Kill Phil SNGs

I played 3 SNG tournaments on Royal Vegas last night using the Kill Phil rookie strategy. I wasn't able to make the money in any of them, but I did like playing that way. It really took a lot of the pressure of making the wrong decision off me and put it on my opponents. I think this strategy would be very useful for someone who has never played a SNG before to help them get an understanding of how the tournaments work.

In the first tournament I did not see a flop, except when I was in the BB, for the first three levels. Then with just 5 other players left I pushed my small stack in with QJs and was called by A7o. The board did not improve either of our hands and my opponent won with ace high.

In the second tournament I played the same way. Early in the tournament I was dealt aces and pushed my 970 chips in and picked up only the blinds. It would have been nice if someone had called and my aces held up. After the blinds came around a few hands later I was back down to 970 chips. I continued folding hands until I was forced all in from the SB with K2o. The BB had 74o and caught a seven and a four on the flop and I was out in 5th place.

I did a little better in the last tournament and made it all the way to fourth before busting out. With the blinds at 40/80, and 8 players left, I was dealt KK and pushed after a couple of early position limpers. No one was brave enough to see the flop with me and I picked up a little more than the blinds. A little later on I pushed with KJs and was called by a player with QTo. I caught a king on the flop and busted out. I pushed with two hands when we got down to 4-6 players left. The first one was 86s that did not get called. The last time I pushed with 77 and was called by a player with QQ. The flop was QJJ.

One of the things I learned from this experience is what kind of hands I can play when the table gets short handed. I think I might try a combination of the strategy from Winnning Low Limit Hold'em and Kill Phil the next tournament I play. If I can build a good sized stack during the early stages of the tournament and then switch to the more aggressive Kill Phil strategy later, I should have a better shot at finishing in the money. I am going to continue on with the Kill Phil system and learn the more advanced strategies and try to apply them to future SNGs.

Current Bankroll: $319.55
Free Money

Limit Sessions

I played a couple of limit hold'em sessions this weekend and I did pretty well. On Saturday I played a session on Party Poker and on Sunday I played a session on Royal Vegas.

I played almost 200 hands of $.50/1.00 on Saturday morning. I was dealt some very good cards won several big pots early. After about 70 hands I was up almost $30.00. Then I lost about $20.00 of that over the course of about 35 hands, some to bad decisions and some when my opponents out drew me on the turn or river. I lost $4.50 with pocket kings on a board of Js 3d 6s Qd 5s to an opponent holding QJc. And I also had a set of fours crushed on the river when another opponent made a jack high flush on the river holding AJo.

Then things turned around and I won some more big pots and had worked my way back up to about $25.00 up and then I again ran it to some trouble and lost about $15.00 of it. I think I started making some bad decisions and started calling down with some marginal hands.

I finally left the session up $10.38. For the most part I think I made several good decisions, but it was the bad decisions I made that kept me from walking away with more.

On Sunday I decided to play some $.05/.10 limit hold'em on Royal Vegas to see if I could build up a little bankroll for playing some more SNGs. Again I was dealt some very good cards and managed to win almost $4.00.

The biggest pot I won was $1.78 when I called from middle position with a pair of fives. The player UTG pre-flop raised and it was folded to me. I thought about folding my hand then decided to call the raise as did four other players after me. I was hoping to see another 5 on the flop and if I didn't I would fold right there. The flop came down 655. UTG bet after the SB and BB checked and I called the bet. Then one of the players behind me raised and I reraised when it came back around to me. I bet on both the turn and the river and two player called each time.

I won a couple of more pots and had almost doubled my buy-in and then I didn't get much of anything for several rounds. Then near the end of the session I was dealt KQ and hit a flop of KQx and then a Q fell on the turn. For most of the session the table stayed full with several players coming and going. Then suddenly several people dropped out and we were down to 6-handed and I was still getting pretty good cards and won several more pots when we were shorthanded.

Current Bankroll: $322.55

Friday Night SNG Results

I missed the money in two more SNGs on Friday night. It's time to do more studying and see if I can learn how to make the money in these things again. I busted out in fourth in the first tournament with a pair of fives against KQo, the flop came down 3QQ. Just one queen would have been enough, I'm sure they threw the second queen in there just to make a statement. In the second tournament I pushed with KQo and was happy when I saw my opponent called with K6s. The flop was TT6 and I was out in sixth.

