A relatively quiet day. Put the latest episode of the Donkcast together in the afternoon before heading to the Bike for what was supposed to be a short session at the Bike.
Four hours later I left the table with exactly my initial buy-in from a very interesting $2/3NL table. It started with the guy who raised every hand, often showing his bluffs, which got some other players at the table involved in the bluffing (the 'I'll show him how to bluff' mentality). After a number of players left, there was something of a quiet patch, before a player arrived who every now & then decided to tell you exactly what his hand was and what he was doing ... 'I have six-deuce' and when the flop came JT2 all spades, he would bet, saying 'I hit my deuce ... $15'. Of course this didn't happen every hand, and he would sometimes find other ways to announce his hand 'I have a flush and straight draw, I'm not folding this hand' on a board of KQ9 with two diamonds. Sure enough, a ten would hit the turn & he would be big & show his J5 of diamonds for a chop with the poor guy who flopped the straight with JT.
Of course I didn't pick up many hands, with my biggest being pocket jacks ... which ran into pocket jacks to chop the pot. Managed to get even for the night in a hand with the guy who announced his hand. I limped in early position with QJ & he announced 'I have ace ten, I raise to $15'. Of course with 3 others in the hand I called & saw a jack-high flop, which was checked around. On the turn 9 I bet, and was called by the guy with AT. When the ten came on the river I confidently bet again, and was called, showed my QJ & my opponent kindly showed me his AT.
Fun times.
Also this is my last night in Los Angeles. I have an early morning flight to Las Vegas, with lots more poker on the agenda when in town. Vegas also has the best late-night snack option around - The Earl of Sandwich at Planet Hollywood. Its like Subway, but with Foccacia-like bread. They also do a mean tomato soup!
Next on the agenda: Vegas baby!!
Showing posts with label Bicycle casino. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bicycle casino. Show all posts
Monday, May 24, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
USA Day 16
Now with iPod Touch!
Decided to go shopping this afternoon & picked up an iPod Touch. I like the larger screen size, but am particularly interested in the various apps that are available for it. Yes I already have an iPod classic, but that is limited in its uses - it plays music & video, but does little else. I briefly flirted with the idea of buying an iPad, but it just doesn't seem to be anything in particular. Its not portable enough to be an iPod style MP3 player plus, yet its also not sustantial enough to be a laptop substitute. Anyway, iPod Touch it is. I've already put a few useful poker apps on it (as well as some non-poker ones), but any suggestions for other apps that are worth adding would be greatly appreciated.
As for poker, I played a few hours of $2/3 NLHE at the Bike tonight & picked up a tidy little profit of $200, in spite of a few beats & major sweats.
The big beat of the night was with good old Big Slick (suited mind you!). I raised on the button after a few limpers & 4 of us saw a flop of KT8. I bet about 2/3rds pot & got one caller. The turn was the innocent-looking 2d (though it did bring a diamond draw) & I bet a bit over half pot & was again called. The river was the 4d & my opponent lead out for about 1/3rd pot ($45 on the end). The only hands that made sense for him in this spot (check-calling to the river & then leading at the river) were either a rivered flush or a set, with the flush being much more likely. I figured there wouldn't be much else that he could play that way (if he had 2 pair he most lilely would have raised the flop with a hand like KT) & was expecting him to turn over the flush or a worse king after I made the call. Of course he turned over K4 for a rivered 2 pair! FML indeed!
The sweat of the evening was relatively brief, but definitely concerning while it was a sweat. I picked up AA under-the-gun & made it $10 to go. The cutoff raised to $35. I thought for a while & re-raised to $75 & the cutoff snap-shoved his remaining stack into the middle (roughly $140 total). I called (obviously), but was about ready to throw up in my mouth when I saw the flop: KQ9! In my mind the snap-shove would most likely be either the other AA, KK or QQ ... so I'm probably now either crushed or chopping. When the board ran out with two low cards I turned over my aces, expecting to see a set, however the delay from my opponent was something I wanted to see. he reluctantly showed his hand ... pocket jacks! I scooped the pot worth a little under $300. All in all a reasonable evening.
Next on the agenda: California State Champs Main Event at the Commerce!
