Quote from Kenny Wells in the movie "Gold":
"The only card that matters is the last one you turn over". Let's go with that.
30K chips and 45 min levels. 153 initial starters. Let's do it.
Immediate chip leader in the room as I win the first hand of the event with 10 10 on a 5 J 5 8 board. I think Kenny said the last card you turn over not the first. Still, it's a start.
A nice early flurry of level one hands sees me up to 30K. Flopped a pair and straight flush draw, turned a flush, and had a pair of 10's bluff at the river. Good to know, and no complaints for small early wins.
I recognise the guy to my immediate left from previous events. I'd class him as a bit of a spazz merchant. He thinks betting all the way is how you win, which will make him tricky to play against out of position. He just fired all the way into a guy who rivered Quad Aces, and gave him 7500 or so.
My theory is confirmed when I raise with 9h 7h and he comes along. The flop of 6h 8s 3h is a good one for me and I fire out 700. He makes it 2000, but I'm not going away. I river a flush and win a small pot to hit 35K.
He looks a lot like he either wants to try to win this before level 3, or more likely, that he's going to blow his brains out. Happy to make it 3K preflop at 100/100. Wait him out.
Level 2 and down to 32K again. No big fuss, just playing small ball pots. Screen showing 232/235 so obviously a few people aren't planning on hanging around today. Big blind ante in effect now so 100/100/100.
Seat 1 just lost a pile, then won a huge pot when he chased down with 43 offsuit to river an ugly straight vs 2 pair with a flush also on board. The 2 pair raised him 15K on the river and he called anyway.
Some poker players really are just retards. I know I've said it before, but it still holds true today. One bets 1700 on the turn. The other raises to 4000, and throws out four 1K chips.
"How much is it?" says the first player? Seriously. I despair sometimes. Really I do.
I just get what I consider to be a bad beat. I get moved to a new table. This one contains 4 unsmiling Asians, and my neighbour on the left who looks to be going for the whole sensory deprivation thing with huge headphones and dark glasses. Wonderful.
I drop to 31K as we hit the first break.
One kid is wearing a "Run it Up" hoodie with a complimenting "Run it up" T Shirt. I'm sure they vastly improve his game.
I guess not. He just bluffed off 12K or so with A7 offsuit to the robot on my left.
I drop to 26K when 3 decent starting hands miss everything. 268/279 remain.
Up to level 4, and 100/200/200. As tables go, this is pretty tough, and this is largely the kind of horrible picking away/min bet/don't fold any possible draw kind of poker that the kids love, and I hate. It isn't actual poker to me. It's just constant min betting and just seeing a future in every single flop. I could fill pages on why I don't consider it to be real poker, but let's save that for another time and just keep going.
Still on 25K. The statue on my left just tried 3-barrelling with J7 vs A 10 on a 10 2 5 2 7 board. The 8K river bet was quickly called. This is poker Jim, but really not as we know it.
315/337 remaining as we approach level 5.
I drop down to 22K when I lose Ah Qh to the Run it Up Kid who actually wakes up with a hand...AA. Earlier he called 1500 preflop with 52 and flopped bottom 2 and ironed out QQ. It really is a skill game.
Second break and still on 22K. My first table was far better for me than this one, which is just a min-bet war of attrition with grinders who aren't folding 90% of the time. For now I'm just keeping it tight. No need to get too flairy just yet.
Back from break and first hand AK misses everything. 19K.
I just raised with Qs Js and the robot called me. It came 9s 10s 4h and I led out. I get called.
Turn is the Ad. I fire again and she calls.
River is the Ac. She bets 1200 and I fold. She shows an Ace. Wonderful.
Level 6, and I'm on 19K. The robot imploded and called off 15K on the river to Run it Up boy who had the nuts. She went down to 7K or so, then shipped it in with A5 offsuit (no clubs) on an Ace high 3 club flop, She gets called by second pair with no clubs and wins.
I'm out. I can't really find a way to pick apart what just happened without coming to the conclusion that I just did everything right, and the other guy just decided he doesn't like money that much, but hey, here goes.
I look down under the gun at AK offsuit. I'm not a fan of raising with this most of the time. I'd rather reraise with it, but of course the dynamic of the table is always a big factor. By now I have about 4 players at the table pegged as guys who like to throw out a raise if it looks like it might take down the pot, so I'm sandbagging with the intent to play a big pot and possibly just win uncontested.