On Saturday I bought a copy of Kill Phil at Barnes & Noble. I am reading through that now. I think it will make a big difference and help me to make the money more often. I am going to try the rookie strategy in the next SNG and see how I do.

Current Bankroll: $308.30

1 Out of 3 Ain't Bad, Right?

I only managed to make the money in one of the three SNG tournaments I entered last night. I finished 4th, 3rd & 7th consecutively. In the first tournament I pushed with ATo and found myself up against 76. The flop came down T98, turn was a jack and it was on to the next tournament.

In the second tournament, I took the chip lead pretty early and used my chip advantage a couple of time to put pressure on some smaller stacks. When we got down to three handed, we were all about evenly matched, but I had a slight advantage. I tried to steal some blinds on the button, but was called and did not have a chance to recover.

I didn't play well at all in the last event and ended up pushing all-in with AJo and lost to a pair.

I plan to play a couple of hours on $.5/1.00 limit on Saturday morning. I hope my lousy SNG luck doesn't follow me there.

Current Bankroll: $310.30

$2.00 Gone

I played in two more $.75+.25 SNG tournaments last night and failed to make the money in either of them. I finished 5th and 7th. Both times I busted out I was ahead when I pushed, but my opponents got the cards they needed to beat me. The first time I pushed all-in pre-flop with a pair of nines and my opponent had AT and rivered a ten to win. In the second tournament I was dealt AK and raised pre-flop and had one caller. The flop was 662 and I pushed all-in and my opponent called with Ax and got the duece he needed on the turn to eliminate me. I really need to start making the money in more of these things or I wont be playing anymore SNG on Royal Vegas. I have $6.26 of the $10.00 they started me out with in June.

Current Bankroll: $311.80

Back In The SNG Saddle

I've played in eight more SNG tournies since my last several attempts on Saturday. I played three Monday night and five last night. I had some success, but not much. I only made money in three of the last eight (two thirds and a first). In four of my last eight attempts I busted out in fourth. I just have not been playing the same way when I first started playing SNG last week.

In one of the tournaments that I finished fourth in, I managed to double up and grab the chip lead on the second hand, when I decided to see the flop from late position with 65s. The flop came 98x and I made a raise. I made a straight on the turn with a 7 and pushed all-in and one person called. But I did not play well the remainder of the tournament and failed to use my chip stack to bully smaller stacks.

Current Bankroll: $313.80

Limited Success

I played a couple of hours of $0.50/$1.00 limit on Party Poker on Sunday. I don't think I played all that well, but I still managed to come out over $9.00 ahead. The table I selected was pretty tight. I won several small pots without a showdown, but then I would find myself down a few dollars a few hands later.

Near the end of the session I finally won two huge pots and finished up $9.63 for the day. The first huge pot was $11.75 with a pair of king vs. a pair of jacks. Then a few hands later I got lucky with JT of spades and won a $15 pot when I flopped two pair versus a preflop raiser with a pair of kings.

I have also added $50 that I received for Christmas to my bankroll.

Current Bankroll: $315.05

Ouch!

I played nine SNG tourneys today on Royal Vegas and didn't have a whole lot of luck. I only finished in the money in three of them. Things started off nicely when I finished three of the first five in the money (one first and two thirds), but I have not managed to do better than 6th in the last four. I think some of it had to do with playing against better players. I think I will take a couple of days off and give it a try again Monday evening. Missing the money in those last four has really gotten in my head.

Current Bankroll: $255.42

I Might Be a SNG Junkie

I played four $0.75/$0.25 SNG tourneys last night on Royal Vegas and finished in the money in all but the first one. I don't know why I didn't start playing in these sooner.

