Grinding on The Roller Coaster

Thursday omaha game, there early eager to play.  Nothing went well and losing $20 on the first hand was a bad sign. The 2 problems in poker are not getting any good hands and the other side of the coin, getting great cards and missing flops and/or rivers.  My problem was the latter.  You just cannot fold top set until the river and then must usually call down the guy chasing a low that never came who backs into a flush with his 2/4 suited (actual example) when he bets his flush that cannot beat a flush.  I felt the pain of an older gentleman, an excellent player, who burned through 2 or 3 hundred quickly, flopping sets of Queens 4 times only to lose.  One of those times was a flop of K/Q/8.  I had pocket kings, he had his queens and another player pocket 8's.  It was a large 3 way pot that everyone kept raising and re-re-raising to protect from draws. Happy note on river despite a straight card hitting, I won with top set.

So, after a 7 hours of play and 3 buy-ins of a $100 I was nursing a headache, tired and ready to admit defeat.  I had just gone through a bruising hand with the guy to my right and a very bad player.  We tuned the ace high straight while the other guy flopped a set of 3'skills.  We rammed and jammed but he would not fold.  The river paired the board. Ouch.  Shortly afterward the player on my right, a regular and always a winner, quit, stuck at least $300.  I caught fire, got back to my original stake. Ready to quit, but feeling the heater, I gave some back.  Playing A/QX/X, the flop came with 2 aces.  I bet out, got several callers, then after a blank on the turn hit quad aces on the river.  It held up as high hand and quitting a few hands after the money was paid ($150), left $93 ahead.  I was exhausted and it was fairly late.  I really understood what it means to be a "grinder".  $10 an hour is not my idea of success and now today am worn out.