Decided to go shopping this afternoon & picked up an iPod Touch. I like the larger screen size, but am particularly interested in the various apps that are available for it. Yes I already have an iPod classic, but that is limited in its uses - it plays music & video, but does little else. I briefly flirted with the idea of buying an iPad, but it just doesn't seem to be anything in particular. Its not portable enough to be an iPod style MP3 player plus, yet its also not sustantial enough to be a laptop substitute. Anyway, iPod Touch it is. I've already put a few useful poker apps on it (as well as some non-poker ones), but any suggestions for other apps that are worth adding would be greatly appreciated.
As for poker, I played a few hours of $2/3 NLHE at the Bike tonight & picked up a tidy little profit of $200, in spite of a few beats & major sweats.
The big beat of the night was with good old Big Slick (suited mind you!). I raised on the button after a few limpers & 4 of us saw a flop of KT8. I bet about 2/3rds pot & got one caller. The turn was the innocent-looking 2d (though it did bring a diamond draw) & I bet a bit over half pot & was again called. The river was the 4d & my opponent lead out for about 1/3rd pot ($45 on the end). The only hands that made sense for him in this spot (check-calling to the river & then leading at the river) were either a rivered flush or a set, with the flush being much more likely. I figured there wouldn't be much else that he could play that way (if he had 2 pair he most lilely would have raised the flop with a hand like KT) & was expecting him to turn over the flush or a worse king after I made the call. Of course he turned over K4 for a rivered 2 pair! FML indeed!
The sweat of the evening was relatively brief, but definitely concerning while it was a sweat. I picked up AA under-the-gun & made it $10 to go. The cutoff raised to $35. I thought for a while & re-raised to $75 & the cutoff snap-shoved his remaining stack into the middle (roughly $140 total). I called (obviously), but was about ready to throw up in my mouth when I saw the flop: KQ9! In my mind the snap-shove would most likely be either the other AA, KK or QQ ... so I'm probably now either crushed or chopping. When the board ran out with two low cards I turned over my aces, expecting to see a set, however the delay from my opponent was something I wanted to see. he reluctantly showed his hand ... pocket jacks! I scooped the pot worth a little under $300. All in all a reasonable evening.
Next on the agenda: California State Champs Main Event at the Commerce!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
USA Day 14 & 15
Yes, I skipped a day. Not much different to other days ... it was more poker!
Played in a 7pm tourney at the Bike & took the now standard bad beat with myself and another player all-in pre-flop 3-ways. I have KK, the short stack has TT & the guy who has us both covered has JJ. Of course the J hits on the flop & I'm out just after the first break.
Also played the $335 at the Commerce (event 19 of the Cal State Champs) & had Jerry Yang (2007 WSOP Main Event winner) sitting directly to my right. After folding for the first level or so I went on a rollercoaster for the whole tournament, which didn't end until I busted (yes, I lasted longer than Jerry Yang!). To give you an idea, here are some of the highlights:
doubled up with J8cc v KQo on a flop of Qc9h6c when I rivered a flush; doubled an opponent up the very next hand with AQ v 33 on a Q43 flop; doubled up another short stack All-in pre-flop with AQ v KT on a QJ9Q6 board; tripled up with AJ v AQ (after a slowroll when all-in pre-flop) when I flopped top 2 pair; finally eliminated when I ran AK into 77 on a board of A747T.
Ah, love this game. Hopefully the main event will be somewhat smoother sailing.
Also played some cash as well, with mixed results. It seems like I run horribly in many of the bigger pots in the hi-lo mix game at Hollywood Park, whether it is Omaha or Stud & somehow my opponent(s) always seem to find the card(s) they need to scoop or quarter me.
Also getting psyched up for Vegas ... LOTS of poker awaits & plenty of mixed game tourneys to try and take down!
Oh, and I'm hoping to do another podcast episode in the next day or two.
Next: more poker ... hopefully with some run good!
Played in a 7pm tourney at the Bike & took the now standard bad beat with myself and another player all-in pre-flop 3-ways. I have KK, the short stack has TT & the guy who has us both covered has JJ. Of course the J hits on the flop & I'm out just after the first break.
Also played the $335 at the Commerce (event 19 of the Cal State Champs) & had Jerry Yang (2007 WSOP Main Event winner) sitting directly to my right. After folding for the first level or so I went on a rollercoaster for the whole tournament, which didn't end until I busted (yes, I lasted longer than Jerry Yang!). To give you an idea, here are some of the highlights:
doubled up with J8cc v KQo on a flop of Qc9h6c when I rivered a flush; doubled an opponent up the very next hand with AQ v 33 on a Q43 flop; doubled up another short stack All-in pre-flop with AQ v KT on a QJ9Q6 board; tripled up with AJ v AQ (after a slowroll when all-in pre-flop) when I flopped top 2 pair; finally eliminated when I ran AK into 77 on a board of A747T.
