We're off and running. Called a small raise first hand with a nice holding but it got instantly re popped to 4k by a big stack so I decided to choose my battles after the original raiser folded, and went away. I won't be doing that too often but first hand of the day it felt right.
Without going into graphic detail, some of the play I've witnessed so far today on this table has been pretty shocking, some of it for pots over 50k. There are at least two good double up spots at the table, but I will have to hold tight and push hard most likely. I don't have the chips right now to exercise any flair at all, so it's simply down to having the best hand hold up.
Yay. Just won my first pot of the day. Unfortunately it was a tiny one and was just the blinds and antes. Still not in a good spot.
Just lost another one blind vs blind. I flopped bottom pair but he made a backdoor straight, and my hand was so bad and chips so low I really couldn't do much in the hand. Still not good. Not what you want to hear I know guys, but it's not where I want to be either.
30 mins to go till the end of the first level, and it's not been a good one. Missed every flop, won one pot. Hopefully happier times to come.
Went down to around 9k and raised with 99. Got reraised by an Australian guy with AK, and I shoved. He called and luckily I flopped a set. Back up to 20ish.
Almost immediately afterwards I find QQ and lose 6 of it back again on the worst board you've ever seen. I then find aces and win the blinds. Marvellous.
Coming up to the first break. I'm on a still alive but not ideal 14k. We come back at 300/600/75 so certainly not out of the woods yet.
30 mins in and still grinding. Obviously if I get to play a pot anytime soon one for all the marbles for a full double up would be preferred. I don't have enough wiggle room right now and I'd normally see a lot more flops than I currently am due to stack size. It is what it is.
Back up to around 20k with a dazzling display of willpower, and also having the best hand stand up.
Nice Aussie guy two to my right is stealing more than his share of a few pots and gently increasing his stack. He'll likely be the guy I 4-bet shove on at the key points.
He's reading my updates so I just thought I'd share that with him for comedy value :o)
The pot that was going to get me back into this show just bit me in the ass and halved my stack. Or saved me depending on how you look at the way I played it.
With a bit if action preflop and me holding Ad9d, I flopped AK3 with two diamonds. Something didn't feel right, and I check-called right to the river which didn't bring the flush. My genial opponent had AK and wasn't folding the flop or turn obviously, so I'm back to 12k but would have been eliminated had I opted to shove on the flop.
We're now at the high spot of my day chip wise, and I'm up to 26k. I've made a few moves but normally with the best hand or the best draw. I like the table a lot. No one is particularly miserable. People are playing OK but there's certainly a few spots to make some money. I'll keep going as I am at present. In 10 mins we end level 7 and take a 20 minute break.
I flop top pair and a big combo draw. My big stack opponent bets flop, turn and river and I miss everything. Now back on 12k at end of the level. A lot of the cool kids would simply have said just get it in on the flop, however most of those cool kids are already out, or didn't play the main event to begin with. It's a blow but I'm still going.
Frame of mind in these things is of course very important. Most a of the staff try very hard and do a great job. My mood just plummeted due to a floor guy and his "procedure" combined with a complete failure to listen to a single word I just said to him.
I have all the green chips so since this break is the colour up, I'm still at the table. Also due to the fact that this will represent around 50% of my stack(about 6k in green 25s) I asked if the floor man could change me up before he walks in the opposite direction to colour up another 5 tables first. His initial response:
"You have to leave, you're not allowed to be in this area during the colour up".
I explain I'm aware of the way it works. I'm just asking if he can colour up my table now before he does the other(all empty) tables, so I can leave and have a small amount of the break left. His new response:
"No I can't. I have a procedure".
My response:
"OK. Thanks for not actually paying any attention at all to what I just said".
I will likely now come back from the break to find myself with two orange 5k chips and some change. Because "that's the way he'll do it". Maybe the explanation I've given doesn' t properly explain the situation or my frustration(it basically means I'll have about 5 chips when I come back meaning I'm either a target or I'm getting called when I shove much more easily). I most certainly don't expect super special treatment from anyone at all, however I do expect courtesy, a degree of common sense, and the ability to listen to what a customer actually is trying to say. I got none of that, so am a bit frustrated with what I consider extremely poor people skills. It's not the end if the world. I'll certainly rise above it and continue, but in the event of a cash or the time to come to tipping staff, I'd certainly make it known why this guy cost everyone with his extremely offhand manner.
Sigh.
Back to 30k. My AK ran into A3. He flopped a three and stayed around to river an ace for good measure. Ho hum.
And another hit. This is certainly proving to be an up and down day, losing more with my big hands than my crappy ones. Back down to 21k.
Yet more pain, down to 15k after we both flopped a straight draw and missed, but he fired first on the river out of a healthy stack, and I didn't feel like calling for my tournament with five high.
Back to the grind.
My table was a very good one with a mix of both strong and weak players, but all pretty fun to play with. I've got myself back to around 12-13k and raise to 2200 with AK. The woman on my left who smashed another guys KK to pieces earlier with Q10 and pretty much hadn't lost a single pot she's played reraises me to 5k. I politely inform her she's most likely about to lose her first pot of the day, and I push all in.
She calls, tabling AQ. Great stuff.
Unfortunately after a blank flop, she now turns a queen and the river is then a blank. Just like that, after playing what I felt was pretty well for the last two days, I'm gone, courtesy of three outs.
It's upsetting of course, especially when you know where you are in a hand and get the money in as a very comfortable favourite. However nothing with change what's just happened, so there's no point in getting upset or saying anything derogatory. Well played, good luck everyone etc, and leave. I guess I'm supposed to win the main in 2015 and not 2014 after all. Time will tell.
I'll write more later on, but right now despite not being a dick about busting I'm obviously not overjoyed. Thanks for the texts and messages of support. Without getting dewey-eyed they are a big help, and at least show me that people have some faith in my abilities, even when on this trip things haven't gone my way when I needed them to.
I'll write another update tomorrow or later on if I can or maybe do a short video. Right now I'm off to eat, and accept that for me this is simply a dinner break, and not a WSOP dinner break any more.