Episode 6 of the Donkcast is now available for download
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=SVCWON4Z
The episode features a summary of my time in America, WSOP wrap-up, a look at the 2011 Aussie Millions schedule, strategy on using tells in live poker & a sick TV hand involving Daniel Negreanu & David Williams. Oh, and a new intro, featuring highlights from the intherview with Danzasmack ... taken completely out of context to give listeners an idea of what is to come!
Feedback & comments are definitely appreciated, either here or at thedonkcast@hotmail.com
Showing posts with label WSOP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label WSOP. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
More books, WSOP rail, poker & slowrolled by a bus!
To start the day I thought I'd make a return to the Gamblers Book Shop, primarily to get John Fox's book 'Play Poker, Quit Work & Sleep till noon' as I'd recently heard some good things about it, along with the fact that it seemed to be a rare book not available in many places. Of course to get there I had to catch two buses - the 202 down Flamingo, then the 110 on Eastern. Sounds fairly straightforward & it should have been. The issue was the transfer between buses - to get from the stop on Flamingo to the stop on Eastern, you need to walk 50 metres to the intersection, cross the road & then walk another 50 metres to the bus stop on Eastern. The first part was easy enough - got off the 202 & as I got to the intersection, I noticed the 110 at the opposite intersection waiting at a red light. Anyway, this means that I, along with the three or four others from the 202 who want to get on the 110, have to wait for the lights to change (and the bus to make it through the intersection to the bus stop) before we can cross the road. All seems to be going to plan - the bus stops & lets people off, the lights change & a group of us walk across the road ... and the bus waits at the stop. Fantastic! The driver has obviously seen that the other bus had just arrived & is waiting for those passengers to get to the 110. Anyway, as I am about 5 metres from the back of the bus (I've gone for the powerwalk option & lead the group fomr the 202) the engine is taken out of neutral ... no problem, I'm almost there. As I get to the middle of the bus it pulls out from the kerb & takes off! Talk about a slowroll! Not only do I get within literally 10 metres of the door, but I now have to wait another 20+ minutes for the next bus! So sick ....
Once I got to the bookshop I found the Fox book I was after & picked up a few other books while I was there, including the Doyle Brunson biography, which should be a good read if I ever get around to it. The return trip was relatively smooth, though I got withing 100 metres of the bus stop before the bus passed me, meaning I again had a 20 minute wait for the 110.
Rather than heading back to the strip, I took the 202 to the Rio, as I had a few mates who had made it through to day three who I wanted to check up on, as well as seeing what day 3 of the main event was like. Of course the two people I was looking for, Theos Rippis & Peter Aristidou, had both busted by the time I arrived, but it was good to see quite a few Aussies still in the hunt. Another disappointment of the day was the fact that the cash game area, which had been buzzing a week or so ago, was now almost dead, with barely 20 tables running ... and those tables were all no-limit holdem. So much for that idea!
After leaving the Rio, I dropped my shopping off in my room & headed to Caesars Palace for some poker (yes, I thought I'd try to fit some in). I found a seat in a $1/3 no-limit holdem game & won a few small pots before (as seems to be a habit) I had my huge pot for the evening. There were two limpers in front of me & I had AhQs on the button & raised to $15. Of course not only did the two limpers come along, but both blinds joined in making it five to the flop. The flop was Qh8h6d & it was checked to the cutoff who bet $40. I wasn't sure quite where I was in the hand, so decided to just call the $40. The blinds folded & the limper who was UTG+1 then made it $140 to go! The cutoff thought for a while before eventually folding. I had $37 left after the $100 raise & the guy who had put in the raise had made some strange plays earlier (including a call down with queen-high that beat his opponent's 8-high missed straight draw). I decided to put the rest of my stack in, hoping he just has a draw or a worse top pair rather than two pair or a set. The fact that he took more than half a second to call made me think I had a decent chance & when the board ran out Kh3s & I showed my hand & he mucked, so I took down a pot worth over $450 with one pair! I stayed for another 30 minutes or so, but was feeling tired, so left with a decent profit for the evening.
Next on the agenda: stuff ... will probably try to get another episode of the podcast done before I leave, though no guarentees. Maybe a tourist stop as well.