Ah, love this game. Hopefully the main event will be somewhat smoother sailing.
Also played some cash as well, with mixed results. It seems like I run horribly in many of the bigger pots in the hi-lo mix game at Hollywood Park, whether it is Omaha or Stud & somehow my opponent(s) always seem to find the card(s) they need to scoop or quarter me.
Also getting psyched up for Vegas ... LOTS of poker awaits & plenty of mixed game tourneys to try and take down!
Oh, and I'm hoping to do another podcast episode in the next day or two.
Next: more poker ... hopefully with some run good!
Monday, May 10, 2010
USA Trip Day 5
Bustouts & disliking shallow no limit holdem ...
Played 2 tournaments ... first the Omaha hi-lo at the California State Championships at the Commerce Casino. There were 146 players & I finished in around 100th place. Interesting table talk with Jerry Buss at the table, so quite a lot of talk about the NBA (Buss is one of the owners of the Los Angeles Lakers). Of course this meant that the TV nearest to Jerry was changed to the Suns v Spurs game (Suns won to win the series 4-0 & likely play the Lakers in the Western Conference finals), and Jerry was consulted whenever someone wanted to do anything to the TV.
I played too weak-tight early & didn't adjust to the structure until it was too late. The small starting stacks (4k) mean that you need to pick up chips early so that you can survive & have a stack to play with through the middle stages. I tended to call much more in multi-way pots in order to minimise any damage caused by bad river or turn cards (which can be particularly brutal in Omaha hi-lo), meaning that the pots I won (or split, being hi-lo & all) were relatively small. This would not be so bad in a cash game, but with the blinds continuing to go up in a tournament this is much more of an issue. Of course when I did adjust & play more aggressively, I managed to find the brutal turns & rivers that you hate to see in O8 & my stack went south ... In particular I am starting to develop a dislike for Barry Greenstein's book, not because of the content, but because of the number of times the dealer managed to find an ace on the river, which inevitably conterfeited what would have been a winning low hand, which at the same time often gave me a decent high hand (the old 'I have top pair/two pair now ... I have to call'). Of course the beneficiaries of these 3-outers were invariably horrible players who would most likely find a way to donk off these chips well before the money (for example one player on the button called my raise from early position, with another tight player calling in between with the O8 monster 5678 with one suit. Of course the flop is Q95 & he calls my bet & the other player's raise (I have a bunch of low cards & a short stack, so get out of the way while the damage can be minimised) to bink the magical 7 on the turn, get in a raise & take down the pot on the river against the opponent's AAxx hand. Love them tournaments ...
Decided to play some No Limit at the Commerce after busting, and sat down at a $100NL table (blinds $2 & $3), thinking it would play similarly to the $2/3 game at the Bike (which has a $100-300 buy-in) or Crown (which has a $50-200 buy-in), however because people call with all sorts of hands & you don't have a deep enough stack to get them to fold, you simply can't play post-flop. This means that if you want to get chips you either have to play very LAGgy & try to hit flops & stack people (but obviously take the risk of being stacked yourself) or be a total nit, wait for a huge hand & hope you get paid off & dodge whatever outs your opponent might have. Either way I find this frustrating & think in future I will stick to limit games at Commerce (unless I can somehow find a big enough bankroll to play in bigger games where you can buy-in for around 100BBs). Needless to say, in spite of a promising start (picked up KK early & won a decent pot), the session was not a good one for the bankroll.
Decided to have a crack at the midnight Bike tournament & had a rollercoaster night, dropping from the 4k starting stack to just over 1.5k before doubling up, then busted some players & was up to almost 10k by the time my initial table broke. My new table proved to be horrible, which wasn't helped by an ill-timed bluff early (flopped a flush draw, played it fast & was called down by QQ on a 7-high paired board). Eventually finished in 15th place from 45 starters.
Next on the agenda: HORSE at Commerce ... and a much more aggressive approach! Methinks it will either be a short night or a very long one. Lets hope for the long night!
Played 2 tournaments ... first the Omaha hi-lo at the California State Championships at the Commerce Casino. There were 146 players & I finished in around 100th place. Interesting table talk with Jerry Buss at the table, so quite a lot of talk about the NBA (Buss is one of the owners of the Los Angeles Lakers). Of course this meant that the TV nearest to Jerry was changed to the Suns v Spurs game (Suns won to win the series 4-0 & likely play the Lakers in the Western Conference finals), and Jerry was consulted whenever someone wanted to do anything to the TV.
