Yesterday's event wasn't a non-starter, by very virtue of the fact that I played it for nine levels or so. It was however, pretty unspectacular, in a few respects. There wasn't much swashbuckling on my part, which in itself was OK as the table didn't fit that mode, and also I was feeling a bit below par in myself. Not to the extent that I was actually ill, but just...out of sorts a little. Halloween normally is a great time to get a bit wild in Las Vegas, I watched part of a movie with some pals, fell asleep for the rest of it, and then went home and slept some more. Very rock and roll.
I was also a bit disappointed in my updates. I know people tune in for various reasons, the two most popular ones being to see if I either a) win something, or b) crash and burn in some spectacular yet entertaining fashion. The odd few (very odd) people like to read my ramblings, but truth be told, it was a pretty dull day without much to report most of the time. I can embellish a story a bit to make it moderately amusing but I need a bit to work with. It was essentially six or seven hours treading water.
Today, however, is a new ball game, as it were. I wasn't feeling great yesterday, but today I've woken, ran 4 miles, eaten a sensible non deep-fried breakfast, and as a result feel much more prepared and in a more positive frame of mind. First hand in this I raise with Q 10 and flop top two. I value town my opponent and add 5k to my stack from the get-go. Easy game this.
Kathy Liebert joins the table on my left and we exchange pleasantries. We've played together a fair bit in tournaments over the years. It's sometimes good to have a bit of familiarity at the table.
27k following the break. One young quite aggressive kid just got the full double up with 44 on a 24K flop, when the guy with AA stacked off for 20k. Silly stuff.
I just lost a few chips when I three barrelled a Brazilian guy who is wearing the biggest watch I've ever seen. If anyone tries to mug him in the parking lot he can just hit them with it. In the hand in question here he called three bets with ace high, which was good. Not ideal and it cost me about 4k, but I consider it a worthwhile investment for the information.
Just hit level 6 and I'm on 22k. 194 players currently bought in and we are down to 130.
Oops. we just lost Kathy, courtesy of yours truly.
I raised with 24 off (as you do), on the button versus only the blinds. Kathy played back with 88 from the small blind, and the flop came 537. She led out with a small stack, and as I comfortably had her covered,I decided to just move her in rather than call and then miss the turn and be in a bad decision spot. This way I may just get a fold on the flop if she has nothing at all. She called for another 6k or so, I turned a 5 and rivered a 6 to make the straight. I hope we're still friends. I like Kathy. On we go.
Level 7, the second break just passed and I'm on 32k. 200 starters now and 115 left. I contemplated doing another video snippet outside but my spies tell me the audio wasn't too great. Also I think Celine Dion was warbling away in the background, so for that I profoundly apologise.
Absolute sorcery they cried...
I raise with 98 suited, and an older guy grumbled good naturedly (if that's even a thing) abut me raising his big blind repeatedly. He raises me to 3500 and I call. Flop comes KJ2. He bets out for 4000. I say to him "that's not a great flop for a pair of queens is it?" Some other wag at the table smirks "yeah, but you don't have a pair of queens."
"No I don't," I reply, "...but he does." The old guy turns over his QQ and looks somewhat befuddled, but wins the pot.
My table just broke, which is not ideal and I immediately lose some chips with JJ in a four way pot when I fold to a shove from AA. Ho hum, back down to 24k at 300/600/75. Immediately after I get KK (what a life) and let the guy with A5 hang himself by betting into me all the way. An ace on the river costs me about 10k even though we both check, and I'm down to 20k or so. Not great, but I just suck it up and move on.
We just reached the colour up, and are about to go 400/800/100. Time to run good.
This table has a few friendly faces, but plenty of sour ones too. A big stack (like 100k just got moved onto my right, and instantly spacked off 30k of it with AJ on a Jack high flop against KK. Sigh. How am I not involved in these coups?
The new big stack next bets 60k on the flop the hand immediately afterwards. I'm detecting a pattern, hopefully he's my double up ticket. 98 players left from 208.
Another new table. Not a fan of getting bounced around like this. It makes it difficult to get a rhythm going. We're approaching the dinner break and I'm on around 19k at 500/1000/100. i've seen some shocking shoves and even worse calls on the table here so far, so i may have to just grab my ankles and hope for the best.
Yet another table break. these guys are killing me. I've edged back up to 24k.
The WSOP main event final table is showing on ESPN, and the game is moving slowly as a result of players and dealers watching the screens. I'm possibly the only one not engrossed in it, which surprises a few people. I guess I'm an oddity. If I'm not playing in an event, or if I've busted out, unless a REALLY good friend is going deep, I'm simply not interested in what's going on. I know I'm the exception rather than the rule, but hell. there it is.
Nice opportunity to squeeze presented itself just before the dinner break (the final hand to be precise). It bounced me back up to around 40k which was a nice spot in which to find myself after languishing on 17-19k. Thirty minutes to me isn't viable to have dinner in, so instead I find a pal and we catch up on the gossip of each other's lives for a bit.
Back from dinner and lost a smallish one with K10 suited on a K36 flop. I folded the flop when raised, and I was shown 33. Marvellous.
I've bobbed and weaved (woven?) but have gone back to 22k after a catalogue of outdraws and missed flops. I won't bore you with the details, because the details are well...boring, but I will say that one kid who is engrossed in the ESPN channel and is busy giving expert critiques like "he's got a lot of heart" and "I wanted to get three streets of value" now thinks he's playing rather well, when in fact he's played two hands rather shockingly but come out golden. Good on him.
We're on level 11 and I believe we play to the end of level 14. This wouldn't be a good spot in which to bust (is there ever one?), but this isn't a good enough stack to take through to day 2 so I'm going to need to start punting. Luckily, this looks like the table on which to get paid.
49 left from the final number of 249 starters as we approach level 12.
Ask and ye shall receive. JJ vs AQ and I river a Jack for good measure. Back to 37k as we go to 1k/2k/300.
And...down again to 20kK AK loses to A7 when we flop an ace and he turns a seven. I may have got out cheap.
Cute French (I think) girl just busted horribly, when she shoved about 12k on a J67 flop (she had 98), and was called by K 10 offshuit, who won with King high when everything bricked. He looked like it was the most natural call in the world. Shame. She was lovely to look at and now I'm stuck with a table of questionably dressed guys with poor taste in jewellery.
Next break, more turmoil as I run 99 into 88, which is normally supposed to win. 15k and again looking for a spot.
I find it and jam A9 offsuit into the big blind who played so horribly against cute French girl. He duly calls me...with Q5 offsuit, I flop a nine and luckily it's good enough. This guy really doesn't have a fold button.
Nice French guy sits down on my left, with possibly 250k. Gulp. Level 13 now and needing something to materialize. 39 left.
Argh. Two orbits with nothing at all and here comes the shove.... I find the mighty 22 in the cutoff, and the small blind, nice German guy wakes up with 1010 and isn't folding to my small stack. That as they say, is that. around ten hours of ducking and diving for nothing. Welcome to tournament poker folks. If you're going to bitch about it, don't bother playing. Looking on the bright side, I can play super laggy tomorrow starting out if I choose, as getting chips is the goal (hey, I'm trying to put a positive spin on it). Maybe I should have done that today a little more after my decent initial start. Who knows? Hindsight is a wonderful thing.