In the first tournament I made a huge mistake with K8o in the BB. We were down to 4 players and I was the short stack with 1980 chips left. I checked pre-flop after two players called and the SB folded. I bet 320 on the flop after two jacks and a duece was dealt, hoping that they both would fold. Only one of them folded and the other one called. The turn was the four of spades and I bet 900 again hoping my opponent would fold, but again he called. Now I suspect he might have a jack in his hand. The queen of diamonds came on the river and I checked, intended to call if he bet. He bet 160 and I accidently hit the raise button and raised to 320. He called immediately and turn over JTs. After losing that hand I still had 360 chips left. A few hands later I pushed in my remaining chips from the BB with K3o and got help from a king on the river to beat a pair of jacks. I was dealt AKo on the next hand and pushed all-in again and found myself up against KK. I did not get the ace I needed and went out in fourth place.

In the other three tournaments, I finished 2nd, 3rd & 1st. In the last tournament of the evening, I was the short stack with 830 chips and 3 other players left. But I managed to steal a few pots by taking advantage of my tight table image and hang on until I made it into the money. I won several large pots when we were three handed and finally managed to gain the lead and eventually the win.

After it was all over, I ended up $3.50 for the evening. I am looking forward to playing several more of these this weekend.

Current Bankroll: $257.67

Trapped!

I played in two more SNG Tuesday night. I think I am really becoming to prefer this format over the limit ring games I have played in the past. I will have to play some more of these on Royal Vegas to see if I can make it profitable.

I was doing pretty well in the first tournament. I had the chip lead with four other players left and then I made a huge mistake and tried to set a trap with trip fours. I was so focused on my hand and trying to set a trap for my opponent that I didn't even see the straight possibility on the board.

Ferocious Waters [Hold 'em] (160.00320.00 No Limit - STT) Real Money
- MrBigStuff25 sitting in seat 1 with $3800.00
- Anikin07 sitting in seat 3 with $2240.00 [Dealer]
- brenno11 sitting in seat 4 with $1340.00
- Jenifer33 sitting in seat 6 with $1520.00
- surfer79 sitting in seat 9 with $860.00
brenno11 posted the small blind - $80.00
Jenifer33 posted the big blind - $160.00

** Dealing card to MrBigStuff25: Queen of Diamonds, 4 of Diamonds
surfer79
called - $160.00
MrBigStuff25 called - $160.00
Anikin07 folded
brenno11 folded
Jenifer33 checked

** Dealing the flop: King of Diamonds, 4 of Spades, 6 of Hearts
Jenifer33 checked
surfer79 checked
MrBigStuff25 bet - $320.00
Jenifer33 called - $320.00
surfer79 folded

** Dealing the turn: 4 of Hearts
Jenifer33 checked
MrBigStuff25 checked

** Dealing the river: 2 of Spades
Jenifer33 bet - $640.00
MrBigStuff25 raised - $1280.00
Jenifer33 went all-in - $560.00

Jenifer33 shows: 5 of Diamonds, 3 of Hearts
Jenifer33 wins $3600.00 from the main pot

I pretty much handed her the tournament right there as she went on to win. I will have to be more observant next time and make sure I don't trap myself. If I had raised on the turn, she probably would have folded her hand and I might have won the tournament. I never got a chance to recover and went out in fourth place.

I did better in the second tournament and ended up finishing in 2nd place and received $2.25 for my effort. I knocked out the first three players on two separate hands. The first one with AKo and the next two with KQs.

** Spotted Rock [Hold 'em] (20.0040.00 No Limit - STT) Real Money
- Toldea sitting in seat 1 with $970.00 [Dealer]
- cheech1 sitting in seat 2 with $970.00 [Sitting out]
- CONAN80 sitting in seat 3 with $250.00
- Gepy_m sitting in seat 4 with $1230.00
- MrBigStuff25 sitting in seat 5 with $1000.00
- juanch24 sitting in seat 6 with $1180.00
- RandJan sitting in seat 7 with $1530.00
- coffeepot12 sitting in seat 8 with $900.00 [Sitting out]
- NoPutt sitting in seat 9 with $970.00
- mjeffst sitting in seat 10 with $970.00

cheech1 posted the small blind - $10.00
CONAN80 posted the big blind - $20.00

** Dealing card to MrBigStuff25: Ace of Clubs, King of Diamonds
Gepy_m folded
MrBigStuff25 raised - $80.00
juanch24 folded
RandJan folded
coffeepot12 folded
NoPutt folded
mjeffst folded
Toldea folded
cheech1 folded
CONAN80 raised - $140.00
MrBigStuff25 raised - $210.00
CONAN80 went all-in - $130.00
MrBigStuff25 called - $270.00

