Being the suckout king

22. December 2006 | Category: 50outs

Poker is a skill game. Ya Ya. Sure. It is. Is it? I know all much a lot something a little almost nothing about the game but I am still in doubt.

I mean generally speaking it might really be a luck game but with an edge to the serious lucky player. Somewhere I read an interesting question: if roulette would pay 1:38 instead ofg 1:35 (european wheel) would it be a skill game (except the skill to acutally go there)? My opinion: no. I would still be a luck game but with +EV. Maybe the same applies to poker? I mean everybody knows if you play with equally skilled players there is no edge, it will all even out.

But I am not in the mood for a generall reflection about the inner strcuture of card games. I am more bothered happy about the specific events this game has in store for us. Over the course of the last 6 weeks I played a lot of poker – both live and online. Every day, many hours. Limit Holdem online, 30/60 and 50/100 and no limit/pot limit holdem live. The major conclusion I can make here is that my session, day, week and even month results are mostly affected by luck. I am a little bothered by this quite honestly although -since luckbox gave me 1% of his ‘karma’ for free as a birthday present last week- I am more on the reveiving end lately.

It got so far that I make my decisions now sometimes like “What would Hassan do here?” instead of calculating outs, odds, implied odds. Hassan is one the most feared players in our live games as he is fearless (“re-raise pot” – blind!), very aggressive and – blessed. He has no clue about the game, at least not like everybody learning the game today. He never calculates any outs or pot odds. You’ll never hear anything about “this pot gives me 3:1 and I have 36,7% chance of hitting” from him, still he is a winner in the game. Big time. Long time. So, to get back to the point, nowadays I do make some decisions “hassan style” – and get there. Unbelievable. Is it like this those players feel all the time? Unbeatable, unstoppable, blessed, strong and lucky. It definitly feels good. Everybody looking at you with this “you lucky douchebag, I’ll get ya” smile but they still lay it down to a big reraise on the turn. Impressive. So, I’ll take this little conversation in a 50/100 6max game as a compliment now:

Dealer: Villain has a pair of Aces
Dealer: Hero showed [4d 4s] and won ($1122) with three of a kind, Fours
Villain: hey hero
Villain: do u know who i am?
Hero: hell philmuth?
Villain: no im the master of the art of limit holdem
Hero: so two suckout masters finally meet?
Villain: no im the master of limit holdem
Hero: yeah, like everybody here
Villain: no u dont understand
Villain: im the one and only
Dealer: Hero showed [Ac Kc] and won ($922) with a pair of Aces
Villain: im the holdum god
Hero: ahhh ur the ONE?
Hero: i feel very honored, thank you for allowing me to play the very same table
Villain: your very welcome
Dealer: Hero showed [Jh Kh] and won ($1048) with two pair, Kings and Fives
Villain: ur the suckout king
Dealer: Hero showed [Td Th] and won ($1098) with three of a kind, Tens
Hero: your higness, how well thou played that
Dealer: Hero showed [Jc 9c] and won ($1122) with a flush, King high
Villain: yikes
Hero: sorry master
Villain: had st8
Dealer: Villain has a pair of Kings (was A-K on a K-4-7-Q-6 board)
Dealer: Hero has two pair, Kings and Queens
Dealer: Hero wins pot ($947) with two pair, Kings and Queens
Villain: yikes again
Hero: tststs
Villain: another suckout
Hero: I told ya
Villain: see
Villain: i got the skill
Villain: u got the suckout
Dealer: Hero has a straight, Ten to Ace
Villain: suckout>skill
Dealer: Hero wins pot ($622) with a straight, Ten to Ace
Hero: obv

Of course, killing A-A with 8-5 offsuit in no limit game rules also – it now not longer bothers me that I was the one pushing all-in on a 8 high flop. Poor villain said quitly on the innocent looking 5 on the turn ‘I think I am still ahead’ – me: ‘I really don’t think so’, lol. Also nice was rivering a 7 holding 98s on a JJT board – where the same opponent had Q9 and was putting me all-in with a HUGE raise on the flop which I called after thinking “What would Hassan do here?” – Answer: call and hit. It shows that I am a beginner because Hassan would have called in a split second while I needed about 10 secs. Like always – there is much room for improvement!