Once I got to the bookshop I found the Fox book I was after & picked up a few other books while I was there, including the Doyle Brunson biography, which should be a good read if I ever get around to it. The return trip was relatively smooth, though I got withing 100 metres of the bus stop before the bus passed me, meaning I again had a 20 minute wait for the 110.
Rather than heading back to the strip, I took the 202 to the Rio, as I had a few mates who had made it through to day three who I wanted to check up on, as well as seeing what day 3 of the main event was like. Of course the two people I was looking for, Theos Rippis & Peter Aristidou, had both busted by the time I arrived, but it was good to see quite a few Aussies still in the hunt. Another disappointment of the day was the fact that the cash game area, which had been buzzing a week or so ago, was now almost dead, with barely 20 tables running ... and those tables were all no-limit holdem. So much for that idea!
After leaving the Rio, I dropped my shopping off in my room & headed to Caesars Palace for some poker (yes, I thought I'd try to fit some in). I found a seat in a $1/3 no-limit holdem game & won a few small pots before (as seems to be a habit) I had my huge pot for the evening. There were two limpers in front of me & I had AhQs on the button & raised to $15. Of course not only did the two limpers come along, but both blinds joined in making it five to the flop. The flop was Qh8h6d & it was checked to the cutoff who bet $40. I wasn't sure quite where I was in the hand, so decided to just call the $40. The blinds folded & the limper who was UTG+1 then made it $140 to go! The cutoff thought for a while before eventually folding. I had $37 left after the $100 raise & the guy who had put in the raise had made some strange plays earlier (including a call down with queen-high that beat his opponent's 8-high missed straight draw). I decided to put the rest of my stack in, hoping he just has a draw or a worse top pair rather than two pair or a set. The fact that he took more than half a second to call made me think I had a decent chance & when the board ran out Kh3s & I showed my hand & he mucked, so I took down a pot worth over $450 with one pair! I stayed for another 30 minutes or so, but was feeling tired, so left with a decent profit for the evening.
Next on the agenda: stuff ... will probably try to get another episode of the podcast done before I leave, though no guarentees. Maybe a tourist stop as well.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Back on the HORSE
Played another HORSE tournament, this time at the Golden Nugget. Had a table that was good in some ways & bad in others. Good because many players were horrible; bad because of the attitude, things done at the table & time taken to play out hands.
Personally, I didn't get much going & busted just before the dinner break, largely due to a big Stud8 hand where one of my opponents couldn't fold & caught up on 6th or 7th street. There is a short stack (showing a 7) at the table who completes after a limper (showing an A). There is a caller (showing an 8) & I raise (showing a J, with AA in the hole). The limper called, the short stack moves all in for half a bet more (1500 total playing 600/1200), the caller asks if I have the option to raise & folds when he is told that I can, so I re-raise & the limp/caller calls again. To make a long story short, my board ends up (AA)JK9T(5), with the short stack eventually making a 7-high straight (which scooped the main pot) & the other player in the hand (who called bets on every street except 7th) finished with a board of A29Q & showed AKT in the hole, to win the side with aces with KQ kickers! Yes, he called me down & caught his magic card on 6th or 7th ... which of course left me crippled.
To make matters worse, he'd taken quite a bit of time to call on each street (yes, even calling the re-raise on 3rd!) ... and then proceeded to call the clock on another player in the very next hand when he took more than 5 seconds to think about a decision on 5th street! And people thought Tiffany Michelle was bad for calling the clock in the Main Event a few years back ...
Of course to complete the day, I managed to get all-in pre-flop in holdem with Q9o & saw a final board of 4QQ9T, with one player betting all the way & being called down to the river ... only to see him turn over Q9 as well (so I only got half of the main pot!) & then finally went out with 56 suited, which flopped a straight & flush draw, but missed everything & I was playing the board by the river!
