Squeezed in a weekend of play.

Profit: $29

It's the half-term so I'm spending all week at home working on uni assignments. I put this weekend aside for poker though.

I played mostly on 888 because I suddenly realised that I was close to betting the amount I needed to unlock my bonus. It was 20 times my initial $50 deposit. I was up to $900 worth of bets on Friday so I did the rest this weekend. It'll probably turn out through some rule that the bonus is worthless and I can't do jack with it, but at least I won't have to play on 888 again if I choose not to.

888 has been good to me over the weekend. I've been flopping sets and turning my draws which has been nice. I've bet them correctly too as I've been paid off with most of them. I've had to earn my hands though. I've had very little in the way of the premium starting hands. I can't remember earning big with any of them and in the last session both my AA and QQ got cracked. Luckily they were in pot limit rooms so I didn't go broke with them (but at the same time I couldn't bet weak drawing hands out of the pot).

As well as (mostly) good cards I've been playing well too. I've been playing quite passively and tight on purpose to let people hand themselves and it's been working. Similarly I've been getting away from hands as well. I can't remember one instance where I paid someone off with top pair-good kicker. I did have one hairy moment with an AK. I fired four shells with it. I had a read on my opponent as the type of guy who would call with A-Rag. An ace flopped and I kept betting and he kept calling. Lord knows what I would have done if he'd raised on the river when I bet $8. Luckily he just called and the pot went to me so I guess he had a weak ace (a Queen came on the turn). I also folded a set on the river. I'd bet both the flop and turn for about $3 in total. The river produced a third card for a flush and the villain bet $5 straight. I was desperate to call but experience told me to fold and for the first time I managed to do so. Later it turned out he was a maniac so I might have had him beat, but I do think it was the right fold.

I've been reading players better too these past couple of days and don't seem to be putting my foot in trouble as much. Maybe it's the cards doing the talking at the moment, I'm not sure. Looking back at the Tourney Tracker comments I've made since the start of this month reveals a trend: "No mistakes", "Don't pay anyone off", "AAs got cracked", "My jacks were sucked out". I'm either playing safe, solid poker or my big hands are getting outdrawn. If I can keep up with this for the next month or so then I'll know I'm improving my game whether or not I improve my bankroll.