NPP will host the Heads Up Tourney again in December, but how about another night of poker – Team Style?
Here is how the Tournament Committee at NPP has drawn it up right now:
Everyone who wants to play in the Team Tourney submits their names via this blog or email. The Password is sent out via email for the Team Tourney.
Just as the tournament starts – The Teams are posted on the blog, so you have to have NPP open and refresh the browser to find out who your teammate(s) is/are. Depending on number of entries, it will be decided by the NPP Tournament Committee if there are 2, 3 or 4 person teams.
Points awarded same as for league play – per team.
Winning team is posted on the Player of the Year list.
Prize money transfers not the responsibility of NPP, but Faldo will be glad to assist in any way possible.
The blog is open for comments, suggestions, and questions. - Faldo
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Welcome to the United States of NPP
Aqualung made a statement to me that got me thinking.
He said, “NPP is not NPP anymore because it doesn’t have very many of the original players left.”
My fertile brain really started to digest this statement.
Like for instance, is the United States not the United States anymore, because the ‘original’ people that understood the Constitution and how valuable freedom is, are no longer with us?
Score one for Aqualung.
But a poker ‘club’ is not a country. It can’t be (ironically), because everyone is so FREE and untaxed to do what they want with their cash.
But let’s pretend NPP is a country, and the citizens have total liberty and freedom, as they do at NPP.
NPP is also a country broken up into several states:
Internet
Home Game
Casino
High Stakes
Low Stakes
Different Games
Holdem Only
Time (Multiple States)
Day (Seven States)
Tourney
Ring
Blog
Rail
Hen Pecked
There are probably a few other ‘states’ not on this list.
Because NPP citizens are so free, they are able to move to any state at any time – and stay or go as they please. Some never visit other states. Some visit them all. Others stop by – just to look around. Others go to one state and never leave.
NPP is made up of players from all states, and most have at least rental property in some of the other states.
Some of our NPP citizens no longer visit the ‘State of Internet.’ Some will never venture out of that state. Some only visit the state of Blog. Some never visit blog unless it is necessary.
Some NPP’ers moved too far away from the State of Home Game to visit there. Some only play at Home Game or State of Casino. Still other NPP’ers will never visit Home Game.
Some think the State of Home Game is actually a part of the State of High Stakes or Low Stakes.
Some citizens think the NPP Tuesday is in the State of Low Stakes and others think it is in the State of High Stakes. Either way, these citizens ended up in the State of Rail.
Some NPP citizens claim they can’t leave their State of Day or Time to visit NPP in our State of Tuesday at 8pm.
Many NPP citizens are visiting the Rail – some temporarily, some permanently, and some are just in the State of Rail - but only in the country of NPP.
Regardless, NPP can still be NPP for all our citizens, even with our citizens moving all over the country often and freely.
What we must do - as citizens of NPP - is to make more citizens! Recruiting is what it is all about. It is all a population game. The more citizens - the more movement between the states, for all the states of NPP.
And just like the United States of America, the country of NPP can only be strong if the citizens are involved and working to make it a better country – instead of expecting the leaders to do everything for them.
Ask not what NPP can do for you, but ask instead, what can you do for Faldo?….errrrr, I mean NPP?
He said, “NPP is not NPP anymore because it doesn’t have very many of the original players left.”
My fertile brain really started to digest this statement.
Like for instance, is the United States not the United States anymore, because the ‘original’ people that understood the Constitution and how valuable freedom is, are no longer with us?
Score one for Aqualung.
But a poker ‘club’ is not a country. It can’t be (ironically), because everyone is so FREE and untaxed to do what they want with their cash.
But let’s pretend NPP is a country, and the citizens have total liberty and freedom, as they do at NPP.
NPP is also a country broken up into several states:
Internet
Home Game
Casino
High Stakes
Low Stakes
Different Games
Holdem Only
Time (Multiple States)
Day (Seven States)
Tourney
Ring
Blog
Rail
Hen Pecked
There are probably a few other ‘states’ not on this list.
Because NPP citizens are so free, they are able to move to any state at any time – and stay or go as they please. Some never visit other states. Some visit them all. Others stop by – just to look around. Others go to one state and never leave.
NPP is made up of players from all states, and most have at least rental property in some of the other states.
Some of our NPP citizens no longer visit the ‘State of Internet.’ Some will never venture out of that state. Some only visit the state of Blog. Some never visit blog unless it is necessary.
Some NPP’ers moved too far away from the State of Home Game to visit there. Some only play at Home Game or State of Casino. Still other NPP’ers will never visit Home Game.
Some think the State of Home Game is actually a part of the State of High Stakes or Low Stakes.
Some citizens think the NPP Tuesday is in the State of Low Stakes and others think it is in the State of High Stakes. Either way, these citizens ended up in the State of Rail.
Some NPP citizens claim they can’t leave their State of Day or Time to visit NPP in our State of Tuesday at 8pm.
Many NPP citizens are visiting the Rail – some temporarily, some permanently, and some are just in the State of Rail - but only in the country of NPP.
Regardless, NPP can still be NPP for all our citizens, even with our citizens moving all over the country often and freely.
What we must do - as citizens of NPP - is to make more citizens! Recruiting is what it is all about. It is all a population game. The more citizens - the more movement between the states, for all the states of NPP.
And just like the United States of America, the country of NPP can only be strong if the citizens are involved and working to make it a better country – instead of expecting the leaders to do everything for them.
Ask not what NPP can do for you, but ask instead, what can you do for Faldo?….errrrr, I mean NPP?
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Random Questions Answered by Faldo
A new series. Feel free to email me questions to add to the list, or leave them in a comment. Also, feel free to answer them yourself in the comment section. I like to learn more about you people too!
Who is your favorite actor of all time?
A tie between George C. Scott and Jimmy Stewart. Throw Matt Damon in there now too.
I noticed on the NPP point standings that some of the people have pts after their points and a couple have ‘points’ after their point numbers. Why is that?
That is a Faldo code. If it says ‘points,’ means you have the lead or had the lead in the standings at one time.
In a 52 card deck, which card are you?
I hope the King of Hearts, but probably closer to the Jack of Clubs.
What is your favorite car of all time?
Not a ‘car’ guy. Don’t’ have a favorite one. They are just a tool to get from point A to point B.
What do you think of steroids in sports?
Hate them. But I don’t care if they are used, outlawed, or were used. What’s done is done.
Will the world be a better place in 100 years or worse?
Worse. As the last bastion of freedom in the world, the United States, falls into socialism/communism, it will be a very cold, stagnate, miserable planet. Misery and poverty spread evenly. Sorry the truth hurts.
What recommendations would you give the poker community?
The “rake” is to poker as “taxes” are to business and the economy. You have to lower both of them! And the people and companies making money on poker are going to have to ‘pay the extortion’ to the government, so poker playing is legal everywhere. Got to bite the bullet and do it.
What is your favorite beverage?
Beer. The heavier or darker beer preferred. Soft drink – Coke. Liquior - Like them all at different times. Love wine, but it doesn't like me.
Who is your favorite actor of all time?
A tie between George C. Scott and Jimmy Stewart. Throw Matt Damon in there now too.
I noticed on the NPP point standings that some of the people have pts after their points and a couple have ‘points’ after their point numbers. Why is that?
That is a Faldo code. If it says ‘points,’ means you have the lead or had the lead in the standings at one time.
In a 52 card deck, which card are you?
I hope the King of Hearts, but probably closer to the Jack of Clubs.
What is your favorite car of all time?
Not a ‘car’ guy. Don’t’ have a favorite one. They are just a tool to get from point A to point B.
What do you think of steroids in sports?
Hate them. But I don’t care if they are used, outlawed, or were used. What’s done is done.
Will the world be a better place in 100 years or worse?
Worse. As the last bastion of freedom in the world, the United States, falls into socialism/communism, it will be a very cold, stagnate, miserable planet. Misery and poverty spread evenly. Sorry the truth hurts.
What recommendations would you give the poker community?
The “rake” is to poker as “taxes” are to business and the economy. You have to lower both of them! And the people and companies making money on poker are going to have to ‘pay the extortion’ to the government, so poker playing is legal everywhere. Got to bite the bullet and do it.
What is your favorite beverage?
Beer. The heavier or darker beer preferred. Soft drink – Coke. Liquior - Like them all at different times. Love wine, but it doesn't like me.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Faldo Says “Yay” or “Nay” to Common Dealer’s Choice Games – Part V
There are other poker games besides what is dealt in casinos and tournaments. The casino games are there because of their speed and simplicity in dealing. More hands equals more rake for the house.
But there are some fun, entertaining and exciting poker games you can deal in a home game, which make you have to think outside “the flop” sometimes.
The description of the following games in this series is Faldo’s opinion only. Others may like my take on a game and some will not. That’s fine. It’s all good. Here we go:
Mexican Stud / Flip / Peep / Pedro
A lot of names for a game that is simply 5 –card Stud where the player receives his all of his cards face down – one at a time – and rolls the one he wants his opponents to see.
Faldo says Nay. There is just not enough action in this game.
Follow the Queen
Played like Seven-card Stud, except Queens are wild and/or the next face card and all like it are also wild. The twist is, every time a new queen appears the wild card changes to the next card off the deck.
So if you have been betting your two 3’s as wild on 3rd street, they may just be a pair of 3’s by 6th street.
In some circles, the game is played where if the Queen of Spades appears showing in anyone’s hand, the game ends, the pot stays in the middle and a new deal begins. This version is called Black Mariah.
Faldo says Nay. I consider this to be more of a lottery than poker.
444
Dealt as 8-card stud with 4’s as a wild card. Obviously this game can only be played with a table of six or less players (although you could spit a community card or two if you have more players playing).
The best way to deal it is to start with two down and two up. Then always deal so the up card outnumbers or is tied with the down cards. So the last card is down.
This is a straight wild card game like Deuces explained earlier, but with an extra card in the hand.
Faldo says “Yay” and thinks the game plays better with more players and community cards. And there is no law against dealing it - and calling it 442, 443, 44Q etc. - simply changing the wild card.
But there are some fun, entertaining and exciting poker games you can deal in a home game, which make you have to think outside “the flop” sometimes.
The description of the following games in this series is Faldo’s opinion only. Others may like my take on a game and some will not. That’s fine. It’s all good. Here we go:
Mexican Stud / Flip / Peep / Pedro
A lot of names for a game that is simply 5 –card Stud where the player receives his all of his cards face down – one at a time – and rolls the one he wants his opponents to see.
Faldo says Nay. There is just not enough action in this game.
Follow the Queen
Played like Seven-card Stud, except Queens are wild and/or the next face card and all like it are also wild. The twist is, every time a new queen appears the wild card changes to the next card off the deck.
So if you have been betting your two 3’s as wild on 3rd street, they may just be a pair of 3’s by 6th street.
In some circles, the game is played where if the Queen of Spades appears showing in anyone’s hand, the game ends, the pot stays in the middle and a new deal begins. This version is called Black Mariah.
Faldo says Nay. I consider this to be more of a lottery than poker.
444
Dealt as 8-card stud with 4’s as a wild card. Obviously this game can only be played with a table of six or less players (although you could spit a community card or two if you have more players playing).
The best way to deal it is to start with two down and two up. Then always deal so the up card outnumbers or is tied with the down cards. So the last card is down.