After that wonderful performance I headed to the Rio to see if they had any mixed games going. I put my name on a few lists, then went to have a look at the tournaments that were running. When I returned to the cash game area it was only a short wait before I got a seat in a $10/20 Omaha8 game & proceeded to run horribly before being called for $10/20 HORSE. I topped up my stack at the HORSE table & when it finally got going (lots of people walked past while there were three of us at the table waiting for players to start ... they checked the mix, looked at the table & walked off, often never to return) I managed to make up for both the earlier Omaha8 session, as well as re-couping my buy-in from the afternoon's tournament at the Golden Nugget. All-in-all, not a bad day.
Next on the agenda: Catching up with Theos Rippis, a mate of mine from my chess days in Sydney who I have not seen for years, who arrived yesterday ... and more poker!
Personally, I didn't get much going & busted just before the dinner break, largely due to a big Stud8 hand where one of my opponents couldn't fold & caught up on 6th or 7th street. There is a short stack (showing a 7) at the table who completes after a limper (showing an A). There is a caller (showing an 8) & I raise (showing a J, with AA in the hole). The limper called, the short stack moves all in for half a bet more (1500 total playing 600/1200), the caller asks if I have the option to raise & folds when he is told that I can, so I re-raise & the limp/caller calls again. To make a long story short, my board ends up (AA)JK9T(5), with the short stack eventually making a 7-high straight (which scooped the main pot) & the other player in the hand (who called bets on every street except 7th) finished with a board of A29Q & showed AKT in the hole, to win the side with aces with KQ kickers! Yes, he called me down & caught his magic card on 6th or 7th ... which of course left me crippled.
To make matters worse, he'd taken quite a bit of time to call on each street (yes, even calling the re-raise on 3rd!) ... and then proceeded to call the clock on another player in the very next hand when he took more than 5 seconds to think about a decision on 5th street! And people thought Tiffany Michelle was bad for calling the clock in the Main Event a few years back ...
Of course to complete the day, I managed to get all-in pre-flop in holdem with Q9o & saw a final board of 4QQ9T, with one player betting all the way & being called down to the river ... only to see him turn over Q9 as well (so I only got half of the main pot!) & then finally went out with 56 suited, which flopped a straight & flush draw, but missed everything & I was playing the board by the river!
After that wonderful performance I headed to the Rio to see if they had any mixed games going. I put my name on a few lists, then went to have a look at the tournaments that were running. When I returned to the cash game area it was only a short wait before I got a seat in a $10/20 Omaha8 game & proceeded to run horribly before being called for $10/20 HORSE. I topped up my stack at the HORSE table & when it finally got going (lots of people walked past while there were three of us at the table waiting for players to start ... they checked the mix, looked at the table & walked off, often never to return) I managed to make up for both the earlier Omaha8 session, as well as re-couping my buy-in from the afternoon's tournament at the Golden Nugget. All-in-all, not a bad day.
Next on the agenda: Catching up with Theos Rippis, a mate of mine from my chess days in Sydney who I have not seen for years, who arrived yesterday ... and more poker!
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Some run good in cash!
Played some cash games yesterday. I started at the Rio, playing $10/20 limit holdem. Of course the easy way to make money at limit holdem is to run good & that's exactly what I did. Top pair, middle set, etc. The best of the lot was when a player raised from early position, there was a call from the cutoff & I called in the big blind with 99. The flop came down T54 & I checked, the pre-flop raiser bet, the cutoff called & I decided to peel one off. My 9s might be in front, but I couldn't really be sure. Of course the turn made it easy for me ... BINK ... 9! I lead into the pot on the turn & the pre-flop raiser made it two bets, the cutoff folded & i made it three bets. The pre-flop raiser called & called my bet on the end & after I showed my 99, turned over AT in disgust. While at the Rio I also had a look at some of the tournaments running at the time ... quite a few pros still in lots of events.
