Good Ol' PokerStars

I was home alone dogsitting tonight,
a perfect time to log some online
poker hours, earn some frequent
player points, and maybe even make
a few bucks to take with me to Vegas.

Decided to play some NL cash on
PokerStars, something I haven't done
in quite a while. I mostly play my cash
games on Full Tilt. About all I've used
my Stars account for lately is to play the
Elite Poker Tour (http://www.elitepoker.ca/)
events on Friday nights and the odd
big Sunday tournament.

I figure I should be able to handle 4 tables.
I didn't want to take on more than that
right away since I find the P-Stars graphics
a little harder on my eyes than Full Tilt.
I get on the waiting list for 6-7 tables.

First table pops up and I get it tiled
just the way I like it.

Second hand, I get dealt KK in the
cutoff. Couple of limpers so I
make it 6 big blinds. Small blind
raises me by about the pot.
All others fold. I pop it enough
that he has to fold or get it all in.
He shoves and turns over TT.
I'm 80% to win, he's a 4:1 dog.
Turn is a T. He wins. I go broke.

I start cursing. " F*ckin' PokerStars ".

A few years ago when I was trying to
grind out a bankroll at the $0.05/0.10
and $0.10/0.25 tables, I went through
several rough stretches of bad beats
where I just got pounded. Suckout after
suckout. Nut flushes were no guarantee.
Full houses were no guarantee. Sets were
continually drawn out on the river.
It got to the point where I referred to
any suckout (even in live games) as
"getting Poker Starred".

I guess this beat tonight caught me
off guard since I went broke in only
the second hand.

I told P-Stars in a very harsh voice
(they can hear me yelling through
my moniter, you know) ...
"F*ck you ! I'm not reloading.
I'm going to sit out and take up a space.
You're not going to earn any rake until
you kick me off after a couple orbits."

This threat did not go unnoticed by the
software at P-Stars. My seats at the
other 3 tables got incredibly hot.
Within about 10 minutes I not only
had my money back, but had a profit
going on all 3 tables (about 40%).

I wish I had figured out this secret to
getting lucky on P-Stars a few years ago.

Great Dane Television

Gus Hansen is starting his own
online TV channel on February 21st.

www.GusHansenTV.com.

What kinds of things will we get to
watch ? We'll likely see some of the
high-stakes action Gus plays in at FTP.
Other than that, the only thing scheduled
for gus tv so far is a boxing match featuring
Gus against Theo Jorgensen which is taking
place during the EPT Copenhagen events.

Gus and Theo have a prop bet

on who will win, $35,000 vs $25,000.

Current Odds:
Theo Jorgensen is -285 fave
Gus Hansen is +200 dog.
Gus Hansen wins by knockout: +2600
Theo Jorgensen wins by knockout: +850
Match ends in draw + 1400

PAD Nerd-O-Rama

Is it just me, or is this possibly the

most boring week of PAD ever ?

Oli Nejad summed it up pretty well.
" 6 geniuses + 1 math problem = 4 aspirin"

I've always wanted to over hear geniuses

disgussing geometric proofs and proofs

by induction. .... Not !

The "Brilliant Minds" have so much potential.
Unfortunately for the audience, these guys
show that being extremely math smart
doesn't often combine with being a

conversational, social animal.

This could easily be called:
"Revenge of the Nerds Week".

The only semi-entertaining guy with

some personality is David Sklansky,

and he was knocked out first.

Hostess Leanne Tweedan has some how

gotten the idea that these "math pros"

are doing sophisticated algebra and

calculus equations in their heads while
the rest of the world is asking the

magic 8-ball whether to call or fold.

Sklansky even explained to her that

everyone can figure out pot odds and

the percentage of times your hand

will hold up. That's not what makes

these "math" guys special.

Its GAME THEORY !

Atleast I have something to look

forward to. Next week (Feb 16) it's the

"Nets" versus "Vets" cash game with

Taylor Caby, Cole South, Gabe Kaplan,

Dave Benefield, Doyle and Eli Elezra

Heads-Up Practice

... and a chance to enter a big
televised tournament.

Both FullTilt and PokerStars have
freeroll satellites for the National
Heads-Up Championship in Vegas.

Its a great chance to practice your
heads-up skills. Its something almost
everyone needs to polish up on.

I've finished somewhere between
3rd and 10th countless times,
but cant seem to crack the
final four (out of 256).

I'll keep trying.