe if I find some time tomorrow I'll edit this and write in why exactly each of these individuals is on my list. My reasoning behind the list is based on both observations and results, as well as entertainment value in some cases. As you can see I couldn't make up my mind on 10th so I just listed the five I feel deserve to be on the list...it's a tie! Anyways, good luck everyone.

Star with a hole in it next to my name!

2011-04-03T03:54:00.002-04:00

And it's blue! Anyways, kinda nice to be first in something. Even if it's just conquering lower stakes. Hopefully I can maintain this throughout the year. Obviously tough to break 10k every month at these stakes and I wasn't able to achieve it before FPP's in March, but it seems like I'll be able to do it more often then not...Hopefully...GL Everyone, see you around

Ah, I day off

2011-03-31T01:28:00.002-04:00

After last nights pretty mediocre session, both in how well I played and results (broke even), I decided to take the day off to relax. I put in plenty of volume fighting back to even, so it was sort of deserved. Went and saw "Red Riding Hood", dear god was it hideous. I'm guessing they filmed it in about 2 weeks, I wonder what the editors were thinking when they cut the actual film. Probably something like "nothing can save this, so why even try". No big deal, was good to get out of the house and hang out with my girlfriend Danni. Definitely need to start going to the gym again though. My whole "I was an athlete for 5 years I deserve a break" excuse has definitely run out. So it's time. Anyways back to work tomorrow, GL everyone.

Mission Complete

2011-03-25T15:56:00.002-04:00

Finished off the last of my downswing today! Pretty psyched, got a tiny bit greedy playing some really bad players and lost 2 buyins at the end JJ < KJ obv. Still in an awesome mood regardless. Excited to watch the Celtics game tonight, even if its just Charlotte. So close to getting Shaq/JO back, hopefully all of this anticipation isn't spoiled by them sucking when they actually do get back. Good luck everyone!

Recovering Nicely

2011-03-24T22:03:00.003-04:00

Pretty psyched about this recovery. Had an extremely tough day today, played a ton which is awesome. Ended up playing 74 games for +545, yesterday I made 920 off of 36 games. Overall I'm back ahead of 30 games a day pace (300,000vpps for the year). After some money made for coaching and the last 2 days, I'm only down about 1k of the 3k downswing I endured with out counting the fpp's I've garnered through out this endeavor. Pretty happy with how I'm playing, hopefully I can take care of the rest over the next day or two. Good luck everyone!

Birthday Downswing!

2011-03-23T17:04:00.001-04:00

Sighhhhh! On a little 2300ish downswing from my birthday...LAME. First one of the year though, so I really can't complain...maybe about the timing lol. Anyways, working on recovering it now. Depending on whether or not it goes well, I might cash my fpp's for $1500 to ease the pain. It's not that I need the money, but it helps me mentally when I erase debts. Anyways, gl everyone!

Happy Saint Patricks Day!

2011-03-17T18:05:00.002-04:00

Had a hard time getting out of bed this morning (afternoon) for some reason. Was able to eventually crawl out and get in a quick session before I meet my girlfriend for a celebratory drink. Went 7-2 for +505, no one that I played seemed drunk though, except maybe the one 230 I played. Was hoping for easier games :). Still, was able to play well unlike the beginning of yesterday where I quickly dropped 1k. Luckily I focused myself and looked at it as a challenge rather then an annoyance. Cut it to 500 then took a break to eat, came back and finished it off. Then on top of that, played a night session and went 5-1 for a +440 profit for the night overall. Enjoying the fact that I haven't had to deal with any significant downswings yet this year, but I'm always prepared. It's pretty impossible to avoid throughout an entire year. Anyways, have fun tonight everyone and be safe.

Grindddd

2011-03-14T01:06:00.002-04:00

Turned out to be a great day, definitely took some work though. Ended tonight going 24-16 with 2 chops (split) for a profit of +785. Pretty psyched about how consistent things have been. While I'm always tempted to play higher, I have some small goals I'd like to reach before I do anything out of the ordinary. Good luck to everyone. -maxv2

Visitors and some fun events

2011-03-11T02:51:00.009-05:00

So my girlfriend had a couple friends up from home the last couple days, and I had a friend up from UMaine. Was a really fun time overall, I was even able to squeeze in a decent amount of poker as everyone was pretty respectful of my job. We showed them around the area (mostly Delray because the actual surround area of our neighborhood is boring). We also went canoeing at this place in the everglades and hung out with some Alligators. Here's some photos.

Wake up and start fresh

2011-03-07T14:56:00.002-05:00

Last night I just got destroyed. Not terribly as far as $$$ goes, but definitely took a soul beating. I played 78 games going 38-40 for -610, everytime I got anything going I'd lose a succession of coin flips and be right back in the hole. Eventually I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer and decided I'd try and make back my losses in an early session and play another one later in the day to try and make a profit. Pretty hilarious that last night that -610 meant so much to and in literally 40 minutes I woke up and went 6-0 to cover the losses completely. Just goes to show, sometimes you just need to get some rest and go at it again the next day. Going to take a break for quite a bit and get myself ready for a session later tonight. Good luck everyone.

Great day

2011-03-05T19:21:00.002-05:00

Ended up going 21-10 for +1055. Glad I got in 30 games...and of course happy with the result. Still have a lot of catching up to do this month however, haven't put in nearly enough volume. Hopefully everyone else is running well too, gl all.

King of fish!

2011-03-02T16:17:00.002-05:00

Love starting off a session playing mostly regulars...losing to all of them like a retard...then going 8-0 against straight fish to get back over even. Definitely feel like I need to work on my play against regs, today was badddd. Anyways, final stats 13-11 (3 chops for -110 on sharkscope) for a total of +85. Nice!

Interesting day

2011-02-28T18:16:00.002-05:00

So I started today all jacked up to play a long session. Probably 50-70 games. Then...I won 6 straight (and a 33 messing around) for +650 and well...decided to quit lol. It put me into another good spot to cash out (I cash out when my bankroll reaches a certain point) and puts me in a great spot financially. What an odd month, played about 65-70 games less then I wanted, but made a lot more money then expected. Pretty happy overall. Good end to February, hope everyone else is doing well.

Goodbye Kendrick Perkins :(

2011-02-24T17:39:00.002-05:00

Hate this trade, but I'm guessing Danny tried to make a play at keeping the team competitive after the big 3 era ends. We'll still have Rondo + Green and three 1st rounders in 2011-2012 to build something.

Another 1k Day

2011-02-23T16:52:00.002-05:00

Went 15-5 today for +1k even. Pretty psyched considering I took 2 of the last 4 days off...but was able to make 1k each of the days I played lol. Just gonna relax the rest of the night and watch the new look Knicks. By the way, Nets nailed it, Deron > Carmelo IMO. Brook Lopez + Deron Williams still isn't enough obviously, but at least people won't be as opposed to being traded/signed to New Jersey next year and in 2012 (Dwight Howard's year).

Big day (for me)

2011-02-21T15:58:00.002-05:00

Ended up going 17-6 today with 4 chops for +1050. Haven't had that many 1k+ days lately so it's nice to get one, especially after a disappointing end to FTOPs #42 where I got knocked out immediately after making the money. Pretty sad though that Ray Allen didn't win the 3 point shoot out. James Jones was my sleeper pick, I mean it's his job to sit in the corner and knock down open 3's. Ray generally has a higher level of difficulty with his attempts. Regardless, was pretty impressive the rhythm Jones got into. Was fun to watch and definitely got my mind off that FTOPs let down.

GL everyone

2011-02-19T15:54:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to say GL to everyone playing FTOPS #42.

Prettty good

2011-02-17T07:05:00.002-05:00

Had a good day yesterday, played a ton of games and ended up +805. I know to most of you high rollers that's not anything special, but hey I'm always happy to make 500+. Ended up something like 26-17 with 9 chops. So far so good for February +5430 already.

New Goal

2011-02-16T12:24:00.001-05:00

My new life goal is to buy a house and have a half court indoor basketball court installed. That is all. Good luck today

Happy Valentines Day

2011-02-14T02:16:00.004-05:00

Took this beat early

Seat 1: jovi35 (1300 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1700 in chips)
jovi35: posts small blind 25
maxv2: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Js Jc]
jovi35: calls 25
maxv2: raises 100 to 150
jovi35: calls 100
*** FLOP *** [6d 7h Tc]
maxv2: bets 200
jovi35: calls 200
*** TURN *** [6d 7h Tc] [2s]
maxv2: bets 1350 and is all-in
jovi35: calls 950 and is all-in
Uncalled bet (400) returned to maxv2
*** RIVER *** [6d 7h Tc 2s] [6h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Js Jc] (two pair, Jacks and Sixes)
jovi35: shows [6c 5c] (three of a kind, Sixes)

which ended up being a blessing, because I sat some 230's and got some huge fish. Ended up turning a -155 day into a +455 day 5 games later going 4-1. Pretty happy with that outcome, especially since I need some sleep before Valentines Day events with my girlfriend tomorrow. Oh I broke 400k total on shark scope tonight, kind of cool.

Not bad

2011-02-13T04:08:00.002-05:00

Pretty lazy day, 27 games for a record of 16-11 +425 profit. Took a couple of toughish beats, but nothing crazy. Can never complain about 400+ profit at this level. Looking through the higher stakes HU sng's...not much going on. Seems like there hasn't been any bigger fish around for people. Maybe it's just too late at night though.

MUST SLEEEEP!

2011-02-12T04:35:00.002-05:00

Definitely played some drunk people tonight, didn't fare well until the end when this hand came up. Definitely could make arguments for/against my play, but here it is.