I then decided to go to the Hard Rock to see what was going on there on Sunday night, in particular hoping to play a mixed game, which apparently happen there from time to time. There is also the Pokernews game there on Wednesday nights, which includes the Pokerati $1/2 NLH/PLO game. Of course there was nothing but $1/2 NLH running, so I sat down for a while. The run good continued, with the big double-up plus hand coming in a limped pot. I had AJo in the small blind & saw a flop of JT7. The plan was to check-raise the flop to try & build a pot & get it heads-up, so I checked ... it was checked around to the cutoff, who bet $12. The button then raised to $24. I wasn't so pleased with my top pair, top kicker, thinking there was a chance I was up against two pair or better, however I could also still have the best hand, so I just called. To make matters worse, the drunk guy who was playing any two (and hitting from time to time) then re-raised to $48! The initial bettor folded & the button called, so I also called. The turn was another Jack, which was either a great card for me (because I was now in front) or a horrible card for me (as I was still behind a straight or full house, but now could not fold). I checked again, knowing that I couldn't fold my remaining stack (just under $100) & the crunk guy moved all-in for around $150. This got the button to fold, though he did take some time & show his cards to players nearby at his end of the table, which made me think he had bottom two pair that had now been counterfeited. I called & the dealer put out the river ... another jack! Runner-runner quads! Not a bad hand. I showed my AJ & the $350+ pot came my way. I stayed a little longer & left with a reasonable profit ... not a bad day in the office for a change!
Next on the agenda: Back to tournaments downtown. Probably HORSE at the Golden Nugget, but maybe PLO8 at Binions.
I then decided to go to the Hard Rock to see what was going on there on Sunday night, in particular hoping to play a mixed game, which apparently happen there from time to time. There is also the Pokernews game there on Wednesday nights, which includes the Pokerati $1/2 NLH/PLO game. Of course there was nothing but $1/2 NLH running, so I sat down for a while. The run good continued, with the big double-up plus hand coming in a limped pot. I had AJo in the small blind & saw a flop of JT7. The plan was to check-raise the flop to try & build a pot & get it heads-up, so I checked ... it was checked around to the cutoff, who bet $12. The button then raised to $24. I wasn't so pleased with my top pair, top kicker, thinking there was a chance I was up against two pair or better, however I could also still have the best hand, so I just called. To make matters worse, the drunk guy who was playing any two (and hitting from time to time) then re-raised to $48! The initial bettor folded & the button called, so I also called. The turn was another Jack, which was either a great card for me (because I was now in front) or a horrible card for me (as I was still behind a straight or full house, but now could not fold). I checked again, knowing that I couldn't fold my remaining stack (just under $100) & the crunk guy moved all-in for around $150. This got the button to fold, though he did take some time & show his cards to players nearby at his end of the table, which made me think he had bottom two pair that had now been counterfeited. I called & the dealer put out the river ... another jack! Runner-runner quads! Not a bad hand. I showed my AJ & the $350+ pot came my way. I stayed a little longer & left with a reasonable profit ... not a bad day in the office for a change!
Next on the agenda: Back to tournaments downtown. Probably HORSE at the Golden Nugget, but maybe PLO8 at Binions.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
23rd in the H.O.R.S.E. at the World Series!
Yes, I managed to run good in a tournament for once! Not a bad tournament to find the run good in either ... the $1500 HORSE at the WSOP. 827 players entered & I managed to finish in 23rd place, taking home a little over $5200 (after the IRS/US Treasury took their cut) for my three days (well two days & about 20 minutes) at the tables.
I got off to a decent start, building my 4500 starting stack to 5500 by the first break & dropped slightly to 4800 at the dinner break. Post-dinner was horrible for me & I sunk to just 900 at the final break for the day & was pretty much ready to write the tournament off completely. I had a quick chat with Chuck & Joe of http://deucescracked.com who were at a table in the Poker Kitchen & told them of my plight - I almost told them to hold the seat for me because I would be back soon ... but didn't.
The first critical hand for me was the first back from the break. I have only 900 left & we're playing 400/800 Razz. Thankfully I have a 3 as my door card & there is only one other card below a 9 showing (one player has an ace). I look down & see 22 in the hole ... not exactly the A2 or A4 I was hoping for, but with only one other low card I decided that this was the hand ... make or break time! I complete the bet to 400 & the ace calls. Fourth street sees me catch a 6 & the ace catches a 9. I have the lead & bet my last 400 (though I don't make any indication that it is my last chips, nor do I announce that I am all-in) & my opponent insta-folds! Double-up for me! Of course I managed to go on a massive run & built my stack up to a high point of around 13k before losing a few pots just before the end of play to finish at 8900 for the day.