I played too weak-tight early & didn't adjust to the structure until it was too late. The small starting stacks (4k) mean that you need to pick up chips early so that you can survive & have a stack to play with through the middle stages. I tended to call much more in multi-way pots in order to minimise any damage caused by bad river or turn cards (which can be particularly brutal in Omaha hi-lo), meaning that the pots I won (or split, being hi-lo & all) were relatively small. This would not be so bad in a cash game, but with the blinds continuing to go up in a tournament this is much more of an issue. Of course when I did adjust & play more aggressively, I managed to find the brutal turns & rivers that you hate to see in O8 & my stack went south ... In particular I am starting to develop a dislike for Barry Greenstein's book, not because of the content, but because of the number of times the dealer managed to find an ace on the river, which inevitably conterfeited what would have been a winning low hand, which at the same time often gave me a decent high hand (the old 'I have top pair/two pair now ... I have to call'). Of course the beneficiaries of these 3-outers were invariably horrible players who would most likely find a way to donk off these chips well before the money (for example one player on the button called my raise from early position, with another tight player calling in between with the O8 monster 5678 with one suit. Of course the flop is Q95 & he calls my bet & the other player's raise (I have a bunch of low cards & a short stack, so get out of the way while the damage can be minimised) to bink the magical 7 on the turn, get in a raise & take down the pot on the river against the opponent's AAxx hand. Love them tournaments ...
Decided to play some No Limit at the Commerce after busting, and sat down at a $100NL table (blinds $2 & $3), thinking it would play similarly to the $2/3 game at the Bike (which has a $100-300 buy-in) or Crown (which has a $50-200 buy-in), however because people call with all sorts of hands & you don't have a deep enough stack to get them to fold, you simply can't play post-flop. This means that if you want to get chips you either have to play very LAGgy & try to hit flops & stack people (but obviously take the risk of being stacked yourself) or be a total nit, wait for a huge hand & hope you get paid off & dodge whatever outs your opponent might have. Either way I find this frustrating & think in future I will stick to limit games at Commerce (unless I can somehow find a big enough bankroll to play in bigger games where you can buy-in for around 100BBs). Needless to say, in spite of a promising start (picked up KK early & won a decent pot), the session was not a good one for the bankroll.
Decided to have a crack at the midnight Bike tournament & had a rollercoaster night, dropping from the 4k starting stack to just over 1.5k before doubling up, then busted some players & was up to almost 10k by the time my initial table broke. My new table proved to be horrible, which wasn't helped by an ill-timed bluff early (flopped a flush draw, played it fast & was called down by QQ on a 7-high paired board). Eventually finished in 15th place from 45 starters.
Next on the agenda: HORSE at Commerce ... and a much more aggressive approach! Methinks it will either be a short night or a very long one. Lets hope for the long night!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
USA Day 3
Coolers at the Bike, grinding at Commerce ...
Started late after a long sleep & decided to head to the Bicycle Casino for some poker. Sat at a $2/3 NLHE game & it was one of those nights ... The first hand I played saw an UTG limper, a mid position raise to $20, a caller, and I look down at KK in the BB, so raise to $75. The UTG limper shoves for $90, the initial raiser folds & the caller & I see a flop of J52 with two spades. I shove the flop, which leads the other player to fold & the player who is all in says 'I think I have 2 outs' and asks me what my hand is. I tell him I have kings, just as the dealer turns the Queen of spades. Of course my opponent has QQ & even though a fourth spade comes on the river, my black king is a club, so I'm off to a great start!
I tread water for a while, until the next big cooler lands in my lap. This time there is a pre-flop limp, a raise to $15, a call on the button & I look down at 77 in the SB. I really hate playing small-mid pairs when out of position, so just call, hoping to flop a set or get away cheaply. The BB comes along for the ride as well. The flop comes down Q72 with two spades. I lead at the pot for $26, the BB calls & the pre-flop raiser makes it $75 to go. Perfect spot for me, right? ... Ordinarily the answer would be yes, but this is coolers at the Bike ... so I shove for about $170 total, the BB folds & the raiser insta-calls ... because he has QQ! FML indeed! The dealer then announces 'chips to table 7', in case the rest of the casino was unaware of my plight ...