This is a straight wild card game like Deuces explained earlier, but with an extra card in the hand.
Faldo says “Yay” and thinks the game plays better with more players and community cards. And there is no law against dealing it - and calling it 442, 443, 44Q etc. - simply changing the wild card.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Douge2’s Humor Corner – XVIII
Get er’ Done
Faldo and The Lovely and Talented are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
Faldo says to the Mrs., "Honey, I was wondering...have you ever cheated on me?"
She replies, "Oh Faldo, why would you ask such a question now? You don't
want to ask that question..."
Yes, Dear, I really want to know. Please..."
"Well, all right. Yes, 3 times..."
"Three? Well, when were they?" Faldo asked innocently.
"Well, Faldo, remember when you were 35 years old and you really wanted to start your own business and no bank would give you a loan? Remember, then one day the bank president himself came over to the house and signed the loan papers, no questions asked?"
"Oh, Sweetheart, you did that for me! I respect you even more than ever, to do such a thing for me. So, when was number 2?"
"Well, Faldo, remember when you had that last heart attack and you were needing that very tricky operation, and no surgeon would touch you? Then remember how that doctor came all the way up here from Texas, to do the surgery himself, and then you were in good shape again?"
"I can't believe it! Baby, you should do such a thing for me, to save my life. I couldn't have a more wonderful wife. To do such a thing, you must really love me, Darling. I couldn't be more moved. So, all right then, when was number 3?"
"Well, Faldo, remember a few years ago, when you really wanted to be president
of the golf club and you were 37 votes short..?"
First Prize!
Beerhog won first prize at a Father's Day tournament which was an envelope.
When he opened the envelope, he was very surprised to find a voucher for a free visit to a brothel. He had never been to one before but he decided to go the next day even though he was very nervous.
The girls were very friendly and soon he found a lovely young lady and went with her to her room.
Two minutes later, she came running to the Madam and asked,
"Can you tell me what a Mulligan is?"
Faldo and The Lovely and Talented are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.
Faldo says to the Mrs., "Honey, I was wondering...have you ever cheated on me?"
She replies, "Oh Faldo, why would you ask such a question now? You don't
want to ask that question..."
Yes, Dear, I really want to know. Please..."
"Well, all right. Yes, 3 times..."
"Three? Well, when were they?" Faldo asked innocently.
"Well, Faldo, remember when you were 35 years old and you really wanted to start your own business and no bank would give you a loan? Remember, then one day the bank president himself came over to the house and signed the loan papers, no questions asked?"
"Oh, Sweetheart, you did that for me! I respect you even more than ever, to do such a thing for me. So, when was number 2?"
"Well, Faldo, remember when you had that last heart attack and you were needing that very tricky operation, and no surgeon would touch you? Then remember how that doctor came all the way up here from Texas, to do the surgery himself, and then you were in good shape again?"
"I can't believe it! Baby, you should do such a thing for me, to save my life. I couldn't have a more wonderful wife. To do such a thing, you must really love me, Darling. I couldn't be more moved. So, all right then, when was number 3?"
"Well, Faldo, remember a few years ago, when you really wanted to be president
of the golf club and you were 37 votes short..?"
First Prize!
Beerhog won first prize at a Father's Day tournament which was an envelope.
When he opened the envelope, he was very surprised to find a voucher for a free visit to a brothel. He had never been to one before but he decided to go the next day even though he was very nervous.
The girls were very friendly and soon he found a lovely young lady and went with her to her room.
Two minutes later, she came running to the Madam and asked,
"Can you tell me what a Mulligan is?"
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Tomservo2 Takes Over 3rd Quarter Lead with NPP Win
Over a field of eighteen players, Tomservo2 wins his second NPP tourney of the quarter and his second of all time. Not only did he take over the 3rd quarter lead for the last NPP seat, but he moved up the Walk of Fame too!
It will be an exciting finish to the 3rd quarter, folks! Stay tuned. Two more tourneys left!
On to the action:
16 min: ThePunk75 (19th) sees his (AJ) run into Funtoon’s (AA).
26 min: A short-stacked (SS) Meatsword (18th) loses to K9isadog’s pair of Aces.
30 min: Kensik (17th) see his (KK) run into trips 7’s after the flop by TresStooges.
38 min: SS Douge2 (16th) has to go with (KQ) and runs into TresStooges’s (JJ).
48 min: Theedouble*d (15th) sees his (KK) run into Budda627’s (AA). Ouch! Rough night so far for pocket cowboys (twss).
53 min: Ah, redemption for the Kings as last week’s champ, Derf-63 (14th) goes with (KQ) and runs into LittleRedElf’s (KK).
1st Break:
LittleRedElf 4400
Budda627 3665
Absea98 3110
Funtoon 2630
TresStooges 2510
K9isadog 2324
Akensi 2000
T3chlady 1655
Rennzzo 1570
Mikeniks-Faldo 1565
Tomservo2 1540
Tigercub8189 850
Wingsfancurt 681
62 min: K9isadog (13th), LittleRedElf, Tigercub8189 and Rennzzo see a flop of
[6s Qh 3d]. The Elf bets and only K9 calls. They get all-in with a turn card of [5d].
(Kd Qs) (93%) for K9 and (Qc Jd) (7%) for the Elf. But a [J] hit the river. Ouch!
72 min: A SS Tigercub8189 (12th) has to try with (AQ and runs into Tomservo2’s (AA).
74 min: A SS Wingsfancurt (11th) pushes with (Ac 6c) but doesn’t catch LittleRedElf’s (KK).
86 min: TresStooges (10th) calls pot committed with (88) and Mikeniks-Faldo has (AQ) with a [Q] on the flop.
89 min: Absea98 (9th), Tomservo2 and Budda627 take it to the river and Budda’s pair of Queens takes it down.
97 min: Akensi (8th) makes her move but Funtoon and Budda627 split her chips with the same full house.
110 min: T3chlady (7th) gets the better of it (AT) (67%) to LittleRedElf’s (A9) (23%). But the Elf escapes again as a [9] flops.
116 min: Budda627 (6th) flops a pair with (JT) (48%) and a flop of [6h 5h Jh], but Mikeniks-Faldo holds (Ah Kh) and goes no where (51%). Faldo hits his [A] on the river.
120 min: Rennzzo (5th) has to try with (As 7s) and a [9s 3s 5c] on the flop, only to find Funtoon holding (K5) and no spade arrives. The Break Monster wins again!
2nd break:
Funtoon 11274
Mikeniks-Faldo 9811
Tomservo2 5401
LittleRedElf 2014
125 min: LittleRedElf (4th) is all-in with (Q3) and a [Q] on the flop, only to see Tomservo2 holding (QT).
129 min: Funtoon (3rd) sees his (AK) run into Tomservo2’s (AA). A lot of people ran into AA tonight at the wrong time.
130 min: Heads up: Tomservo2 22500 - Mikeniks-Faldo 6000
135 min: Tomservo2 16800 - Mikeniks-Faldo 11700
140 min: Tomservo2 11200 - Mikeniks-Faldo 17300
145 min: Tomservo2 13200 - Mikeniks-Faldo 15300
150 min: Tomservo2 18600 - Mikeniks-Faldo 9900
154 min: Mikeniks-Faldo (2nd) goes AIPF with (Ah 9h), but can’t run down Tomservo2 with (88).
Congratulations Tomservo2.
1st – Tomservo2
2nd – Mikeniks-Faldo
3rd – Funtoon
4th – LittleRedElf
5th – Rennzzo
6th – Budda627
7th – T3chlady
8th – Akensi
9th – Absea98
Standings are on the right side of the blog!
It will be an exciting finish to the 3rd quarter, folks! Stay tuned. Two more tourneys left!
On to the action:
16 min: ThePunk75 (19th) sees his (AJ) run into Funtoon’s (AA).
26 min: A short-stacked (SS) Meatsword (18th) loses to K9isadog’s pair of Aces.
30 min: Kensik (17th) see his (KK) run into trips 7’s after the flop by TresStooges.
38 min: SS Douge2 (16th) has to go with (KQ) and runs into TresStooges’s (JJ).
48 min: Theedouble*d (15th) sees his (KK) run into Budda627’s (AA). Ouch! Rough night so far for pocket cowboys (twss).
53 min: Ah, redemption for the Kings as last week’s champ, Derf-63 (14th) goes with (KQ) and runs into LittleRedElf’s (KK).
1st Break:
LittleRedElf 4400
Budda627 3665
Absea98 3110
Funtoon 2630
TresStooges 2510
K9isadog 2324
Akensi 2000
T3chlady 1655
Rennzzo 1570
Mikeniks-Faldo 1565
Tomservo2 1540
Tigercub8189 850
Wingsfancurt 681
62 min: K9isadog (13th), LittleRedElf, Tigercub8189 and Rennzzo see a flop of
[6s Qh 3d]. The Elf bets and only K9 calls. They get all-in with a turn card of [5d].
(Kd Qs) (93%) for K9 and (Qc Jd) (7%) for the Elf. But a [J] hit the river. Ouch!
72 min: A SS Tigercub8189 (12th) has to try with (AQ and runs into Tomservo2’s (AA).
74 min: A SS Wingsfancurt (11th) pushes with (Ac 6c) but doesn’t catch LittleRedElf’s (KK).
86 min: TresStooges (10th) calls pot committed with (88) and Mikeniks-Faldo has (AQ) with a [Q] on the flop.
89 min: Absea98 (9th), Tomservo2 and Budda627 take it to the river and Budda’s pair of Queens takes it down.
97 min: Akensi (8th) makes her move but Funtoon and Budda627 split her chips with the same full house.
110 min: T3chlady (7th) gets the better of it (AT) (67%) to LittleRedElf’s (A9) (23%). But the Elf escapes again as a [9] flops.
116 min: Budda627 (6th) flops a pair with (JT) (48%) and a flop of [6h 5h Jh], but Mikeniks-Faldo holds (Ah Kh) and goes no where (51%). Faldo hits his [A] on the river.
120 min: Rennzzo (5th) has to try with (As 7s) and a [9s 3s 5c] on the flop, only to find Funtoon holding (K5) and no spade arrives. The Break Monster wins again!
2nd break:
Funtoon 11274
Mikeniks-Faldo 9811
Tomservo2 5401
LittleRedElf 2014
125 min: LittleRedElf (4th) is all-in with (Q3) and a [Q] on the flop, only to see Tomservo2 holding (QT).
129 min: Funtoon (3rd) sees his (AK) run into Tomservo2’s (AA). A lot of people ran into AA tonight at the wrong time.
130 min: Heads up: Tomservo2 22500 - Mikeniks-Faldo 6000
135 min: Tomservo2 16800 - Mikeniks-Faldo 11700
140 min: Tomservo2 11200 - Mikeniks-Faldo 17300
145 min: Tomservo2 13200 - Mikeniks-Faldo 15300
150 min: Tomservo2 18600 - Mikeniks-Faldo 9900
154 min: Mikeniks-Faldo (2nd) goes AIPF with (Ah 9h), but can’t run down Tomservo2 with (88).
Congratulations Tomservo2.
1st – Tomservo2
2nd – Mikeniks-Faldo
3rd – Funtoon
4th – LittleRedElf
5th – Rennzzo
6th – Budda627
7th – T3chlady
8th – Akensi
9th – Absea98
Standings are on the right side of the blog!