Dealt to maxv2 [8c 2c]
maxv2: raises 30 to 60
OkelaPoka: calls 30
*** FLOP *** [5h 3c 4c]
OkelaPoka: checks
maxv2: bets 65
OkelaPoka: raises 115 to 180
maxv2: raises 375 to 555
OkelaPoka: raises 645 to 1200 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 645
*** TURN *** [5h 3c 4c] [6c]
*** RIVER *** [5h 3c 4c 6c] [2h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
OkelaPoka: shows [2d Ac] (a straight, Deuce to Six)
maxv2: shows [8c 2c] (a flush, Eight high)
maxv2 said, "gg"
maxv2 collected 2520 from pot

Thank you poker gods, I appreciate it. Ended the night at +980 after losing about 410 last night. Pretty good recovery, especially considering I won my first 4 straight to ease my mind of the previous nights struggles. Sometimes you just need to get some sleep and start over the next day. Advice I wish I followed more often.

Big night tonight

2011-02-10T19:57:00.002-05:00

Pretty excited to see Ray Allen potentially break the 3-point record tonight with Reggie Miller announcing. Anyone notice he didn't take many attempts behind the arc in the 2nd half of the Charlotte game?...hmmm wonder why. Anyways went for +405 last night, still running pretty solidly for the year. Finally debt free (car paid for, all school loans paid off) so soon I'll be able to fatten my bankroll and maybe take some shots with profit. Money's been a little too valuable to try anything crazy until now. I'm also a big pansy....so we'll see what happens. Props to Hokiegreg HU and some other regs for finding the balls to play Isildur1 in 5k's. It's all been pretty entertaining to watch. Anyways, gl everyone.

Thank you jesus

2011-02-08T22:55:00.003-05:00

I can't believe Jim Buss rejected a Bynum for Carmelo deal. Would've instantly made the Lakers outrageous favorites. I would take Bryant/Melo/Gasol over Wade/Lebron/Bosh. Mix in the fact that they still have Odom some decent veterans (fisher, blake) and some spark with Shannon Brown...all of which Miami doesn't have. As a Celtics fan this would've been devastating. Thank you for management egos and the inability to admit that Bynum is not the future of the franchise. THANK YOU

Worst Fantasy Basketball loss ever!

2011-02-07T06:33:00.003-05:00

How does this happen, serious. .5 points with over 1600 points?!!. Anyways, took another day off for the superbowl. Will be getting back at it today, highly motivated by Kurt23x shipping 15k last night in a 109 turbo.

Back after a short break

2011-02-06T03:20:00.003-05:00

Took a couple days off to deal with some personal stuff, but got back at it today. Was able to put together a descent session of +475 after going 21-15 with 1 chop. Not bad at all. Did take one notable bad beat of AA vs AQ all-in pre for a KJ10 flop. Meh I got it back getting lucky all-in with 10's vs A's later :)

Headache

2011-02-03T04:25:00.001-05:00

Today was a massive headache. Luckily the hard work paid off a little in the end 59 games total for 30-24 (5 chops) +460.

Good Start to February

2011-02-02T01:42:00.006-05:00

So after my vicious come back yesterday, I decided to try and fit in a session tonight. Was exhausted all day so I didn't get started until around midnight. I decided that if I was able to make a couple hundred I would quit early (being so late), but if not try and fit in 30 games regardless of results. Lucky for me I caught a break early in the form of a coin flip, AJ vs 8's of pruddishot. Flop AJxxx (x's being non 8's or straight cards). Then got 4 straight games against pretty big fish. So 5-1 for me for +495 and I'm done. Also, my official result for January was +12,645 not counting FPP's. Probably another 1500-2000 in fpp's, so overall one of my top 5 best months ever. Now that I have taxes taken care of for 2010 and all my school debts paid off and my car paid for...I can finally start building a bigger bankroll and saving some money.
January Graph:

Recovery day

2011-02-01T04:12:00.002-05:00

So today started off pretty normal, was up about +165 through 10-15 games. Then I woke up from a nap and started another session...which didn't go so hot. Mix of playing bad and a couple of bad beats and I found myself down 2k. Not so fun. I'm highly motivated by losing (I know worst thing for a poker player). However at this point in my career I know that if I stay focused and grind my stakes (key not to move up) I'll make it all back in due time. Fortunately I made it all back this same night...actually ended up +155 and all the fpps I made. So in the end I'm really happy with how the day turned out.

Whewwww

2011-01-29T21:22:00.003-05:00

Definitely could have been a bad day...probably should have been. Started off 1-5 with 6 chops (lots of regs out today) for -500, but was able to rally in a couple of games. Most notably a $210 reg speed vs glazednuts. Pretty good player, had me down around 800 most of the game. Was able to fight back and win 77 against K5 to close it out. Also won A10s vs K's allin pre for a big boost. Finished up on a nice run to go 15-9 with 6 chops for +490.

Run goood

2011-01-28T20:34:00.002-05:00

Another shorter session with the month winding down and being about 30-40 games above pace. 11-4 for +695. Feeling pretty good, up 11,325 for the month so far...not counting about 1500+ in FPP's. Pretty nice start to the year.

Pretty relaxed day

2011-01-28T00:45:00.002-05:00

went 13-7 with 4 chops for +540 for the day. Puts me up to +10630 for the month, which is pretty awesome. Nothing else exciting really. I'll try and be more interesting tomorrow lol.

+10k for the month!

2011-01-26T20:44:00.002-05:00

Hopefully I'm able to continue running pretty well. +890 today, played a shorter session (23 games) went 15-6 with 2 chops. Kind of blew a game which would've put me up over 1k, but can't dwell on those types of things.

Ice Skating in Florida

2011-01-26T03:58:00.005-05:00

Obviously not cut out for ice skating, I could barely stand up long enough to take a picture...pretty fun day though. Went out with most of Danni's co-workers. Pretty good group of people. Plus being on skates made me feel like I was 6-4, which would be awesome...I could probably dunk at that height. Oh and it's awesome seeing Kendrick Perkins back playing for the Celtics. Looks like he's been putting in an outrageous amount of hard work. Love Perk and how serious he takes his job as an athlete. Inspires me to work harder as a poker player.

2011-01-25T23:06:00.002-05:00

Started off the session today getting slammed with bad beats. This was the very first hand I played of the day:
Seat 1: maxv2 (1500 in chips)

Seat 1: maxv2 (1500 in chips)
Seat 2: FerriTheNuts (1500 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 10
FerriTheNuts: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Qh Kh]
maxv2: raises 40 to 60
FerriTheNuts: raises 140 to 200
maxv2: calls 140
*** FLOP *** [Qd 5s 3h]
FerriTheNuts: bets 220
maxv2: calls 220
*** TURN *** [Qd 5s 3h] [9d]
FerriTheNuts: bets 400
maxv2: raises 680 to 1080 and is all-in
FerriTheNuts: calls 680 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [Qd 5s 3h 9d] [Ac]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FerriTheNuts: shows [As Ks] (a pair of Aces)
maxv2: shows [Qh Kh] (a pair of Queens)
FerriTheNuts collected 3000 from pot
maxv2 finished the tournament in 2nd place
FerriTheNuts wins the tournament and receives $220.00 - congratulations!
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 3000 | Rake 0
Board [Qd 5s 3h 9d Ac]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Qh Kh] and lost with a pair of Queens
Seat 2: FerriTheNuts (big blind) showed [As Ks] and won (3000) with a pair of Aces

But then somebody switched on a run good switch and I won about 2-3 all-ins for all the chips overpairs against 1 over + Flush draw. Ended the day 14-9 with 2 chops for 25 games total and a +425 profit. I'll take it.

2011-01-25T03:29:00.004-05:00

Yo! I think I'll begin updating this again. At least on a twitter type level (short posts). It's really not that hard, and something I should be doing. Played an astounding number of games today....at least for me lol. Played 65 total (2 were chops) and ended the day at 34-29 for a +350 profit. Made some mistakes throughout, but it's tough to play that much without doing so. So I'm pretty happy about it. I've made about $8700ish thus far this month with only one notable $1500 downswing. I was lucky enough to follow that up with a recovery day were I erased the debt completely which was nice. Hopefully I won't get made fun of for this, but my goal is simply to play 30 games a day. I know it's not much, but my average has been around 20-25 my entire career so there's room for improvement as far as volume goes. I'm jealous of the higher stakes grinders, sadly I don't quite have the balls to do what they do. I bow to you guys, fishenzon/treezer/plauzee/whaassuuppp/Siervos(nice take down at PCA)/BCM11/JMProdigy/IceVenom/HokieGreg HU. If I missed anyone I apologize. GL to you guys this year. I'll be down below in my little comfort zone grinding 115's and sweating 230's.

2009-07-15T17:32:00.002-04:00

+820 today, very solid day; officially made back all of the losses that I suffered a few days ago. Things have been going smoothly, in cards and in coaching. I feel like PilSuhng is learning some depth, which is all I feel he lacked. Here's a hand for the day.

PokerStars Game #30499692033: Tournament #179617293, $220+$10 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2009/07/15 17:12:52 ET
Table '179617293 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: THIERRY95 (1570 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1430 in chips)
THIERRY95: posts small blind 10
maxv2: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Jd 9s]
THIERRY95: raises 60 to 80
maxv2: calls 60
*** FLOP *** [Qs 8c 2h]
maxv2: checks
THIERRY95: bets 80
maxv2: raises 160 to 240
THIERRY95: calls 160
*** TURN *** [Qs 8c 2h] [Ts]
maxv2: bets 250
THIERRY95: calls 250
*** RIVER *** [Qs 8c 2h Ts] [9d]
maxv2: bets 300
THIERRY95: calls 300
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Jd 9s] (a straight, Eight to Queen)
THIERRY95: mucks hand
maxv2 collected 1740 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1740 | Rake 0
Board [Qs 8c 2h Ts 9d]
Seat 1: THIERRY95 (button) (small blind) mucked [Kh Qh]
Seat 2: maxv2 (big blind) showed [Jd 9s] and won (1740) with a straight, Eight to Queen

Analysis: This is a move that I generally make on a rare occasion. Reraise on a gutshot hoping to induce a fold. Fortunately for me I hit big and was able to suck value out of it the rest of the hand. An unfortunate 9 on the river handcuffed me, but still was able to get a decent amount.