Blinds are 200/400/400. I limp for 400, and the guy two to my left also calls. I know he can be tricky too, and as the action is folded round we get one more caller, and now a fourth player makes it 1600 to play.
I'm pretty sure the guy on my left wants to reraise now, so I flat call the 1600. As predicted, this player now makes it 3600. The next player folds leaving 400 behind, and the guy who initially raised now scratches his head, and also calls the 3600. Back to me.
In my mind, this has just about worked out perfectly for me. There is around 8200 in the pot, and no-one is really showing great strength. It's just jostling around. Now I pull the trigger, and rather than flat the 3600 and hope to flop perfect, I move all-in for 19K in total.
The guy who made it 3600 squirms about, but I've seen this show plenty of times before, he's folding 100%, he just wants his squeeze play to look like it was actually a real hand. He mucks, and it's back to the first player who made it 1600, then also called the 3600. He has about 27K in total. He gets the count, and then calls, for over 70% of his stack preflop.
He turns over 77. Wait. What?
Yep. 77. Worth 19K of anyone's money to call a 4 bet shove into two people.
The board runs out 3293Q. That's the end of my main event.
This feels familiar and quite honestly, I'm surprised, but I don't even flinch. I congratulate him, and leave the table. It was only a $1600 main with $1M guaranteed, no big deal.
I'm not going to bitch about it. As I've often said here, people can do what they like with their money and their chips. To me it's a horrible call, but I'm out so what so I know, maybe it's a horrible shove on my part. When he calls, he's flipping at best, and calling an all-in to flip for stacks is just bad poker. I'm sure an expert out there somewhere will critique the play for me. Poker has plenty of them.
For this trip, I'm done. I am about as upbeat and positive about playing poker and with the natural (and unnatural) ups and downs of the game as a person possibly could be I think. However, I can only play well and still get bounced out so many times before I have to say enough is enough. There is an Encore $600 in 3 or 4 days, but honestly, I think for this trip I'm just finished, rather than be in the spot of hoping for a big cash in a final tournament to save the trip. I think I'll just call it a day, regroup, and plan the next assault. I'm sorry for the guys and girls who are sweating the action. I've tried, and I hope you can see that, but it's been pain and more pain over and over. Sometimes the right thing to do with a bad trip is just end it, so that's what I'm going to do.
"The only card that matters is the last one you turn over". Let's go with that.
30K chips and 45 min levels. 153 initial starters. Let's do it.
Immediate chip leader in the room as I win the first hand of the event with 10 10 on a 5 J 5 8 board. I think Kenny said the last card you turn over not the first. Still, it's a start.
A nice early flurry of level one hands sees me up to 30K. Flopped a pair and straight flush draw, turned a flush, and had a pair of 10's bluff at the river. Good to know, and no complaints for small early wins.
I recognise the guy to my immediate left from previous events. I'd class him as a bit of a spazz merchant. He thinks betting all the way is how you win, which will make him tricky to play against out of position. He just fired all the way into a guy who rivered Quad Aces, and gave him 7500 or so.
My theory is confirmed when I raise with 9h 7h and he comes along. The flop of 6h 8s 3h is a good one for me and I fire out 700. He makes it 2000, but I'm not going away. I river a flush and win a small pot to hit 35K.
He looks a lot like he either wants to try to win this before level 3, or more likely, that he's going to blow his brains out. Happy to make it 3K preflop at 100/100. Wait him out.
Level 2 and down to 32K again. No big fuss, just playing small ball pots. Screen showing 232/235 so obviously a few people aren't planning on hanging around today. Big blind ante in effect now so 100/100/100.
Seat 1 just lost a pile, then won a huge pot when he chased down with 43 offsuit to river an ugly straight vs 2 pair with a flush also on board. The 2 pair raised him 15K on the river and he called anyway.
Some poker players really are just retards. I know I've said it before, but it still holds true today. One bets 1700 on the turn. The other raises to 4000, and throws out four 1K chips.
"How much is it?" says the first player? Seriously. I despair sometimes. Really I do.
I just get what I consider to be a bad beat. I get moved to a new table. This one contains 4 unsmiling Asians, and my neighbour on the left who looks to be going for the whole sensory deprivation thing with huge headphones and dark glasses. Wonderful.
I drop to 31K as we hit the first break.
One kid is wearing a "Run it Up" hoodie with a complimenting "Run it up" T Shirt. I'm sure they vastly improve his game.
I guess not. He just bluffed off 12K or so with A7 offsuit to the robot on my left.