Faldo Retires From (working at) Golf
Does this mean I will never play again? No, of course not. But this is the last year I work at trying to play – or play better.
Herbavor nailed it with his comment. I got jobs at golf courses so I could play for free in order to practice, practice, practice!
I got out there on the course in the cold weather, the bad weather, on the Friday nights, and on the big Football Saturdays and Sundays when I knew the course would be empty. I dropped golf balls in ridiculous lie and places just to see how to hit them out. I read Golf Digest to learn how to hit shots. I took putting lessons.
I learned to build golf clubs. No, not to fix the ones I broke in anger (although [confession time] that was needed on occasion). But to learn about swing speeds, angles and loft, club weighting and grip adjustment (twss).
The reason I did all of this was to be able to play golf with my friends and family and not embarrass myself in the process. I was absolutely terrible when I started playing and just could not stand the thought of playing anything THAT badly. And I did not like holding up play by having to look for my ball or duffing it all the way down the course.
Well, I have leveled out in ability (twss), the number of foursomes on a Saturday or Sunday I can assemble to play in, has flattened out, and the number of golf course jobs has dried out.
There is no longer a reason to have discount golf available for friends and family, and no longer a reason for me to practice my butt off.
I’m still going to play golf when the opportunity arises, but I am retiring from working at my game, working at making time to play, or working to get free golf.
As it says on this blog’s profile, life changes things. Time for another change.
Herbavor nailed it with his comment. I got jobs at golf courses so I could play for free in order to practice, practice, practice!
I got out there on the course in the cold weather, the bad weather, on the Friday nights, and on the big Football Saturdays and Sundays when I knew the course would be empty. I dropped golf balls in ridiculous lie and places just to see how to hit them out. I read Golf Digest to learn how to hit shots. I took putting lessons.
I learned to build golf clubs. No, not to fix the ones I broke in anger (although [confession time] that was needed on occasion). But to learn about swing speeds, angles and loft, club weighting and grip adjustment (twss).
The reason I did all of this was to be able to play golf with my friends and family and not embarrass myself in the process. I was absolutely terrible when I started playing and just could not stand the thought of playing anything THAT badly. And I did not like holding up play by having to look for my ball or duffing it all the way down the course.
Well, I have leveled out in ability (twss), the number of foursomes on a Saturday or Sunday I can assemble to play in, has flattened out, and the number of golf course jobs has dried out.
There is no longer a reason to have discount golf available for friends and family, and no longer a reason for me to practice my butt off.
I’m still going to play golf when the opportunity arises, but I am retiring from working at my game, working at making time to play, or working to get free golf.
As it says on this blog’s profile, life changes things. Time for another change.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Faldo Says “Yay” or “Nay” to Common Dealer’s Choice Games – Part IV
There are other poker games besides what is dealt in casinos and tournaments. The casino games are there because of their speed and simplicity in dealing. More hands equals more rake for the house.
But there are some fun, entertaining and exciting poker games you can deal in a home game, which make you have to think outside “the flop” sometimes.
The description of the following games in this series is Faldo’s opinion only. Others may like my take on a game and some will not. That’s fine. It’s all good. Here we go:
Criss-Cross / Southern Cross
Each player receives five cards (although 4 or 3 per hand is playable also). There can or cannot be a betting round here. It is up to the dealer to declare prior to looking at his cards. Then a window is placed on the table as such (ignore dash):
-X
XXX
-X
Southern Cross has the same board but it has 5 cards in the row/column instead of 3.
An outer card is chosen to be turned over, and another betting round.
The dealer then chooses anther outer card to be turned over, but not one in the same row or column as the first one. And another betting round happens.
This continues until all the cards in the window are exposed, with the middle one being last.
You make your hand using ANY of the cards in your hand and the cards in either the row or the cards in the column to help you out.
You can play this game turning two cards at a time and then the one in the middle, to lessen the betting rounds. You can play this game High-Low. You can play this game with the middle card being wild. I have seen and played every variation.
Faldo says “Yay” to this game, although If the middle card is to be wild, I prefer it be the first card turned.
Deuces Wild
Usually dealt like 5 card draw or 7 stud poker,with the added twist that any Deuce (2) can be named any card the player holding it wants it to be. Some people name a different card wild or multiple cards wild.
Faldo says “Yay” to this game, and here is why. There is an interesting quirk about a wild card game that you may not know. But now you will.
First of all, with a wild card game, there are 30,816 possible 4-of-a-kind hands, and only 12,672 full house hands possible. This means it is easier to get quads than boats, but quads of course rank higher! In addition, there are only 13,204 possible flushes.
Two-pair (95,040) also should rank above trips (355,056).
How many of you did not know this? Well, that is why I am here.
But there are some fun, entertaining and exciting poker games you can deal in a home game, which make you have to think outside “the flop” sometimes.
The description of the following games in this series is Faldo’s opinion only. Others may like my take on a game and some will not. That’s fine. It’s all good. Here we go:
Criss-Cross / Southern Cross
Each player receives five cards (although 4 or 3 per hand is playable also). There can or cannot be a betting round here. It is up to the dealer to declare prior to looking at his cards. Then a window is placed on the table as such (ignore dash):
-X
XXX
-X
Southern Cross has the same board but it has 5 cards in the row/column instead of 3.
An outer card is chosen to be turned over, and another betting round.
The dealer then chooses anther outer card to be turned over, but not one in the same row or column as the first one. And another betting round happens.
This continues until all the cards in the window are exposed, with the middle one being last.
You make your hand using ANY of the cards in your hand and the cards in either the row or the cards in the column to help you out.
You can play this game turning two cards at a time and then the one in the middle, to lessen the betting rounds. You can play this game High-Low. You can play this game with the middle card being wild. I have seen and played every variation.
Faldo says “Yay” to this game, although If the middle card is to be wild, I prefer it be the first card turned.
Deuces Wild
Usually dealt like 5 card draw or 7 stud poker,with the added twist that any Deuce (2) can be named any card the player holding it wants it to be. Some people name a different card wild or multiple cards wild.
Faldo says “Yay” to this game, and here is why. There is an interesting quirk about a wild card game that you may not know. But now you will.
First of all, with a wild card game, there are 30,816 possible 4-of-a-kind hands, and only 12,672 full house hands possible. This means it is easier to get quads than boats, but quads of course rank higher! In addition, there are only 13,204 possible flushes.
Two-pair (95,040) also should rank above trips (355,056).
How many of you did not know this? Well, that is why I am here.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Faldo Wears Out His Welcome on the 1st Visit
I know, I know. When don’t I do that? But this was different.
This was a poker game I was invited to by getting picked up to play in a softball tournament. The sponsor of the team wanted to pad his team a little and picked up me and a few of teammates to play one weekend on his team.
My main team rarely had a weekend off as “Frank” was a total softball junkie, but we had this one off. I guess I was even a bigger playing junkie, because I was playing this weekend too.
Over beers at the bar after the tournament, the sponsor of the team, Larry, told me he had a game on Friday night with some of the men who worked for him at an auto-body shop. I said I played poker and he said to come on over if I could handle the stakes. I asked what those were and he said $1 - $2.
This was a decent amount of money for a ‘starving’ college student as far as Larry was concerned. My fellow softball ringer John told Larry about the $.25 - $.50 game our main softball team had some Saturday nights.
I didn’t feel the need to mention to Larry I played in the $10 - $20 ‘Frank’ game and $1 - $2 would not be a problem. I just told him I thought I could swing it next week and I would be there. John also was invited.
A nice group of guys and they played the usual Jacks or better, Blind Baseball, Deuces Wild for both stud and draw, etc. – along with 7-stud Hi-Lo, which is what Larry dealt. I duly noted that Larry was the ‘playa’ of this group.
I introduced Little Squeeze (5-stud, with a purchase exchange option) to the group, and they fell in love with the game – especially Larry. It was the fan favorite for most of the night.
Well, it was getting late, and I was a decent size winner, as was Larry. I played straight forward poker, didn’t re-raise much, and was outwardly shy about my good fortune so far that night. A few of the guys had said after taking a pot from me, “I didn’t raise to take it easy on the kid his first night here.”
The big winner this night so far was Dave. He liked to talk and call hands out that he thought everyone had and what they folded. He was usually right, and when he wasn’t – then you didn’t play the hand right, according to him. It was all done in a friendly manner anyway.
The deck was hitting him between the eyes this night also. He was in a good mood and feeling he had his A-game tonight. He probably did.
We had been playing a good six hours and as a new player and up money, I was not going to be the first one to leave. Just bad poker game etiquette if you want to be invited back. Losing? No problem, leave whenever you want and you will still be on the call list. But winning in a new card game and leaving early? Not good as long as you know the game is on the level.
So I decided I was there until we were four handed or less. I was thinking that I still had another 3 hours or so to go. Uh…no. This hand headed people to the exits like a lap later. The game, Little Squeeze and the dealer is Larry, the host (no, not me thank God, as you will soon see).
Almost no one folded until they got their original five usually so the game was dealt with only two exchange chances. No one folded this hand either.
Joe (X) Kc 3c 2h 2c
Bob (X) As 9h Jc 8h
Dave (X) 4c 8s 3h 5h
Faldo (X) 4s 6h 7c 3s
John (X) Qc 6d Qd Ks
Doug (X) Kd Qs 5c Ac
(D) Larry (X) Ts 7d 9s 5d
The betting has basically been capped every round with Bob, Dave, John, Doug and Larry doing all the betting. I just called, as I had most of the night. Exchange time {throw away card} – [new card].
Joe (X) Kc {3c} 2h 2c [Jh] (obviously 2 pair or trips)
Bob (X) As 9h Jc {8h} [7s] (Aces down?)
Dave exclaims, “I needed that seven! I’m not buying now.”
Dave (X) 4c 8s 3h 5h [pat] (Has an eight-low. Any worse, he buys regardless)
Faldo (X) 4s 6h 7c 3s [pat]
When I also don’t buy, Dave says, “See, the boy is learning from the master!”
John (X) Qc {6d} Qd Ks [4h] (trip queens and sandbagging?)
Doug (X) Kd Qs {5c} Ac [4d] (straight draw obviously)
(D) Larry (X) Ts 7d 9s {5d} [Th] (tripped the tens)
The betting is capped by Dave, John and Larry, putting us all in what is known as “the popcorn machine,” getting pelted by bets from all sides.
Joe [{X}] Kc 2h 2c Jh (trying to trip the 2’s)
Bob (X) As 9h Jc 8h {7s} [9d] (two pair – no way he has trip nines)
Dave says, “I’m not buying. Gonna let the kid catch.”
Dave (X) 4c 8s 3h 5h [pat]
Faldo (X) 4s 6h 7c 3s [pat]
Dave says, “You should have bought a card there, son. I don’t have a pair. Honest.”
John ({X}) Qc Qd Ks 4h (still trying to trip the queens)
Doug (X) Kd Qs Ac {4d} [2d] (no straight for you!)
(D) Larry (X) Ts 7d {9s} 5d Th [3d] (trip tens for sure)
Joe checks, and Bob fires out a tentative bet. Dave says, “Sorry, I have to bet it son. I raise.”
When I re-raise, you could have heard a pin drop from three houses down! After about what seemed like five long minutes (probably 30 seconds), I turn and look at John, who folds like lightening when I looked at him.
