Fish's eye view of a suckout

The weekend began so so for me.

I managed to win a few heads up matches (but not against the Poison) and a few small sit and goes to basically tread water in monetary terms, but the frustration level built as I kept going deep in tourneys and getting knocked out on the bubble in various painful ways--I re-raised all in big with blinds large with JJ called by AJ ace flops to go out in a 3 table, I lasted through 1000 players and 4 and half hours in a Stars deepstack reraising 22 with AK for more than half his chips, he calls and slick no good and I bubble, I raise preflop with KK in cutoff smooth called by button and flop is jack high on Full Tilt doublestack after 2 hours, all chips in and kings no good as he has JJ.

So I decided to go back to playing some cash games, 100 NL on tilt to be exact (great site, click the banner on right please).

Started early in the evening with a few full ring tables, used a little table selection to keep one table after trying 3, got up half a buy-in, took a couple of beats, logged a small win and went to watch Anchorman with Mrs. Soxlover (Go fuck yourself, San Diego). Wasn't really planning to play anymore, but at 10:45, sat down on the computer so see what was going on with Fluxer, who was in the middle of a roller coaster weekend. Lo and behold he had another big stack at the six max, though the truth came out that it was the result of multiple buy-ins so he was slightly down at that table.

But what made it really interesting was that BadBlood was sitting immediately to his right. I dove into the chat box and soon determined that neither knew the other was a blogger. I wonder what Blood thought of Flux, since they only thing they in common on the poker tables as I can see is aggression. Whereas Blood is I think the classic TAG (=tight aggressive Dad) and not someone I'd generally recommend trifling with (except when you do, read on below), Flux is the of the FPAG variety (=freaking psycho aggressive), raising with a third of his hands and relying on instinctive post-flop play.

When Flux is on, he's terrifying and gets paid off big. When the cards go wrong, well, bad things happen--I'll let Flux tell his own story.

Anyhow, here's how a fish, Fishiswa to be exact, thinks when he sucks out on a player:

Six players on the table, hero-fish has recently sat down and has 95 or so on button, TAG small blind with 200 or so, PSAG big blind with 300, angry rock with 200 and 2 tight-weaks with small stacks filling up the rest of the table.

Cutoff limps, hero-fish looks down and sees T7 spades. First fishy thought: SOOTED!!!

Hero fish raises pot to 4.50. I got the button!.

Small blind BadBlood makes it 9.00 go. N

Non-fishy thought: ruh roh, Mr. Blood has a hand.--he reraised way out of position.

Fishy afterthought: hmmm, maybe I can get paid off!

Folds around to me. Call.

Flop is 4 5 6, two diamonds, one spade. BadBlood bets out pot.

First non-fishy thought: OK, he really has an overpair, I'm behind.

But I got an open ended straight draw.

And I GOT A BACKDOOR FRUSH DRAW.

I got outs!

Maybe he's got JJ and I can make him lay it down thinking I hit a set or have QQ.

I got fold equity!

Hero fish makes it 65 to go.

How you like that you speed metal freak!

BadBlood raises all in.

Oops.

I guess he likes it.

Well, it's only 21 to call, I know I'm behind, but I'm pot committed.

I can feel it coming.

(Actually, this part is not true, I did not feel it coming.)

Turn is a 3 of spades.

He's drawing dead.

Well, Mr. Blood, as you well know, you played your aces correctly and the fish got lucky.

Thank heavens.

Epilogue: things worked out for Blood in the end as he got aces again the next orbit, played them right again and Flux failed to crack him.