Mixed Game

Thanks, everyone, for the 4/8 HE feedback. The more I replay this hand, the more I hate the way I played it, and the way I have been playing the 4/8 on the weekends, in general.

I will have to revisit post-flop play more carefully in the future. It is a big leak of mine and since I'm starting to play HE again, I need to plug it immediately. 

Sunday night was kind of my live play breaking point. Oddly enough, it was due to playing a mixed game we started up at Riverside. One would think that I would be in my element. Making money and having a great time. And I was. But it takes much more concentration and energy to play mixed games than just coasting along playing donkey hold'em.

At about 9pm, three young guys walked into the RS. One of them was Bryan. He was visiting his father for the weekend in Laughlin, just planning on making the move to Vegas and going pro there (having been a pro for a while already in different venues). He was of the "I'm young and great" boasting type crowd, but pleasant about it, and definitely willing to listen and learn. He is friends with Boyd, which may account for some of that attitude ;)

He had two friends with him, a couple of "prodigies" which he would like to teach. I felt one had some potential, the other didn't. He said the other had more raw talent than the one I felt had a chance, but I didn't see it, although they had been drinking so much that their eyelids were floating and he might have just been one of those guys who loses all judgment after drinking. He was so weak at HE that I couldn't even believe that he was the same guy that Bryan thought had a huge chance.

Anyway, I made some overtures about turning it into a mixed game. Although the whole table was going for it, the dealers mumbled and grumbled and even Bryan said it probably wouldn't work. So I dropped it. Later, however, the guy I thought had a chance, Danny, brought it back up, and pushed for it. Another reason I knew I liked the guy ;)

We played dealer's choice for the next six hours or so. We had no trouble whatsoever keeping the game together and filled, although no one thought it would be possible. Sandra first told us we couldn't choose any Stud games (straight high or variants) or any Draw games at all. Later she conceded that nothing in the RS rules would prevent us from playing Stud games (I can't believe this was ever verboten to begin with), so we added Razz, Stud and Stud 8 to the mix.

I had a little bit of trouble with memory and concentration, but most of it was probably due to being out of practice and/or having been playing since 5pm. I simply played tight.

Over the course of the night, I got back most of my HE losses (yeah, another losing session for me, ugh), but I never got back to even. I did, however, have tons of fun. I also reached my breaking point, leaving at 4:30 absolutely exhausted and done with poker for at least a day.

Nice change of pace, though, and I hope Bryan makes it, and that he can find some good Stud games in Vegas (his favorite game is Stud, like me).

Felicia :)