Doug folds nearly at the same time John does, and Larry calmly re-raises. Joe reluctantly calls. Bob thinks for a while and folds.
I now look at Dave who is looking at me like I have my hands on his daughter in his living room after Sunday church. He says, “Kid, you are not bluffing me out of this pot. I cap it!”
I call as does Larry and Dave. Dave declares ‘low’, Larry and Joe go ‘high’ and I declare both ways and take the entire pot down with my 7-high straight (had the 5s).
I never got invited back to the game. John was invited as long as he didn’t bring me, and I know John played in that game for years.
This was a poker game I was invited to by getting picked up to play in a softball tournament. The sponsor of the team wanted to pad his team a little and picked up me and a few of teammates to play one weekend on his team.
My main team rarely had a weekend off as “Frank” was a total softball junkie, but we had this one off. I guess I was even a bigger playing junkie, because I was playing this weekend too.
Over beers at the bar after the tournament, the sponsor of the team, Larry, told me he had a game on Friday night with some of the men who worked for him at an auto-body shop. I said I played poker and he said to come on over if I could handle the stakes. I asked what those were and he said $1 - $2.
This was a decent amount of money for a ‘starving’ college student as far as Larry was concerned. My fellow softball ringer John told Larry about the $.25 - $.50 game our main softball team had some Saturday nights.
I didn’t feel the need to mention to Larry I played in the $10 - $20 ‘Frank’ game and $1 - $2 would not be a problem. I just told him I thought I could swing it next week and I would be there. John also was invited.
A nice group of guys and they played the usual Jacks or better, Blind Baseball, Deuces Wild for both stud and draw, etc. – along with 7-stud Hi-Lo, which is what Larry dealt. I duly noted that Larry was the ‘playa’ of this group.
I introduced Little Squeeze (5-stud, with a purchase exchange option) to the group, and they fell in love with the game – especially Larry. It was the fan favorite for most of the night.
Well, it was getting late, and I was a decent size winner, as was Larry. I played straight forward poker, didn’t re-raise much, and was outwardly shy about my good fortune so far that night. A few of the guys had said after taking a pot from me, “I didn’t raise to take it easy on the kid his first night here.”
The big winner this night so far was Dave. He liked to talk and call hands out that he thought everyone had and what they folded. He was usually right, and when he wasn’t – then you didn’t play the hand right, according to him. It was all done in a friendly manner anyway.
The deck was hitting him between the eyes this night also. He was in a good mood and feeling he had his A-game tonight. He probably did.
We had been playing a good six hours and as a new player and up money, I was not going to be the first one to leave. Just bad poker game etiquette if you want to be invited back. Losing? No problem, leave whenever you want and you will still be on the call list. But winning in a new card game and leaving early? Not good as long as you know the game is on the level.
So I decided I was there until we were four handed or less. I was thinking that I still had another 3 hours or so to go. Uh…no. This hand headed people to the exits like a lap later. The game, Little Squeeze and the dealer is Larry, the host (no, not me thank God, as you will soon see).
Almost no one folded until they got their original five usually so the game was dealt with only two exchange chances. No one folded this hand either.
Joe (X) Kc 3c 2h 2c
Bob (X) As 9h Jc 8h
Dave (X) 4c 8s 3h 5h
Faldo (X) 4s 6h 7c 3s
John (X) Qc 6d Qd Ks
Doug (X) Kd Qs 5c Ac
(D) Larry (X) Ts 7d 9s 5d
The betting has basically been capped every round with Bob, Dave, John, Doug and Larry doing all the betting. I just called, as I had most of the night. Exchange time {throw away card} – [new card].
Joe (X) Kc {3c} 2h 2c [Jh] (obviously 2 pair or trips)
Bob (X) As 9h Jc {8h} [7s] (Aces down?)
Dave exclaims, “I needed that seven! I’m not buying now.”
Dave (X) 4c 8s 3h 5h [pat] (Has an eight-low. Any worse, he buys regardless)
Faldo (X) 4s 6h 7c 3s [pat]
When I also don’t buy, Dave says, “See, the boy is learning from the master!”
John (X) Qc {6d} Qd Ks [4h] (trip queens and sandbagging?)
Doug (X) Kd Qs {5c} Ac [4d] (straight draw obviously)
(D) Larry (X) Ts 7d 9s {5d} [Th] (tripped the tens)
The betting is capped by Dave, John and Larry, putting us all in what is known as “the popcorn machine,” getting pelted by bets from all sides.
Joe [{X}] Kc 2h 2c Jh (trying to trip the 2’s)
Bob (X) As 9h Jc 8h {7s} [9d] (two pair – no way he has trip nines)
Dave says, “I’m not buying. Gonna let the kid catch.”
Dave (X) 4c 8s 3h 5h [pat]
Faldo (X) 4s 6h 7c 3s [pat]
Dave says, “You should have bought a card there, son. I don’t have a pair. Honest.”
John ({X}) Qc Qd Ks 4h (still trying to trip the queens)
Doug (X) Kd Qs Ac {4d} [2d] (no straight for you!)
(D) Larry (X) Ts 7d {9s} 5d Th [3d] (trip tens for sure)
Joe checks, and Bob fires out a tentative bet. Dave says, “Sorry, I have to bet it son. I raise.”
When I re-raise, you could have heard a pin drop from three houses down! After about what seemed like five long minutes (probably 30 seconds), I turn and look at John, who folds like lightening when I looked at him.
Doug folds nearly at the same time John does, and Larry calmly re-raises. Joe reluctantly calls. Bob thinks for a while and folds.
I now look at Dave who is looking at me like I have my hands on his daughter in his living room after Sunday church. He says, “Kid, you are not bluffing me out of this pot. I cap it!”
I call as does Larry and Dave. Dave declares ‘low’, Larry and Joe go ‘high’ and I declare both ways and take the entire pot down with my 7-high straight (had the 5s).
I never got invited back to the game. John was invited as long as he didn’t bring me, and I know John played in that game for years.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Douge2’s Humor Corner – XVII
The True Rules of Golf
• The game of golf is 90% mental and 10% mental.
• If you want to get better at golf, go back and take it up at a much earlier age.
• Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is actually the beginning of the next group of three.
• When you look up and cause an awful shot, you will always look down again at exactly the moment when you ought to start watching the ball if you ever want to see it again.
• Any change works for a maximum of three holes and a minimum of not at all.
• No matter how bad you are playing, it is always possible to play worse
• Never keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.
• When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one
more club or two more balls.
• Golfers who claim they don't cheat, also lie.
• If you're afraid a full shot might reach the green while the foursome ahead
of you is still putting out, you have two options: you can immediately shank
a lay-up, or you can wait until the green is clear and top a ball halfway there.
• The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.
• The inevitable result of any golf lesson is the instant elimination of the one critical unconscious motion that allowed you to compensate for all your errors.
• If it ain't broke, try changing your grip.
• It's not a gimme if you're still away.
• Everyone replaces his divot after a perfect approach shot.
• A golf match is a test of your skill against your opponent's luck.
• It's surprisingly easy to hole a 50-foot putt when you lie 10.
• Counting on your opponent to inform you when he breaks a rule is like expecting him to make fun of his own haircut.
• Non-chalant putts missed count the same as chalant putts.
• The shortest distance beween any two points on a golf course is a
straight line that passes directly through the center of a very large tree.
• There are two kinds of bounces: unfair bounces, and bounces just the
way you meant to play it.
• You can hit a 2-acre fairway 10% of the time, and a 2-inch branch
90% of the time.
• Every time a golfer makes a birdie, he must subsequently make two triple bogeys to restore the fundamental equilibrium of the universe.
• If you want to hit a 7-iron as far as Tiger Woods does, simply try to lay up just short of a water hazard.
• To calculate the speed of a player's downswing, multiply the speed of his backswing by his handicap. Example: backswing 20 mph, handicap 15, downswing 600 mph.
• There are two things you can learn by stopping your backswing at the top
and checking the position of your hands: how many hands you have, and which one is wearing the glove.
• Hazards attract. Fairways repel.
• You can put "draw" on the ball, you can put "fade" on the ball, but no golfer can put "straight" on the ball.
• A ball you can see in the rough from 50 yards away is not yours.
• If there is a ball in the fringe and a ball in the bunker, your ball is the one in
the bunker
• If both balls are in the bunker, yours is in the footprint.
• Don't buy a putter until you've had a chance to throw it.
• The game of golf is 90% mental and 10% mental.
• If you want to get better at golf, go back and take it up at a much earlier age.
• Since bad shots come in groups of three, a fourth bad shot is actually the beginning of the next group of three.
• When you look up and cause an awful shot, you will always look down again at exactly the moment when you ought to start watching the ball if you ever want to see it again.
• Any change works for a maximum of three holes and a minimum of not at all.
• No matter how bad you are playing, it is always possible to play worse
• Never keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.
• When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one
more club or two more balls.
• Golfers who claim they don't cheat, also lie.
• If you're afraid a full shot might reach the green while the foursome ahead
of you is still putting out, you have two options: you can immediately shank
a lay-up, or you can wait until the green is clear and top a ball halfway there.
• The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.
• The inevitable result of any golf lesson is the instant elimination of the one critical unconscious motion that allowed you to compensate for all your errors.
• If it ain't broke, try changing your grip.
• It's not a gimme if you're still away.
• Everyone replaces his divot after a perfect approach shot.
• A golf match is a test of your skill against your opponent's luck.
• It's surprisingly easy to hole a 50-foot putt when you lie 10.
• Counting on your opponent to inform you when he breaks a rule is like expecting him to make fun of his own haircut.
• Non-chalant putts missed count the same as chalant putts.
• The shortest distance beween any two points on a golf course is a
straight line that passes directly through the center of a very large tree.
• There are two kinds of bounces: unfair bounces, and bounces just the
way you meant to play it.
• You can hit a 2-acre fairway 10% of the time, and a 2-inch branch
90% of the time.
• Every time a golfer makes a birdie, he must subsequently make two triple bogeys to restore the fundamental equilibrium of the universe.
• If you want to hit a 7-iron as far as Tiger Woods does, simply try to lay up just short of a water hazard.
• To calculate the speed of a player's downswing, multiply the speed of his backswing by his handicap. Example: backswing 20 mph, handicap 15, downswing 600 mph.
• There are two things you can learn by stopping your backswing at the top
and checking the position of your hands: how many hands you have, and which one is wearing the glove.
• Hazards attract. Fairways repel.
• You can put "draw" on the ball, you can put "fade" on the ball, but no golfer can put "straight" on the ball.
• A ball you can see in the rough from 50 yards away is not yours.
• If there is a ball in the fringe and a ball in the bunker, your ball is the one in
the bunker
• If both balls are in the bunker, yours is in the footprint.
• Don't buy a putter until you've had a chance to throw it.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Derf-63 Wins His 2nd NPP Tourney!
Derf-63 didn’t seem to remember, but he has topped the NPP field once before – back on June 2 of this year.
This was the greatest – or second greatest – NPP tourney comeback of all time! At the 70 minute mark, Derf was down to 130 chips! He came roaring back to win it all!
We welcomed back a couple players that have missed a few weeks of play – TresStooges and UMichPoker. Welcome back Chris and Michele.
On to the action:
14 min: Wingsfancurt (20th) sees his (99) run into Greggst49’s (KK).
