So here I sit, in my room after a decent night out, following one of the worst feelings of my life. Pure gut punch. But first, let's go full Quentin Tarantino mode and rewind back to where the last blog left off. Apologize for the potential length of this in advance.
The Venetian $340 on Thursday was a bit of a disaster. I got in late thanks to having to wait to get a Grazie card and the line was approximately 423146t21874612783 people long. Once in, we started a 4 handed table(the minimum they'd let the dealer play with). Right away I played a weird pot. 4 handed, I raise button(blinds 50/100, stack I think was 12k, maybe 15 I can't remember how they're structured), I raise to 300 on the button with Q/10o(black), and get a caller in the BB. Flop is Ac/6h/8h, he checks, I bet 475, he flats. Turn is a 2s. He checks, I decide to barrel through the turn because I feel like it's going to be hard for him to call 3 streets with a bare ace, and his pre and post flop lines rarely include big aces. He either has bare aces, mid pairs, or a flush draw, all of which is going to fold to repeated action. So I bet 775 on the turn and he flats again. River is a Ks. He checks a third time, and I bet, kind of working on the assumption that this might be a bard card to do this with because he can clearly have a King high flush draw and just get stubborn now that he made a pair. I bet 1450 and he called and showed KJhh. I'm not sure how much I like betting the river...against more competent players I like it, but live poker man, the players just don't ever fold.
After that hand I chipped up and down for a while, rocky day overall. I got to 20k when I raised button with 68o, got a caller, and flop was 5/7/9 and we got it in and he had 7/8. Then I lost half of it in a pot where a guy raised from MP, I 3-bet button with A6ss, flop was 8/3/2 rainbow, he check called a c-bet on the flop. Turn was an ace, he check called the turn, and the river was another 8. Luckily live players are awful, and he checked giving away any value(not sure if I call, probably not, but still didn't even give himself a chance, when am I ever betting the river unless I have an 8 as well or a boat?). He had 89 btw.
Bust hand was standard, got it in with ~30 BB with JJ vs AQ and he won the flip. Busted in time to go register for a $130 6-max at Caesers which seemed like a good tournament. Unfortunately it took almost no time for me to lose it. I drew a soft table, and just went full blown psycho mode, raising and 3-betting a maniacal amount of hands and steamrolling the table. Then this guy and I went to war blind on blind where I had a hand(99) in the SB, raised, he 3-bet, I 4-bet, he 5-bet jammed and I called. He showed 6/2o and the flop was 8/2/2. Truly psycho shit.
After that I met up with Shyam, Griff, St.Jean, David and the rest of the crew and we went to some Chinese food place that was pretty terrible. After that I went and spent some time with a few friends, then headed home for the night.
Friday, Caesers $340 buyin.
This tourney was structured beyond terrible. I really can't stress enough, Caesers seems like a decent tourney to play in, but don't do it. Go do anything else. Burn money and laugh about it. But don't play there ever. Why in Gods name do the antes take 27 years to kick in? Good god. 500/1000? That's really where you're starting antes? That's pathetic. Really pathetic. It gives good players who know how to accumulate by grabbing tons of small pots less of a chance, because we have a harder time building a stack before suddenly all hell breaks loose.
Anyway, Caesers went fairly bad for me for a bit, then I lost a big flip and was down to 2 BB. I worked that back into nearly 40 BB and then live poker bit me in the ass again. Guy raises the cut-off, he's fairly aggro and he's got chips. I 3-bet ready to get it in with him pre, but he just flats instead. My 3-bet sizing because I was from the BB was fairly big, him flatting was worst case scenario, even though I feel like I crush his range, I don't like playing this inflated pot OOP now. Flop is A/Q/7 and that certainly makes things better. I lead out small hoping to induce a raise, which he obliges me. Now the thing about his raise sizing that was weird(especially given his hand which I'll get to in a sec) is he over-raises, and basically commits himself. Which again, once you hear his hand, is beyond a terrible play. It's actually the worst play of all time. I obviously ship knowing he can't fold, he snaps it off and shows me AA. What the fuck are you doing on the flop dude? Busto.
So I skip over to the Venetian where Shyam is still in, with a stack in the $2100 event. Drop off a portable cell phone charger(if you've never seen one or don't have one, they're an absolute life saver for live poker, because I spend almost every minute I'm not directly in a hand, on my iPhone), then me, Griff and David go eat at Grand Lux in Venetian, which is a nice, Cheesecake Factory style restaraunt. We order way too many apps, and barely even touch the main courses. Side note here, I am first safe in CCR(Credit Card Roulette) when we play it(important because my run good in CCR so far on this trip is second to none).
After that, we head over to the Rio to register for the $1500 on Saturday, and then go rail Chris Moorman(MoormanI or Moorman1) at the final table of the $2500 6-max. Disgusting end to the event, he gets all the money in with KJ vs K9, flop Q/10/6, turn 8, river J. After that(by the way, crazy cool scene, he had like 300 drunk as hell English supporters singing and cheering like it was a soccer game), we just go chill for a bit then head home for the night.
Saturday, Day 1 $1500 WSOP.
Start out at my table and it's pretty weak. There's a Russian Team Pokerstars pro I don't recognize(younger guy), who I own in this pot with a bluff. Then lose a fair sized pot where I could have gone broke potentially, 10/10 in the BB, the SB limp calls. Flop is A/J/6, he check calls the flop, then it goes check check check turn and river, and he shows me AK? Oooookay then.
