After 6 months I finally find myself a live game in Kampala.

[tfeilding]

I found a live poker game in Uganda last night. Weeee. Its 5000/10000 which works out at around £2/4 (10 times higher than my usual home game cash game stakes). I sat down with 500,000 or around £200. It was a lot of fun playing with such high value cash chips in play.

Anyhow, how did I do? I got felted. The standard was so weak. So very weak. I suck loads at cash games but even I could rip it apart. The players would do things like show their cards to inactive players mid hand, bet over pot-sized amounts and get called by draws, call down with second or sometimes third pair etc. I picked one guy out as being the best of the lot when he flopped a set and then didn't overplay it when scare cards peeled off. Then twenty minutes late he has Kx on a AQJT4 rainbow board and just flat calls a river bet with noone behind him.

So to my three major pots. One was standard and the pot was 'only' around 250,000, I raised with AQ and got it all in on a Q73 flop. He had 77.

The next big losing pot was for 500,000. I had been playing a standard TAG game cos the table was uber Laggy. Often 8 to a flop and early position limping with shite like 85o. I pick up KK UTG+1. UTG raises, I reraise, he re-raises me and I shove. He flips A2 and makes a straight.

Then we get onto the million shilling pot which I lost.

One guy had been felted and rebrought. I figured he was steaming when he made an early position raise. I have JT and after a couple of callers I join the party. The flop is QT5 and he bets big. From the way he played I figured he didnt have a Q as he bet small when he had what he perceived to be a strong hand (it was quite common to see 10k bets being made into 200k pots) and I decided if the other players got out the way then I'd shove for around a pot sized amount. Sure enough, the chaff clear out and I get my chippies in and he turns over 9T. The river brought his 9. Arse.

I'll be back this evening with bells on. If I don't walk away with plenty of profit by the end of the week then I'm never playing poker again.

Oh, the casinos here are sweet. Not only are they very swanky but they keep bringing you beer without asking and the food is free. The table games are funny cos here there is a big culture of black people not telling white people what to do - so on things like roulette you don't actually get told 'no more bets please' and at the thee card poker table people play multiple hands.

[lucky_scrote]

Cool trip report mate. I wouldn't expect to be a big winner in the game all the time, variance is gonna be huge in this game. BTW if it really is as easy as you say I recommend learning and maybe watching some cash game videos. Don't let anyone know you are playing in the game and start cleaning it up.

[PokerWoody]

yeah, nice trip report tom

[CitrusSR]

yeah, nice trip report tom

+1

I look forward to the next installment!

[Aidan77]

I can see the next one now:

"lol i got it all in PF with 73o vs AA and won. Then i called 3-streets with 3rd pair and stacked someone who insanely barreled me. Lol Feildingaments."

[lev1athan]

I can see the next one now:

"lol i got it all in PF with 73o vs AA and won. Then i called 3-streets with 3rd pair and stacked someone who insanely barreled me. Lol Feildingaments."

LOL

Nice job Tom. Did you hear of any games in Dar Es Salaam when you were there?

How the fook are you going to get your winnings out of there BTW? I reckon you'd get maximus griefus at customs trying to get millions of Ugandan bucks out of there. Good luck with the wire transfer

[tfeilding]

I went back again last night and although it was still LAGy as hell, it had calmed down a little. We were still often 8 to a flop. I only went deep in 6 hands all evening and I won 5 of them. I found myself having to open for 10bb a couple of times.

I got stacked on hand 1. Thinking along the same lines as Lucky Scrote I decided to buy in for 200k or 20bb. I posted and then pick up KK. When the action was on me I went to put in a hearty raise only to be told I couldn't raise as I'd posted - is this the case usually? I thought not but then I dont play much cash. The flop was Q75. I put in a chunky bet and had a caller. The turn brought a second 5, I put in the last of my chips and the guy had A5.

I reloaded and soon was down to 100k when I open shoved after 6 limpers with AQs. I get called by Q3 and K6 and make quads. That gave me something of a playable stack and an hour later took down a 1.3m (450quid) pot with a full house. I finished the night 1.2m in profit.

I found myself laughing at the etiquette breaches. Players would lean across the table and pick up their opponent's cards if me or another of the few non-regulars were in a pot against them. They would also speak in Chinese of Indian and discuss the hands. One time a guy was in a pot and a bet was made on the river and before he called it he leaned across to the dealer, picked the deck up and had a quick look through it before folding. I didn't say anything as there was little point making myself a target and I felt they needed all the help they could get anyway. I later chatted with a dealer and he said the casino had tried enforcing rules but noone obeyed them so they didn't bother these days.

I've signed myself up for a tourny on Sunday - its 20k buyin with rebuys for the first hour but you are capped at 300k. I havent a clue how that works. Also it is limited to 52 players. Why on earth 52? Why not 48 or 50 or 54 for 8/9/10 man tables? Its actually a satellite to a monthly final and just a quarter of the prize money will be returned on the night. I'm not here for the final so it is massively -ev (though given the standard it could be break even), but what the hell. Oh yeah, there are no minimum blinds. I'm not 100% sure what that means. I asked the card room manager (it is a very well set up and equipped cardroom in an extremely nice casino) and he informed me that tournaments are different to cash games and I should look online to learn how tournaments work...

[tfeilding]

LOL

Nice job Tom. Did you hear of any games in Dar Es Salaam when you were there?

How the fook are you going to get your winnings out of there BTW? I reckon you'd get maximus griefus at customs trying to get millions of Ugandan bucks out of there. Good luck with the wire transfer

There is a casino in Dar but no Holdem. I'm sure there are home games but I'm living maybe 7 hours away so don't really know enough people to get that kind of info/invite. I've asked around in my nearby town but with no joy. The only westerners living there are missionaries and I guess gambling doesn't synch in too well with that line of work.

As for my winnings... I need to win them first. But whatever I do end up with I can convert into Tanzanian Shillings or GBP easily enough and take them across the border with me.

[rfph1]

www.poker.ug anybody ?
yes, I know it doesnt exist YET!

[Dice Man]

LOL I look forward to hearing about the blindless tournament.