2009-07-14T20:20:00.001-04:00

Serious life hot streak

2009-07-12T23:46:00.001-04:00

So I've decided to get blogging going again. Partially because I want to, and have always enjoyed it; and also because I have a decent amount of free time these days and would like to take up coaching. So I'm hoping this helps promote myself.

Things have been slow this year, my ROI is at an all time low this year. Only posting a 5% so far, and about 17k earnings with about 7k in bonuses cleared. So all in all I could still make a hard push the rest of the year and make between 50-60k. Hopefully the nice whether helps motivate me.

HH of the Day (I'll also be available to analyze HH's for $10 each email me at maxwell.ludwig@umit.maine.edu) :

Seat 1: PilSuhng (1,060)
Seat 2: AEROg (1,940)
PilSuhng posts the small blind of 60
AEROg posts the big blind of 120
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to PilSuhng [Ac Jc]
PilSuhng has 15 seconds left to act
PilSuhng calls 60
AEROg raises to 1,940, and is all in
PilSuhng calls 940, and is all in
AEROg shows [2c Th]
PilSuhng shows [Ac Jc]
Uncalled bet of 880 returned to AEROg
*** FLOP *** [6c Qd 5c]
*** TURN *** [6c Qd 5c] [3c]
*** RIVER *** [6c Qd 5c 3c] [Qh]
AEROg shows a pair of Queens
PilSuhng shows a flush, Ace high
PilSuhng wins the pot (2,120) with a flush, Ace high

Analysis: PilSuhng is a currect protege` of mine, he was at a high blind stage on full tilt against a guy who was moving in out of position on limps about half the time. This is definitely worth the gamble of limping in (and potentially missing a flop to waste the value of the hand) to trap and take down a huge pot. This worked to perfection and the opponent was classically caught with 102o. Not the most exciting hand I know, but nicely done PilSuhng.

2009-05-08T00:27:00.001-04:00

2009-03-30T01:29:00.001-04:00

http://twitter.com/maxv2

2009-02-27T16:04:00.001-05:00

My blog has been moved to

http://www.husng.com/?q=blog/169

2009-02-25T00:33:00.001-05:00

3/25 : New Video

Let me know what you think

2009-02-19T01:03:00.001-05:00

2/19 : Poker and Life update

So I have some life issues that I've been dealing with. I handled them just about as poorly as possible and if I have any advice for myself and anyone else, it's to not make things a bigger deal then they are. It will just lead to your demise (and thus my recent demise). But it's never too late to change, which is what I'll be doing. I used to be this way, and will become the person I once was starting today. Oh and holy crap try not to trust anyone other then your true friends, it's so easy to get stabbed in the back when you put trust in anyone other then those people.

Poker has been interesting, I lost around 10k total at the beginning of February and have been working back all month. I've made 7k of it back and am still up about 6-8k for the year, I'm not exactly sure how much because I've been running a lot of 4 man's with Phenom and he wins every flip for the sharkscope stats lol.

2009-01-02T18:25:00.001-05:00

1/2/08 : Vina Del Mar

So I'm thinking of playing in this LAPT event, I like the hotel deal I get as a supernova (or at least what I got on the WSOP trip) So I think it's worth the extra money I'd have to pay to get into the tournament. Plus I can cover most of the plane cost with my FPP's. Anyone else going out there?

2008-12-22T01:50:00.001-05:00

12/22 : +1310

Big day for me, I've been in 2 accidents in the last 3 weeks and am going to have to fork out at least $1200...so I decided to try and make all of it today, success! Anyways here's the latest video project I've got. I worked on a team of 6 people, I did the titling, sound and assistant edited.

Cold from Neil Shelley on Vimeo.

2008-12-12T03:30:00.002-05:00

12/12 : +800

Today was a pretty fantastic day. I needed to get some work done due to my lack of playing, and it came pretty easily. I needed one break however (which was immediately followed by a bad beat against another play, but this saved a split).

Seat 1: CaLLitARUSH (1190 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1810 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 50
CaLLitARUSH: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ad 5c]
maxv2: raises 1710 to 1810 and is all-in
CaLLitARUSH: calls 1090 and is all-in
Uncalled bet (620) returned to maxv2
*** FLOP *** [6h 3c 7d]
*** TURN *** [6h 3c 7d] [Kh]
*** RIVER *** [6h 3c 7d Kh] [As]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
CaLLitARUSH: shows [Jc Js] (a pair of Jacks)
maxv2: shows [Ad 5c] (a pair of Aces)
maxv2 said, "gg"
maxv2 collected 2380 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2380 | Rake 0
Board [6h 3c 7d Kh As]
Seat 1: CaLLitARUSH (big blind) showed [Jc Js] and lost with a pair of Jacks
Seat 2: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Ad 5c] and won (2380) with a pair of Aces

Analasys: I really don't have much to say about this. It was 50/100 blinds and I was being aggressive with my chip lead hoping to expand it. Unfortunately I got caught, it happens to everyone. It wasn't a bad flop and I was able to get lucky.

2008-12-10T23:56:00.001-05:00

12/10 : +150

Before I start rembling here's my latest piece:

I haven't really played much at all, I've been busy with a lot of things such as lifting, classes, work and finishing up this project. All I have left for the year is one more group film to finish that I'm the assistant editor and sound technician of. I have a lot of time over the next few days to play so hopefully I can make some money; although it's not exactly a need at the moment. I don't have any hand histories tonight, I played at the office but I'll get something together tomorrow. I will talk about a hand which kind of baffled me in the way my opponent played it. I had 46s out of position at 10/20 blinds. He standard raised and I called. Flop came 26J he led out 80 I called. Turn 6 he bets 300, and at this point I have no idea of he has a monster like 2's J's or A6 and I generally play these situations cautiously out of position so I just call. River 7 he moves in for 1k more (we were even stacked going into this hand, forgot to mention that) and I decided that there wasn't enough that could beat me to fold so I called. He turned over J7 for top 2 and I took it down. I don't understand why he wouldn't simply check the turn with the scare 6 coming in position and let me do the betting on the river with a good chance that I'd bluff a missed draw and eliminating the risk of losing so much to my 6. I can understand that he beats a lot of hands there, and there's a lot of value in that hand. But what else do I call that flop with other then a 6? I know a J with a different kicker is possible, but that's a strange assumption to make in my opinion. I think a check on the turn is almost automatic if I'm in his shoes. Ok, I'll check back in soon now that I'm not so busy. -maxv2

2008-11-26T02:05:00.004-05:00

11/26 : +35

Here's my latest piece before I start talking about cards

Soooo, yesterday in a very short period of time I was able to drop $2185...well today in a relatively short amount of time (2 and a half hours) I was able to make all of that along with a whopping 35 bucks! The contrast between days I can't put into words. Rollercoast maybe? It's true about what I've read in other HU blogs (whasssupppps) You really need to be able to play with the mindset of 'did I play well?' as opposed to 'losing lots of money sucks'. I was able to just close the door on playing yesterday with the thought of playing today, well rested and with a fresh mindset. I started off pretty solid even after losing a game 77 to 66 with a spiked 6 on the river all in preflop. At one point I was 6-3 then I think I won something like 6-7 in a row. It was pretty fun. Honestly I'm a little tired and it feels like it should be Sunday not Tuesday so I'm not going to do an in depth hand analysis or talk about bankroll management (which I will do in my next post). I'll just leave you with what was the most important hold of the session.

Seat 1: maxv2 (1990 in chips)
Seat 2: PiS.ToTo (1010 in chips)
PiS.ToTo: posts small blind 10
maxv2: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Kc Ks]
PiS.ToTo: raises 40 to 60
maxv2: raises 120 to 180
PiS.ToTo: calls 120
*** FLOP *** [7s 7d 8d]
maxv2: bets 250
PiS.ToTo: raises 580 to 830 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 580
*** TURN *** [7s 7d 8d] [8s]
*** RIVER *** [7s 7d 8d 8s] [3h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Kc Ks] (two pair, Kings and Eights)
PiS.ToTo: shows [Th 9d] (two pair, Eights and Sevens)
maxv2 collected 2020 from pot

2008-11-17T00:00:00.001-05:00

11/16 : +315

So I figure that a good way to go about this blog is to just post weekly. I'm relatively busy and it's hard to add something like this to my daily routine. However, this will be easy to maintain weekly and it'll make for more interesting material as far as what's going on in my life. Today was a pretty good day, I drove back to Orono from Portland and watched football until about 8. Then I played just 2 games, one against Layne Flack "Reloadthis" for $215 and another against a super aggressive guy. I felt a little bad about the game against Flack, he timed out a lot and I picked up some free pots mid-hand that could've gone either way because he wouldn't act in time. In the end I made a good call with 99 on a Q67Q7 board and then flipped for his half stack (750) and won 44 vs QJ. Then I lost a flip against the other guys half stack after knocking him down, then got into an awful situation after the flop at 50/100 blinds, here's how it went.

