Hey guys, wanted to wish everyone shanah tovah.

I thought I'd start a CR blog this new year because I'm about to start a 4 part turbo hu sng live session series (i.e. realtime analysis as I play as opposed to replaying and analyzing a pre-recorded session), and wanted to ask you guys if there's anything you'd like to see in these videos. My plan is for part 1 to be $11.70 matches and go up a buy-in level for each part, part 4 ending at $230 or $570.

Please let me know what you guys think of this plan; doing the first video series was a fantastic experience and overall I received really good feedback. One thing about which I'm looking forward to going into greater detail is the objection I received from one $30-50 buy-in husng "reg" I'm coaching. In a very respectful way, this player said he enjoyed my video series but he questioned whether in one of the videos my playing style was too transparent. Part of my answer:

"If someone gave you one wish as a poker player, which wish would be more beneficial: to be guaranteed that every single shove you ever make for 15bbs effective or less will be statistically profitable, or to be able to see your opponents' hole cards when the effective stacks are 15bbs or less? Obviously the latter wish is more beneficial, because instead of only guaranteeing a +EV situation, you can guarantee a higher level of positive EV. Against a weak-tight, non-thinking opponent, if you have Q8o on the button effective stacks at 10bbs, you have a similar proposition. You can either guarantee yourself a positive return on your shove, or you can limp with the knowledge that your weak opponent would only call a shove with a hand better than Q8o and would never exploit your limp by shoving a hand weaker than Q8o. Not to mention this also gives your opponent an opportunity to flop a weaker pair that donkish players typically have a tough time getting away from."

The point is, if you play David Benefield 300 days a year and limp the bottom 95% of hands, open for 3X with strictly the top 5% of hands, and completely polarize your cbetting range, then yes, over time he will exploit the shit out of you. However, what I think makes a solid husng player is not only having the skill and the ability to play relatively unexploitable poker when need be, but also (often more importantly) realizing and taking advantage of times when an already profitable situation can be made more profitable. So much is of course dependent on the quality of your opponent, and thus the optimal line is often one that might be transparent to a better player, but is not to your opposition.

Anyway, that turned into a rant really quickly but I hope it made sense. One last thing; this article is a must-read for poker players. It's not about poker but really sheds light on instincts and how the brain makes sense of things much more quickly than they can register in our concious states. "...As the brain tallies cues, big and small, consciously and not, it may send out an alarm before a person fully understands why..."
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/28/health/research/28brain.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Celebrating my 21st birthday Saturday night so if any of you guys happen be at Essen Haus in Madison then look for a big group of loud idiots; I'd be more than happy to LEGALLY buy a fellow CR member a giant beer. Wish all you guys the very best in poker and in life, and shanah tovah to my fellow Jews!

-ridetime