35 min: Theedouble*d (19th) sees his (JJ) run into Umichpoker’s (QQ).
These two went out 1 – 2, but in reverse order last week. Wow!
The play at NPP is tough as we lose only two players in a half-hour. But eventually the short-stacks are forced to move.
47 min: A short-stacked (SS) K9isadog (18th) pushes his (K4), but Derf-63 has (AJ).
53 min: Sirgash gets a rare double kill as his (AJ) takes out a SS Tigercub8189 (17h) (AT) and a SS Akensi (16th) (66) when an [A] hits the flop.
58 min: (SS) T3chlady (15th) has to go with (A8) and runs into Budda627’s (66).
1st Break:
Greggst49 4500
Sirgash 3950
Douge2 3000
UMichPoker 2985
Meatsword 2885
Tomservo2 2060
Budda627 1990
Absea98 1835
Funtoon 1620
Kensik 1620
ThePunk75 1175
Derf-63 1135
TresStooges 735
Mikeniks-Faldo 510
62 min: A SS Mikeniks-Faldo (14th) goes with (A2) and runs into Greggst49’s (AK).
69 min: A SS TresStooges (13th) gets all-in with (99) to Tomservo’s (55), but sees a [5] hit the turn. Ouch!
76 min: Greggst49 (12th) thinks his (88) is good on a weak board and runs into Meatsword’s two pair.
77 min: A SS Funtoon (11th) pushes with two clubs on the flop holding (Tc 3c) but does not hit and all remaining players (and some on the rail) can beat his hand.
78 min: Another double knock out with Douge2 doing the honors to ThePunk75 (10th) and Tomservo2 (9th). I miss the hand because the table broke.
85 min: Budda627 (8th) makes a move with (Ad Qd) but Derf-63 has (KK).
88 min: Sirgash (7th) tries to get Kensik to fold, but Ken’s (99) holds up. Sirgash goes out three minutes later.
Sirgash announced he is taking six months off from poker after this weekend. I hate to hear this, as Sirgash is right in the mix for a seat in the NPP finals - either this quarter, next quarter or the at-large bid for total points. If he doesn't change his mind, NPP will lose a good guy and a good player from our stable for a while. We back him on whatever decision he makes. Hat tip to Sirgash!
106 min: Last week’s winner, Douge2 (6th) tried to steal the pot with (66), but Derf-63 holds (QT) with a flop of [QA9] and goes no where.
107 min: Kensik (5th) has to try with (K4) and a [K] on the flop, only to find Absea98 holding (KJ).
109 min: A SS UMichPoker (4th) is AIPF with (A8) only to see Derf-63 holding (99).
113 min: Meatsword (3rd) gets a little impatient holding (A7), and finds a snap-call by Derf-63 with (44).
Heads up: Derf-63 24000 - Absea98 6000
114 min: Absea98 (2nd) must call AIPF with (AJ), but can’t run down Derf-63 with (TT).
And a great comeback is capped off with a win! Congratulations Derf-63.
1st – Derf-63
2nd – Absea98
3rd – Meatsword
4th – UMichPoker
5th – Kensik
6th – Douge2
7th – Sirgash
8th – Budda627
9th – Tomservo2
Standings are on the right side of the blog! Still anybody's race for this quarter's seat in the NPP finals!
This was the greatest – or second greatest – NPP tourney comeback of all time! At the 70 minute mark, Derf was down to 130 chips! He came roaring back to win it all!
We welcomed back a couple players that have missed a few weeks of play – TresStooges and UMichPoker. Welcome back Chris and Michele.
On to the action:
14 min: Wingsfancurt (20th) sees his (99) run into Greggst49’s (KK).
35 min: Theedouble*d (19th) sees his (JJ) run into Umichpoker’s (QQ).
These two went out 1 – 2, but in reverse order last week. Wow!
The play at NPP is tough as we lose only two players in a half-hour. But eventually the short-stacks are forced to move.
47 min: A short-stacked (SS) K9isadog (18th) pushes his (K4), but Derf-63 has (AJ).
53 min: Sirgash gets a rare double kill as his (AJ) takes out a SS Tigercub8189 (17h) (AT) and a SS Akensi (16th) (66) when an [A] hits the flop.
58 min: (SS) T3chlady (15th) has to go with (A8) and runs into Budda627’s (66).
1st Break:
Greggst49 4500
Sirgash 3950
Douge2 3000
UMichPoker 2985
Meatsword 2885
Tomservo2 2060
Budda627 1990
Absea98 1835
Funtoon 1620
Kensik 1620
ThePunk75 1175
Derf-63 1135
TresStooges 735
Mikeniks-Faldo 510
62 min: A SS Mikeniks-Faldo (14th) goes with (A2) and runs into Greggst49’s (AK).
69 min: A SS TresStooges (13th) gets all-in with (99) to Tomservo’s (55), but sees a [5] hit the turn. Ouch!
76 min: Greggst49 (12th) thinks his (88) is good on a weak board and runs into Meatsword’s two pair.
77 min: A SS Funtoon (11th) pushes with two clubs on the flop holding (Tc 3c) but does not hit and all remaining players (and some on the rail) can beat his hand.
78 min: Another double knock out with Douge2 doing the honors to ThePunk75 (10th) and Tomservo2 (9th). I miss the hand because the table broke.
85 min: Budda627 (8th) makes a move with (Ad Qd) but Derf-63 has (KK).
88 min: Sirgash (7th) tries to get Kensik to fold, but Ken’s (99) holds up. Sirgash goes out three minutes later.
Sirgash announced he is taking six months off from poker after this weekend. I hate to hear this, as Sirgash is right in the mix for a seat in the NPP finals - either this quarter, next quarter or the at-large bid for total points. If he doesn't change his mind, NPP will lose a good guy and a good player from our stable for a while. We back him on whatever decision he makes. Hat tip to Sirgash!
106 min: Last week’s winner, Douge2 (6th) tried to steal the pot with (66), but Derf-63 holds (QT) with a flop of [QA9] and goes no where.
107 min: Kensik (5th) has to try with (K4) and a [K] on the flop, only to find Absea98 holding (KJ).
109 min: A SS UMichPoker (4th) is AIPF with (A8) only to see Derf-63 holding (99).
113 min: Meatsword (3rd) gets a little impatient holding (A7), and finds a snap-call by Derf-63 with (44).
Heads up: Derf-63 24000 - Absea98 6000
114 min: Absea98 (2nd) must call AIPF with (AJ), but can’t run down Derf-63 with (TT).
And a great comeback is capped off with a win! Congratulations Derf-63.
1st – Derf-63
2nd – Absea98
3rd – Meatsword
4th – UMichPoker
5th – Kensik
6th – Douge2
7th – Sirgash
8th – Budda627
9th – Tomservo2
Standings are on the right side of the blog! Still anybody's race for this quarter's seat in the NPP finals!
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Theedouble*d Wins a Seat in the WCOOP!
2009 NPP Finals Seat Holder Theedouble*d wins a seat in the prestigious World Championship of On-line Poker (WCOOP)!
Yes, I know it pales to having a seat in the NPP Finals, but a WCOOP is the 3rd best tournament event you can qualify for in on-line poker. I guess the WSOP would be a distant number two.
TDD qualified for Event 17 and if you double click on the picture you can read the details!
All kidding aside, this a is great poker accomplishment and we know ‘TDD’ will represent NPP well in this ‘big one’ (twss).
Great job Don!
Friday, August 14, 2009
ThePunk75 Wins in Omaha
Pot-limit Omaha that is! I’ll let him tell it:
“The Punk has finally conquered a MTT(non SNG) online on PS.
After a couple final tables (Ed. Note: ‘as a bridesmaid’), I finally broke through with a nice win.
Ironically it wasn't Holdem, it was pot limit Omaha. Fifty-nine other players felt my wrath and I collected 16.5 times the buy in as my prize.
“The Punk has finally conquered a MTT(non SNG) online on PS.
After a couple final tables (Ed. Note: ‘as a bridesmaid’), I finally broke through with a nice win.
Ironically it wasn't Holdem, it was pot limit Omaha. Fifty-nine other players felt my wrath and I collected 16.5 times the buy in as my prize.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Douge2’s Humor Corner – XVI
What Happens When You Don’t Play Golf Often Enough
After a particularly poor game of golf, Davethedog skipped the clubhouse and started to go home. As he was walking to the parking lot to get his car, a policeman stopped him and asked, "Did you tee off on the sixteenth hole about twenty minutes ago?"
"Yes," Dave responded.
"Did you happen to hook your ball so that it went over the trees and off the course?"
"Yes, I did. How did you know?" Dave asked.
"Well," said the policeman very seriously, "Your ball flew out onto the highway and crashed through a driver's windshield. The car went out of control, crashing into five other cars and a fire truck. The fire truck couldn't make it to the fire, and the building burned down. So, what are you going to do about it?"
Dave thought it over carefully and responded...
"I think I'll close my stance a little bit, tighten my grip and lower my right thumb."
Faldo, Bigbrimar, and Tigercub go Golfing
These three were waiting one morning for a particularly slow group of golfers.
Faldo: What's with these guys? We must have been waiting for 15 minutes!
Tigercub: I don't know, but I've never seen such ineptitude!
Douge2: Hey, here comes the greens keeper. Let's have a word with him. [dramatic pause] Hi George. Say, what's with that group ahead of us? They're rather slow, aren't they?
George: Oh, yes, that's a group of blind fire fighters. They lost their sight saving our clubhouse from a fire last year, so we always let them play for free anytime.
The group was silent for a moment.
Tigercub: That's so sad. I think I will say a special prayer for them tonight.
Douge2: Good idea. And I'm going to contact my ophthalmologist buddy and see if there's anything he can do for them.
Faldo: Why can't these guys play at night?
After a particularly poor game of golf, Davethedog skipped the clubhouse and started to go home. As he was walking to the parking lot to get his car, a policeman stopped him and asked, "Did you tee off on the sixteenth hole about twenty minutes ago?"
"Yes," Dave responded.
"Did you happen to hook your ball so that it went over the trees and off the course?"
"Yes, I did. How did you know?" Dave asked.
"Well," said the policeman very seriously, "Your ball flew out onto the highway and crashed through a driver's windshield. The car went out of control, crashing into five other cars and a fire truck. The fire truck couldn't make it to the fire, and the building burned down. So, what are you going to do about it?"
Dave thought it over carefully and responded...
"I think I'll close my stance a little bit, tighten my grip and lower my right thumb."
Faldo, Bigbrimar, and Tigercub go Golfing
These three were waiting one morning for a particularly slow group of golfers.
Faldo: What's with these guys? We must have been waiting for 15 minutes!
Tigercub: I don't know, but I've never seen such ineptitude!
Douge2: Hey, here comes the greens keeper. Let's have a word with him. [dramatic pause] Hi George. Say, what's with that group ahead of us? They're rather slow, aren't they?
George: Oh, yes, that's a group of blind fire fighters. They lost their sight saving our clubhouse from a fire last year, so we always let them play for free anytime.
The group was silent for a moment.
Tigercub: That's so sad. I think I will say a special prayer for them tonight.
Douge2: Good idea. And I'm going to contact my ophthalmologist buddy and see if there's anything he can do for them.
Faldo: Why can't these guys play at night?
