Ohio Casinos

Ohio's controversial casino issue passes

Issue 3, which was proposed through an initiative petition in March of this year, was passed by Ohio voters by a 53 to 47 percent margin on Nov. 3. The issue, which garnered roughly 1.7 million votes in its favor, will amend the Ohio constitution to authorize a single casino to be built within each of four Ohio cities: Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Toledo.

It finally passed! Ohio has had 5 issues on the ballot since 1990, two in the last two years. The amendment stated exactly where the casinos would be located, however, Columbus has vowed to fight if the casino is built in their Arena District as the amendment was written. The Casino company has agreed to pick another location, but any change and it has to go on the ballot again in May. This casino will be about an 45 mins away from me. The closest casino to me now is over 2 hours away.

This isn't the best deal for Ohio but it was the best proposal so far. The licensing fees and tax rates aren't as high as other states'. After the issue failed two years ago and the economy tanked, a lot of people changed their minds about casinos and it appeared headed towards passing. The opponents were complaining that the deal is so bad for Ohio, but were unwilling to compromise and even discuss other options, assuming it would fail again. Now that it has passed they want to complain about the issue's terms. What bothers me is that it was just a matter of time before this issue passed, so why didn't the state come up with their own proposal with better terms for Ohio? The state wants to keep pushing the state lottery and recently made keno available in bars, but wants to keep casinos out. So while not the best deal, it will be nice to have a casino within an hour's drive.

Multi-Accounter

Evidently this guy has about 1000 accounts on Full Tilt and plays them simultaneously.

Back in the Game

It's been quite a while since my last post. I have still been following blogs and watching some bloggers at their tables but just haven't had the time or the motivation to post myself. I've been busy with work, kids and trying to build my bankroll back up. I have been playing mostly low stakes tournies and sngs with a lot of success in the Super Turbo single table and 45 man's, but then I turn around and spend my profits on tournies.

Last night I went against my better judgement and bought into a Tier 1 token sng. I have always had a lot of success in these but the buy-in was about 20% of my BR. I have been running extremely bad the last couple of weeks and lost almost everything that I had won in early December. I was able to convert my $8 into a token and entered the 28k gtee. The first two hours of the tourney I won a couple small pots I entered but played very few hands. Before I knew it the blinds were at 200/400 and I was down to 3600 chips in the BB. At this point I knew if I had any kind of hand I was all in. The cards are dealt and I see AJ and figure this is it. However, there is a raise and a reraise and a call. If I fold I have 8 bbs left but my table has a lot of big stacks and I'm pretty sure they will call with a wide range when I push. I fold and enter a 5$ horse tourney since I'm sure to be out of this soon. Next hand in the small blind I have nothing and plan on pushing if folded around to me, but there is a raise and I throw it away. The next hand I'm down to 2800 or so and get a double up with AJ and double again on the next hand to about 13k. I get my stack up to about 35k in the next few hands when I raised with 7d8d in late position and get 1 caller. The flop comes A78 and I get it all in against his AQ and just know he's gonna hit another A or Q to beat me, but my hand holds and now I have around 70k with blinds at 300/600 and I am able to keep increasing my stack to the final table. At the final table I am fourth in chips and go totally card dead. I am able to get a couple steals and one player goes out pretty quickly. We play 8 handed for a long time. Still card dead, I'm on the button and 3bet the cutoff's raise w/9cTc to pick up a nice pot. We lose another player and I can't keep from looking at the payouts. I really hate the way that affects my game. I tell myself not to let it affect my decisions but one place is almost a $500 jump. I raise w/kq in mp with about 18bbs left and sitting 5th of 7. The big stack BB puts me to a decision for my stack and I fold. This is a spot where I normally would just push my whole stack in pre-flop. We lose another player and I get down to about 8BBs when my A8 doubles against A5. Another 2 players go out before I play another hand and my 89 is all in against the BB's KJ and I'm out.

The last few days I have been on serious tilt and was doubting my game. Everything I was doing was wrong. I couldn't win a race no matter what side I was on. One win like this and it makes you feel like you are back. Last year was my worst year since I started playing online and my Vegas trip was horrible. Hopefully I can keep this up and increase my bankroll for this years' Vegas trip.

Rant

I feel like I am playing better than I ever have but continue to get crushed by 2 and 3 outers when all of the chips are in. The play is so bad and I am continually getting my money in good and losing. I don't know how people can make the calls they are making with such marginal hands. And I mean calling, not raising or 3 betting but actually calling off their chips to a big reraise w/A rag or K5dd. Do I have to start playing like this to start winning again? I could never make the calls these guys do but they hit. I've had pretty good success in MTT's in the past but recently can't seem to get deep in anything. My style used to be what I thought was tight solid but I realized I was very passive. I would often end up at the money bubble as the short stack and have to win a lot of races to get deep. I was leaving a lot of chips on the table but I was still getting deep and winning money. After watching other successful players, I opened up my game and started taking down pots that I never would have in the past. But now I can't win a race when I need to or I isolate a raiser from the sb w/QQ and bb wakes up w/aa or calls off 3/4 of his stack w/a6 and hits. I try to keep a positive attitude and know that it is variance and things will turn around. But damn man the bad beats just don't stop and I know they are coming. Fairly deep in the 28k, I flop the nut flush from the bb in a 4 handed limped pot. UTG limper bets out and I check raise, cuz the way I'm running I don't want him to see any more cards. He reraises all in w/top pair (9) queen kicker and no flush draw. Well I know I'm fucked and he hits runner runner for a boat. It just seems so stupid. I can't win with sm pairs vs. overs, can't win w/overs vs. sm pairs. WTF do I do. Well, I won't be playing for a while since I donked most of my bankroll in Vegas and now at Full Tilt. A lot of expenses right now with kids going back to school, sports, and other things. Maybe I should try the Chris Ferguson experiment and freeroll to 10k. I've got a rakeback freeroll at the end of the month, hopefully I can do something in it.

