Do I still have it?

Some poker content started coming up on youtube for me after not even following the game at all (much less playing) since I last posted to this blog. Decided to fire up the ACR software and see if I could still play hold them. Found the toughest, meanest $.01/$.02 table I could find and bought in for a mere 50bbs.

A few hands into it:

Winning Poker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.01/$0.02 - 7 players
UTG: $2.94  (147 bb)
MP (Hero): $0.95  (48 bb)
MP+1: $0.67  (34 bb)
CO: $2.00  (100 bb)
BU: $2.14  (107 bb)
SB: $2.85  (143 bb)
BB: $4.80  (240 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.05) Hero is MP with K♦ A♣
UTG calls $0.02, Hero calls $0.02, 1 fold, CO checks, BTN raises to $0.04, 1 fold, BB calls $0.02, UTG calls $0.02, Hero 3-bets to $0.95  (all-in), 1 fold, BTN calls $0.91, 2 players fold

I still suck at playing behind limpers apparently. If UTG folds I just go ahead and pump in a raise, which I should have done here. But instead I figure let's get a big limped pot and hopefully a greedy BB that decides to put in a huge raise and I can get it in with him. Or if it just ends up getting limped around I can get rid of it when I miss. I do get a raise from the button but it's a putrid min-raise. I'm looking at putting in 25% of my stack if I re-raise the pot, so I just said fuck it and jammed it in there. I play bad, button played worse by calling me with A♥9♥.

Flop: ($2.01) 2♦ 3♥ 4♦ (2 players, 1 all-in)

Turn: ($2.01) 4♥ (2 players, 1 all-in)

River: ($2.01) 7♣ (2 players, 1 all-in)

Total pot: $2.01 (Rake: $0.10)

Showdown:
MP (Hero)  shows  K♦ A♣ (a pair of Fours - higher kicker)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 70%, Flop: 76%, Turn: 64%, River: 100%)

BU  shows  9♥ A♥ (a pair of Fours)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 30%, Flop: 24%, Turn: 36%, River: 0%)

MP (Hero) wins $1.91

I actually had the run it twice button checked but apparently my opponent only wanted to run it once. Fortunately I survive and get a pretty early double up.

Winning Poker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.01/$0.02 - 6 players
UTG: $1.53  (77 bb)
MP: $1.83  (92 bb)
CO: $1.22  (61 bb)
BU: $4.82  (241 bb)
SB: $2.68  (134 bb)
BB (Hero): $1.80  (90 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.03) Hero is BB with Q♦ Q♠
4 players fold, SB calls $0.01, Hero raises to $0.10, SB calls $0.08

Flop: ($0.20) J♥ 9♠ 6♦ (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $0.11, SB folds

Total pot: $0.20 (Rake: $0.01)
BB (Hero) wins $0.19

A little blind v. blind showdown. I make the preflop raise a little larger cause I think this player will see the flop with a lot of hands. Ok with betting the flop and taking it.

Winning Poker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.01/$0.02 - 8 players
UTG: $1.83  (92 bb)
UTG+1: $1.48  (74 bb)
MP: $1.98  (99 bb)
MP+1: $4.82  (241 bb)
CO: $2.58  (129 bb)
BU (Hero): $1.88  (94 bb)
SB: $4.09  (205 bb)
BB: $1.53  (77 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.03) Hero is BTN with 4♥ 4♦
1 fold, UTG+1 raises to $0.05, MP calls $0.05, 2 players fold, Hero calls $0.05, SB calls $0.04, 1 fold

Flop: ($0.22) 7♠ J♥ 2♠ (4 players)
SB checks, UTG+1 checks, MP bets $0.05, BU (Hero) folds, SB folds, UTG+1 calls $0.05

Turn: ($0.32) A♥ (2 players)
UTG+1 checks, MP checks

River: ($0.32) 8♣ (2 players)
UTG+1 checks, MP checks

Total pot: $0.32 (Rake: $0.01)

Showdown:
MP  shows  J♠ Q♦ (a pair of Jacks)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 40%, Flop: 81%, Turn: 86%, River: 100%)

UTG+1  shows  T♣ K♠ (high card, Ace)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 60%, Flop: 19%, Turn: 14%, River: 0%)

MP wins $0.31

Not much to write home about here. I flatted with a small pair hoping to hit a set. A more aggressive player might have raised preflop and taken advantage of being the button, but I decided to proceed with more caution.

