DROGHEDA AND BACK

I haven't been in the mood to update my blog recently, but considering I posted that I was going to play Drogheda, I should at least add to that post, if only to thank everyone for their good luck messages.

Unfortunately, Drogheda was a bit of a disaster, and although we started with a mouth-watering 50k stack, I went out at the end of level 8 on Day 1. At first I was gutted, predominantly because I thought I'd played terribly, but in reflection, and after talking to the likes of Barny Boatman and Julian Thew, I think it was just one of those days.

I started well, reaching 65k early doors, but after that, it all went tits up. My reads were off and I just wasn't hitting anything. Even with a 50k stack, you need to hit a flop at some point. About three or four players were seeing every flop on my table, so you could forget about bluffing. However, because they were so loose and aware that they had plenty of chips in front of them, if you hit a hand, you could get it paid, but I was missing everything.

I moved table with about 45k and joined the likes of Gary Clarke, Kevin Fitpatrick and Michel 'The Abacus' Abacassis, but it just got worse, and everything I touched turned to shite. In fact, I think I only won one hand on that table the entire time. I tried mixing it up, grinding, gambling, calling, raising, re-raising, but nothing worked and my stack gradually dwindled down in 5k chunks. Severely shortstacked, I made a correct fold with Jacks, but wasn't rewarded when my all-in with A-Q was called by A-K which had limped under the gun. I knew exactly what he had as soon as he called, but thought his under-the-gun limping range was too wide for me not to push.

I was so gutted about my early exit, that I was actually pretty depressed back at the hotel and could barely bring myself to talk to anyone. I was sharing a room at the time, but just wanted to be on my own so I could just sit in bed watching films. I really am the worst company when the chips are down, but my way of dealing with it is by being a hermit until I feel better. I came with Benjo, Jen and Floppy, who all made it through to Day 2, so I kinda felt left out too.

I did have a wander around Drogheda a few times, but to be honest, there weren't too many sights to see and I really wasn't in the mood, I just wanted to go home. So, on Day 2, after the team were all done and dusted, I spent €60 on a flight out of there. Back home and out of the confines of the hotel room, I felt fine, almost as if I'd been suffering from a case of homesickness, which is a bit weird when you consider I spent several weeks in Vegas undeterred.

Although it wasn't my day, I don't think I played well either, and because of that, I felt guilty towards my backers. I was going to sell a few percent of myself and, even though I said I wasn't going to play either of these events, buy into the Walsall GUKPT. However, I just don't feel like I'm playing my 'A' game at the moment, so wouldn't feel right taking people's money. It's about time I made a sensible decision, so although it pains me to enter the boring world of bankroll management, I'm going to give Walsall a miss.

On the bright side, online is going okay and, although I'm not striking gold just yet, I'm making a profit and paying my bills comfortably. Barring a disaster, I should be playing a few big tourneys in the upcoming months, maybe a GUKPT and the DTD monthly. The important thing though is that my relationship stays away from the rocks and my self-esteem remains high. If I can make sure I feel good, then my online form will improve which will subsequently lead to a bigger roll for live tournaments. Earning online is important, but winning a big comp is the ultimate goal.

Sorry for the lack of humour and downbeat nature of my post, I just feel like I'm stuck in a bit of a rut at the moment.