Day two saw me get off to a good start, with my initial table (with Jason Mercier) being the first to break. The second table was good for me, before moving again, where I settled in, stuck between Yuval Bronstein (on my right) & Brandon Cantu (on my left). I managed to keep my stack around the 20k mark for most of the day before winning a big (30k+) pot against Bronstein in Razz, where my 75 improved to a 65 on 7th street to beat out his 75 that he made on 7th street. That got me near the 50k mark, where I stayed for much of the middle part of the day. I picked up a few big pots later in the day which took me over the 100k mark & I was doing great until my table broke.
At the next table (where I remained for the rest of the day) I started well enough, but made a few mistakes (the biggest was thinking I was playing Stud8 when we were still on Stud Hi & I called down an opponent thinking I was drawing to a 6-low, only to make a pair of kings on the river & pay him off in a 15k+ pot) & lost some big hands (the biggest being a 3-way holdem hand where I had top 2 pair & was called down by a player who had flopped a flush draw & made it on the river, with the other player also staying in the hand until the river, for a 50k+ pot) before I found myself at critical hand #2.
By this stage I was getting short on chips (around 30k) & the limits were now 4k/8k. I was BB in the holdem round when it was folded to the button who raised. I called with J9o & saw a flop of AT9, giving me bottom pair. Although it was not an ideal flop, I did have a pair & the button would likely bet the flop trying to represent the ace. As expected, I checked, the button bet & I check-raised (the button was also very short & I only just had him covered), only for the button to respond with a 3-bet. Thinking positively (or perhaps over-optimistically), I surmised that although I was most likely behind now, there were a number of good turn cards that could come for me (I had the Jc to go with the 9c & Tc on the flop to give me a three-card straight flush draw), so I decided to call & see what came on the turn ... BINK! 9 on the turn! I bet both the turn & river (and was called down) & showed my winning J9o, much to the disgust of my opponent, who said he had AJ & I had caught a 2-outer. I guess you just have to run well to make it deep in these things after all!
Anyway, Al Barbieri (who went on to finish 2nd) joined the table late in the day & he managed to run like God (or at least a very fast Kenyan) & collected a large portion of chips on the table, making whatever hand he needed to to win the pot ... including a few from me & I was left with 52,500 at the end of the day.
Day 3 saw a tough table (though with only 3 tables, all were tough). I was seated between Robert Mizrachi (to my right) & defending champ James Van Alstyne (to my left), with overnight chip leader & eventual winner Konstantin Puchkov sitting to his left. The day started with Holdem & I didn't make it out of the round. With levels of 6k/12k I didn't have much room to move & had to find a way to get chips & get chips quickly! First hand of the day sees me pick up A6cc UTG+1 & I decide to raise, only to be 3-bet by Van Alstyne. I decide to call & see the flop before deciding if this is going to be the hand or not & see a not-so-friendly flop of KQ4 & I check-fold to Van Alstyne's bet. When I was BB it folded around to Robert Mizrachi, who raised. I looked down at KQo & 3-bet, knowing I was not folding, regardless of the flop. Thankfully the flop was KJ6 & what was left of my stack found its way into the middle, with Mizrachi tabling J8o for middle pair. He missed & I even managed to hit a queen on the river to make sure of the double-up & I was back to 50k. I then got involved in another hand when in the small blind! A late-position player raised & I looked down at A9ss & made it 3 bets. The raiser called & I bet both the flop & turn before check-calling on the river on a board of 742J3, to be shown 87 for flopped top pair ... and I was back to being the short stack once again! My final hand came when it was folded to me in the cutoff & I looked down at Q8 of diamonds. This would be it ... I raised & the big stack in the small blind asked how much I had behind (which is either a really bad or really good question to hear, depending on the response) & proceeded to re-raise (not the response I was looking for). I re-raised all-in & found out I was in horrible shape against his AQ of clubs. Of course the flop made my predicament worse, falling KQ7 with 2 clubs, meaning I had only 2 outs to survive. I missed my 8 & my opponent found the final nail on the river with a club & I left to get my payout in 23rd place.