Winning Poker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.01/$0.02 - 9 players
Replay this hand on Pokeit - https://pokeit.co/public/3q1By6xD/r

UTG: $1.94  (97 bb)
UTG+1: $1.69  (85 bb)
MP: $1.89  (95 bb)
MP+1: $4.93  (247 bb)
LP: $2.02  (101 bb)
CO (Hero): $1.68  (84 bb)
BU: $4.59  (230 bb)
SB: $1.34  (67 bb)
BB: $1.29  (65 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.03) Hero is CO with 7♦ A♦
5 players fold, Hero raises to $0.05, 2 players fold, BB calls $0.03

Obviously we're opening this from the cutoff. BB comes along for the ride and I'm happy to take a flop heads-up in position.

Flop: ($0.11) 5♣ 5♦ 9♦ (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $0.06, BB raises to $0.19, Hero calls $0.13

I think it's a mandatory bet by me and I'm not going to be scared off by the checkraise. With the paired board this reeked of a bluff attempt by villain and even if he does have something I do have the nut flush draw as well as an overcard. So I call with the advantage of getting to see what he does on the turn.

Turn: ($0.49) K♦ (2 players)
BB checks, Hero checks

He slows down. Very transparent. I almost certainly have the best hand and there's no reason I need to scare him off with a bet here. The scare card came in and I'm going to check like I'm scared of it too.

River: ($0.49) T♥ (2 players)
BB bets $0.29, Hero raises to $1.44  (all-in), BB calls $0.76  (all-in)

Seemingly a blank on the river and he bets out again. He's got $.76 behind and there's really no other play but to just stick the money in. Hands in his range that would call: worse flush, trip 5s, kings up. He might be putting me on something like AK, AQ, maybe aces if he even plays at the level where he's trying to read hands.

Total pot: $2.59 (Rake: $0.12)

Showdown:
CO (Hero)  shows  7♦ A♦ (a flush, Ace high)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 54%, Flop: 84%, Turn: 100%, River: 100%)

BB  shows  J♠ T♠ (two pair, Tens and Fives)
(Equity - Pre-Flop: 46%, Flop: 16%, Turn: 0%, River: 0%)

CO (Hero) wins $2.47

Wow, he called me with JT. So it's unlikely that this guy is really analyzing the hand. Cause it's really tough for me to be in there with worse than that after I called the flop raise. But I was really happy with how I played the hand and clearly it worked out letting him see the river and pairing one of his hole cards pair which cost him the rest of his stack. 

Winning Poker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.01/$0.02 - 8 players
Replay this hand on Pokeit - https://pokeit.co/public/3q1By6W4/r

UTG: $1.69  (85 bb)
UTG+1: $1.89  (95 bb)
MP: $4.93  (247 bb)
MP+1: $2.02  (101 bb)
LP (Hero): $2.86  (143 bb)
CO: $4.59  (230 bb)
BU: $1.33  (67 bb)
BB: $1.94  (97 bb)

Pre-Flop: ($0.02) Hero is LP with K♥ Q♣
4 players fold, Hero raises to $0.05, CO 3-bets to $0.17, 2 players fold, LP (Hero) fold

Total pot: $0.12 (Rake: $0)
CO wins $0.12

Hand History converter doesn't show it, but ACR gives the option of showing 1 or both cards if you're the last player to fold, so I flashed my K. CO tabled KK. Remember kids - making great laydowns is the hallmark of expert play.

Cashed out shortly thereafter taking my profit of $1.81 which is a bit shy of a triple-up. I went in there looking to answer the original question I posed in the title of this post. I would have to say a resounding YES is in order. Obviously this is the lowest stakes game possible but the players are more competent at this level than they used to be at $1/$2 back in the golden age of online poker. They can still be exploited but so can I and I held my own here.

The other thing - clearly hold'em is my best game. While I enjoy the lower variance of a PLO8 or the action of PLO I tend to suck at those games and lose money. Should be sticking to the hold'em tables when I do get the itch to logon and play some hands.