Jack Bauer: "The following bad beats occured during Memorial Day Weekend between the hours of 17:00pm and 12:00 am"

$1/$3 Live game @ a local club in Boston: $200 behind, I get the JhJd in 4th position after an UTG limper. I raise to $20. 4 callers. Flop 9d8s6h. With about 86 dollars in the pot, I jam for about $180 to protect against any overcards, a 7, or 109. I don't put anyone on a set or a flopped straight (I put UTG on a pair of 10's, and the girl in the BB who I've played with frequently on suited KQ, which she later told me she did have). The button, a fish who pays almost any hand, moves all-in. Everyone else folds. He goes, "Overpair, right?" "Yes", as I flash the Jacks. He announces, "That is what I thought" and shows the 7d7s. Hits a 5 on the river and jumps up with an emphatic, "YES! I KNEW it was coming". This was the same guy a month before who called my $400 dollar all-in bet with As9s on a 9h6d2c flop when I had QQ, and hit an Ace on the river.

$30 SNG on FullTilt: On the bubble with T2400 in chips, with the blinds at 100/200, I get KK in the SB. I jam versus the BB short stack @ 1K. Guy calls with AcJd, and hits a 4 club flush. I go out 2 hands later when SB completes, and I have Js7s from the BB with T900 and get a free look. I flop pair with a flush draw on 7c4s5s board and call an all-in. He has Ah8h, but he hits an Ace of clubs on the river to bubble me.

$10 SNG, FullTilt: On the bubble again, blinds at 120/240, I get KcQd in the BB with T1900 after UTG (T3200) limps in. I check. Flop KdQs4c. I check-call a bet of 240. Turn 10c. I check, UTG bets 480, I jam for last 1180, he calls with KJo.....and hits a river 9. I'm done.

$24+2 MTT on FullTilt: Early in the tournament, T1400. With the blinds at 30/60, UTG raises to 120. I re-raise to 400 from the cutoff with KdKh. Button calls. UTG jams and has me covered by about 60 in chips. I call, button folds. UTG has KcKs. Hits four spade flush. I'm done.

$30 Tournament, Bodog: Playing very well in spite of the fact I have had no cards and have bluffed my way to T2800 in chips. With 29 left, and call a short-stacks' all-in for 800 from the BB with AQo. He has 10s9s. He hits a 9. Then with T1700 left and the blinds @ 75/150, I raise to 500 UTG with AhKh. The SB waits until his time bank is up, then moves all-in and has me covered. I call and put him on 10's, thinking it's a race. He shows the Qc2c and beats me on a Qh6h9sJs6d board. I'm done.

$10 Tournament, Bodog: With T3400 left, with the blinds @ 75/150, I get KdKh on the button after an UTG limper. I raise to 700. BB (T10K) re-raises to 2K. UTG folds, I jam, BB calls with 10's. Hits a 10 on the flop, I'm done.

$0.25/$0.50 Live Game, Bodog: $45 behind in the SB, I get AcQc and raise to $2. BB re-raises to $4. I call. Flop Ah5h2d. I check, he bets $3, I re-raise to $12, he calls quickly. Put him on KhQh. Turn Js. I jam for his last $20 more. He thinks, and calls with the 2h3h. Hits a 6h on the river. "Outs galore on that hand, buddy". Gimme a break! Lose a 40 dollar pot.

$0.25/$0.50 Live Game, Bodog: $55 behind, I get a free look with the 9c6c in the BB, 5 players. Flop 9d6d2h. I bet $2, 3P raises to $4, button calls (immediately put him on A-x diamonds), I raise to $10 more to find out where I am at. Both call. Turn Ac. I jam for $39. 3P folds, button calls with Ad3d. Hits a 10d on the river .

$20 Live Tournament, 8 players: Playing with some friends and neighbors. On the bubble and short stacked (3 paid, 4 left), blinds 200/400, I jam UTG for T1500 with the AhKh. Some girl in the BB (albeit a hot girl) with T2300 calls just because "she wants to go smoke a cigarette". She has 9h7h, and hits a 9. I'm done.

$20 Live Tournament, 8 players: Playing with some friends and neighbors. With the blinds @ 100/200 (I have about 4K in chips, sitting in 3rd place with 5 left), I raise from the button to 800 with the AsQs. The big stack from the BB re-raises all-in. He's a wild, aggressive player who's had about 16 beers. He moved in earlier on 22 versus someone's AA (and caught a third deuce, hence why he's big stack). I look at him and ask, "Deuces again?". He uncomfortably smiles back at me. Now I know I got him, and I call. He shows Qh9h. Flops quad 9's. I'm done.

Oh, and now I am broke and -$1500 in the hole for my poker "career".

Poker is fun, and I have a real passion for the game and really want to become successful at it. I feel like I am a good player who definitely has room for improvement but my analytical and studious approach and committment to the game is helping me daily become good at not just Hold 'Em, but other games as well. The feedback I get on here is really great (albeit sometimes snide). I really want to succeed at this someday, mostly because my job is not fun and because I when I started out, I was running well and making more money than I ever had in my life. I know I can win and beat most games at the 1/3, 2/4, and 5/10 levels, with NL tournaments being my best game.

Doesn't help that poker is different today. As Mike Matusow says, "Everyone calls".

But it really sucks sometimes when you play good and just run bad. It's making me question whether or not I am a good player.

Thanks for letting me vent.

If I can offer a bit of advice:

Keep your stack out of the pot pre-flop. I had this problem a few years ago early on and finally realized I kept putting my entire stack in with a 60/40, 55/45 , etc and was clueless as to why I kept losing when I was "ahead". Work on your post flop play. Try out smaller raises and take a flop. Give them a chance to miss and take advantage of thier poor post flop play.

I do employ this strategy most of the time now, especially since my reading abilities have gotten better. I used to be an Move-In Specialist all the time, until I started to realize that it's much better to see flops and to just call with QQ/JJ/AK, etc. (unless I was up against a maniac).

The problem? People nowadays just jam on you with just the silliest shi*t. It's the whole "all-in" theory (from the book, KillPhil, as well as Sklansky's Tournament Hold 'Em for Advance Players) that everyone is in love with, and albeit sometimes it can work as you can fool people into calling (like I did with KK vs the AJo, which as a SS, he is probably jamming with anyways), you're mostly walking a tightrope, which is dangerous to a bankroll.

And as much as I will fold a 60/40 situation most of the time if I have a decent stack according to the blinds, I simply will not play weak tight and won't let people run over me. I am not good enough, nor will I (unless I get an amazing read), ever fold KK to an all-in bet pre-flop during a tournament.

I always have a goal to win; especially if my "M" (from Harrington's book) is low....I have to, and will be, prepared to gamble.

The only hand I question myself calling is the AsQs hand vs his Qh9h, and even then I had him dominated (but I could have folded and waited until later where I could have flopped something and let him hang himself). The other hands I had to call because my stack was either very low, or because the strength of my hand was too great.

Thanks for the advice, though.

That, sir, is ****ing great advice. Also, to the OP, I have had many of the same scenarios happen to me, so it's safe to say you're not alone. Small consolation, though, I know. Keep at it and reread ForRealDD's post.

Cheers!

I've always done very well playing smart pre-flop. Sexton always says don't abandon your children on the street (leave your chips on the table) ... I say keep your children out of the dark (play big preflop bets).