Out with the Nitt and in with Super Tag

Finally I'm starting to step out of my super nit comfort zone, like Clark Kent stripping off his rain coat and glasses for Superman to emerge. For so long now I've been a winning poker player - I haven't had a losing month all year and have played hundreds of thousands of hands. 'What's the problem then?' I hear you cry. The problem is that I've been playing twelve tables at once and only sitting down to play when there is a super huge fish sat on my right (for those that don't know, a fish is just a horrible player and preferably one that doesn't even know how to play).

As some of you know Alex Yen over at Card Runners has been my personal coach for a few weeks now and whenever he watches me play I find my self playing in a style that I'm not used to. I only play four tables as opposed to my usual twelve, and all those with alarms going off letting me know it's my go, hurry up!!!! Playing fewer tables allows me to spot far more opportunities to make plays against the regulars and I find myself almost showing off when he watches me. I make squeeze plays, defending my blinds like a Viet cong soldier, in a tunnel, poised, waiting for someone to try and steal them. I am, indeed, a superhero. But the next day, with Alex no longer shadowing me, I load up 12 tables and Clark Kent, the Nit of the poker world, comes back out to play.

I realised too that the regular players at the table could read me like a book. If I ever showed any sign of aggression they could make big folds as I was so tight, I may as well have played my cards face up.

For some time now I've been feeling cheap. I've stopped feeling any sense of victory - beating fish and just losing the minimum to regular players for a small profit is the equivalent of Usian Bolt challenging a one legged, epileptic to a race in a night club, it's just pathetic!

Alex (my coach) on our first ever session together said to me, "just sit at a few tables and play, whilst telling me what you're thinking". Immediately I protested, telling Alex that I hadn't had any time to table select (where any profit I ever made came from). Alex calmly responded, "It doesn't matter, the style that I'll teach you will make money from the regulars as well as the fish, the fish will just increase your hourly win rate".

A couple of days ago the penny (or $160 an hour that he charges) finally dropped, and without Alex being by my side, I played only four tables and finally managed to pull the 20/17/2.7 style that I had been longing for, out of the bag. I felt like Dumbo the first time he flew without a feather. All of my money came from regs 'making plays' at me at totally the wrong times.

To give you an idea of the sheer contrast in styles, my previous stats, whilst on twelve tables were (can't believe I'm even admitting this) 14/11/2.6 with a 3.4 3bet %

Today (over the last 1000 hands) they are 20/17/2.6 with a 6.72 3bet % (it also doesn't hurt that I have been running at 9ptbb/100, I know it's a small sample but just let me wallow in my glory).

In conclusion, I questioned the benefit and value that Alex was bringing to my game; is it really worth while? Could tonight be the last of my sessions with him? I'm pleased to say that it wont. It's opened up a whole new dynamic to my game, a dynamic that might not seem like a revelation to some but one that's new to me and one that I want to fine tune, polish and shape into the weapon that I know it will be. As with any style of poker, be it tight, loose, aggressive, passive, tricky or straight forward, each has it's own challenges and I'd sooner face them with the experience and insight that Alex has to offer. Now the only question is, do I c-bet that low board after I squeezed and got called???