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Douge2 Wins His 2nd NPP Tourney
Douge2 drives back from vacation, jumps into the NPP pit and comes out victorious! He beat of field of twenty-one others, which is a nice turnout for a warm summer night.
We also had a changing of the guard at the top of both leader boards. I am sure the newly vanquished and the rest of the challengers are not done yet!
Returning to the NPP felt was Rennzzo and Wingsfancurt, who both missed a few weeks.
On to the action:
8 min: NPP Finals Seat holder Theedouble*d (22nd) goes out to Douge2’s two pair.
19 min: Gotbug (21st) limps in, then calls Sjagot1990’s raise, along with Funtoon. The flop is [6c 7c 9c]. Bug bets, gets re-raised huge by Sjags and Funtoon gets out of the way. The Bug calls and is pot committed on the river. His pair of ten’s lose to Jag’s kings.
By the way, I coined a new phrase tonight. Flops like the one above - with three cards of the same suit – I call a fluch when you don’t have any of them in your hand. I had 50 fluches tonight!
31 min: Meatsword (20th) sees his (AJ) run into Akensi’s (KK).
35 min: Wingsfancurt (19th) goes out next, but I missed it, battling the fluch.
38 min: Last week’s winner Budda627 (18th) doesn’t believe and pushes his (KK) all the way into a flop of [7QQ], but Absea98 has (AQ).
39 min: K9isadog (17h) sees his (KT) hit the flop of [8K4], but ThePunk75 has (88).
42 min: ThePunk75 repeats this process on Rennzzo (16th) when Rennzzo’s pockets Ladies are violated by ThePunk’s cowboys, (AK) and a [K] on the flop.
47 min: Short-stacked (SS) LittleRedElf (15th) has to go with (A6) and runs into Tigercub8189’s (AK).
48 min: T3chlady’s (14th) (AJ) runs into Douge2’s (AA).
1st Break:
ThePunk75 4422
Douge2 4266
Akensi 3955
Absea98 3835
Funtoon 2450
Greggst49 2352
Sjagot1990 2045
Mikeniks-Faldo 2035
Derf-63 1975
Tomservo2 1780
Kaytdid 1605
Kensik 1310
Tigercub8189 970
69 min: Sjagot1990 (13th) gets all-in with ThePunk75 and Funtoon, and Funtoon’s (KK) holds up.
75 min: A SS Kaytdid (12th) has to try it with (K9) and runs into Mikeniks-Faldo’s (AK).
77 min: Tigercub8189 (11th) loses a coin flip (43% Tiger) pre-flop to Kensik. The only problem was, they were not all-in until a flop of [Ad Kd 8d] (fluch for Tiger – 60%). Kensik is pot committed with his (Qs Qd) and hits his flush on the river.
81 min: Absea98 (10th) bubbles on points, and I missed it. We all buckle down at the final table and play a half hour, and only lost two players!
95 min: Fourteen minutes later, Akensi (9th) has to go with (AQ) and is called by Derf-63 with (55).
110 min: Fifteen minutes later, Tomservo2 (8th) makes a move with (AK) but Greggst49 has (99).
114 min: Kensik’s (7th) straight draw misses to Funtoon’s pair.
118 min: A SS Mikeniks-Faldo (6th) has to call with (Ac 2c), but Derf-63 holds (A3). Break monster got me fluched down the toilet (very useful word I think I invented).
2nd Break:
Derf-63 10475
Funtoon 7388
Greggst49 6129
Douge2 5331
ThePunk75 3677
After winning Faldo’s chips, Derf-63 started getting Faldo cards and found himself the short-stack in eight minutes.
128 min: A SS Derf-63 (5th) has to try with (Td 4d) only to find Douge2 holding (AQ).
137 min: Funtoon (4th) is AIPF with (TT) only to see Greggst49 (KQ) hit his pair of Ladies on the turn.
139 min: Greggst49 (3rd) gets a little impatient holding (Js 7s), and finds a snap-call by ThePunk75 with (AA).
140 min: Heads up: ThePunk75 22000 - Douge2 11000
But ThePunk75 (2nd) must now have the Faldo chips because he loses three big hands in two minutes. Finally, he calls a raise pre-flop with (Kd 5d). The flop is [KQJ]. Dangerous flop, to be sure, for both players.
ThePunk bets it heavy and gets called. The turn is another dangerous card [9s]. ThePunk shoves with a top pair bluff hoping for a fold, but actually has the lead (80%). Douge2 calls what he must think is a bluff with a lesser pair – and catches the [J] on the river to win it!
Congratulations to Douge2 for his second NPP win, and taking over the point lead for the 3rd Quarter seat!
Congratulations to ThePunk75 also, who takes the lead in the Total Points race for a seat in the NPP finals!
1st – Douge2
2nd – ThePunk75
3rd – Greggst49
4th – Funtoon
5th – Derf-63
6th – Mikeniks-Faldo
7th – Kensik
8th – Tomservo2
9th – Akensi
Standings are on the right side of the blog.
We also had a changing of the guard at the top of both leader boards. I am sure the newly vanquished and the rest of the challengers are not done yet!
Returning to the NPP felt was Rennzzo and Wingsfancurt, who both missed a few weeks.
On to the action:
8 min: NPP Finals Seat holder Theedouble*d (22nd) goes out to Douge2’s two pair.
19 min: Gotbug (21st) limps in, then calls Sjagot1990’s raise, along with Funtoon. The flop is [6c 7c 9c]. Bug bets, gets re-raised huge by Sjags and Funtoon gets out of the way. The Bug calls and is pot committed on the river. His pair of ten’s lose to Jag’s kings.
By the way, I coined a new phrase tonight. Flops like the one above - with three cards of the same suit – I call a fluch when you don’t have any of them in your hand. I had 50 fluches tonight!
31 min: Meatsword (20th) sees his (AJ) run into Akensi’s (KK).
35 min: Wingsfancurt (19th) goes out next, but I missed it, battling the fluch.
38 min: Last week’s winner Budda627 (18th) doesn’t believe and pushes his (KK) all the way into a flop of [7QQ], but Absea98 has (AQ).
39 min: K9isadog (17h) sees his (KT) hit the flop of [8K4], but ThePunk75 has (88).
42 min: ThePunk75 repeats this process on Rennzzo (16th) when Rennzzo’s pockets Ladies are violated by ThePunk’s cowboys, (AK) and a [K] on the flop.
47 min: Short-stacked (SS) LittleRedElf (15th) has to go with (A6) and runs into Tigercub8189’s (AK).
48 min: T3chlady’s (14th) (AJ) runs into Douge2’s (AA).
1st Break:
ThePunk75 4422
Douge2 4266
Akensi 3955
Absea98 3835
Funtoon 2450
Greggst49 2352
Sjagot1990 2045
Mikeniks-Faldo 2035
Derf-63 1975
Tomservo2 1780
Kaytdid 1605
Kensik 1310
Tigercub8189 970
69 min: Sjagot1990 (13th) gets all-in with ThePunk75 and Funtoon, and Funtoon’s (KK) holds up.
75 min: A SS Kaytdid (12th) has to try it with (K9) and runs into Mikeniks-Faldo’s (AK).
77 min: Tigercub8189 (11th) loses a coin flip (43% Tiger) pre-flop to Kensik. The only problem was, they were not all-in until a flop of [Ad Kd 8d] (fluch for Tiger – 60%). Kensik is pot committed with his (Qs Qd) and hits his flush on the river.
81 min: Absea98 (10th) bubbles on points, and I missed it. We all buckle down at the final table and play a half hour, and only lost two players!
95 min: Fourteen minutes later, Akensi (9th) has to go with (AQ) and is called by Derf-63 with (55).
110 min: Fifteen minutes later, Tomservo2 (8th) makes a move with (AK) but Greggst49 has (99).
114 min: Kensik’s (7th) straight draw misses to Funtoon’s pair.
118 min: A SS Mikeniks-Faldo (6th) has to call with (Ac 2c), but Derf-63 holds (A3). Break monster got me fluched down the toilet (very useful word I think I invented).
2nd Break:
Derf-63 10475
Funtoon 7388
Greggst49 6129
Douge2 5331
ThePunk75 3677
After winning Faldo’s chips, Derf-63 started getting Faldo cards and found himself the short-stack in eight minutes.
128 min: A SS Derf-63 (5th) has to try with (Td 4d) only to find Douge2 holding (AQ).
137 min: Funtoon (4th) is AIPF with (TT) only to see Greggst49 (KQ) hit his pair of Ladies on the turn.
139 min: Greggst49 (3rd) gets a little impatient holding (Js 7s), and finds a snap-call by ThePunk75 with (AA).
140 min: Heads up: ThePunk75 22000 - Douge2 11000
But ThePunk75 (2nd) must now have the Faldo chips because he loses three big hands in two minutes. Finally, he calls a raise pre-flop with (Kd 5d). The flop is [KQJ]. Dangerous flop, to be sure, for both players.
ThePunk bets it heavy and gets called. The turn is another dangerous card [9s]. ThePunk shoves with a top pair bluff hoping for a fold, but actually has the lead (80%). Douge2 calls what he must think is a bluff with a lesser pair – and catches the [J] on the river to win it!
Congratulations to Douge2 for his second NPP win, and taking over the point lead for the 3rd Quarter seat!
Congratulations to ThePunk75 also, who takes the lead in the Total Points race for a seat in the NPP finals!
1st – Douge2
2nd – ThePunk75
3rd – Greggst49
4th – Funtoon
5th – Derf-63
6th – Mikeniks-Faldo
7th – Kensik
8th – Tomservo2
9th – Akensi
Standings are on the right side of the blog.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Faldo Says “Yay” or “Nay” to Common Dealer’s Choice Games – Part III
There are other poker games besides what is dealt in casinos and tournaments. The casino games are there because of their speed and simplicity in dealing. More hands equals more rake for the house.
But there are some fun, entertaining and exciting poker games you can deal in a home game, which make you have to think outside “the flop” sometimes.
The description of the following games in this series is Faldo’s opinion only. Others may like my take on a game and some will not. That’s fine. It’s all good. Here we go:
Bull
A seven-card stud game where players receive three cards down to start. Then the standard stud dealing and betting round. After all remaining players have their seven cards, one of the down cards is turned over and another round of betting starts. Then the next is turned over, for another betting round, for a total of seven rounds of betting.
Obviously, the fifth street turn over usually won’t help you define the exposer’s hand that well, but seeing what card they show will probably help you define other player’s cards. Deception and hurting other player’s hands (or not) you want out could come into play with what looks like a useless card flip.
Sixth street is a lot more important, and maybe you throw in a double bet option on this round. Like 1 until a pair shows, then 2 and then 3or 4 on the sixth street card bet round. Something like that.
Faldo has never dealt this but gives it a hesitant Yay. It is a little like Anaconda, which I like.
Cincinnati
This game is played like Omaha Hi-Lo, except the cards are turned over one at a time, instead of a first window of three. This game is also called Utah, Lamebrains and California.
Faldo says Nay. We already have Omaha Hi-Lo.
Cincinnati Liz
Dealt the same as Cincinnati, except the lowest card in the window is wild and all like it.
Faldo says Nay. I don’t mind wild cards but I do mind them in a window.
Chicago
Seven card stud, but the high spade in the hole gets half the pot.
