Curtis Mayfield III's Poker Blog

Tom Dwan

As I sit here writing this piece I am actually wondering why it took me so long to do one on Tom Dwan. Needless to say Tom "Durrr" Dwan is the topic of many a conversation involving poker. If you don't know who he is by now you may be finding out very soon. For the past 6 years Tom Dwan has built up quite a reputation playing online poker and has a multi-million dollar bankroll to prove it. Dwan multi-tables and plays no limit holdem and Pot-Limit Omaha as his games of choice. You may have already heard about the Tom Dwan challenge he is currently playing against Patrick Antonious. If Antonious beats Dwan by at least $1 dollar he will win $1.5 Million.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Tuesday, September 15, 2009 - 06:01 | login or register to post comments

Poker players join Amazing Race cast

It looks like Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho will be running around the globe on the Amazing Race reality show. This appears to be somewhat of a trend for poker players to appear on reality shows. If you recall Jean Robert-Belland was on Survivor last year. Anyhow, everyone was kind of wondering what happened to the two young ladies in this years WSOP until word got out that they were going to appear on a TV show together.

I am completely indifferent on this one. Neither Tiffany Michelle or Maria Ho are established tournament poker players in my opinion and are still very much learning the game. That is not to say that they are not competitive or have not done well but one run in the Main Event does not constitute this kind of showcase and the exposure could work against them if they are not savvy. The bottom line is that both of them are out of their element although Tiffany has done a few things on TV as a hostess.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Monday, September 14, 2009 - 15:46 | login or register to post comments

No time for boredom

Playing Texas Holdem there is absolutely no time for boredom. In my numerous travels and conversations with both professional and amateur poker players alike I have heard more than a few say that they sometimes get bored at the poker table. To me this is baffling as I can always find an individual or several poker players I can gather information from.

What kind of information?

The typical information that most good poker players are looking for. You are looking for tells, weakness, strength, betting patterns, emotion or lack thereof. Just about anything that helps you to piece together just what kind of player you are up against and how they are most likely to play the game and play a hand. That means paying attention to just about everything a very large percentage of the time.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Friday, September 11, 2009 - 05:05 | login or register to post comments

Are you really "sorry?"

We have all heard the sometimes obligatory, "I'm sorry..." after taking a bad beat in a hand. It happens. It's no limit Texas Holdem and those things happen. It was kind of like the first thing I had to get used to when I began playing poker. I kept asking myself, "Why do these guys keep apologizing for winning the hand? Why do they wish each other good luck?" As time went on and I continued to play live poker tournaments it became part of the normal banter of the game. No big deal. But I decided that I was never going to apologize for winning a hand or sucking out on another player.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Wednesday, September 09, 2009 - 05:02 | login or register to post comments

Are you Ready to Play Poker?

Are you ready to play poker? Seriously, are you prepared to play the game of poker each and every time you step into your local casino? This happens to be a very legitimate question because the way you answer it may provide some insite as to why you may not be doing as well. I think we can all agree that playing poker is all about skill and execution mixed with a little luck here and there. The most valuable tool that any of us poker players have is our mind. Yes, our ability to think through sometimes very complex scenarios in very small spaces of time and come up with the correct conclusion most of the time is invaluable.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Tuesday, September 08, 2009 - 17:34 | login or register to post comments

Great run and no results!

Sometimes I have to ask myself :Is this possible?" after having a fantastic run in a poker tournament but not getting to the Final Table. I do realize that along with playing great poker you still need to get a little luck on your side. Well, it isn't that I have been unlucky. So why am I able to accumulate so many chips and still not get there lately? Last night I made major runs in both Omaha Hi / Lo poker tournaments and a Texas Holdem tournament.

I didn't use any particular poker strategy or bizarre plays any more than I normally do. I played good solid poker early and opened up when I doubled through. Once I doubled through I played and hit several speculative hands that allowed me to go from $3k to $15k before the end of the first break. There were only 90 players in this particular tournament and it certainly seemed that things were going to work out well. Unfortunately, I busted out two players before the money. It happens. "That's poker!" if you want to be cliche about it. However, there is a broader picture to be seen here.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Saturday, September 05, 2009 - 17:23 | login or register to post comments

Patrick Antonious vs Tom Dwan Challenge

Unless you have been living on another planet you have already heard about the Tom "Durrr" Dwan challenge. If you haven't then here it is in a nutshell. Basically Dwan has challenged anyone to play him online in No Limit and Omaha on at least 4 tables for fifty thousand hands. If the challenger wins the bet and ends up at least $1 dollar ahead he wins the money he put up plus an additional $1.5 million dollars. If Dwan is ahead at least $1 after fifty thousand hands he takes down his winnings plus an additional $500k from the challenger.

