Cash Game Meltdowns

I've been putting off a new entry for a few days since I've been taking a horrendous (and mostly self inflicted) beating at the cash tables. Last week at Nautica I dropped $500 in two sessions. I went last Tuesday and only had time to play until 7PM. I got there at 5:10 and didn't get seated until 5:50 at the $5/10. I piddled away $50 until a $1/2 seat opened and I jumped in. My table played pretty solid for about an hour, I was about even when the tournament was beginning and most of my table was leaving to play in it. Last hand before they broke, I get 8-3 off in the BB. UTG makes it $10 and everyone calls back to me. "Fuck it, last hand!" I think and toss in two reds. Flop 8-5-8. I check, UTG fires $25, one call in the middle. I call. Turn 2. I check, UTG fires another $25, mid raises all-in for $100 more. I snap call and UTG folds, he shows 9-8 and I leave with a small handful of reds, completely disgusted at my own stupidity. I deserved to lose that.

I decided to go back Thursday night and make another go at it. I bought in for $200 and blinded down for a while. It sucks when you're not getting hands, because you're hamstrung. There's NO bluffing these retards. For example: On a board of 4-4-7-7 two spades UTG leads out for $10 after limping and checking around the flop and turn. I raise to $40 with AJ figuring (correctly) that UTG has nothing. I am surprised to see old man behind me tank for a minute and then call. I figure him for a 4 and kiss my $40 goodbye. UTG folds. River Q. I check, old man rolls over Q5 of spades, he hit his Q on the river chasing a flush on a double paired board. Gotta love it. I am down to about $110 when I get K10h on the button. Mid position raises it to $7, whole table calls. Flop A-K-9 two hearts. I open-shove for $100, get snap called by a guy with A-5 (no heart). I flush on river and double back to even. I then shank a girl for her $100 buyin when I turn Aces up on her. Feeling good, half hour till I gotta leave. Internet douchebag at the table is racking up his $1k and decides "one more hand". He's UTG and limps, I limp with A-10. Flop A-7-8. He leads for $10, I raise to $40. He snap calls and says "I think you're on a draw". Turn is a 6, he leads for $100. I shove and he snap calls, shows the dead nuts (10-9). I hit insult Ace on river. It was a horrible play on my part, I was so sure Douchebag was trying to push me around. I never stopped to consider why he would do that on his last hand instead of just folding and leaving. Another loss I had coming to me, I guess.

So, smarting from that I decide to play Dave's Saturday night. Rolling along pretty good when I get Timmy at my table. He's playing a bit aggressive, and at the $300/600 level he starts making steal raises. He makes it $2100 to go with A-9 off and I look down at 66. I shove, and he tanks for a minute and then calls me. Board runs K-5-7-K-7 and I lose on kicker. Disgusted, I sit down at the cash game for $150. I start out flopping huge draws, straights and flush draws. I brick out time and time again on them. The one time I turn my inside straight I have to lay it down to a huge raise by Eddie J. He just looked like he smashed the board, and I had the lower straight so I opted to fold it. He told someone else he had two pair, oh well I guess. I get down to $70ish when I make it $6 to go from cutoff + 1 with 9-7s. Eddie calls, Ken makes it $10 more. I call, Eddie folds (great). Flop J-9-7. Bingo! Ken open-shoves, I snap call and roll over my two pair. He turns up KK and I know I'm fucked. Yep, K on the turn and drawing dead. I reload and get into a stupid hand with Pyxis. She'd been raising a lot more than I remembered, and she was betting flops and pushing. She made it $10 preflop and I called with 88. Flop K-9-7 two clubs. She bets $15 and it smells like a c-bet to me. Chan even says "C'mon, you can't hit every flop". I call and the turn is the Ac. Three clubs on board and she fires out $25 without missing a beat. I think about it and decide she has to be on either AK or AQ, and I don't think she has a club. I call and the river is an 8 giving me a set. She puts out $40 and I shove. She thinks about it for a while and calls, I say "set" and she rolls over 9-9 for a higher set. I decide that's enough shitty play for me, I need to go.

My bankroll has taken a monster hit over the past few weeks, which I attribute mostly to me playing fast and loose. I'm not sure how I let it get that out of control, but it's clear I need to lay off the gas. I'm going into bankroll rebuild mode, going to concentrate on limit games and smaller tournaments until I can get my game back under control.

Also, as has been noted elsewhere one of the local cash games was robbed last night. I don't normally play this game, it's a very loose/open $1/2 that plays like a $5/10 by the end of the night. The incident reminds me of why so many hosts like to say "No New Players" and why no matter who you're playing with you should always keep one eye on your chips and one on the door. I expect a show of force at Dave's this weekend, plenty of people with CCW's will be there and will be ready if trouble decides to show up.