Of course the taxman got a decent chunk of my prizemoney (why Australia & America don't have a tax treaty to avoid this situation is beyond me!), but I left with a little over $5200 for my efforts, which was quite a change from the day 1 bustout I was expecting!
Afterwards I went to Aria to play some $1/3NL (in the absence of any mixed or limit games running) & managed to find an awkward spot to lose my stack. I had $107 to start the hand & looked down at AA UTG & raised to $10 ... standard so far. Of course it then proceeded call, fold, call, call, call, etc around the table & there were 8 people to the flop!! Now I have some idea of how Barry Greenstein felt on High Stakes Poker! Anyway, the flop came down 9s8s5c ... not an ideal flop for aces (though I did have the ace of spades) when facing 7 opponents. My dilemma was made worse by the small blind, who lead out for $20, which the big blind called. What to do in this spot? I was really unsure & eventually decided to just call the $20. Everyone else at the table folded & we went to the turn to see the Jc. Again not an ideal card, but it was checked to me, so I put my remaining $77 in the middle ... and the SB went into the tank ... and eventually called. This then got the BB thinking ... but he eventually called as well! Looks like it was either a triple-up or bustout for me ... and then the river 9h appeared. Both players checked, so I was hopeful. The small blind turned over T5ss for bottom pair & a missed straight & flush draws. The BB turned over T9o, for three 9s (flopped top pair & missed straight draw), which was more than enough to beat out my aces up ... oh well ...
Tim Duckworth, from http://pokernews.com & http://www.tiltedbehaviour.com/ had dropped by earlier in the evening & asked about mixed games in Las Vegas & said he was going to try to get a $4/8 HORSE game going (if not already) at the Venetian. After the disappointment of having my aces cracked ... and a meal at Subway ... I headed for the Venetian & joined the HORSE game after a shortish wait & took a seat next to Tim. Also in the game was Heath Chick & some other PokerNews people & after roughly 6 hours at the table, the game broke, with a tick in the small win column for me.
Today I played a tournament at Caesars Palace ... a 'Turbo Double Stack' event, where you started with 30k in chips, with 20 minute levels. I started well, but eventually picked some bad spots to bet & raise before the blinds became enormous. Of course I was crippled when my 76 was run down on a 997 flop where the money got all-in, with my opponents J8o finding an 8 on the turn. I then took my final stand with AJo, only to run into A8 suited, who flopped top pair before I bricked out, to finish in around 100th place out of the 178 or so starters they had for the event. Although it wasn't horrible, I doubt I'll be back there for tournaments while I'm in town.
Next on the agenda: More cash games & some laundry ... oh fun!
I got off to a decent start, building my 4500 starting stack to 5500 by the first break & dropped slightly to 4800 at the dinner break. Post-dinner was horrible for me & I sunk to just 900 at the final break for the day & was pretty much ready to write the tournament off completely. I had a quick chat with Chuck & Joe of http://deucescracked.com who were at a table in the Poker Kitchen & told them of my plight - I almost told them to hold the seat for me because I would be back soon ... but didn't.
The first critical hand for me was the first back from the break. I have only 900 left & we're playing 400/800 Razz. Thankfully I have a 3 as my door card & there is only one other card below a 9 showing (one player has an ace). I look down & see 22 in the hole ... not exactly the A2 or A4 I was hoping for, but with only one other low card I decided that this was the hand ... make or break time! I complete the bet to 400 & the ace calls. Fourth street sees me catch a 6 & the ace catches a 9. I have the lead & bet my last 400 (though I don't make any indication that it is my last chips, nor do I announce that I am all-in) & my opponent insta-folds! Double-up for me! Of course I managed to go on a massive run & built my stack up to a high point of around 13k before losing a few pots just before the end of play to finish at 8900 for the day.
Day two saw me get off to a good start, with my initial table (with Jason Mercier) being the first to break. The second table was good for me, before moving again, where I settled in, stuck between Yuval Bronstein (on my right) & Brandon Cantu (on my left). I managed to keep my stack around the 20k mark for most of the day before winning a big (30k+) pot against Bronstein in Razz, where my 75 improved to a 65 on 7th street to beat out his 75 that he made on 7th street. That got me near the 50k mark, where I stayed for much of the middle part of the day. I picked up a few big pots later in the day which took me over the 100k mark & I was doing great until my table broke.
