Oh, the humanity ...
It's been months since I've played at Ultimate Bet. I think I quit playing there after getting trounced for a couple weeks straight and deciding that I just couldn't beat the games there. Now that I've gone back, I've noticed that the stupidity at the microlimits is astounding.
To refresh, I just blew my entire poker bankroll during a week of bad choices and bad beats. I stumbled back into UB the other night during a quest to see if I'd left any money at any of my old accounts and found $1.79 there. That night, I quickly ventured into the pot limit Omaha 8/b penny games to either make a little or lose it all, not really caring which, only to end up $2.25.
Okay, I tell myself, that was probably a fluke. I mean, it's not that often that I've been able to double up when I sit down at a game, although I generally tend to leave with more than I came in with (last week's results notwithstanding). Playing at higher limits, it usually takes a week or more for me to double up. And given the variance of a penny game, particularly a high-low split penny game, I was certain that my doubling was mostly a factor of luck, rather than skill.
So last night, I take my hard-earned $4.04 back to the penny O8 games. This time, there is only one table with any openings, and it's almost full, so I don't have the luxury of trying to find a good table. Right after I sat down, I knew I was in for it. There was not one, but two, maniacs at the table, combined with half a dozen calling stations. The maniacs had a strict policy of making pot-sized raises EACH AND EVERY FRIGGING TIME it was up to them to act. They never thought, they never folded, they never called, checked or raised anything except the pot. And since you could only bring a maximum of $2 to the table, they were for all intents and purposes putting everybody at the table all-in preflop every hand. It was working for one of them, since he was over $6 when I sat down.
To do anything at this table would be difficult. I knew that any hand I played would pretty much be a decision to go all in, and since I really am not that familiar Omaha, I wasn't exactly sure what hands were worth going all in with. Finally, I was dealt a double-suited 4578. I liked the straight and flush possibilities, so I called and, sure enough, I ended up all-in preflop. Strangely enough, I won the main pot and maybe several side pots with both the high and low, and I suddenly found myself with over $6. Meanwhile, the big stack maniac pulled in a side pot for about a dollar and still ended up down $2 on that hand, but proceeded to congratulate himself in the chat box for making such a brilliant play and pulling in another pot. Yes, he was that stupid.
To make a long story short, once I had built up that cushion, I was more comfortable gambling at some other pots, and I ended up leaving the table with something north of $11 and a total bankroll over $13. This truly is hilarious, but I'm going to keep tackling the penny games to see if I can build up enough to start taking on the nickel or quarter games again. Who knows, maybe it is possible to turn my $1.79 into something a little more substantial. Probably not, but this is turning out to be a fun little experiment.
One thing is for sure, though. The penny games do offer a good prospect to make big profits (relatively speaking, of course). Maybe if I can get over $20, I'll start playing multiple penny tables and see if I can win enough to take the family to McDonald's.
To refresh, I just blew my entire poker bankroll during a week of bad choices and bad beats. I stumbled back into UB the other night during a quest to see if I'd left any money at any of my old accounts and found $1.79 there. That night, I quickly ventured into the pot limit Omaha 8/b penny games to either make a little or lose it all, not really caring which, only to end up $2.25.
Okay, I tell myself, that was probably a fluke. I mean, it's not that often that I've been able to double up when I sit down at a game, although I generally tend to leave with more than I came in with (last week's results notwithstanding). Playing at higher limits, it usually takes a week or more for me to double up. And given the variance of a penny game, particularly a high-low split penny game, I was certain that my doubling was mostly a factor of luck, rather than skill.
So last night, I take my hard-earned $4.04 back to the penny O8 games. This time, there is only one table with any openings, and it's almost full, so I don't have the luxury of trying to find a good table. Right after I sat down, I knew I was in for it. There was not one, but two, maniacs at the table, combined with half a dozen calling stations. The maniacs had a strict policy of making pot-sized raises EACH AND EVERY FRIGGING TIME it was up to them to act. They never thought, they never folded, they never called, checked or raised anything except the pot. And since you could only bring a maximum of $2 to the table, they were for all intents and purposes putting everybody at the table all-in preflop every hand. It was working for one of them, since he was over $6 when I sat down.
To do anything at this table would be difficult. I knew that any hand I played would pretty much be a decision to go all in, and since I really am not that familiar Omaha, I wasn't exactly sure what hands were worth going all in with. Finally, I was dealt a double-suited 4578. I liked the straight and flush possibilities, so I called and, sure enough, I ended up all-in preflop. Strangely enough, I won the main pot and maybe several side pots with both the high and low, and I suddenly found myself with over $6. Meanwhile, the big stack maniac pulled in a side pot for about a dollar and still ended up down $2 on that hand, but proceeded to congratulate himself in the chat box for making such a brilliant play and pulling in another pot. Yes, he was that stupid.
To make a long story short, once I had built up that cushion, I was more comfortable gambling at some other pots, and I ended up leaving the table with something north of $11 and a total bankroll over $13. This truly is hilarious, but I'm going to keep tackling the penny games to see if I can build up enough to start taking on the nickel or quarter games again. Who knows, maybe it is possible to turn my $1.79 into something a little more substantial. Probably not, but this is turning out to be a fun little experiment.
One thing is for sure, though. The penny games do offer a good prospect to make big profits (relatively speaking, of course). Maybe if I can get over $20, I'll start playing multiple penny tables and see if I can win enough to take the family to McDonald's.
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