Mixed Game Heads-up Challenge, 1-Love

Thursday night was the first match Skipper and I played. I got first pick, and decided on PL Omaha high, blinds at 25/50 to start, 5K in chips for each of us. We started at 8pm, giving us an hour and a half before the cashgame regulars arrived.

It was over in 30 minutes. Skipper picked a bad time to make a move on me. I had raised preflop with the button, holding Ks-Js-Jh-8c. Skipper checkraised me on a Jc-5h-3h flop, but then he folded when I pushed. He admitted to having a flush draw and a pair. That left him with 2K to my 8K. He never recovered. $10 to me.

The next game will be 2-7 single draw, NL. Thanks to Super/System 2, I have a vague idea (and playchip experience!) at 2-7 triple draw. I've never played single draw. And Skipper has admitted that he's lost at this game, heads-up, only twice in his life.

I guess my gameplan for this one will be to use position. Raise with the button. Bluff with the button. I don't want to be insanely aggressive... just two notches more aggressive than he is. I'm a big 'dog on paper, but if I can beat him here, it should crush his spirits. And you can't put a price on that.

~~

The cashgame that followed was fun, thanks in part to the 30 of Coors Lite Albert brought. We had 14 players, so I didn't get to play with a few of the new folks, like Lance and his girlfriend Mimi, who I might have affronted. She was looking a little timid walking in, and I asked if she was here to watch or play.

Lance and Mimi turned their $20 into $56, so apparently Mimi really was there to play. Skipper had a nice night, doubling up his $20. I led the charge, turning my $10 into $63. There's no particular hand that I thought I played exceptionally well, or a brilliant trap I sprang. Pot odds and decent plays, I guess.

I went into the night with the idea that I would be bluffed out of pots less often. On the very first hand, I was the 4th player to call a small raise, hit middle pair with an OESD, and stuck around to win the hand against the preflop raiser's unimproved AQ-offsuit. PFR was betting into me, but the bets were small and felt a little weak. 87-sooted takes it down!

I also picked up a few pots with timely bluffs of my own. I missed an OESD, but picked up the pot with a river bet, then showed my 7-high. The folks at my game tend to pay attention when I bet/raise, so I feel the need to show them a bluff every so often to keep them guessing.

The deck really didn't hit me upside the head, but I made plenty out of the mediocre cards I was dealt. The plays I made worked more often than not. It was one of those nights where I went on a mini-run early, cooled my heels patiently, then went on another little run at the end. I looked down at my chips and thought "How'd I get all these?"

Good times. Now, how about a money finish in my Sunday tourney? I haven't had one of those in the last 5 tourneys. I sat briefly with GCox at a UB ring game last night. He had a premonition I'd do well tonight. Sweeeet. I hope he's as good at fortune-telling as he is at $5 SnG's.

$10 in, $20 out for the MGHUC.
$10 in, $63 out for the cashgame.