Meet the Ayalas!
August 7th, 2024 Newsletter
Cold Deck Quote:
"Poker is a people game played with cards rather than a card game played by people." - Carlos Mortensen
The News......
Meet the Ayalas! Our Ft. Bend County connection.
Brenda and Jonathan Ayala on the river. -sometimes poker puns are hard to come by.
| Name | Brenda Ayala | Jonathan Ayala |
|---|---|---|
| Handle | Brendaayala | j.ayala13 |
Me: Hey you two. Thanks for joining me and sharing your thoughts. I thought it would be fun to share a perspective of a couple who plays the game. Besides me and Adrienne, you two are the only couple that plays our game on a consistent basis. (We see you Margaret but you aren't putting in enough sessions to count.) Beyond this, you have been playing in this Tuesday game from the beginning and enjoy a rare perspective.
Me: So how did you find the game of poker and which one of you was the impetus for the other picking it up?
Jonathan: It was definitely me. I honestly don't remember getting into poker but I have always been a gambler whether it be blackjack, dominos, or even the lottery. Basically if it is gaming related, we were both down. As far as poker goes, I think I played for play money on WSOP a bit and then started playing live at Colombus. When that game stopped, we really missed it and were pleased that Sean started up the online game.
Me: Are there other games that you play together?
Brenda: Mostly only gambling games. We go to Lake Charles and play slots or table games together. We actually met at the blackjack table for our church fundraiser.
Me: That's fantastic! When one of your busts the Tuesday tournament, do you stick around and root for the other or go about your night?
Jonathan: It depends. I usually have all the tables up and I watch the other people play. Brenda will go about her night but ask me for updates especially if I am still in it. I try to study how people are playing but it is hard when you don't always see the showdown.
Me: Brenda, as a person who hangs onto his beats more than his wins, I have to ask what you have on me. We have been heads up twice and you have bested me both times. Once you were at a significant chip disadvantage and you still cut me down. What is your heads up strategy that I cant seem to work through?
Brenda: When it comes to heads up, if I have it I have it and I try not to play scared. I think that trying to be tricky can sometimes create a stumbling block for yourself.
Me: Do you have a "nemesis" that always seems to get you no matter what you do?
Brenda: Probably you or Joe or Adrienne.
Jonathan: Some of the same names come to my mind but I feel like we have played together for so long that maybe I have some reads on your plays and know when to take some chances. We have a lot of new players whose tactics I am still trying to learn. Being a somewhat conservative player, I sometimes will beat myself up a bit for not taking a chance that would have worked out.
Me: Is there a player whose game you are impressed by that you would like to emulate?
Jonathan: Probably Joe. He is willing to place some big bets without having it locked down. However, he seems to always have a back door out of it.
Brenda: That's tough. Maybe Adrienne.
Me: Yea she's a killer that I don't like facing either. Although I am literally facing her while we are playing as our laptops are back to back. That brings me to my next question. What is your setup like? Are you in separate rooms or facing each other or what?
Jonathan: Brenda is usually still working so she is in the office with her multiple screen computer and I am usually on the couch. We can hear each other but not see each other.
Me: That's probably smart. Sometimes when we are facing each other, it feels a bit like a live game in that Adrienne is trying to get a read from me if we are in a hand together at the same table. On that note, do you like or dislike being at each other's table?
Brenda: We dislike it.
Jonathan: I wish there was a setting that we could be at different tables until the final table. I don't want people to think we are working the system or anything. We keep it fair with no hard feelings.
Me: Same here. We will try to make it fun when we are stuck at the same table though. When she folds, I will tell her my holdings so she can play along and see the decisions that I make through the rest of the hand. Of course, the live player will never be privy to the folded player's cards as that would be cheating of course.
Me: What are your poker goals or aspirations?
Jonathan: I would love to go to Vegas to play in a live tournament. I think it would be an exciting test of abilities in such a large field.
Brenda: Me too! I love to play a live game. I really enjoyed going to the KOC game and miss that a lot.
Apologies for having to cancel our July 30th tournament. Pokerstars was down for maintenance. In the future, I hope to predict this type of thing and be prepared.
This week's Tip of the Cap goes to.... Me. After busting last night's freezeout, I dove into a $55 tournament on ACR and finished 5th out of 394 runners. I busted around 1:30 am on the 7th of August.
Zoom with Joe! Joe hosts a free zoom meetup during our Tuesday Freezeout games. Give it a try if that sounds like fun.
The ZOOM password is 432777
2025 Points Leaders
- Joe Schwenk 14
- Garrett Thurston 9
- Carlos Price 7
- Andrew Schultz 7
- Michael Culpepper 6
- Marty Kunz 6
- David Paukovitz 6
- Moody 6
- Michael Thurston 6
- Rex Bell 6
Recent Results
- July 23rd, 2024
- 1st - Joe S
- 2nd - Garrett T.
- 3rd - Rex B.
- 4th - M. Thurston
- July, 6th, 2024
- 1st - Paula T
- 2nd - Andrew S.
- 3rd - Rey
- 4th - Jeff
Coach's Corner
There are hundreds of good mindset coaches out there and Phil Galfond has been doing a good job of adding his name to the short list including Dara O'Kearney and THE mindset coach Elliot Roe.
Take a look at the video and ask yourself if you are asking yourself the right questions when the action gets to you.
Level: Fundamental
2025 Points Leaders
- Joe Schwenk 14
- Garrett Thurston 9
- Carlos Price 7
- Andrew Schultz 7
- Michael Culpepper 6
- Marty Kunz 6
- David Paukovitz 6
- Moody 6
- Michael Thurston 6
- Rex Bell 6
Recent Tuesday Freezeout Results
- July 23rd, 2024
- 1st - Joe S
- 2nd - Garrett T.
- 3rd - Rex B.
- 4th - M. Thurston
- July, 6th, 2024
- 1st - Paula T
- 2nd - Andrew S.
- 3rd - Rey
- 4th - Jeff
Coach's Corner
There are hundreds of good mindset coaches out there and Phil Galfond has been doing a good job of adding his name to the short list including Dara O'Kearney and THE mindset coach Elliot Roe.
Take a look at the video and ask yourself if you are asking yourself the right questions when the action gets to you.
Level: Fundamental
Venmo Addresses
Michael Culpepper - @Michael-Culpepper-14
Joe Schwenk - @Joseph-Schwenk
Jonathan Ayala - @Jonathan-Ayala-55
Have any questions or feedback for this newsletter? If so, please email me
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