Seat 1: grubel9 (1285 in chips)

Seat 2: maxv2 (1715 in chips)

grubel9: posts small blind 50

maxv2: posts big blind 100

*** HOLE CARDS ***

Dealt to maxv2 [6d As]

grubel9: calls 50

maxv2: raises 200 to 300

grubel9: calls 200

*** FLOP *** [9h 4s 6h]

maxv2: bets 300

grubel9: raises 685 to 985 and is all-in

maxv2: calls 685

*** TURN *** [9h 4s 6h] [Ad]

*** RIVER *** [9h 4s 6h Ad] [Qs]

*** SHOW DOWN ***

maxv2: shows [6d As] (two pair, Aces and Sixes)

grubel9: shows [7h 8h] (high card Ace)

maxv2 collected 2570 from pot

I really didn't expect him to call the raise pre-flop, I just wanted to take it down there...but that didn't work out. Then I flopped middle pair top kicker and was pretty much committed after my $300 lead out. I know it wasn't a great play, but this guy was over aggressive so I went with it. Somehow I won, I was about 32% after the flop, but that A on the turn shifted me to 68% which was nice. So I ended up done for the day after just two games...nice. Let me know if there's anything in particular anyone would like me to talk about! Peace

2008-11-10T03:21:00.003-05:00

11/10/08 : +177.5

So I may or may not start posting again. I'm assuming I've lost the ridiculously limited amount of readers that I once had, but I'll see if I can present myself as an interesting enough soul to lure people back into my mindless babble. If anyone's still reading this I figure it'd be an interesting idea for me to analyze other peoples individual hands and see if I can be of any help. So if anyone has anything...I mean if anyone's even reading, lay em on me. For now I'll just analyze one of my own hands.

Hand of the day:
Seat 1: xx frankie (1620 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1380 in chips)
xx frankie: posts small blind 15
maxv2: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [As Ts]
xx frankie: calls 15
maxv2: checks
*** FLOP *** [5s 4h 7s]
maxv2: checks
xx frankie: checks
*** TURN *** [5s 4h 7s] [6s]
maxv2: bets 60
xx frankie: calls 60
*** RIVER *** [5s 4h 7s 6s] [4c]
maxv2: checks
xx frankie: bets 270
maxv2: raises 700 to 970
xx frankie said, "flush?"
xx frankie: calls 700
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [As Ts] (a flush, Ace high)
xx frankie: shows [8c Kd] (a straight, Four to Eight)
maxv2 collected 2120 from pot
xx frankie said, "unreal"

This was a pretty interesting hand. This guy was crazy so I wasn't doing anything aggressive to force the issue. I just checked through my A10s because of this very reasoning and again checked the flop. I know, kind of a pansy move...but it didn't take much to unleash serious action out of this guy. So I turn the flush and throw out a small bet to see if he had the top or bottom end of the straight, I think irregardless I could check the river and he'd throw out a big bet. It was a risk, but this was the monster situation that I was hoping for. So it was worth risking the $150 or so value I would get on the river to go for the 970 that I ended up getting. Directly after this I got all in on a simple flip KQ vs A9 for his last 400 and won.

So I'll post some of the crap I've been up to, I'll let you know how the WSOP went (I played in the main event, I won a satellite on stars). I probably won't go into my personal life, as that usually gets me in trouble haha. But anyways, that's all for now.

Oh, here's some of the work I've done

2008-06-26T14:37:00.001-04:00

6/26 : Recovery

So I lost about $3500 a few nights ago, ouch. However, that night I was able to cut it to $1500 and then woke up the next morning and took out the rest. It was a relatively quick comeback, probably no more then 9-10 hours total. I'm glad that I'm able to make this sort of recovery faster these days, and I'm especially happy that I extended my bankroll to 6k rather then the tiny 3k I used to use. Once I get my car all paid off (I got a 2006 Jaguar X-Type 3.0) I'm going to work on building my bankroll a little more to eventually become a more serious poker plays. Maybe I'll eventually put hours in rather then settling for minor profits daily. Anyways, hope everythings working out for everyone -Maxv2.

2008-06-18T04:41:00.001-04:00

6/18/08

So I might drive to California to see this movie called "The Go-Getter"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5rvx3JFJCU

It's only playing in Oregon and California, and I think it'd be a worth while trip to both clear my head and see a movie that looks really interesting.

And the Celtics won the championship tonight. I think that's pretty awesome. I really enjoyed watching them crush Kobe and Phil Jackson's spirit as well. Outplayed.

2008-06-14T19:52:00.001-04:00

6/14/08 : Game 4 and 5

So I forgot to post my reaction to winning game four. I think you can understand why. I was excited; and watching Ray Allen burn Sasha for a back breaking lefty layup was a perfect ending. Anyways, I just hope we don't get lax and blow game 5. I know we have the comfort of two straight home court games coming, but I'm totally fine with ending it in LA.

So I picked up a new album, She and Him Volume 1. It's a duet of Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward. It has a poppy Norah Jones feel. I liked it, so I picked up tickets to the show in North Hampton, MA on the 24th. Should be fun, me Jay and possibly his girlfriend Alyssa are going. They've been friends of mine since freshman year of college. I recommend checking it out if you're running out of music, although it is summer so a new really good album should be released just about everyday starting soon. Have a good weekend -maxv2

2008-06-12T15:54:00.003-04:00

6/12/08 : Back from Boston

So my friend Jay had a job interview down in Boston, so I decided to accompany him on his trip. We drove down to Portland then took the Downeaster into Boston. That thing is amazing, they even have free wifi on it now; highly recommended. Anyways, it was sad to see the Celtics lose...but it was relatively expected. However, we put up a serious fight. I thought we did a really good job showing them that the fourth quarter of game 2 was just us being retarded, they can't ACTUALLY put up 40 a quarter on us. So tonight's game 4, I really have no bold predictions or expectations. I'm really just hoping that we can steal one of the next two in LA to make lives easy on ourselves. If we go into game 6 with a 3-2 lead I think there will just be too much confidence going into home court for LA to handle. So lets hope KG actually slept last night, and we can make something special happen tonight.
Here's a random hand from a $345 that really made today an easy day after coming out flat and dropping two $115's then rebounding with this and a $230 to end up +295 for now.

Seat 1: dannyp1988 (1720 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1280 in chips)
dannyp1988: posts small blind 10
maxv2: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [9s 9d]
dannyp1988: raises 60 to 80
maxv2: calls 60
*** FLOP *** [8c 3h 6s]
maxv2: checks
dannyp1988: bets 100
maxv2: raises 300 to 400
dannyp1988: raises 300 to 700
maxv2: raises 500 to 1200 and is all-in
dannyp1988: calls 500
*** TURN *** [8c 3h 6s] [Ac]
*** RIVER *** [8c 3h 6s Ac] [Kh]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [9s 9d] (a pair of Nines)
dannyp1988: shows [Qh Th] (high card Ace)
maxv2 collected 2560 from pot

I mean, at the point where he had committed 700 chips, you have to realize that he's getting decent money on the 23% chance that he has as long as I don't have a monster. For all he knew I could've had 45 or 57 and he'd just have to hold a coin flip. Although in reality he could've easily minimized this to a -180 chip drop...instead of 1280. Anyways gl everyone -maxv2

2008-06-08T15:30:00.001-04:00

6/8/08 : Good Day

First off I'd like to say that people are making more and more ridiculous calls. It's refreshing to get caught bluffing by a guy who calls off with K6 on a 69JQ8 board then spinning it for 3 straight wins after that. I mean honestly, I'm not one to talk. I make some far out calls, it's one of my strengths (or weaknesses on some days). But I fail to see the logic behind some of these calls. I usually have a thought process behind my calls atleast.

Anyways, tonight's game 2. All of this talk about the Lakers not being able to rebound being down 0-2 is crap. That's a reasonable comeback to make, but it wouldn't be easy. So it'd be REALLLLY nice to put the pressure on them. I applaude Doc for his coaching in game one (except for leaving Cassell in too long). And I hope the focus is on the same areas in this game. Aggressive drives to the hoop to put LA in the penalty, and REBOUNDING. We dominated the glass, let's do it again. -maxv2

2008-06-06T00:03:00.001-04:00

6/5/08 : Game One Down

Was that Paul Pierce or Willis Reed? I'm not sure, but 15 points in the 3rd quarter on a sprained knee...amazing. This game reminded everyone how good the Celtics really are. Everyone picking L.A. in less then 7? Are you kidding me? Did you forget that we won 66 regular season games and just took down the team with the 2nd best record in the league in 6? I can't wait to see the reaction to what the Celtics just threw down. Beat L.A. -maxv2

2008-06-05T03:34:00.001-04:00

6/5/08 : Game 1 Tomorrow

This thing has been hyped like now other. Can't say that I really blame the league for doing it either. This is the optimal matchup for ratings and revenue. I've decided there's no way I can go into this as a pessimist. After watching all year I have a strong feeling that we have a very strong possibility of winning this.

First of all we simply need to push leads early. We were so effective all year at producing overwhelming margines that demoralize teams. I have high hopes that we can put together enough cohesion to produce atleast 2 blowouts at home. From there? Putting Detroit in the penalty with 7 minutes left in the fourth quarter seemed to workout. Why not try that again? Give it to Paul late. Simple as that. Yes KG can draw fouls too, but Paul picks up a much higher possibility of drawing a foul then KG. It may seem ineffective while it's happening, but Doc...show some coaching ability and put fourth an abstract strategy that works. Please.

Anyways, as for the real world. I went down to Bar Harbor tonight to visit my friend Alex. The place is beautiful. Everytime I visit that place it's an enjoyable experience, and tonight was. Even though it was pouring out, we just went out to a local bar for a while then went and watch the new Indiana Jones movie...Aliens? come on...lol. Anyways I think I fell in love with a foreign girl who said three of the most beautifully accented words I've ever heard. She definitely in her mid-20's, but on vacation with her parents...awww. Anyways, Beat LA -maxv2

2008-06-02T01:43:00.001-04:00

6/2/08 : Seriously, does everyday need to be a marathon?

Today...yet another downswing to start. Dropped $2250 to start the day losing to one guy like 5 times then taking a $550 off of him to make me feel less like an idiot. I wasn't playing really well early, and he had pretty red hot cards; and I'll give him a little credit he was ok.
Anyways, I went down to watch my brothers band play earlier today in Portland at the Big Easy. It was a pretty good show and I'll post some pictures once I pull them from my camera. Hope everyone's doing well themselves, good night.