CONAN80 shows: 7 of Clubs, Jack of Clubs

** Dealing the flop: 9 of Diamonds, 8 of Hearts, Ace of Spades

** Dealing the turn: Queen of Diamonds

** Dealing the river: 5 of Diamonds
MrBigStuff25 wins $550.00 from the main pot

** Spotted Rock [Hold 'em] (80.00160.00 No Limit - STT) Real Money
- Toldea sitting in seat 1 with $520.00
- cheech1 sitting in seat 2 with $910.00
- Gepy_m sitting in seat 4 with $1450.00
- MrBigStuff25 sitting in seat 5 with $1220.00
- juanch24 sitting in seat 6 with $1580.00
- RandJan sitting in seat 7 with $1320.00
- coffeepot12 sitting in seat 8 with $1310.00 [Sitting out]
- NoPutt sitting in seat 9 with $780.00 [Dealer]
- mjeffst sitting in seat 10 with $790.00

mjeffst posted the small blind - $40.00
Toldea posted the big blind - $80.00

** Dealing card to MrBigStuff25: Queen of Diamonds, King of Diamonds
cheech1 called - $80.00
Gepy_m folded
MrBigStuff25 raised - $320.00
juanch24 folded
RandJan folded
coffeepot12 folded
NoPutt folded
mjeffst folded
Toldea called - $320.00
cheech1 called - $320.00

** Dealing the flop: King of Clubs, 7 of Diamonds, 10 of Spades
Toldea checked
cheech1 checked
MrBigStuff25 went all-in - $900.00
Toldea went all-in - $280.00
cheech1 went all-in - $590.00

Toldea shows: Jack of Hearts, Jack of Clubs
cheech1 shows: Jack of Diamonds, 9 of Diamonds

** Dealing the turn: King of Spades

** Dealing the river: 4 of Diamonds

MrBigStuff25 wins $1840.00 from the main pot
MrBigStuff25 wins $2460.00 from side pot 1

Then late in the tournament another two players were eliminated when I was dealt KJo in the BB and caught a jack on the flop. I really didn't have anything to do with winning this hand except posting the BB which was more than either of the players had left. I just happened to get lucky, when I was dealt my hand.

** Spotted Rock [Hold 'em] (640.001280.00 No Limit - STT) Real Money

- MrBigStuff25 sitting in seat 5 with $2970.00
- juanch24 sitting in seat 6 with $580.00
- RandJan sitting in seat 7 with $1720.00
- coffeepot12 sitting in seat 8 with $3790.00 [Dealer] [Sitting out]
- NoPutt sitting in seat 9 with $0.00

NoPutt went all-in - $300.00
MrBigStuff25 posted the big blind - $640.00

** Dealing card to MrBigStuff25: Jack of Hearts, King of Spades
juanch24 went all-in - $580.00
RandJan folded
coffeepot12 folded
juanch24 shows: 4 of Diamonds, King of Diamonds
NoPutt shows: Queen of Hearts, 7 of Spades

** Dealing the flop: 8 of Diamonds, Jack of Clubs, 4 of Clubs

** Dealing the turn: 6 of Spades

** Dealing the river: 2 of Clubs

MrBigStuff25 wins $900.00 from the main pot
MrBigStuff25 wins $1460.00 from side pot 1

I had the chip lead by about 600 chips, when we got down to heads up, but I was not able to hold on to it and ended up pushing my remaining chips in after being dealt K5o in the BB and was called by KTo.

Current Bankroll: $254.17

More SNG Adventures

I played two more $0.75/$0.25 SNG tournaments Monday night. I should say I entered the first one, because I didn't get much of a chance to play in that one. I busted out on the second hand of the tournament after being dealt a pair of queens in middle position. The first three early position players called and then MP1 raised to 120, MP2 called and I raised to 220. The rest of the table folded except for the chip leader who called my re-raise in early position. MP1 then pushed all-in and I called. I didn't really want to push all of my chips in that early, but I figured my queens were good. Then the chip leader called and all of our cards were turned over. The chip leader had T8o and MP2 had AKo. The final board was 294A9 and I was out in tenth place.