At the next table (where I remained for the rest of the day) I started well enough, but made a few mistakes (the biggest was thinking I was playing Stud8 when we were still on Stud Hi & I called down an opponent thinking I was drawing to a 6-low, only to make a pair of kings on the river & pay him off in a 15k+ pot) & lost some big hands (the biggest being a 3-way holdem hand where I had top 2 pair & was called down by a player who had flopped a flush draw & made it on the river, with the other player also staying in the hand until the river, for a 50k+ pot) before I found myself at critical hand #2.
By this stage I was getting short on chips (around 30k) & the limits were now 4k/8k. I was BB in the holdem round when it was folded to the button who raised. I called with J9o & saw a flop of AT9, giving me bottom pair. Although it was not an ideal flop, I did have a pair & the button would likely bet the flop trying to represent the ace. As expected, I checked, the button bet & I check-raised (the button was also very short & I only just had him covered), only for the button to respond with a 3-bet. Thinking positively (or perhaps over-optimistically), I surmised that although I was most likely behind now, there were a number of good turn cards that could come for me (I had the Jc to go with the 9c & Tc on the flop to give me a three-card straight flush draw), so I decided to call & see what came on the turn ... BINK! 9 on the turn! I bet both the turn & river (and was called down) & showed my winning J9o, much to the disgust of my opponent, who said he had AJ & I had caught a 2-outer. I guess you just have to run well to make it deep in these things after all!
Anyway, Al Barbieri (who went on to finish 2nd) joined the table late in the day & he managed to run like God (or at least a very fast Kenyan) & collected a large portion of chips on the table, making whatever hand he needed to to win the pot ... including a few from me & I was left with 52,500 at the end of the day.
Day 3 saw a tough table (though with only 3 tables, all were tough). I was seated between Robert Mizrachi (to my right) & defending champ James Van Alstyne (to my left), with overnight chip leader & eventual winner Konstantin Puchkov sitting to his left. The day started with Holdem & I didn't make it out of the round. With levels of 6k/12k I didn't have much room to move & had to find a way to get chips & get chips quickly! First hand of the day sees me pick up A6cc UTG+1 & I decide to raise, only to be 3-bet by Van Alstyne. I decide to call & see the flop before deciding if this is going to be the hand or not & see a not-so-friendly flop of KQ4 & I check-fold to Van Alstyne's bet. When I was BB it folded around to Robert Mizrachi, who raised. I looked down at KQo & 3-bet, knowing I was not folding, regardless of the flop. Thankfully the flop was KJ6 & what was left of my stack found its way into the middle, with Mizrachi tabling J8o for middle pair. He missed & I even managed to hit a queen on the river to make sure of the double-up & I was back to 50k. I then got involved in another hand when in the small blind! A late-position player raised & I looked down at A9ss & made it 3 bets. The raiser called & I bet both the flop & turn before check-calling on the river on a board of 742J3, to be shown 87 for flopped top pair ... and I was back to being the short stack once again! My final hand came when it was folded to me in the cutoff & I looked down at Q8 of diamonds. This would be it ... I raised & the big stack in the small blind asked how much I had behind (which is either a really bad or really good question to hear, depending on the response) & proceeded to re-raise (not the response I was looking for). I re-raised all-in & found out I was in horrible shape against his AQ of clubs. Of course the flop made my predicament worse, falling KQ7 with 2 clubs, meaning I had only 2 outs to survive. I missed my 8 & my opponent found the final nail on the river with a club & I left to get my payout in 23rd place.
Of course the taxman got a decent chunk of my prizemoney (why Australia & America don't have a tax treaty to avoid this situation is beyond me!), but I left with a little over $5200 for my efforts, which was quite a change from the day 1 bustout I was expecting!
