Beginners Luck

OK, news flash, there is no such thing as luck. If you apply logic to the theory of luck, good and bad luck will always balance out over time. So, luck is a non player in poker over the long term.

In my first attempts at playing poker with a few hundred dollar bank roll, and playing 3-6 limit. I "quadrupled up" in my first few months playing once a week at a local card room.

Yes, I did have a simple style of play. I played the top 10 starting hands, and folded if the flop revealed anything higher than what i had in my hand. It was very conservative (1st gear), but effective as the new guy at the tables.

After reading two different books on poker, I decided to become a millionaire over night through 3-6 limit and open my game. Well all I did was open my wallet (and bank account) to the table. After loosing my built up bank roll and going on a week long run on Tilt. I am now rebuilding my game.

The first thing I learned was that I ruined my table image as a conservative player, and became an overly loose and ignorant player. Before, players folded to me and I played a lot of heads up, won lots of small and medium pots, and lost next to nothing. After tilt, I found players "calling me to the river" and catching the one in 3 cards they need to beat me. I also noticed that some player were "teaming up" on me. It may have not been purposeful, but at the showdown I noticed that I was never heads up, and the two others I was playing, one had the flush draw, one had the straight draw to my top ten hand (or worse).

After 5 months, I had my first winning session ($25 profit). I had taken a brief vacation from playing "live" poker, and played on line free rolls and practiced disciplined poker and reading the community cards for what people are playing. Building trust in my "reading of others" skills.

I plan on playing another session before leaving California, not to erase any loss, but to have a winning, confidence building session.

I will probably not play 3-6 limit, either no-limit or spread limit. I find I am more successful in these ventures.