This match has literally been going on for months with each player taking small leads up until this years WSOP began and Dwan had opened up a rather large lead. Since then Antonious has once again put together a monster run and not only narrowed the gap but regained the lead by a little over $76k+

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Friday, September 04, 2009 - 04:46 | login or register to post comments

Changes coming to 2010 WSOP?

As usual I am always reading everything I can get my hands on about the game of poker. Apparently the forces that be at Harrah's are looking at making some changes to the 2010 World Series of Poker. I don't know about you but the first thing they can change is to stop with this delayed Final Table. The bottom line is that it is not doing what it was intended to accomplish. The idea was to delay the Final Table so that the players could peruse the talk show circuit and do interviews to promote the game. It sounded like a great idea but the problem is that none of the players seem to get it and they are not participating for the second year in a row.

Posted by Curtis Mayfield III on Thursday, September 03, 2009 - 02:45 | login or register to post comments

Moving up in Stakes

This year has been a profitable one for me at the poker tables. As you know from my previous posts I play online quite a bit and also play $2 / $1 No Limit Hold'em on a weekly basis. I have been grinding away at the live game for a little over a year now and I gotta tell you that the game has evolved quite a bit. The players come in day after day and week after week and they all seem to be fairly knowledgeable about what they are doing. Some of the plays that you took for granted as little as one year ago are no longer plays that I would make today.

To say that today's player is a more educated would be an understatement. Seriously, anyone that really wants to become a good No Limit poker player can do so at their whim by simply reading about and playing the game on a regular basis. With time comes experience and with experience comes expertise. This is not to suggest that everyone will instantly morph into the next Chip Reese but it is possible to become a profitable part-time poker player relatively quickly with hard work. Therein lies the key.

After two years of grinding it out in this game I have built a nice bankroll and I am now faced with a problem most poker players would love to have. Is it time to move up in stakes?

Well, that is certainly a reasonable question to ask at this point in my journey. I can honestly answer all of the obvious questions that every poker player should ask themselves before moving up in stakes.

1. Can you beat your current game consistently? Yes
2. Does your bankroll reflect your winning consistently over the long term? Yes
3. Can you handle any swings at the next level of stakes without fear of playing with scared money? Yes
4. Are you a disciplined enough player to move back down in stakes if things don't work out at the next level before hurting your bankroll? Yes
5. Are you hungry and still working to improve your game? Absolutely!

Now that I can look at myself in the mirror and not flinch when I ask and answer those questions it is up to me to make the decision. It may seem easy but when you are going from $2 / $1 to $5 / $10 you had better be awfully sure of your ability to play well and play well consistently. If you have any doubt then you are not ready to take the plunge. The fact of the matter is that the players are better at each level you move up in stakes and you can count on being tested while you attempt to settle into the regular game. There is no hurry and I will make my decision by the years end. Either way I am very pleased with how things have gone this year. There is no pressure for me either way I decide to go and playing out the rest of the year in my current game is probably the smartest move to make at this point. Of course time will ultimately dictate when I make the jump.

Be sure about yourself and your game when making the decision to move up in stakes. Don't let other players influence your decision unless you value and respect their opinions. Be smart and honest and in the long run you will make the best decision for you and be comfortable doing so.

See you on the felt!

2009 WSOP TV Broadcast

Now that the WSOP has been airing for the past couple of weeks I find it extremely enjoyable to kick back and watch the fun. As usual the first couple of levels are all fun and games and everyone seems to be having fun. Usually by the end of the first day the bad players have been weeded out sans a few hangers on.

Most of the players we have come to know and love like Scotty Nguyen, Eric Lindgren, Carlos Mortenson and Mike Matusow are cruising along waiting for the really bad players to dump them their chips. One thing I have noticed about the professional players that the amateurs seem to lack is patience. I still cannot figure out what anyone would want to risk their entire $20k stack on a draw in the first level?

Mike Matusow re-enforced my thinking when he folded a Queen high flush after the flop knowing that his opponent had only an Ace draw to the nut flush. Of course I wouldn't have blamed him had he called the all-in bet but I understood his reasoning in folding. If you are a superior player to your opponent you can wait for a better spot when it is early in the poker tournament.

I realize that some may disagree in folding the best hand but when there are no re-buys and the stakes are as high as they are in the WSOP you really have to respect the fold and his reasoning.

There have also been some heart warming stories like the one about the man with  cancer and how his wife contacted one of the poker magazines and they bought him in to the Main Event. How can you not enjoy a story like that?