Horse Final Table

Frustrating. I was sitting 2nd with 9 left and I couldn't do any better than 8th place. I lost two big hands in the O8 rd. One hand I flopped broadway on a rainbow board. He called me down with 9987 w/2 crubs. sigh.......need I say more. I've cashed in the last 4 out of 5 HORSE tournies that I have played and continue to run bad NLHE tournies. I'm really starting to think I just don't have what it takes anymore to win or go deep in NLHE.

I run so %$#&ing good

I didn't slow play either. He raised pre, I reraised 4x and he insta called. We got it all in on the flop.

Back to Reality

This past month I have spent 7 days in Myrtle Beach, 5 days in Vegas, and 5 days camping. Now it's back to the daily grind.

My Vegas trip was fun but disappointing. I had high hopes for this trip and was ready to focus and play my best. I ended up playing 3 Venetian Deep Stack NLHE tourneys, one Caesar's Mega Stack NLHE tourney, the Golden Nugget HORSE tourney, and two Venetian second chance tourneys. I made it to the HORSE tourney my first day there and played solid for the first couple of hours. During the stud round I hit Broadway on 5th street and guy had rolled up 7's and hit a boat on 6th street for a big pot. I went out in the next Razz round when i had 7543A at 5th st. and my opponent had 7K9 showing. I got it all in and he hit a 2 and 4 on 6th and 7th for a A2457. GG me. That evening I met up with CK, LJ, and cmitch for dinner and then headed to the Wynn for a $1/$2 mixed game . I got my first lesson in 2-7 triple draw. The very first hand, LJ and I played a big pot where I had the 2nd nut hand and she had the 3rd. I ended up down about $40 but had a great time. I was hoping to get over to the Rio to rail LJ and cmitch in their tourneys but wasn't able to make it back over there.


The next day I played my first Venetian tourney. I was down early but came back and had a little below average stack just before dinner break. I had AKss in ep and raised, agro guy rrsd me from button. I rrsd all in and he called w/aq. Flop 345 w/2 spades. Qs gives me the nuts and he's calling for a 2 to split. Turn is an 8 and river is a black queen.......of crubs! Are you fking serious? My one big regret in this tourney was when I was down to about 17 bb and utg big stack raised. I was utg + 2 and had JJ. I was telling myself to push but couldn't do it. I decided to just call. The button called also. The flop came AKx. They got it all in w/one having AK and one AQ. Wouldn't you know the turn was a J. I would've tripled up. The next two deep stack tourneys I couldn't get anything going and went out around mid field in both. I did win a $130 satellite into the 2nd deepstack.


Both of the second chance Venetian tourneys I started off good. The 2nd one I played I was running over my table and then the table broke. I thought I had a lot of chips and my new table had 4 stacks larger than mine. The first 3 hands I was at the table, the big stack raised pre and was all in on every flop w/marginal hands. In my BB a shorty pushed for 4x the bb and big stack called. I look down at QThh and decide to see a flop. Flop comes Q9x. I check for the trap and just as he had been doing big stack says all in. I insta call and he tables A9. I think I'm in great shape until the river brings another 9. .........sigh


My last day there was Sunday and I played the Caesar's $330 tourney. I had a pretty soft table and had my starting 15k stack up to 26k after four hours and only showing down 2 hands. I was feeling confident and making great reads until this hand..... Blinds are 400/800 and utg pushes all in for 6k. I'm in the sb and find a pair of Q's. I rs to 12k and bb pushes all in. I know I'm probly fkd but have to call. He shows AA and I'm done.


I played 6 NLHE tourneys and didn't see AA or KK once. I had QQ twice and lost with them both times and I didn't flop one set. There were times in the tourneys when I wasn't in the hand but had some great reads on the players. I probably should have played more hands just to get in and try to outplay them post flop. I only played one NLHE $1/2 session at the Flamingo for about 2 hours. I bought in for 200 and cashed out for 350. One good player and the rest were pretty bad. Definitely should have played more cash.


I had a couple of good craps sessions and put $20 in a slot machine and cashed out $140 (my biggest slot machine cash ever). I was good and stayed away from roulette until my last night. Bad decision. I was able to meet up with Lightning for a couple of beers. It was after talking to him that I decided to play the cash game.

Overall I felt like I was playing good and making good reads, and at the same time not giving any tells away.