2008-05-31T00:08:00.001-04:00

5/30/08 : Going to the NBA Finals...Wow

This is like a dream. All I can think of is how far we've come from last season. Last year I drove down from Orono to about 8 games with my friends from school, we watched one win and seven losses...Now? The tickets were a little more expensive this year, but we still made it out to two games, Golden State early in the year and Game 2 of the first round vs. Atlanta. Both...blow out wins. It's been an amazing transition and makes it worth grinding out the last 5-6 years of mediocracy.

As for cards? Haven't played much over the last two days. I've had a lot of things to take care of, some overlaying school work that I've needed to finish up and basic errands to run. I'll get serious after this weekend. However, I have to head down to Portland for Saturday and Sunday to watch my brothers band compete in Battle of the Bands (Saturday) and play in their biggest gig thus far at the Old Port (Sunday) playing with As Fast As and The Pete Kilpatrick band (?). Anyways, it should be fun...I'll catch up later. -maxv2

2008-05-29T21:15:00.001-04:00

5/29/08 : Lakers in 5?

It'd be interesting to see, something tells me the Spurs aren't interested in giving up so early though. While I think the Lakers will inevitably take the series, I see the Spurs stealing this game 5.

Anyways, cards was frustrating...but not AS frustrating as they've been. I ended up +155 and really unmotivated to extend that at all. Sort of a day off if you will; I have some stuff to take care of. I have to make in my buy-in for the WSOP Main Event tomorrow and book tickets for everyone coming with me. About 8-10 of my friends will be coming out with me and cramming into my hotel room, it should be pretty awesome. Oh and the Pirates are winning 7-1, that's good...they've been losing with a little more regularity lately. Jason Bay's been consistently good though, I just wish he had more RBI opportunities. Freddy Sanchez isn't having a very good year thus far, hopefully he can turn it around.

2008-05-29T00:02:00.001-04:00

5/28/08 : Thank You Celtics

Ray Allen was amazing, finally. That was a huge performance by him KG and Perk. It was also scary to see how shut down Detroit could be if they actually tried throughout the game. Their defense in the fourth was amazing. Oh and me and my friends also decided that we will now be calling "Rip" Hamilton, "Dick" Hamilton for the rest of the series.

2008-05-28T02:29:00.001-04:00

5/28/08 : HEADACHHHEEE!!!

I think my head exploded, reincarnated itself and then exploded about 4 seperate times over the last 2 days. I've made a little bit of money throughout, about $350...but nowhere near the hassle. The only positive in it all is the fact that I've racked up a crap load of fpp's. Anyways, I need to sleep or I might die.

2008-05-26T21:03:00.002-04:00

5/25/08 : AC Trip

Just got back from Atlantic City, played a little 1/2nl at Tropicana. We really didn't go down there to play cards though so we gambled the rest of the day and broke even doing it...which in my book is a win. At the roulette table we got ID'd and the guy said "Wierd, both ID's say McLovin" and this girl goes "really?"...lol, her boyfriend gave her a death stare and she apologized.

And I'm obviously happy with how the Celtics are playing. Game 3 was a huge win. I haven't been watching ESPN lately because I've been in AC, so I don't know what the analysts are saying. But this opens up a huge opportunity to put the series out of reach in game four and possibly lead to a short series and some rest for the finals. That'd be nice. And I have to say that game 7 vs Cleveland was one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen out of Paul Pierce. Probably THE most impressive. Lebron was unstoppable, but luckily so was Paul and our supporting cast made it a little easier to come away with the win.

2008-05-21T14:34:00.001-04:00

5/11 : Hellllloo

So I got this cool dashboard widget that automatically signs me in and lets me blog from my dashboard instead of loading up blogger.com to do so. So, that means maybe I'll blog more often, because of sheer convienance. I also have this word a day thing that never updates, so I'm stuck on Subjusc meaning dark or dull in color...atleast I have that word down, right?

2/5 : Whew

2008-02-05T22:19:00.000-05:00

SO I played a little tired today, which is usually a bad idea. I managed to get up $70 and stop...mostly because my eyes are closing on me. The workout wasn't all that hard today, just 1 200 3 100's and 3 50's at 100%, but lifting after killed me...not to mention I only got four hours of sleep last night. Anyways, things have worked out for me. I'm no longer part of the 4x400 team and am strictly doing speed workouts. It's cool finally training for what I'm supposed to be training for, however I do miss working out with my friends on the team on a regular basis. Anyways here's some hands of the day.

Hand 1: Uh oh...is this going to be a rough night?
Seat 1: maxv2 (1585 in chips)
Seat 2: FloppedFlush (1415 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 15
FloppedFlush: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ac Ad]
maxv2: raises 60 to 90
FloppedFlush: raises 210 to 300
maxv2: raises 1285 to 1585 and is all-in
FloppedFlush: calls 1115 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [8c 6d 5c]
*** TURN *** [8c 6d 5c] [Kd]
*** RIVER *** [8c 6d 5c Kd] [7s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
FloppedFlush: shows [9h 9d] (a straight, Five to Nine)
maxv2: shows [Ac Ad] (a pair of Aces)
FloppedFlush collected 2830 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2830 | Rake 0
Board [8c 6d 5c Kd 7s]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Ac Ad] and lost with a pair of Aces
Seat 2: FloppedFlush (big blind) showed [9h 9d] and won (2830) with a straight, Five to Nine

Hand 2: NM, we're ok
Seat 1: vboll (1205 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1795 in chips)
vboll: posts small blind 15
maxv2: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [5d As]
vboll: raises 60 to 90
maxv2: calls 60
*** FLOP *** [8h 4d 2c]
maxv2: checks
vboll: bets 120
maxv2: calls 120
*** TURN *** [8h 4d 2c] [3h]
maxv2: checks
vboll: checks
*** RIVER *** [8h 4d 2c 3h] [8s]
maxv2: bets 300
vboll: raises 695 to 995 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 695
*** SHOW DOWN ***
vboll: shows [Tc 8c] (three of a kind, Eights)
maxv2: shows [5d As] (a straight, Ace to Five)
maxv2 collected 2410 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2410 | Rake 0
Board [8h 4d 2c 3h 8s]
Seat 1: vboll (button) (small blind) showed [Tc 8c] and lost with three of a kind, Eights
Seat 2: maxv2 (big blind) showed [5d As] and won (2410) with a straight, Ace to Five

1/31 : From All Angles

2008-01-31T01:34:00.000-05:00

Things don't seem to be going my way lately outside of cards (I've been running pretty well). I'm trying to get the point across to my coaches that I want to strictly train for hurdles and cut out the 400 workouts I've been doing. Needless to say it hasn't been the easiest process that I've dealt with. It's my senior year and all I really want is either an America East Championship in 55's or to break the school record of 7.62. Either works for me, but I've decided that those are my goals. This training regime I'm on right now however...doesn't feel like it's going to help me get there. I hope that things work out, but if they don't...well that sucks.

1/28 : Oook

2008-01-28T00:01:00.000-05:00

So I got home yesterday from the Terrier Invitational. I did alright, all I ran was 55m hurdles...which was pretty awesome. I ran 7.82 in trials went into final ranked 4th, then ran 7.96 (throw up) in finals for 6th. I don't feel terrible about it considering there was about 35 kids running, but I don't feel great. here's a link to my races

Trials:
http://www.flocasts.org/flotrack/races.php?vid=7816
Finals:
http://www.flocasts.org/flotrack/races.php?vid=7856

Poker was annoying as crap today. I lost Aces to 98o for a game and then continued to drop 700, make it back, then split about 8 sets until finally going up $130 for the day. It was long. I survived though, and made a lot of FPP's while I was at it.

Here's a hand for the day:
Finally! I get a break!
PokerStars Game #14876149303: Tournament #75398925, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level IV (50/100) - 2008/01/27 - 22:22:09 (ET)
Table '75398925 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (875 in chips)
Seat 2: Churchill83 (2125 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 50
Churchill83: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Qc 8h]
maxv2: raises 775 to 875 and is all-in
Churchill83: calls 775
*** FLOP *** [8c Jd Qh]
*** TURN *** [8c Jd Qh] [7h]
*** RIVER *** [8c Jd Qh 7h] [Ad]
Churchill83 said, "gg"
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Churchill83: shows [Kh Ac] (a pair of Aces)
maxv2: shows [Qc 8h] (two pair, Queens and Eights)
maxv2 collected 1750 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1750 | Rake 0
Board [8c Jd Qh 7h Ad]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Qc 8h] and won (1750) with two pair, Queens and Eights
Seat 2: Churchill83 (big blind) showed [Kh Ac] and lost with a pair of Aces

1/19 : Where's the excitement

2008-01-19T20:41:00.000-05:00

Life's been boring lately, I find myself engulfed in meaningless forms of entertainment that consume a large portion of my time throughout the day. Why I do this? I have no idea. My mind just simply refuses to take care of the things that I need to get done. It really just comes down to whether or not I want to do something. If I don't, I put it off for incredible amounts of time. I guess my new years resolution will be to improve upon this.

Anyways here's some hands of the day (I only played two 230's and won them both).

Hands One: Of course he calls in with 87s *sigh*
PokerStars Game #14673513529: Tournament #74400685, $220+$10 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2008/01/19 - 15:16:21 (ET)
Table '74400685 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: Churchill83 (765 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (2235 in chips)
Churchill83: posts small blind 15
maxv2: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Qs Ah]
Churchill83: raises 60 to 90
maxv2: raises 1710 to 1800
Churchill83: calls 675 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [Qh 2c 9h]
*** TURN *** [Qh 2c 9h] [6s]
*** RIVER *** [Qh 2c 9h 6s] [7d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Qs Ah] (a pair of Queens)
Churchill83: shows [8h 7h] (a pair of Sevens)
maxv2 collected 1530 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1530 | Rake 0
Board [Qh 2c 9h 6s 7d]
Seat 1: Churchill83 (button) (small blind) showed [8h 7h] and lost with a pair of Sevens
Seat 2: maxv2 (big blind) showed [Qs Ah] and won (1530) with a pair of Queens

Summary: Ha! for once my AQ holds, game over.