I only saw the flop with two hands during the first level of the second tournament and by then three players had busted out. The first one was in the BB with K2o. I raised on the flop after pairing both of my hole cards and won 120 chips. On the next hand I was dealt 88 in the SB and raised to 40 after UTG+1 and the button called. The BB, UTG+1, and the button called my raise after 669 with two spades came on the flop. I bet 80 and only the button called. I bet 160 on the turn after the ace of hearts fell and was again called by the button. The river was the king of diamonds and I we both checked. The button was holding K2 of spades. At least I still had 760 chips left.

During the second level, with the blinds at 20/40, I won 240 chips without seeing a flop after raising with AQs. On the next hand with 840 chips left I was dealt AK of diamonds on the button. I raised to 160 after two players called, then they both called my raise. The both checked to me on the flop of 962 and I bet 300. Only one player called. The turn was a seven, he checked and I pushed my remain 380 chips in, hoping he would fold right there. The other player called and showed KQo. I caught an ace on the river, won the 1900 chip pot and moved into third.

A few hands later I lost a significant amount of chips when I called an all-in raise pre-flop with KQ vs AQ and fell to sixth place. I ended up busting out in fourth place after pushing in the rest of my chips with AQo against AK and KQ. At least fourth was an improvement over tenth.

I made some bad decisions during that second tournament that kept me from making the money. I think I loosened up too early. I will have to learn to be more patient.

Current Bankroll: $253.92

My First SNG Win

A few days ago I decided to use the $7.00 I have left in my account at Royal Vegas Poker to learn how to play SNG tournaments. I had tried playing a couple of SNG on Royal Vegas a few months ago, but finished 6th and 7th and I hadn't done much playing on Royal Vegas since. Last week I started reading through the SNG strategy section from Winning Low Limit Hold'em. Sunday I entered a $0.75+0.25 tournament and won. I was really surprised to win the whole thing. Going in I would have been happy just to make into the money since that would have been a huge improvement over my last attempts.

I didn't play a single hand during the whole first level. I just sat and waited for some premium cards to be dealt to me and watched as a couple of players were eliminated. At the beginning of the second level, with the blinds at 20/40, I was dealt AKs on the button. I had 960 chips left and I raised 3x the big blind. The SB, with 1560 chips, raised 200 and I called. The flop came down KK3 and the SB bet 760 forcing me to push the rest of my chips in. I immediatley called and the SB flipped over TT. After winning that hand I was now in 2nd and the SB was the short stack.

I continued to fold my hands through the 2nd level until I was dealt AJs and raised 4x the big blind and won the blinds. I folded most of my hands through the third level and held steady in 2nd place.

Then with 1920 chips, 6 other players left and the blinds at 80/160 I was dealt a pair of tens in the CO position. Three players folded in front me and I raised to 640. The button pushed in his remaining 1660 chips and the BB pushed in his remaining 440 chips. I called the 1660 and all the cards were flipped over. The button was holding eights and the BB had kings. The rest of the cards were dealt and I won 2160 from the side pot and the BB won 1820 from the main pot. The player on the button was eliminated and I had taken the chip lead with 2420 chips.

A few hands later I eliminated the second place player after checking with 34s. With the blinds at 160/320 and 4 other players left, I had 3020 chips in the BB and the SB had 2250. The table folded around to the SB and he called. The flop came 3J2, he bet 640 and I called. The turn was another 3 and I checked behind him. The river was a 4, the SB checked and I pushed in my remaining 2320 chips. The SB pushed in his remaining 1450 chips and flipped over KJ suited. I know I took a big risk calling on the flop with my bottom pair, but if anything except a 3 or 4 came on the turn and he bet, I would have been able to fold and still have a pretty healthy stack. I was extremely lucky to catch that 3 on the river.

I then won the next three pots without ever seeing a flop. I stole the blinds twice, once after raising with ATo and then again after raising with K9o. I won the SB on the third pot after the other 3 players folded around to me with Q2o.

Then I called from the SB with AKo and the BB checked. I won the hand after betting 640 on the flop when another K came.

