How I've improved my play...

...it's been about 8 months since I have been in North Carolina and reading this blog makes me think back to the nights at PKR and a few of the other games in the area. It's amazing I had any money left after the way I played some of those nights, but I consider them cheap lessons compared to the way I am playing these days.

When I first started playing it was more of a way to spend some time and I really enjoy the banter and camaraderie of sitting around the table with people and getting to know them and talk about various topics. Being fairly new to NC, it was a great way for me to meet people.

I won some, lost some, then sometimes lost some more. So when I got back to Iowa and was going to have more free time to play I decided to try to spend some time after every session analyzing my play and making notes to read before I sat down at the tables next.

The first thing I realized was that I played WAY to many hands out of sheer boredom. Instead of mucking cards I knew were going to be way behind, I'd play them just to make sure I still had a pulse. Now I make sure I always have a seat where I can immerse myself into what is on TV and every 2 hours I take a 15 minute break to walk around the casino.

Showing my cards too often was also a major weakness. I used to do it as a show of friendliness if the person who folded wanted to see them. Now I try to pick my spots and only show strong hands on nights I've bluffed a few times, or show weak hands on nights the cards are running strong.

But the biggest problem for me had been the cost of the hand. Many times there are waits for seats at the table, so I'd find myself playing blackjack downstairs while I wait for my seat. Well, it's tough to worry about calling $10-20 when I've been playing $100-200 hands of blackjack just moments before. So now the rule is I only play blackjack on my way OUT of the casino.

I'm still not the player I want to be (who is?) but I've made some changes and realizations which have greatly improved my play and allowed me to be more competitive on a regular basis.

And reading this blog has helped, too. It's always nice to see how others think about certain hands and different ways people would play them.

Hope all is well in NC, and I'll be down this fall so will try and meet up with a few of you to donkey off some money like old times. :)

Chad