Hand Two: ...Thanks?
PokerStars Game #14673592965: Tournament #74400385, $220+$10 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level III (25/50) - 2008/01/19 - 15:19:30 (ET)
Table '74400385 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: ElDentisto (795 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (2205 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 25
ElDentisto: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Tc Qh]
maxv2: calls 25
ElDentisto: checks
*** FLOP *** [9s Td 3c]
ElDentisto: checks
maxv2: bets 100
ElDentisto: raises 645 to 745 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 645
*** TURN *** [9s Td 3c] [6s]
*** RIVER *** [9s Td 3c 6s] [8d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ElDentisto: shows [9h 5d] (a pair of Nines)
maxv2: shows [Tc Qh] (a pair of Tens)
maxv2 collected 1590 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1590 | Rake 0
Board [9s Td 3c 6s 8d]
Seat 1: ElDentisto (big blind) showed [9h 5d] and lost with a pair of Nines
Seat 2: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Tc Qh] and won (1590) with a pair of Tens

Summary: I know the blinds were a little higher, but this seems a little over-aggressive to me on this guys part. I actually had the feeling like I was either behind or barely out-kicking him. Lucky for me he was just being kind of dumb.

1/15 : Sprained Ankle :(

2008-01-15T01:59:00.000-05:00

Sadly I sprained my ankle a little while ago. Doing hurdle drills I essentially came down with all of my weight rolling my ankle causing a high ankle sprain. It just sucks because I get the feeling it's a lot more serious then my coaches understand. It's been about 8-10 days now and the progress has been very stagnant. As much as I want to compete, this injury is less then ideal for hurdles. Girls can get away with it with lower hurdles, but the amount of pressure I'm landing with on 42 inch hurdles is going to be painful. I could just be a pessimist, but unless something magical happens over the next week and a half things won't be looking good.

On the cards front, things have been easier. I made back the $2300 that I lost and have some breathing room in the account.

Here's some news I've yet to share. My friend Kory and I are working to start up our own production company. The basic layout that we'll be working with is at http://www.bangarangclothing.com/riff-raph/index.html take a look and tell me what you think. I'll be in charge of web-design and will also work editing music video's and such. I put together that basic outline, but have plans to add some features that actually give it some functionality. Anyways, I'm heading to bed peace -Max

1/11 : Brink of busting

2008-01-11T03:16:00.000-05:00

So I was literally down to merely a few dollars and a bunch of FPP's over the last few days. I had recently cashed out 2k and left myself with a small 2200 bankroll which I blew through pretty quickly during a tough downswing. Luckily I placed in one of those top 4 out of 10 for $215 tourney dollars and have rebuilt to $1750. Kind of crazy being down to it though, an interesting feeling; character building if you will. I feel back on track though, and hopefully will actually be a winning player in 08. Here's some interesting hands of the evening.

Hand 1: Holy crap...a coin flip win?
PokerStars Game #14473877257: Tournament #73415779, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2008/01/11 - 03:02:17 (ET)
Table '73415779 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1510 in chips)
Seat 2: Carenski (1490 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 10
Carenski: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ad Ks]
maxv2: raises 40 to 60
Carenski: raises 100 to 160
maxv2: raises 1350 to 1510 and is all-in
Carenski: calls 1330 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [3d 2c 8s]
*** TURN *** [3d 2c 8s] [4s]
*** RIVER *** [3d 2c 8s 4s] [Kc]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Carenski: shows [Qs Qd] (a pair of Queens)
maxv2: shows [Ad Ks] (a pair of Kings)
maxv2 collected 2980 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2980 | Rake 0
Board [3d 2c 8s 4s Kc]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Ad Ks] and won (2980) with a pair of Kings
Seat 2: Carenski (big blind) showed [Qs Qd] and lost with a pair of Queens

Summary: Mmmmhhhmmm....haven't won one of these in a while. It felt good to win a flip for an entire game, straight gambling.

Hand 2: What were you thinking?
PokerStars Game #14473892922: Tournament #73415756, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2008/01/11 - 03:04:01 (ET)
Table '73415756 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1330 in chips)
Seat 2: harleez181 (1670 in chips)
harleez181: posts small blind 10
maxv2: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ad 9c]
harleez181: calls 10
maxv2: raises 60 to 80
harleez181: calls 60
*** FLOP *** [9s Qc 9d]
maxv2: bets 120
harleez181: calls 120
*** TURN *** [9s Qc 9d] [6d]
maxv2: bets 300
harleez181: calls 300
*** RIVER *** [9s Qc 9d 6d] [3c]
maxv2: bets 830 and is all-in
harleez181: calls 830
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Ad 9c] (three of a kind, Nines)
harleez181: shows [As 8c] (a pair of Nines)
maxv2 collected 2660 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2660 | Rake 0
Board [9s Qc 9d 6d 3c]
Seat 1: maxv2 (big blind) showed [Ad 9c] and won (2660) with three of a kind, Nines
Seat 2: harleez181 (button) (small blind) showed [As 8c] and lost with a pair of Nines

Summary: This guy was really bad, I don't understand some people. Simple as that. I mean, I'm not one to talk. I try and make some really thin calls and fails constantly, but I'm pretty sure I would've let this one go...

1/5 : Happy Playoff Football Day

2008-01-05T19:12:00.000-05:00

The holidays just keep coming. Anyways I'm going to be really fast because I'm missing the fourth quarter of the Washington Seattle game. I really just wanted to post my final project for my 371 class. Check it out, tell me what you thing. I'll warn you though, it's pretty depressing.

1/2 : Happy New Year!

2008-01-02T17:31:00.000-05:00

Well, sadly...my new years has started off pretty crappy. My accounts relatively busted ($54) after recently cashing out 2k, I went on a $2300 slide to somewhat bankrupt myself. No big deal, I'm just going to take a vacation; and having recently sprained my ankle in practice, I'm going to be a huge waste lol. I feel like I deserve it though, I've really grinded trying to scrape this money back together. However, relentless bad beats decided to knock me out. To finish me off I lost consecutively AQ to A10 66's to A3 JJ to A6 and some other pretty decent beats. It was good though, it made me realize that atleast I'm playing well and it's simply out of my control. I'll probably take about 3 days off and then try and bounce back. I wanted to make a lot of money this break, but it just doesn't seem destined to be. Anyways, hope everyone had a fantastic New Year. I ended up going down to Portland with my friend Paul and having a pretty good time. Thing got crazy for a while, but once we landed back at my friends place (Alex and Matt's) things got way better. Until next time -Max

12/26 : Thanks Santa!

2007-12-26T12:38:00.000-05:00

So the day after Christmas I've officially made back the $2500 I lost over the last few days. It took me all of yesterday and today (aside from the Xmas festivities) to make this comeback. I played way past when I should have last night, but I was on a roll and got the debt down to $1k. Today, was a breeze. I woke up around 10, and within 2 and a half hours I'd finished things off. I'm extremely happy right now, I don't know what to do with myself. Well, I have some work outs to do so I'm out of here.

Here's some hands for you:
PokerStars Game #14110127220: Tournament #71628997, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level IV (50/100) - 2007/12/26 - 12:35:40 (ET)
Table '71628997 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1240 in chips)
Seat 2: prozac33 (1760 in chips)
prozac33: posts small blind 50
maxv2: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [8c 7d]
prozac33: raises 100 to 200
maxv2: calls 100
*** FLOP *** [5s 9s 4c]
maxv2: checks
prozac33: bets 300
maxv2: raises 740 to 1040 and is all-in
prozac33: calls 740
*** TURN *** [5s 9s 4c] [6h]
*** RIVER *** [5s 9s 4c 6h] [Ac]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [8c 7d] (a straight, Five to Nine)
prozac33: shows [Kc 9d] (a pair of Nines)
maxv2 collected 2480 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2480 | Rake 0
Board [5s 9s 4c 6h Ac]
Seat 1: maxv2 (big blind) showed [8c 7d] and won (2480) with a straight, Five to Nine
Seat 2: prozac33 (button) (small blind) showed [Kc 9d] and lost with a pair of Nines

Summary: What an asshole I am. I had played pretty flawlessly all day, not bad beating anyone (except for winning AQ vs Q's once), and this was the very last game to get back over even...haha. I'll take it.

PokerStars Game #14109727325: Tournament #71626983, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level IV (50/100) - 2007/12/26 - 12:09:50 (ET)
Table '71626983 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1220 in chips)
Seat 2: fejz007 (1780 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 50
fejz007: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ac 7c]
maxv2: calls 50
fejz007: checks
*** FLOP *** [9c 3c Ts]
fejz007: bets 100
maxv2: calls 100
*** TURN *** [9c 3c Ts] [2c]
fejz007: bets 100
maxv2: raises 200 to 300
fejz007: calls 200
*** RIVER *** [9c 3c Ts 2c] [Qh]
fejz007: checks
maxv2: bets 600
fejz007: calls 600
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Ac 7c] (a flush, Ace high)
fejz007: mucks hand
maxv2 collected 2200 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2200 | Rake 0
Board [9c 3c Ts 2c Qh]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Ac 7c] and won (2200) with a flush, Ace high
Seat 2: fejz007 (big blind) mucked [3h Tc]

Summary: I just added this hand to show one that I played well because the one above this makes me look like a retard lol.

