Been playing a few more games on Stars recently, most notably Stud ($1/$2 and $2/$4) and Triple Draw ($0.5/$1 to $2/$4). Those have been a nice break from Omaha all the time, and I have been doing pretty well. I've about doubled my Stars roll since my initial deposit, and I feel like I am really playing much better. Not sure if I will play live this weekend or just stay at home, since Stars has double VPP's and FPP's all this week. On the one hand, the live games are better and have more money in them, but on the other, it takes gas to get there, and I get nothing for playing. Hmmm...
Also, entered one Double Shoot-out for the Sunday Mil, played very well, lost a coinflip with 4 left, and cashed for just a little. Somewhat frustrating, but it's OK. Not like I would have played anyway.
Still excited for Vegas. Less than a week to go and I'm happy that I've been playing a lot better and keeping my focus at the table. As long as I stick to my comfortable games, I should be fine.
Anyway, yeah, Triple Draw can be a crazy game, but so far at Stars the players have been HORRIBLE and can't seem to grasp the rudimentary grasp of the game. It's definitely a drawing and potentially frustrating game, but I like it more than other lowball games. I've also been learning a lot, both from reading Negreanu's chapter in SS2, and from some of the experience I've gained. For one thing, I have a newfound respect for the importance of a deuce, and the drawbacks to holding a 6 (makes the draw rather rough). I used to play hands like 3456x out of position to a raise, but now I'm more used to either mucking it, or throwing out the 6 with the x to try and draw smooth. It's pretty essential to have a deuce and probably be drawing to wheel when playing multiway, at least before the first draw. Then there's the business of what happens if you catch an 8, but that's another discussion for another time.