Of course the rebuy starts off fantastically when a short stack raises pre-flop, I re-raise with AK & move him in on the flop for a little extra. Of course he has JJ & in case I thought of finding an ace or king, he turns a jack to seal the hand & my torture continues. I then run into another short stack who has a straight flush with JTs on a board of 9s8s6c7s3s & of course I pay off with AK with the king of clubs, thinking my hand was good after the turn went check-check. To complete my wonderful evening at the Bike I pick up 99 in the BB when short & raise to $20 with only $40 behind. Of course 4 of the 5 pre-flop limpers decide to call & I decide to shove pretty much any flop. Its A55 & I get one caller ... and I fear the worst, only to have my suspicions confirmed by the dealer pairing the ace on the turn & the caller turning over AJ for the winning full house ...
I decide its time to go find some food & jump in the car to see what I can find that isn't a McDonalds drive thru & before I find anything that fits my criteria I'm driving past the Commerce Casino & decide to go in ... of course a great way to overcome a tilt-inspiring session is to sit down in a limit Omaha hi-lo game ... but sometimes I break the rules!
Anyway, I decide to sit down in a $4/8 limit Omaha hi-lo (with a kill) game & proceed to play an 8 hour session & leave with a tidy $275 profit, simply by playing a tight ABC game & waiting for the many donkeys in the game to give me their money. Thankfully they mostly obliged. Of course the Omaha game with a kill occurs when a player scoops a pot that is over 5 big bets. After a long session, I leave at 9am with the sun already beating down ...
Next on the agenda ... sleep ... and a sense of de ja vu
Started late after a long sleep & decided to head to the Bicycle Casino for some poker. Sat at a $2/3 NLHE game & it was one of those nights ... The first hand I played saw an UTG limper, a mid position raise to $20, a caller, and I look down at KK in the BB, so raise to $75. The UTG limper shoves for $90, the initial raiser folds & the caller & I see a flop of J52 with two spades. I shove the flop, which leads the other player to fold & the player who is all in says 'I think I have 2 outs' and asks me what my hand is. I tell him I have kings, just as the dealer turns the Queen of spades. Of course my opponent has QQ & even though a fourth spade comes on the river, my black king is a club, so I'm off to a great start!
I tread water for a while, until the next big cooler lands in my lap. This time there is a pre-flop limp, a raise to $15, a call on the button & I look down at 77 in the SB. I really hate playing small-mid pairs when out of position, so just call, hoping to flop a set or get away cheaply. The BB comes along for the ride as well. The flop comes down Q72 with two spades. I lead at the pot for $26, the BB calls & the pre-flop raiser makes it $75 to go. Perfect spot for me, right? ... Ordinarily the answer would be yes, but this is coolers at the Bike ... so I shove for about $170 total, the BB folds & the raiser insta-calls ... because he has QQ! FML indeed! The dealer then announces 'chips to table 7', in case the rest of the casino was unaware of my plight ...
Of course the rebuy starts off fantastically when a short stack raises pre-flop, I re-raise with AK & move him in on the flop for a little extra. Of course he has JJ & in case I thought of finding an ace or king, he turns a jack to seal the hand & my torture continues. I then run into another short stack who has a straight flush with JTs on a board of 9s8s6c7s3s & of course I pay off with AK with the king of clubs, thinking my hand was good after the turn went check-check. To complete my wonderful evening at the Bike I pick up 99 in the BB when short & raise to $20 with only $40 behind. Of course 4 of the 5 pre-flop limpers decide to call & I decide to shove pretty much any flop. Its A55 & I get one caller ... and I fear the worst, only to have my suspicions confirmed by the dealer pairing the ace on the turn & the caller turning over AJ for the winning full house ...
I decide its time to go find some food & jump in the car to see what I can find that isn't a McDonalds drive thru & before I find anything that fits my criteria I'm driving past the Commerce Casino & decide to go in ... of course a great way to overcome a tilt-inspiring session is to sit down in a limit Omaha hi-lo game ... but sometimes I break the rules!
Anyway, I decide to sit down in a $4/8 limit Omaha hi-lo (with a kill) game & proceed to play an 8 hour session & leave with a tidy $275 profit, simply by playing a tight ABC game & waiting for the many donkeys in the game to give me their money. Thankfully they mostly obliged. Of course the Omaha game with a kill occurs when a player scoops a pot that is over 5 big bets. After a long session, I leave at 9am with the sun already beating down ...