12/25 : Merry Christmas

2007-12-25T07:27:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone gets tons of sweet gifts. Sadly I'm currently on a poker downswing which is sucking the life out of my this Christmas, but I'm going to set that aside for now and enjoy the season. I've been teaming up with PabloShow in 220's recently and it's been working out very well. He was a hero in the first few games (I sucked) then I came back and made an actual contribution in some of our later games (thank god). Anyways, ttyl.

12/22 : Break

2007-12-22T07:39:00.000-05:00

Breaks suck, everyone gets totally hyped up for these things and then remember how non-social life is outside of school. but anyways, I've been playing higher stakes cards, stepping into the world of 230's. Sadly I've come to the realization that they simply aren't worth it. The regulars at that level are totally uncooperative, and constantly jump in on you. So I've decided to stick with 115's and will probably tri-table more often to boost EV. I've had it pretty good though, I've recently gotten very luck in a few 230's to make my days 10x easier. Anyways, it's early and I'm going back to bed. Peace -Max

12/19 : Apologies to the girl angry with me

2007-12-19T00:13:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry that you read something I wrote about the way I felt about you. I was posting my most personal thoughts and feelings here thinking that no one was reading it. Apparently you found it...somehow. There's really not much I can say except that I'm sorry, and that my intentions were never to hurt you. I just never really have a full grasp on my head sometimes so have to write it down to know what my true feelings are.

12/13 : Holy Crap

2007-12-13T23:31:00.000-05:00

Well, over the last 3 days I spent a total of about 35 hours editing a film for one of my classes. What a mentally draining experience, holy crap. Anyways it's done, I'll post it to youtube as soon as I export a smaller version and post it here.

As far as poker goes, I've made $300 in the last two days. Not bad considering how tired I am and how little time I had.

I decided I'm going to buy some new stuff. I'm going to get a new Apple mini, which will have a 2.0 ghz processor and 2 gigs of ram. It should make movie editing and other stuff much easier. Editing on my old 512 ram laptop was a bitch. I have to admit though, that thing held up like that jewish oil lamp that lasted 8 days. It was pretty heroic.

Here's some hands for the day:

Fataility Hand:
Seat 1: tokenjewboy (535 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (2465 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 15
tokenjewboy: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Th Ks]
maxv2: raises 510 to 540
tokenjewboy: calls 505 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [Qs 8d 9s]
*** TURN *** [Qs 8d 9s] [6c]
*** RIVER *** [Qs 8d 9s 6c] [Jd]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
tokenjewboy: shows [Kc Ad] (high card Ace)
maxv2: shows [Th Ks] (a straight, Nine to King)
maxv2 collected 1070 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1070 | Rake 0
Board [Qs 8d 9s 6c Jd]
Seat 1: tokenjewboy (big blind) showed [Kc Ad] and lost with high card Ace
Seat 2: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Th Ks] and won (1070) with a straight, Nine to King

Summary: What? he was short stacked, don't hold it against me.

Lucky Semi-bluff hand:
Seat 1: maxv2 (1320 in chips)
Seat 2: bignutsmp (1680 in chips)
bignutsmp: posts small blind 10
maxv2: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [9h Qh]
bignutsmp: raises 40 to 60
maxv2: calls 40
*** FLOP *** [4d 2h Kd]
maxv2: checks
bignutsmp: checks
*** TURN *** [4d 2h Kd] [4h]
maxv2: checks
bignutsmp: bets 60
maxv2: raises 120 to 180
bignutsmp: calls 120
*** RIVER *** [4d 2h Kd 4h] [5h]
maxv2: bets 540
bignutsmp: calls 540
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [9h Qh] (a flush, Queen high)
bignutsmp: mucks hand
maxv2 collected 1560 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1560 | Rake 0
Board [4d 2h Kd 4h 5h]
Seat 1: maxv2 (big blind) showed [9h Qh] and won (1560) with a flush, Queen high
Seat 2: bignutsmp (button) (small blind) mucked [Kc 9d]

Summary: He made the classic "check a raised flop that hit top pair" move. Obviously if he leads out on this flop, I fold. Instead I sensed weakness (and was wrong) and made a move. Lucky enough for me I spiked the flush on the river. Honestly if I had missed, I would've made more of a value bet bluff on the river which wouldn't have worked. Instead I got lucky and totally overbet, which is always fun.

Until next time. -Max

12/7 : Heroic Day

2007-12-07T20:49:00.001-05:00

I couldn't win to start today. I think I lost 9 out of my first 10 110's to start off -930ish. I stepped into some 220's and started absolutely dominating. I won 4 straight to land at -90 and then won 2 more 110's to end up +121. It was a little ridiculous and all happend in about 2 hours. I feel ridiculously fortunate and lucky to not have slid any further then I did. Here's some hands.

Beautiful hand of the night:
Seat 1: maxv2 (2150 in chips)
Seat 2: PowerTime (850 in chips)
PowerTime: posts small blind 50
maxv2: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [9h 9c]
PowerTime: raises 750 to 850 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 750
*** FLOP *** [2d 8s Ad]
*** TURN *** [2d 8s Ad] [9d]
*** RIVER *** [2d 8s Ad 9d] [Ts]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [9h 9c] (three of a kind, Nines)
PowerTime: shows [Ac Td] (two pair, Aces and Tens)
maxv2 collected 1700 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1700 | Rake 0
Board [2d 8s Ad 9d Ts]
Seat 1: maxv2 (big blind) showed [9h 9c] and won (1700) with three of a kind, Nines
Seat 2: PowerTime (button) (small blind) showed [Ac Td] and lost with two pair, Aces and Tens

Summary: This was the fourth 220 I played (and won). For a second I thought I was really going to have to work for it...just kidding! That turn was amazing, I almost crapped my pants.

Flop the nuts hand of the day:
Seat 1: nightvip (1540 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1460 in chips)
nightvip: posts small blind 10
maxv2: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Jc Qs]
nightvip: raises 20 to 40
maxv2: calls 20
*** FLOP *** [9h Ts 8s]
maxv2: checks
nightvip: bets 60
maxv2: raises 180 to 240
nightvip: calls 180
*** TURN *** [9h Ts 8s] [3h]
maxv2: bets 400
nightvip: calls 400
*** RIVER *** [9h Ts 8s 3h] [5d]
maxv2: bets 700
nightvip: folds
maxv2 collected 1360 from pot
maxv2: doesn't show hand
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1360 | Rake 0
Board [9h Ts 8s 3h 5d]
Seat 1: nightvip (button) (small blind) folded on the River
Seat 2: maxv2 (big blind) collected (1360)

Summary: I went on to torch this guy. This hand really set the momentum in my direction to start my set of 220's. My cards improved, and my play was pretty outstanding throughout. Very happy with my comeback.

12/5 : Whew, Long day

2007-12-06T01:07:00.000-05:00

I mean, not really when you consider it only took about twi hours; but it was a very grindy few. There were some extremely key flips that on a bad day, don't hold that saved my life. Essentially I was splitting games, and most of my wins came from grinding people down and flipping them at 2250-750. So potentially they could've won those situations and I'd have to start all over again, but lucky for me a good portion of them held. Anyways, I won $115 today and it's been a very successful last couple of weeks.

I've got a meet coming up saturday, I'll be running 55m hurdles around 12:45 and then the 4x400 at the very end of the meet. I've been running well in practice so I think there's some high expectations for my leg in the 400, which is a competetive spot that a few others are trying to grab. I'm the weakeast leg, so at any point I could be ousted. I'm not really that concerned, but it's enjoyable to be a part of what seems to be the most emphasized event. It seems like we're considered the "elite" of the team. Anyways, I'm excited for hurdles...even though UNH doesn't generally field any good hurdlers. My goal is anywhere inbetween 7.60-7.69. If I can post that, I'll have a good base to work down from (my goal for the season is anywhere from 7.45-7.60). I thought last year was my best opportunity to win conferences in either indoor or outdoor. I ended up 5th in indoor and 6th in outdoor, but the seperation between 1-6 generally isn't much. Hopefully I can improve on those results this season though.

Anyways, here's some hands of the day:

Savior Hand of the Day:
PokerStars Game #13679510590: Tournament #69377969, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2007/12/06 - 01:05:47 (ET)
Table '69377969 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: fromnowon (1295 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (1705 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 15
fromnowon: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [9d 9c]
maxv2: raises 60 to 90
fromnowon: calls 60
*** FLOP *** [9s Kh 6d]
fromnowon: checks
maxv2: bets 90
fromnowon: calls 90
*** TURN *** [9s Kh 6d] [5d]
fromnowon: checks
maxv2: bets 180
fromnowon: raises 240 to 420
maxv2: calls 240
*** RIVER *** [9s Kh 6d 5d] [3h]
fromnowon: bets 695 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 695
*** SHOW DOWN ***
fromnowon: shows [5s 5c] (three of a kind, Fives)
maxv2: shows [9d 9c] (three of a kind, Nines)
maxv2 collected 2590 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2590 | Rake 0
Board [9s Kh 6d 5d 3h]
Seat 1: fromnowon (big blind) showed [5s 5c] and lost with three of a kind, Fives
Seat 2: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [9d 9c] and won (2590) with three of a kind, Nines

Summary: I thought for sure that this guy had 78, but there was absolutely no way I was going to fold a monster like this. Luckily...he had 5's and I won to finish up the day at +115.

