Online Poker Challenge Update #1: Tripled Up

Here's where I sit with the online poker challenge (I really need a catchy name):

• I deposited $20 on July 23, 2005. Yes, I know this is before I started blogging about it, but I just got the blog idea the other day.
• As of the evening of 1-August-2005 I am at $70.90.

I inadvertently reset the lifetime stats counter, but here are my hold'em stats:

• Hands Played: 684
• Playing Time: 25hrs 24m
• Total won: $14.45 (I'll explain later)
• $/hour: $0.57 (a Republican living wage!)
• Pre-flop fold %: 54% (way too loose, I'll explain as well)

OK, so first, I know this looks like I play all day, every day- I do not. But I often have PR running in the background when I am doing email, market research, surfing porn, etc. at night. (All right, I don't do that much market research.) PR goes "beep" when it is my turn to fold. In fact, it is running right now. When I beeps, I comment on the hand.

[I just sat down at table "Kopenhagen" a $0.25-$0.5 limit HE table. I bought in for $5 of my $70.

I post behind the button and am dealt Q-5 off-suit. It gets raised and re-raised to $0.75 before it gets to me and I chuck it.]

As for the pre-flop fold percentage of 54% I know I look REALLY loose. A decent player should be above 70% on this stat (fold 7 of 10 hands pre-flop). PokerRoom does not factor in times I just check the big blind, which is a lot in loose passive games like you find at low limits. So I am going to say this is about 8% of the time putting me at 62%, still a bit low. I am not too worried about this, though, because the games are so unaggressive you can usually see a flop cheap with hands like A-3 suited that I would chuck in tougher games. But I still want this stat to go up (i.e. fold more).

[Next hand, KJos in late position. A bunch of calls to me and a raise with a fairly mediocre hand. 8 callers. Hey, it is online poker at its best. Flop is crapola but I call a bet with 2 overcards (leak!). Turn brings me a gutshot straight draw (I have K-Q-J-9) and I am getting 10-1 by the time the betting gets to me. A guttie comes in 11-1 so I am not quite getting my odds, but I call anyway- and lose. Now I am down to $3.50.]

Next question: if you've won only $14 where did the other $36 come from? A few places, first I did nuke some of my stats and some of the profit was in there. Second, I bought in to a $5 SnG (sit-and-go) tournament which I won (after being down to the felt). I bought in when I was over $40 so it was never more than 10% of the bankroll. Third, I broke the rules and played a few sessions of $1-2 stud where I won about $10.

[6-8 offsuit in the small blind (SB). It's jacked to $.50 and I toss it. K-5 os on the button, I check it, too many callers. A few more folders and I am sitting at a pre-flop fold percentage of 82%. Unfortunately, I am also down to $3.10 this session. I need CARDS.]

So there you have, updates later after tonight's session...