Faldo says Yay, but I don’t deal it. People think it builds a pot, but I think it does just the opposite. How can you chase for half the pot when the lock guy keeps raising and someone with a pair or two pair is capping?
But a fun game none the less.
But there are some fun, entertaining and exciting poker games you can deal in a home game, which make you have to think outside “the flop” sometimes.
The description of the following games in this series is Faldo’s opinion only. Others may like my take on a game and some will not. That’s fine. It’s all good. Here we go:
Bull
A seven-card stud game where players receive three cards down to start. Then the standard stud dealing and betting round. After all remaining players have their seven cards, one of the down cards is turned over and another round of betting starts. Then the next is turned over, for another betting round, for a total of seven rounds of betting.
Obviously, the fifth street turn over usually won’t help you define the exposer’s hand that well, but seeing what card they show will probably help you define other player’s cards. Deception and hurting other player’s hands (or not) you want out could come into play with what looks like a useless card flip.
Sixth street is a lot more important, and maybe you throw in a double bet option on this round. Like 1 until a pair shows, then 2 and then 3or 4 on the sixth street card bet round. Something like that.
Faldo has never dealt this but gives it a hesitant Yay. It is a little like Anaconda, which I like.
Cincinnati
This game is played like Omaha Hi-Lo, except the cards are turned over one at a time, instead of a first window of three. This game is also called Utah, Lamebrains and California.
Faldo says Nay. We already have Omaha Hi-Lo.
Cincinnati Liz
Dealt the same as Cincinnati, except the lowest card in the window is wild and all like it.
Faldo says Nay. I don’t mind wild cards but I do mind them in a window.
Chicago
Seven card stud, but the high spade in the hole gets half the pot.
Faldo says Yay, but I don’t deal it. People think it builds a pot, but I think it does just the opposite. How can you chase for half the pot when the lock guy keeps raising and someone with a pair or two pair is capping?
But a fun game none the less.
Saturday, August 08, 2009
LittleRedElf and Bigbrimar Continue to Dominate the Felt
This is why you should join Niks Poker Palace. Sharpen your skills here!
Bigbrimar and LittleRedElf both make final tables!
Bigbrimar finishes 6th in a 360-player NL Holdem tourney, for a 17x return on entry.
Well done Bri.
Meanwhile, NPP’s best – LittleRedElf finished 2nd in a Limit Holdem Tourney with 662 players in it, that took a full seven hours to finish! But the 81x return on investment should help the sleep catch-up. This is the same exact tourney LRE won in July!
Outstanding LRE!
Bigbrimar and LittleRedElf both make final tables!
Bigbrimar finishes 6th in a 360-player NL Holdem tourney, for a 17x return on entry.
Well done Bri.
Meanwhile, NPP’s best – LittleRedElf finished 2nd in a Limit Holdem Tourney with 662 players in it, that took a full seven hours to finish! But the 81x return on investment should help the sleep catch-up. This is the same exact tourney LRE won in July!
Outstanding LRE!
Friday, August 07, 2009
Douge2's Humor Corner XV
He Shoots, He Score
Beerhog and Faldo were two of the bitterest rivals at the club. Neither man trusted the other's arithmetic.
One day they were playing a heated match and watching each other like hawks. After holing out on the fourth green and marking his six on the scorecard, Beerhog asked Faldo, "What'd you have?”
Faldo went through the motions of mentally counting up. "Six!" he said and then hastily corrected himself, " No, no....a five."
Calmly Beerhog marked the scorecard, saying out loud "Eight!"
"Eight?" Faldo screamed, "I couldn't have had eight."
Beerhog said, "Nope, you claimed six, then changed it to five, but actually you had seven."
Then why did you mark down eight?" asked Faldo.
Beerhog calmly told him, "One stroke penalty, for improving your lie."
The laws of golf
LAW 1: No matter how bad your last shot was, the worst is yet to come. This law does not expire on the 18th hole, since it has the supernatural tendency to extend over the course of a tournament, a summer and, eventually, a lifetime.
LAW 2: Your best round of golf will be followed almost immediately by your worst round ever. The probability of the latter increases with the number of people you tell about the former.
LAW 3: Brand new golf balls are water-magnetic. Though this cannot be proven in the lab, it is a known fact that the more expensive the golf ball, the greater its attraction to water.
LAW 4: Golf balls never bounce off of trees back into play. If one does, the tree is breaking a law of the universe and should be cut down.
LAW 5: No matter what causes a golfer to muff a shot, all his playing partners must solemnly chant "You looked up," or invoke the wrath of the universe.
LAW 6: The higher a golfer's handicap, the more qualified he deems himself as an instructor.
LAW 7: Every par-three hole in the world has a secret desire to humiliate golfers. The shorter the hole, the greater its desire.
LAW 8: Topping a 3-iron is the most painful torture known to man.
LAW 9: Palm trees eat golf balls.
LAW 10: Sand is alive. If it isn't, how do you explain the way it works against you?
LAW 11: Golf carts always run out of juice at the farthest point from the clubhouse.
LAW 12: A golfer hitting into your group will always be bigger than anyone in your group. Likewise, a group you accidentally hit into will consist of a football player, a professional wrestler, a convicted murderer and an IRS agent -- or some similar combination.
LAW 13: All 3-woods are demon-possessed.
LAW 14: Golf balls from the same "sleeve" tend to follow one another, particularly out of bounds or into the water (See Law three).
LAW 15: A severe slice is a thing of awesome power and beauty.
LAW 16: "Nice lag" can usually be translated to "lousy putt." Similarly, "tough break" can usually be translated "way to miss an easy one, sucker."
LAW 17: The person you would most hate to lose to will always be the one who beats you.
LAW 18: The last three holes of a round will automatically adjust your score to what it really should be.
LAW 19: Golf should be given up at least twice per month.
LAW 20: All vows taken on a golf course shall be valid only until the sunset.
Beerhog and Faldo were two of the bitterest rivals at the club. Neither man trusted the other's arithmetic.
One day they were playing a heated match and watching each other like hawks. After holing out on the fourth green and marking his six on the scorecard, Beerhog asked Faldo, "What'd you have?”
Faldo went through the motions of mentally counting up. "Six!" he said and then hastily corrected himself, " No, no....a five."
Calmly Beerhog marked the scorecard, saying out loud "Eight!"
"Eight?" Faldo screamed, "I couldn't have had eight."
Beerhog said, "Nope, you claimed six, then changed it to five, but actually you had seven."
Then why did you mark down eight?" asked Faldo.
Beerhog calmly told him, "One stroke penalty, for improving your lie."
The laws of golf
LAW 1: No matter how bad your last shot was, the worst is yet to come. This law does not expire on the 18th hole, since it has the supernatural tendency to extend over the course of a tournament, a summer and, eventually, a lifetime.
LAW 2: Your best round of golf will be followed almost immediately by your worst round ever. The probability of the latter increases with the number of people you tell about the former.
LAW 3: Brand new golf balls are water-magnetic. Though this cannot be proven in the lab, it is a known fact that the more expensive the golf ball, the greater its attraction to water.
LAW 4: Golf balls never bounce off of trees back into play. If one does, the tree is breaking a law of the universe and should be cut down.
LAW 5: No matter what causes a golfer to muff a shot, all his playing partners must solemnly chant "You looked up," or invoke the wrath of the universe.
LAW 6: The higher a golfer's handicap, the more qualified he deems himself as an instructor.
LAW 7: Every par-three hole in the world has a secret desire to humiliate golfers. The shorter the hole, the greater its desire.
LAW 8: Topping a 3-iron is the most painful torture known to man.
LAW 9: Palm trees eat golf balls.
LAW 10: Sand is alive. If it isn't, how do you explain the way it works against you?
LAW 11: Golf carts always run out of juice at the farthest point from the clubhouse.
LAW 12: A golfer hitting into your group will always be bigger than anyone in your group. Likewise, a group you accidentally hit into will consist of a football player, a professional wrestler, a convicted murderer and an IRS agent -- or some similar combination.
LAW 13: All 3-woods are demon-possessed.
LAW 14: Golf balls from the same "sleeve" tend to follow one another, particularly out of bounds or into the water (See Law three).
LAW 15: A severe slice is a thing of awesome power and beauty.
LAW 16: "Nice lag" can usually be translated to "lousy putt." Similarly, "tough break" can usually be translated "way to miss an easy one, sucker."
LAW 17: The person you would most hate to lose to will always be the one who beats you.
LAW 18: The last three holes of a round will automatically adjust your score to what it really should be.
LAW 19: Golf should be given up at least twice per month.
LAW 20: All vows taken on a golf course shall be valid only until the sunset.
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Budda627 Wins His 1st NPP Tourney!
Budda627, in only his 2nd NPP event, beat a field of fifteen to becomes the 43nd player to win an NPP tournament. He comes from last at the 1st break, in a remaining field of past winners, to win it too!
Also returning to the NPP felt tonight were Beerhog and Sjagot1990. Welcome back guys.
Sorry for the late tourney results as my work schedule was a killer at exactly the wrong time to get this posted sooner.
In addition, playing poker, keeping score, untangling Beerhog’s son’s fishing poles and attending to a bonfire – all at the same time – means you will miss the occasional hand or two of what you DO post.
On to the action:
2 min: Douche_Splat (15th) sees his pair of K’s run into Beerhog’s two pair.
10 min: Derf-63 (14th) is gone next and I missed it.
15 min: ThePunk75 (13th) is gone next, and I missed that too.
34 min: Sjagot1990 (12th) flops two pair (64%) and Mikeniks-Faldo has to call with (Ad 7d) with a flush draw and what I thought was an over-card (36%). I hit the flush to give Jags a sad welcome back.
37 min: Funtoon (11th) is gone next, and I missed it.
39 min: Meatsword (10th) bubbles on adding points as his flush is topped by Beerhog’s bigger flush! Ouch!
48 min: Akensi (9th) has to go with (AJ) and is called by Beerhog with (QQ).
57 min: Sirgash (8th) makes a move with (AK) but Beerhog has (KK) and a monster chip lead at the break.
1st Break:
Beerhog 9970
Gotbug 2905
Kensik 2480
Mikeniks-Faldo 2450
Tigercub8189 2030
LittleRedElf 1685
Budda627 980
80 min: Play goes on for a while before Gotbug (7th) sees his pair of K’s and backdoor straight draw (52%) get run down by Beerhog’s (47%) flush on the turn.
88 min: A short-stacked LittleRedElf (6th) has to go with (66) and a flop of [23Q], but Beerhog holds (23)! Ouch!
92 min: Tigercub8189 (5th) goes AIPF with (TT) only to find Kensik holding (JJ)! Tiger still manages to pad his 3rd Quarter lead this evening.
94 min: Mikeniks-Faldo is AIPF with (44) only to see Beerhog turn over (KK).
110 min: Budda627 and Kensik have whittled Beerhog’s massive chip lead down to where everyone is about even at this point. Game on!
115 min: Beerhog (3rd) gets a little impatient on a flop with a [7] in it holding (A7), and finds a snap-call by Budda627 with (AA).
119 min: Kensik (2nd) moves in with (57) (93%) and a flop of [57K]. Smelling a bluff or at least thinking he has an over card, Budda627 calls with only (A4) (7%). But runner-runner [4] [A] lands to give Budda the chip lead!