After about 30 minutes or so, a table breaks, and Griffin(Flush_Entity) Benger, my backer, draws onto my table. Not only does he show up, but Jordan(Jymaster11) Young, who started on Griff's table, also somehow draws onto my table too. Nice randomization WSOP. So now it's Griff in seat 1, Jordan in seat 2, me in seat 3. Nice. Over this time, I win a few nice pots(QQ > JJ and QQ > AK), and after about 3 hours that table breaks and I leave there with 14k, a nice stack. Right away at my new table, 14k becomes a real stack. New table is soft, Haralabos Voulgaris is at my table to my left, but he's not really getting involved much. So I run the table over a bit, then a player opens from MP, I 3-bet button with AA, BB cold 4-bets, I 5-bet jam, and he calls with JJ, I hold and have 28k at dinner break. A real solid stack. For dinner, we all go to Gaylord Indian restaraunt at the Rio, there's a whole group of us, and again...CCR I'm the 2nd one safe this time. Bill was >$500.
Back to action, I chip up with lots of smallish pots, and have around $40k, then play a weird pot I've talked to a few online pros that were in the tournament at that point, not to mention everyone I would normally discuss the hand with, and I think I misplayed it. Aggro asian kid raises the CO, and I 3-bet out of the BB with KJo. He flats. Flop is A/10/4. I c-bet and he flats again. Turn is gin, a Q. I checked, and upon reflection I don't like it. I really don't think in this spot, he's floating here with much air, so I'm giving up so much value from his hands here. He did bet, and I flatted the turn. River was a disaster, a K which destroyed all my action and I win a small one.
Eventually fairly late in the day, I've run the stack up to about 55k when disaster strikes. Blinds at 100/400/800, folds around to the hijack and he raises it to 2200. I 3-bet to 5700 with AK. He 4-bet jams for 28k, and I call. He has 10/10 and holds. After that I chip up a little touch and end day one with 30,500. Certainly not a disaster, we're under 100 players from money, I have 30 blinds to start day two, it's all good. But that pot was massive, I could have had 85k heading into day 2. After the long day, I'm dead, so I go home and crash.
Sunday, $1500 WSOP Day 2.
Wake up feeling good. Check pokernews and fight out I drew an amazing table where no one has over 42k so my 30.5k will have tons of play and moveability. I should be in great shape. Table also seems weak as hell, only name I regonize is Eric Cloutier. Get to the Rio and I'm feeling good. Get started, and the day is up and down to start. First hand I play is the third hand dealt. This kid who had just won a fair sized pot when he flatted a 3-bet OOP then check-raise shoved the flop of 9/6/4 and made someone fold, opens to 2400. I 3-bet from the cut-off with AK to 5800, and he flats. The flop is 8/7/5hh, and he straight leads 17k. I folded.
Next weird hand was against Eric Cloutier. I raise from MP with AQcc to 2200, and he flats on the button. Flop is A/Q/6. I lead 2800, he puts out 2800, but makes some big fuss about the 500 and how he thought it was a 5k chip and he meant to raise. I have no idea how to take this to be honest, because 5k chips aren't even in play yet, and there's no way he's that stupid. Turn is a brick(3), and I led 3300. Maybe I should check the turn, if he thinks I'm stupid enough to fall for that bullshit little ploy, maybe he puts money in after my check. Anyway, he folds the turn.
A few more smallish pots, then the money bubble bursts. Few hands after that, this fairly solid kid who got crippled with Cloutier 4-bet jammed 44 into his KK and made a straight, shoves for 7700 with blinds at 600/1200. I'm in the BB without a huge stack, still sitting around 30k, but I have A/4o, so I call. He has 8/6cc, and flops an eight and holds. That hurt. Few hands later win another pot off Cloutier where I raise pre, drill a flop and get 2 streets of value from him this time, so I'm back at around 37k when it all goes to shit.
Blinds still 200/600/1200, a tight player raises UTG to 2600. I flat the button with 88. After some discussion with Shyam and company, maybe it's a mistake to flat here, but it feels to nitty to fold that hand. 66 I agree I'm too short to set mine, but 88 feels like I can still take a flop and deal with it post flop in position, despite the fact that his range is pretty snug. Regardless, I flatted, and the flop was a masterpiece. 8/5/2 rainbow. He checks to me, so I bet a nice little inducing 2300, and he straight jams it in my face. I snap call, he shows AA. Turn is a 4(why?), river is an Ace. Fuck. My. Life. 75k pot was right there. A real legitimate stack, deep in that tourney was right there. And they ripped it away from me. Cashed for $2800. Didn't even stick around to collect the money(going to have to do that at some point).
After that I went home, did nothing for a while, then went out and grabbed dinner with Shyam, Griff and Saunders at Samba Steakhouse at Mirage. Once again, 2nd one out of CCR(I'm sure writing this post is terrible karma and I'm about to get fucked hard on the next CCR round, but so far so good). After that, we go do some shopping in Caesers, and then go home to crash.
Not really sure what tomorrow brings. There's nothing really that appeals to me. There's a $1600 at Venetian which is a bit too big I think, especially since there's no hold'em event at the WSOP tomorrow, which means that tourney is going to be shark infested to say the least. There's a $130 at Caesers which I can't bring myself to play because of a) seems like way too much work for a buyin that small, prize pool just can't be worth it, and b) I hate the structures, seriously, why the hell are antes kicking in so late?
I might go do Golden Nugget, they have a $230 or something going, and their tournaments were structured fairly well. Plus, because it's downtown literally 0 good players will be playing it. Literally. 0. So maybe that's where I go. We'll see when I wake up. Anyway, that's it for now. Sleep time.
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