Later today I'll play the WSOP Colossus, being hyped as the biggest poker tournament IN HISTORY. I think they may be right. Over 2 days they are expecting around 20,000 players all with a shot at the $5m guaranteed prize pool, which obviously they have smashed already. First rule of running poker tournaments-don't offer a guarantee unless you know you're going to exceed it.
This event is good for poker in that's it's affordable and gives everyone a shot at a WSOP event, a bracelet, and serious money. I feel from an organisational point it's going to be an utter clusterfuck to run properly based on sheer numbers. They'll do the best they can. I know people who have bought in for all 4 flights, and are willing to spend a small fortune in this. I'm playing 1B tonight, and possibly one more stab depending on my feeling after the first one if absolutely merited. Updates on this page later today.
Yesterday both sucked and was cool. I busted in the Nugget event to my buddy Dan Goldman, super nice guy. No-one likes busting out, especially with kings, but the saving grace for me is the chips went to someone I respect, and he went on to cash 15th.
After the event I went to the Rio with the thought of possibly buying for colossus 1D, but the lines there were insane and I gave up. As an aside I went back at 3am and the lines were just as bad. I will play by ear.
I hooked up later on yesterday with a new pal who I'd met for the first time at a WSOP dinner the other night. We hung out with various poker people we both knew at the Rio for a bit, then took off for a late bite at an Irish bar that I know,and spent the next few hours basically bullshitting together, putting the world to rights, finding random things to laugh or bitch at, then had a very long drive up, down and around the Las Vegas strip with the top down on the car exploring iPod music and Spotify at high volume, singing very loudly (and in my case, very badly). All pretty low key but quite honestly just what I needed after busting out of an event yet again and feeling kind of low. Maybe sometimes I'm not as complicated as I like to imagine I am. Sometimes smiling a bit can be enough.
Updates later tonight at the Rio. Stay tuned.
We're off in the colossus.... I arrived 15 min late due to their being NO parking spaces in a 10,000 space parking lot.
Already on level 2 and I've won one small pot. Few chatty guys and one chatty cute girl, and about 5 robots.
Level 3 and the cute girl busted with QJ vs AQ on a QQ384 board. Personally I wasn't getting 5k in with either of those hands at any point in the hand, but it takes all sorts.
20 min left of the level and I'm just existing right now. Happy to sit back and see what's going on with the table right now.
Sigh.................. I tried the approach of sitting back, however I just flopped a straight with 10 6 in the big blind in a 3 way unraised pot (789 flop) bet it all the way vs one opponent, who rivered a boat once most of the money was already in. No one did much wrong. I was protecting my hand and he was hoping his set paired up. My 5k is now 1900 and there's a break in 8 mins, with me reevaluating my tournament strategy to make it there.
Back after 20 minutes of desert fresh air. Find myself in the big blind at 100/200 and get a walk. I won't complain. I'd far rather jam or rejam with a workable hand here than try to see flops obviously. I think while I have enough chips to dent someone's stack I need to use it and try to get something going. Defensive poker is crappy enough as it is without bleeding to death in a 20,000 player field on level 4. Wait and see.
I've squeezed out an ace and one shitty card 6 times since we got back from break. On each occasion it's been raised about half my stack before it got to me thus nullifying any chance of a shove I could make getting through. Getting thin and now 6 minutes to go before we hit level 5. This is where the 25 antes kick in. I've a useless stack but at least if I get that far there are chips to be won by jamming besides just the blinds.
Down to 700 (!) chips at 100/200/25. I pushed on a flopped flush draw into 4 people and got it through. Back to about 2k which isn't ideal but better than 700.
The guy who made a boat vs my straight has been drinking champagne pretty much non stop, has played too many pots and has gone from 10k to out whilst I've been updating.
Quickly whittled back to 1400 and looking for a spot. I find it with one limper and jam Kc9c. My read is right and the limpers and blinds fold.however one guy who has a 25 chip invested decides that his KQ is worth another 1375. Again I flop a flush draw, the board also pairs giving me chop possibilities, but I brick everything on the river and I'm out.
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