2nd Break:
Budda627 12955
Kensik 9545
122 min: Kensik regains the chip lead as his pair of Q’s out-kicks Budda’s pair of Q’s.
125 min: Kensik 15490 - Budda 7010
130 min: Wow, what a turn around in five minutes!: Budda 14000 - Kenisk 8500
131 min: Kensik flops a pair of Q’s again, but Budda rivers a pair of Aces to win it.
Cruel ending for Kensik. He fought off two hot players for as long as he could.
Congratulations to Budda627 on his first NPP win!
1st – Budda627
2nd – Kensik
3rd – Beerhog
4th – Mikeniks-Faldo
5th – Tigercub8189
6th – LittleRedElf
7th – Gotbug
8th – Sirgash
9th – Akensi
Standings are on the right side of the blog.
Also returning to the NPP felt tonight were Beerhog and Sjagot1990. Welcome back guys.
Sorry for the late tourney results as my work schedule was a killer at exactly the wrong time to get this posted sooner.
In addition, playing poker, keeping score, untangling Beerhog’s son’s fishing poles and attending to a bonfire – all at the same time – means you will miss the occasional hand or two of what you DO post.
On to the action:
2 min: Douche_Splat (15th) sees his pair of K’s run into Beerhog’s two pair.
10 min: Derf-63 (14th) is gone next and I missed it.
15 min: ThePunk75 (13th) is gone next, and I missed that too.
34 min: Sjagot1990 (12th) flops two pair (64%) and Mikeniks-Faldo has to call with (Ad 7d) with a flush draw and what I thought was an over-card (36%). I hit the flush to give Jags a sad welcome back.
37 min: Funtoon (11th) is gone next, and I missed it.
39 min: Meatsword (10th) bubbles on adding points as his flush is topped by Beerhog’s bigger flush! Ouch!
48 min: Akensi (9th) has to go with (AJ) and is called by Beerhog with (QQ).
57 min: Sirgash (8th) makes a move with (AK) but Beerhog has (KK) and a monster chip lead at the break.
1st Break:
Beerhog 9970
Gotbug 2905
Kensik 2480
Mikeniks-Faldo 2450
Tigercub8189 2030
LittleRedElf 1685
Budda627 980
80 min: Play goes on for a while before Gotbug (7th) sees his pair of K’s and backdoor straight draw (52%) get run down by Beerhog’s (47%) flush on the turn.
88 min: A short-stacked LittleRedElf (6th) has to go with (66) and a flop of [23Q], but Beerhog holds (23)! Ouch!
92 min: Tigercub8189 (5th) goes AIPF with (TT) only to find Kensik holding (JJ)! Tiger still manages to pad his 3rd Quarter lead this evening.
94 min: Mikeniks-Faldo is AIPF with (44) only to see Beerhog turn over (KK).
110 min: Budda627 and Kensik have whittled Beerhog’s massive chip lead down to where everyone is about even at this point. Game on!
115 min: Beerhog (3rd) gets a little impatient on a flop with a [7] in it holding (A7), and finds a snap-call by Budda627 with (AA).
119 min: Kensik (2nd) moves in with (57) (93%) and a flop of [57K]. Smelling a bluff or at least thinking he has an over card, Budda627 calls with only (A4) (7%). But runner-runner [4] [A] lands to give Budda the chip lead!
2nd Break:
Budda627 12955
Kensik 9545
122 min: Kensik regains the chip lead as his pair of Q’s out-kicks Budda’s pair of Q’s.
125 min: Kensik 15490 - Budda 7010
130 min: Wow, what a turn around in five minutes!: Budda 14000 - Kenisk 8500
131 min: Kensik flops a pair of Q’s again, but Budda rivers a pair of Aces to win it.
Cruel ending for Kensik. He fought off two hot players for as long as he could.
Congratulations to Budda627 on his first NPP win!
1st – Budda627
2nd – Kensik
3rd – Beerhog
4th – Mikeniks-Faldo
5th – Tigercub8189
6th – LittleRedElf
7th – Gotbug
8th – Sirgash
9th – Akensi
Standings are on the right side of the blog.
Sunday, August 02, 2009
Spotlight on T3chlady
Techlady, which is how you pronounce her PokerStars handle, is an aspiring poker superstar. As the picture with Greg Raymer from the 2008 WSOP Women’s Academy attests, she is willing to work to get there.
Joining NPP is yet another step on the road to poker stardom. “Jean” thinks NPP is a great place to play and learn, and has shown some interest in growing NPP (twss). Faldo needs all the help he can get, and is thankful for the assistance.
The “Tips from T3chlady” blog has been started and added to the NPP Michigan blogroll, so you can get to know Jean from her own words. Now the pressure is on Jean, to keep that blog current.
Hat tip to T3chlasdy for the pic and the blogsite. - Faldo
I would like to do this for all of our NPP players. I just need a picture and/or a short auto-bio. Send them in!
Saturday, August 01, 2009
Faldo Drops Some Names…and Some Cash
If you have read the ‘White Whale’ series on this blog, you would know Faldo really ‘learned’ poker from his ex-softball coach ‘Frank’.
Frank held a poker game at his house every Wednesday night. This game included future WSOP Main Event winner “Fat” Russ Hamilton. Yes, the guy of the now infamous internet poker betting scandal over at Absolute Poker.
The game also included some plumbing contractors, Detroit landlords, some Detroit TV/radio sportscasters, and a couple ex-Detroit Lion football players.
One of the more popular games dealt was Little Squeeze. It is 5-card stud Hi-Lo game, with an exchange a card option. Frank dealt it with 3 exchange options that you had to pay for and there was another betting round after each one. A re-shuffle of discards was allowed if the deck ran out.
By this time, I was no longer on Frank’s “shill” program, which is how I started in this game. I was on my own as I had learned enough and was winning enough to hold my own.
Usually the pots were massive, which is why these gamblers played this game. As a poor college student, I literally had the equivalent of two month’s pay in front of me as a buy in to this game. Gulp! The stakes were $5-$10, a fairly big game in the 1970’s that went to $10-$20 for the last round of the night. Cash played as chips were not used.
This hand was in the last round and the second to last hand of the night (around 6 am after starting at 7pm).
Russ was dealing with seven players in the hand. After the shuffle and MANDATORY cut, the deck was always placed flat on the table to prevent bottom dealing.
Frank was dealt a 5 with his down card, Don a J, me a Q to pair my Q down, Earl a 9, Tommy Watkins a 6, Dave a T, and Russ gave himself a 9.
Frank bet his low (now $20 with a pair showing), Don called. I raised with my hi card. Earl folded, Tommy calls, Russ calls as does Frank, and Don.
Frank hits a 2, Don a J, me a K, Tommy an 8, Dave a 5 and Russ a 3.
Frank bets, Don raises his pair of Jacks, I re-raise, Tommy calls, Dave folds, Russ-Frank-Don call.
Frank [X] 5, 2, 7
Don [X] J, J, 8
Faldo [Q] Q, K, K
Tommy [X] 6, 8, A
Russ [X] 9,3,T
Frank bets, Don reluctantly calls, I re-raise, Tommy calls, Fat Russ calls, Frank re-raises, Don calls, I cap it and everyone calls.
Frank [X] 5, 2, 7, A
Don [X] J, J, 8, 6
Faldo [Q] Q, K, K, Q
Tommy [X] 4, 8, A, J
Russ [X] 9,3,T, 3
Frank bets, Don – the meat in the cash sandwich – folds, I raise, Tommy – the cheese in the same sandwich calls, and fearless Fat Russ finally folds. Frank pops it and I cap and Tommy calls.
Frank [X] 5, 2, 7, A
Faldo [Q] Q, K, K, Q
Tommy [X] 4, 8, A, J
Exchange time. Frank with the best looking low passes an exchange, as do I with the lock high. Tommy has to chase Frank to win – knowing full well Frank is capable of bluffing in this spot with a high card or even a paired down card.
Tommy throws off his J and catches a 4, to pair his other 4. Betting is capped again and I am thrilled Tommy is donating.
Tommy thinks for a while then decides to chase me high! He throws off his 8 and buys another 4!
And you can now guess what happens next.
At least I saved the $80 on a possible last round of bets. The quad 4’s were looking at me.
Frank held a poker game at his house every Wednesday night. This game included future WSOP Main Event winner “Fat” Russ Hamilton. Yes, the guy of the now infamous internet poker betting scandal over at Absolute Poker.
The game also included some plumbing contractors, Detroit landlords, some Detroit TV/radio sportscasters, and a couple ex-Detroit Lion football players.
One of the more popular games dealt was Little Squeeze. It is 5-card stud Hi-Lo game, with an exchange a card option. Frank dealt it with 3 exchange options that you had to pay for and there was another betting round after each one. A re-shuffle of discards was allowed if the deck ran out.
By this time, I was no longer on Frank’s “shill” program, which is how I started in this game. I was on my own as I had learned enough and was winning enough to hold my own.
Usually the pots were massive, which is why these gamblers played this game. As a poor college student, I literally had the equivalent of two month’s pay in front of me as a buy in to this game. Gulp! The stakes were $5-$10, a fairly big game in the 1970’s that went to $10-$20 for the last round of the night. Cash played as chips were not used.
This hand was in the last round and the second to last hand of the night (around 6 am after starting at 7pm).
Russ was dealing with seven players in the hand. After the shuffle and MANDATORY cut, the deck was always placed flat on the table to prevent bottom dealing.
Frank was dealt a 5 with his down card, Don a J, me a Q to pair my Q down, Earl a 9, Tommy Watkins a 6, Dave a T, and Russ gave himself a 9.
Frank bet his low (now $20 with a pair showing), Don called. I raised with my hi card. Earl folded, Tommy calls, Russ calls as does Frank, and Don.
Frank hits a 2, Don a J, me a K, Tommy an 8, Dave a 5 and Russ a 3.
Frank bets, Don raises his pair of Jacks, I re-raise, Tommy calls, Dave folds, Russ-Frank-Don call.
Frank [X] 5, 2, 7
Don [X] J, J, 8
Faldo [Q] Q, K, K
Tommy [X] 6, 8, A
Russ [X] 9,3,T
Frank bets, Don reluctantly calls, I re-raise, Tommy calls, Fat Russ calls, Frank re-raises, Don calls, I cap it and everyone calls.
Frank [X] 5, 2, 7, A
Don [X] J, J, 8, 6
Faldo [Q] Q, K, K, Q
Tommy [X] 4, 8, A, J
Russ [X] 9,3,T, 3
Frank bets, Don – the meat in the cash sandwich – folds, I raise, Tommy – the cheese in the same sandwich calls, and fearless Fat Russ finally folds. Frank pops it and I cap and Tommy calls.
Frank [X] 5, 2, 7, A
Faldo [Q] Q, K, K, Q
Tommy [X] 4, 8, A, J
Exchange time. Frank with the best looking low passes an exchange, as do I with the lock high. Tommy has to chase Frank to win – knowing full well Frank is capable of bluffing in this spot with a high card or even a paired down card.
Tommy throws off his J and catches a 4, to pair his other 4. Betting is capped again and I am thrilled Tommy is donating.
Tommy thinks for a while then decides to chase me high! He throws off his 8 and buys another 4!
And you can now guess what happens next.
At least I saved the $80 on a possible last round of bets. The quad 4’s were looking at me.
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