Unlike Hulk and MH6-2, I don’t have a long history of poker instruction outside of the Lunch Money Game.  I grew up pretty sheltered in Suburban Philadelphia, but I clearly remember making reads and bullying my friends, parents, and brother playing parlor games, including Risk, Monopoly, and Connect 4.  To this day, my brother won’t play me in any game because he is convinced that I cheat.  Up until 2003, I played craps at casinos at a mostly break even rate.  Nothing too crazy or even special.

Like many others, I really started developing an interest in the game in 2002, when Chris Moneymaker’s WSOP win was televised on ESPN.  My housemates at the time started playing all the time.  I kind of followed along, but I didn’t really play much outside of a $5 tournament, where I was lost.  My first real live game experience came  at Resorts Atlantic City, where I couldn’t find a $10 craps game.  I bought in for $100 at the 1-2 table.  My very first hand, I flopped a set of 2′s, promptly bet out of turn, had some guy shove in with 2 pair (with another guy calling).  My set held up for a $300 win, and the feeling of dragging that pot was immediately addicting.  The very next hand, I raised to $15 with AA, had someone shove for $200 over the top, and I folded because I was a complete and total idiot.  While I know I will always be the only person in history to fold AA preflop, I did finish up $600 that night.  Thinking that I was invincible, I started playing at the Lunch Money Game, where I was the sucker at the table for 3-6 months, but I always had mentors at the game to discuss strategy, tactics, and to review my play.  I also had some real breakthroughs in reading the Harrington on Hold ‘Em series and Brunson’s Super/System, which greatly aided my development.  These books, plus any of David Skalansky’s books are must-reads for any player.

I truly love poker, and I very much appreciate the life lessons.  I can say that the guys from the Lunch Money Game are friends for life, and they have taught me a great deal about myself through our battles on the felt.  My table nicknames at the game are “Sloppy Floppy” (because I originally didn’t know how to shuffle) and the “Unabrower” (because I tried to play wearing a hood like Phil Laak, and I looked like a doofus).  I have gone through a slow evolution from neophyte to TAG to solid and tricky, and I am really trying to open up my game and change gears more in 2009.  I play microstakes online cash, and I have a well above average win rate playing $5 and $10 SNG’s on Full Tilt and Cake poker.  I’m trying to build a $50 bankroll into a legitimate stack.  I believe my greatest strength at the poker table is my ability to establish an image, then make profitable plays contrary to that image.  I also have a strong recall memory and betting pattern recognition skills.  Using these tools, I am able to outplay amateurs and run with the big dogs when I play my best.  I am capable of changing gears from hand to hand and can make a big move on any street with any hand.  It is a struggle to overcome my natural nit tendencies, but the results of increasing aggressive play (such as 3-betting) are too difficult to ignore.

My blog will focus mainly on situational plays, including hand reading based on betting patterns and table image (honed from live and online play), developing and playing off table image, and the grind to move from a microstakes online gamer in the mid and high level ranges.  Since I am an overanalzer and a master of “hindsight is 20/20″ poker, there will be a strong hand history component to my writing.