A few hands later the shortstack was eliminated after being forced all-in by the blinds with 32s vs. my KK and I was in the money for the first time in a SNG. Then a few hands later the another player was eliminated after being forced in by the blinds with KJo vs. my A8o in the BB. I caught two eights on the flop and an ace on the turn and was guaranteed at least 2nd place.

We only played two hands heads up, I lost the first one when my opponent pushed with a pair of threes vs. my A4o. I caught an ace on the flop, but he caught a 3 on the turn. The last hand he pushed with K2o vs. my KTo and I caught two tens on the flop and I won first place netting $2.75.

I received some very good cards during that SNG and was lucky to catch a few cards. For the most part I think I was ahead each time I saw a flop. If it hadn't been for an amazing run of cards I don't think I could have won this tournament.

Current Bankroll: $255.92

Flopping a Monster

I played a session of $0.50/$1.00 limit on Party Poker Sunday morning and was able to win $16.00. I was dealt some very good cards and hit several flops. I think I made good decisions and folded the hands that I felt were behind.

I was dealt AK four times out of about 100 hands and hit either an ace or a king on all four of the flops and won the hands. The fourth time I was dealt AK, the flop came down AAK for the monster full house. I called a bet from a player in front of me on the flop and then raised after he bet again on the turn. I probably could have squeezed a few more bets out of my opponents by waiting until the river to raise, but I was impatient. I will have to remember to be patient and wait for the river the next time I flop a monster like that.

I think the biggest mistake I made of the session was the very first hand I played. I had watched several hands at another table and noticed a player from that table was also sitting at the table I had selected. I knew that I would have to be careful against that player if I got involved in a hand with him. When I posted my first BB I was dealt A9o and checked after 4 others had called and the SB completed. The flop was 849, I bet and was raised by the multi-tabler(MT). I checked and called on the turn when a 6 came and then bet and called on the river after another 8 was dealt. The MT was holding a pair of fours. I should have just check and called the river, but I thought I might have him beat. I will have to be more cautious the next time I come across someone who is multi-tabling.

I also want to thank some of my readers for using my referrall code when you signed up for the Instant Bankroll promotion. Please post some comments and let me know how you are doing with your free money.

Current BR: $253.17

Bullets

I played another session of $0.50/$1.00 on Party Poker on Monday night. You just never know what will happen from one session to the next. I reviewed the hand histories from my last two sessions and determined I was not going to make those mistakes again. But I didn't really get the chance to make those mistakes again. I was dealt some very good cards and was able to win some good sized pots. I was dealt pocket aces and ace king 3 times.

The key to this game is patience. Just sit and wait for good cards to come your way. While you're waiting pay attention to the cards your opponents are playing, so you have an idea of what kind of player they are. I usually just make a note about what hands they are raising or calling with pre-flop.

I ended the session up $43.88. I am happy with the way I played this session. I think I made some good decisions and folded the hands that didn't have a chance.

Current Bankroll: $237.05

A Weekend of Bad Decisions

I played two sessions of $0.50/$1.00 limit over the weekend on Party Poker. I did not play very well in either of them. I made too many mistakes and ended up losing over $25.00.

The Friday night session started off looking pretty good, but quickly went down hill. If I had not been dealt aces on one of my last few hands, the session would have been much worse. I really made some foolish calls and bet throughout the entire session. I need back to making good desicions on a consistent basis.

The Saturday afternoon session was cut short due to internet connection issues. But the connection issues were not to blame for my losses unfortunately. I played less than 50 hands and lost over $12.00.

I will have to make sure I am in the right frame of mind the next time I play. Making good decisions are critical.

Current Bankroll: $193.17

Very Little Progress

I played three sessions over the holidays. The first session I ended up $14.25, the second one I was down $14.75 and the last one I ended up $1.50.

I started reading Small Stakes Hold'em over the holidays and am just now getting into the post-flop section. The whole counting partial outs has me confused, but I will stick with it and try hard to become a winning limit player. I have thought about buying some kind of tracking software, but when I have used the demos, I felt it made it more difficult to concentrate on the game, because there was so much new information to digest. By the end of this year my goal is to become a consistent winning player and have a bankroll of $3000.

Current Bankroll: $218.53