Fear and Loathing at the Micros

As my battle at with 2NL continues, I find myself watching more videos on DC, writing a blog update nearly every day and a new refreshed zest to watch poker on TV, mainly going through the past series of High Stakes Poker. 

Knowing that season 7 is coming up fast on the horizon I felt that watching season 6 would be a good way to get me ready for season 7. It makes you realize how good some players actually are and in season 6, it would seem that Durrrr, Ivey and Eli Elezra all played really well. I think that perhaps Dennis Phillips trying to out play Durrrr wasn't the best plan for his 1st appearance on HSP, Mike Matusow played about 2 hands in total - and thought that was "How we play poker boys". And then there is Negreanu, who got in good and got it in bad, but didn't run well on HSP for another season.

So what has this got to do with grinding 2NL? Well only what you watch on HSP is almost the diametric opposite of the poker you need to play at 2NL to win! Opening from the CO with 86os is not going to be a profitable play at 2NL in the long term and unless it is Ivey or Durrrr doing it, I can not really remember it being a profitable play for anyone else on HSP.

We all dream of running that massive 3 barrel bluff - that gets our opponent to lay down TPTK - but that is never gonna happen at 2NL. Cos no one folds, that is why your red line on HEM is always gonna be negative at 2NL. I guess we want to play poker, the poker we study and discuss in forum etc but the reality of 2NL is that it is a form of poker - but not perhaps poker we watch on HSP or on a DC video. This used to upset me - I would get tilted and frustrated at never being able to make a good bluff or semi bluff at 2NL and that I would always be telling myself "he cannot have it? Surely" I called. And sure as hell he did! No one really bluffs at 2NL in big spots.

So as my battle at 2NL continues I have realized now that beating 2NL is actually a brilliant learning experience about poker, a striped down brutal beating on everything "your thought" you knew and re-formatted exercise on what you should know! I would go as far as to say the battle is becoming somewhat enjoyable.

So I look forward to HSP season 7 and when I watch Durrrr 3 bet with 89s IP, it will be produce a wry smile, as that is how he beats his game, but I have to beat my game a lot differently. But there is nothing wrong with that. I know that now at least.