I drop to 26K when 3 decent starting hands miss everything. 268/279 remain.
Up to level 4, and 100/200/200. As tables go, this is pretty tough, and this is largely the kind of horrible picking away/min bet/don't fold any possible draw kind of poker that the kids love, and I hate. It isn't actual poker to me. It's just constant min betting and just seeing a future in every single flop. I could fill pages on why I don't consider it to be real poker, but let's save that for another time and just keep going.
Still on 25K. The statue on my left just tried 3-barrelling with J7 vs A 10 on a 10 2 5 2 7 board. The 8K river bet was quickly called. This is poker Jim, but really not as we know it.
315/337 remaining as we approach level 5.
I drop down to 22K when I lose Ah Qh to the Run it Up Kid who actually wakes up with a hand...AA. Earlier he called 1500 preflop with 52 and flopped bottom 2 and ironed out QQ. It really is a skill game.
Second break and still on 22K. My first table was far better for me than this one, which is just a min-bet war of attrition with grinders who aren't folding 90% of the time. For now I'm just keeping it tight. No need to get too flairy just yet.
Back from break and first hand AK misses everything. 19K.
I just raised with Qs Js and the robot called me. It came 9s 10s 4h and I led out. I get called.
Turn is the Ad. I fire again and she calls.
River is the Ac. She bets 1200 and I fold. She shows an Ace. Wonderful.
Level 6, and I'm on 19K. The robot imploded and called off 15K on the river to Run it Up boy who had the nuts. She went down to 7K or so, then shipped it in with A5 offsuit (no clubs) on an Ace high 3 club flop, She gets called by second pair with no clubs and wins.
I'm out. I can't really find a way to pick apart what just happened without coming to the conclusion that I just did everything right, and the other guy just decided he doesn't like money that much, but hey, here goes.
I look down under the gun at AK offsuit. I'm not a fan of raising with this most of the time. I'd rather reraise with it, but of course the dynamic of the table is always a big factor. By now I have about 4 players at the table pegged as guys who like to throw out a raise if it looks like it might take down the pot, so I'm sandbagging with the intent to play a big pot and possibly just win uncontested.
Blinds are 200/400/400. I limp for 400, and the guy two to my left also calls. I know he can be tricky too, and as the action is folded round we get one more caller, and now a fourth player makes it 1600 to play.
I'm pretty sure the guy on my left wants to reraise now, so I flat call the 1600. As predicted, this player now makes it 3600. The next player folds leaving 400 behind, and the guy who initially raised now scratches his head, and also calls the 3600. Back to me.
In my mind, this has just about worked out perfectly for me. There is around 8200 in the pot, and no-one is really showing great strength. It's just jostling around. Now I pull the trigger, and rather than flat the 3600 and hope to flop perfect, I move all-in for 19K in total.
The guy who made it 3600 squirms about, but I've seen this show plenty of times before, he's folding 100%, he just wants his squeeze play to look like it was actually a real hand. He mucks, and it's back to the first player who made it 1600, then also called the 3600. He has about 27K in total. He gets the count, and then calls, for over 70% of his stack preflop.
He turns over 77. Wait. What?
Yep. 77. Worth 19K of anyone's money to call a 4 bet shove into two people.
The board runs out 3293Q. That's the end of my main event.
This feels familiar and quite honestly, I'm surprised, but I don't even flinch. I congratulate him, and leave the table. It was only a $1600 main with $1M guaranteed, no big deal.
I'm not going to bitch about it. As I've often said here, people can do what they like with their money and their chips. To me it's a horrible call, but I'm out so what so I know, maybe it's a horrible shove on my part. When he calls, he's flipping at best, and calling an all-in to flip for stacks is just bad poker. I'm sure an expert out there somewhere will critique the play for me. Poker has plenty of them.
For this trip, I'm done. I am about as upbeat and positive about playing poker and with the natural (and unnatural) ups and downs of the game as a person possibly could be I think. However, I can only play well and still get bounced out so many times before I have to say enough is enough. There is an Encore $600 in 3 or 4 days, but honestly, I think for this trip I'm just finished, rather than be in the spot of hoping for a big cash in a final tournament to save the trip. I think I'll just call it a day, regroup, and plan the next assault. I'm sorry for the guys and girls who are sweating the action. I've tried, and I hope you can see that, but it's been pain and more pain over and over. Sometimes the right thing to do with a bad trip is just end it, so that's what I'm going to do.
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