Next on the agenda ... sleep ... and a sense of de ja vu
Thursday, May 6, 2010
USA Day 1
Arrived in the early evening & picked up my car (Toyota Yaris), then after picking up some supplies & checking into the hotel it was off to the Bicycle Casino!
Arrived around 10.30pm & after a short wait, found a seat at a $4/8 Kill Limit Holdem table. The Kill part involved the stakes being doubled if a player wins two consecutive pots (they are then forced to post an $8 blind & the hand is played as an $8/16 game). Played fairly tight & managed to win a big pot when I decided to join the limping train when I had K3 suited on the button. Flop came down K73, and after a bet from the SB & almost all the table calling, I raised from the button, and was then re-raised by the UTG played. I called hiim down to the river & he had successfully botched playing AA, much to my benefit & I scooped a healthy pot. After a little over an hour, and just before the Midnight Madness tourney began, I racked up my chips & left with a tidy $65 profit.
The Midnight Madness tournament had 40 runners (which seemed to be a little down from the last time I was here when they usually had around 50-50 runners). This time they played the tourney in the Events area at the bike, which is a large room with 54 poker tables ready for tournament play. I picked up a few chips early by playing position & doubled up when my AA held against the QQ of the table big stack. Didn't really pick up many hands & continued to try to use position to pick up pots to stay afloat. Made the final table with about average chips, though there were 2 players who had very big stacks at the final table, and without opportunities to pick up blinds & antes I found myself as one of the short stacks fairly early on. Of course a tourney would not be complete without a bit of drama, and this was provided when two players got into a verbal slanging match, which resulted in the TD having stern words to both players, before having one of the offenders removed from the premises when they were eliminated. Although initially paying only 5 places, the TD suggested taking some money off 1st place to add a 6th place prize. As one of the two short stacks I was not going to object to this, and when I found my A9 & shoved, I figured that the $75 would be mine when I was called in 2 spots ... one with 88 & the other with AA. Of course the one reminaing ace hit the flop, and my unlikely chance to triple up was killed by a J pairing on the turn, locking up the hand for the AA.
End result: 6th place for $75 ($25 profit).
Given my lack of tournament cashes on my previous trip to the USA, this cash, even if it was a min-cash, certainly puts me in a positive mood for the remainder of the trip.
Tomorrow: Commerce & Event 1 of the California State Championships!
Arrived around 10.30pm & after a short wait, found a seat at a $4/8 Kill Limit Holdem table. The Kill part involved the stakes being doubled if a player wins two consecutive pots (they are then forced to post an $8 blind & the hand is played as an $8/16 game). Played fairly tight & managed to win a big pot when I decided to join the limping train when I had K3 suited on the button. Flop came down K73, and after a bet from the SB & almost all the table calling, I raised from the button, and was then re-raised by the UTG played. I called hiim down to the river & he had successfully botched playing AA, much to my benefit & I scooped a healthy pot. After a little over an hour, and just before the Midnight Madness tourney began, I racked up my chips & left with a tidy $65 profit.
The Midnight Madness tournament had 40 runners (which seemed to be a little down from the last time I was here when they usually had around 50-50 runners). This time they played the tourney in the Events area at the bike, which is a large room with 54 poker tables ready for tournament play. I picked up a few chips early by playing position & doubled up when my AA held against the QQ of the table big stack. Didn't really pick up many hands & continued to try to use position to pick up pots to stay afloat. Made the final table with about average chips, though there were 2 players who had very big stacks at the final table, and without opportunities to pick up blinds & antes I found myself as one of the short stacks fairly early on. Of course a tourney would not be complete without a bit of drama, and this was provided when two players got into a verbal slanging match, which resulted in the TD having stern words to both players, before having one of the offenders removed from the premises when they were eliminated. Although initially paying only 5 places, the TD suggested taking some money off 1st place to add a 6th place prize. As one of the two short stacks I was not going to object to this, and when I found my A9 & shoved, I figured that the $75 would be mine when I was called in 2 spots ... one with 88 & the other with AA. Of course the one reminaing ace hit the flop, and my unlikely chance to triple up was killed by a J pairing on the turn, locking up the hand for the AA.
End result: 6th place for $75 ($25 profit).
Given my lack of tournament cashes on my previous trip to the USA, this cash, even if it was a min-cash, certainly puts me in a positive mood for the remainder of the trip.
Tomorrow: Commerce & Event 1 of the California State Championships!
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