I hate the world...Hand of the Day:
PokerStars Game #13678715409: Tournament #69373572, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level II (15/30) - 2007/12/06 - 00:08:53 (ET)
Table '69373572 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: FrankThomas8 (885 in chips)
Seat 2: maxv2 (2115 in chips)
FrankThomas8: posts small blind 15
maxv2: posts big blind 30
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ts Ad]
FrankThomas8: raises 60 to 90
maxv2: raises 1860 to 1950
FrankThomas8: calls 795 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [4h 8c 3c]
*** TURN *** [4h 8c 3c] [6h]
*** RIVER *** [4h 8c 3c 6h] [9s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [Ts Ad] (high card Ace)
FrankThomas8: shows [Ah 9d] (a pair of Nines)
FrankThomas8 collected 1770 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1770 | Rake 0
Board [4h 8c 3c 6h 9s]
Seat 1: FrankThomas8 (button) (small blind) showed [Ah 9d] and won (1770) with a pair of Nines
Seat 2: maxv2 (big blind) showed [Ts Ad] and lost with high card Ace

Summary: I went on to win this game somehow. I ended up setting up a middle pair bet down to check the river (I usually bet relatively soft on the flop, then a little bit bigger on the turn to setup a check check so that weakness isn't presented) and I nailed two pair on the river and just continued with a value bet...he wasn't too happy about that lol. Whatever.

-Max

12/1 : Toughest day in a while

2007-12-01T17:38:00.000-05:00

Today was pretty brutal. I was playing extremely well for my first 4-6 games, and continuously grinding people down into anywhere from 80-20's to flips for their live and losing over and over again. It was a little frustrating, but honestly...it's been a while since I had to work for my money. I ended up having to play 20 games to end up +120. I don't think I've played more then 8 in a day in the last 3 weeks. So I can't complain at all.

Here's some hands of the day
Heroic Hand of the Day:
PokerStars Game #13582943031: Tournament #68897616, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level IV (50/100) - 2007/12/01 - 12:56:43 (ET)
Table '68897616 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1440 in chips)
Seat 2: zaffer66 (1560 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 50
zaffer66: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [4s 4h]
maxv2: raises 1340 to 1440 and is all-in
zaffer66: calls 1340
*** FLOP *** [4d Qc 2s]
*** TURN *** [4d Qc 2s] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [4d Qc 2s 2d] [8d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
zaffer66: shows [7d 7h] (two pair, Sevens and Deuces)
maxv2: shows [4s 4h] (a full house, Fours full of Deuces)
maxv2 collected 2880 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2880 | Rake 0
Board [4d Qc 2s 2d 8d]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [4s 4h] and won (2880) with a full house, Fours full of Deuces
Seat 2: zaffer66 (big blind) showed [7d 7h] and lost with two pair, Sevens and Deuces

Summary: Finally, I got lucky. This was right in the thick of things where I was treading -200 to -300. This turned things around big time, and I went on a nice run of legitimate wins after this.

Crappy hand of the day:
PokerStars Game #13581349617: Tournament #68889937, $110+$5 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level III (25/50) - 2007/12/01 - 11:16:54 (ET)
Table '68889937 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1840 in chips)
Seat 2: monique197 (1160 in chips)
monique197: posts small blind 25
maxv2: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [7c Kh]
monique197: calls 25
maxv2: checks
*** FLOP *** [7s 9c 7h]
maxv2: checks
monique197: bets 1110 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 1110
*** TURN *** [7s 9c 7h] [9d]
*** RIVER *** [7s 9c 7h 9d] [5c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [7c Kh] (a full house, Sevens full of Nines)
monique197: shows [2s 9s] (a full house, Nines full of Sevens)
monique197 collected 2320 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2320 | Rake 0
Board [7s 9c 7h 9d 5c]
Seat 1: maxv2 (big blind) showed [7c Kh] and lost with a full house, Sevens full of Nines
Seat 2: monique197 (button) (small blind) showed [2s 9s] and won (2320) with a full house, Nines full of Sevens

Summary: This person was awful. This was the 3rd time in a row against this person that something borderline ridiculous happend. They played about as awful as you can play to win that game :-/.

11/28 : Whoa, I played high stakes tonight

2007-11-28T19:20:00.001-05:00

I played a $220 turbo for the first time in a while. It was a scouted game and if I lost I had all night to play (for once). It was fun, and I won...but there was a ridiculously scary moment...I'll post it as my "Scary Hand of the Night". I started off the night playing simple $110's, and I was all set to win both of them when my AQ lost to AJ on a jack spiked river :-/. Luckily it just set me up to win more money tonight, because I played a 110 with my 220 and won that as well. Good, quick night. I'm happy, because I'm kind of tired from shooting a movie all morning and afternoon. It's about 20 degrees here in Orono, and we were filming outside for the most part, bleh. Anyways, here's some hands of the day.

Scary Hand of the Night:
PokerStars Game #13528839824: Tournament #68622960, $220+$10 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level III (25/50) - 2007/11/28 - 19:00:47 (ET)
Table '68622960 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (2375 in chips)
Seat 2: 1Nookie1 (625 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 25
1Nookie1: posts big blind 50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ac As]
maxv2: raises 50 to 100
1Nookie1: raises 525 to 625 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 525
*** FLOP *** [4h Td 6d]
*** TURN *** [4h Td 6d] [4c]
*** RIVER *** [4h Td 6d 4c] [3s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
1Nookie1: shows [Ah 4s] (three of a kind, Fours)
maxv2: shows [Ac As] (two pair, Aces and Fours)
1Nookie1 collected 1250 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1250 | Rake 0
Board [4h Td 6d 4c 3s]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Ac As] and lost with two pair, Aces and Fours
Seat 2: 1Nookie1 (big blind) showed [Ah 4s] and won (1250) with three of a kind, Fours

This was a tragedy, and scared the crap out of me. Was I really going to lose the first 220 I've played in a long time...like this?

Noway, here's my Heroic Hand of the Day:
PokerStars Game #13528916922: Tournament #68622960, $220+$10 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level IV (50/100) - 2007/11/28 - 19:04:47 (ET)
Table '68622960 1' 2-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (2100 in chips)
Seat 2: 1Nookie1 (900 in chips)
1Nookie1: posts small blind 50
maxv2: posts big blind 100
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [2h 2c]
1Nookie1: raises 800 to 900 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 800
*** FLOP *** [2d Ts 5s]
*** TURN *** [2d Ts 5s] [Kh]
*** RIVER *** [2d Ts 5s Kh] [Qh]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maxv2: shows [2h 2c] (three of a kind, Deuces)
1Nookie1: shows [Th As] (a pair of Tens)
maxv2 collected 1800 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 1800 | Rake 0
Board [2d Ts 5s Kh Qh]
Seat 1: maxv2 (big blind) showed [2h 2c] and won (1800) with three of a kind, Deuces
Seat 2: 1Nookie1 (button) (small blind) showed [Th As] and lost with a pair of Tens

Summary: I had grinded him back down pretty well, then he started getting aggressive...so I called with 2's lol. It thankfully held up and made my night much more enjoyable. Honestly, if I had lost the hand...he was bad and I probably would've come back, but cheers to not having to.

Good Night -Max

11/27 : Exhausted

2007-11-27T22:19:00.000-05:00

Whew, today was a long day. Class, Work, Class, Hurdle Practice, Regular Practice and then lifting. Luckily I got home and just won 3 out of 4 $55 turbo's to go up a quick $100 for the day. God knows I don't have the energy for anything else. Especially since I have to get up at 9am to shoot a movie tomorrow. It's been interesting this year trying to balance all of this stuff. Overall it's made for really sub-par earnings for 2007. While I watch players like Jmac, Phenom and BCM clear anywhere from 100k - 200k for the year while cashing in points for Porches and crap. I've made approximately 40k. My little 6500 slide earlier in the year hasn't helped, and playing no more then 15-20 hours a weak hasn't either. I've been playing probably 7 hours a week in general, sometimes less. Atleast I've played well when I've had the chance. Anyways, enough of that, here's some interesting hands of the day.

Huge Bummer of the Day (crap I left earlier and it didn't register):
maxv2 1300 chips [Qh Qc] raises 40 to 60
Villain 1700 chips reraises 100 to 160
maxv2 moves all-in
Villain calls [Ac Ad]
Flop: [Q78rainbow]
Turn: [As]
River: [x]

I had already won my other game, so for a second I thought I go lucky and ended my day right there. Nope. It really didn't upset me or anything, I mean I didn't deserve it anyway.

Awesome Hand of the Day:
PokerStars Game #13512259179: Tournament #68540129, $55.00+$2.50 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level I (10/20) - 2007/11/27 - 22:03:09 (ET)
Table '68540129 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: maxv2 (1470 in chips)
Seat 2: Jetman4109 (1530 in chips)
maxv2: posts small blind 10
Jetman4109: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to maxv2 [Ts 7d]
maxv2: raises 20 to 40
Jetman4109: calls 20
*** FLOP *** [Kc 8h Jd]
Jetman4109: checks
maxv2: bets 60
Jetman4109: calls 60
*** TURN *** [Kc 8h Jd] [9d]
Jetman4109: checks
maxv2: bets 200
Jetman4109: raises 1230 to 1430 and is all-in
maxv2: calls 1170 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [Kc 8h Jd 9d] [7h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Jetman4109: shows [Jh 9s] (two pair, Jacks and Nines)
maxv2: shows [Ts 7d] (a straight, Seven to Jack)
maxv2 collected 2940 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 2940 | Rake 0
Board [Kc 8h Jd 9d 7h]
Seat 1: maxv2 (button) (small blind) showed [Ts 7d] and won (2940) with a straight, Seven to Jack
Seat 2: Jetman4109 (big blind) showed [Jh 9s] and lost with two pair, Jacks and Nines

Summary: Again, I very rarely continuation bet on gutshots, but it was early and I was just looking to check-check the turn to get a free river...surprise surprise. Needless to say I was happy to see him move in on the turn (except for a small fear of Q10). I find it eases the pain to expect the worse when in this situation. Plus it makes seeing J9 that much better. Anyways, I'm going to sleep...early for once. -Max

P.S. I can't believe the Celtics let Drew Gooden beat them. *sigh*