Afterwards I went to Aria to play some $1/3NL (in the absence of any mixed or limit games running) & managed to find an awkward spot to lose my stack. I had $107 to start the hand & looked down at AA UTG & raised to $10 ... standard so far. Of course it then proceeded call, fold, call, call, call, etc around the table & there were 8 people to the flop!! Now I have some idea of how Barry Greenstein felt on High Stakes Poker! Anyway, the flop came down 9s8s5c ... not an ideal flop for aces (though I did have the ace of spades) when facing 7 opponents. My dilemma was made worse by the small blind, who lead out for $20, which the big blind called. What to do in this spot? I was really unsure & eventually decided to just call the $20. Everyone else at the table folded & we went to the turn to see the Jc. Again not an ideal card, but it was checked to me, so I put my remaining $77 in the middle ... and the SB went into the tank ... and eventually called. This then got the BB thinking ... but he eventually called as well! Looks like it was either a triple-up or bustout for me ... and then the river 9h appeared. Both players checked, so I was hopeful. The small blind turned over T5ss for bottom pair & a missed straight & flush draws. The BB turned over T9o, for three 9s (flopped top pair & missed straight draw), which was more than enough to beat out my aces up ... oh well ...
Tim Duckworth, from http://pokernews.com & http://www.tiltedbehaviour.com/ had dropped by earlier in the evening & asked about mixed games in Las Vegas & said he was going to try to get a $4/8 HORSE game going (if not already) at the Venetian. After the disappointment of having my aces cracked ... and a meal at Subway ... I headed for the Venetian & joined the HORSE game after a shortish wait & took a seat next to Tim. Also in the game was Heath Chick & some other PokerNews people & after roughly 6 hours at the table, the game broke, with a tick in the small win column for me.
Today I played a tournament at Caesars Palace ... a 'Turbo Double Stack' event, where you started with 30k in chips, with 20 minute levels. I started well, but eventually picked some bad spots to bet & raise before the blinds became enormous. Of course I was crippled when my 76 was run down on a 997 flop where the money got all-in, with my opponents J8o finding an 8 on the turn. I then took my final stand with AJo, only to run into A8 suited, who flopped top pair before I bricked out, to finish in around 100th place out of the 178 or so starters they had for the event. Although it wasn't horrible, I doubt I'll be back there for tournaments while I'm in town.
Next on the agenda: More cash games & some laundry ... oh fun!
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Episode 4 Online!
Episode 4 from Las Vegas is now online.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YUGAY0UN
Some things included in this episode are news updates on the Melbourne Champs & early WSOP events; strategy section about a bluff I pulled in the HORSE event at the Venetian; TV Sickness looking at a hand from the $100k event at the Aussie Millions.
In other news from Vegas (expect a long post tonight) I'm down to the final 24 in the $1500 HORSE (event 31). Feel free to follow my progress on Pokernews. Hopefully I'll have a long day, but I'm starting the day as a short stack.
http://www.pokernews.com/live-reporting/2010-wsop/event-31/
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=YUGAY0UN
Some things included in this episode are news updates on the Melbourne Champs & early WSOP events; strategy section about a bluff I pulled in the HORSE event at the Venetian; TV Sickness looking at a hand from the $100k event at the Aussie Millions.
In other news from Vegas (expect a long post tonight) I'm down to the final 24 in the $1500 HORSE (event 31). Feel free to follow my progress on Pokernews. Hopefully I'll have a long day, but I'm starting the day as a short stack.
http://www.pokernews.com/live-reporting/2010-wsop/event-31/
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
USA Day 26
First WSOP Event
I suppose its annoying when you are frustrated & distracted playing your first WSOP event. I decided to play the Omaha hi-lo event at the WSOP (the only 'small' buy-in O8 event at the series), but also had a ticket to see Russell Peters in his only Las Vegas show (He recently did a tour in Australia, but I was in Los Angeles when it was on).
What did this mean for the tournament ... well the plan going in was to try to chip up early from the 4500 starting stack, then take a cab to the Hard Rock for the Russell Peters show (which started at 9pm, which was just before the scheduled hour-long dinner break), enjoy the show, then return to the Rio, crush & make it to day 2. Unfortunately only one part a small part of that plan actually worked (the cab to the Hard Rock & enjoying the Russell Peters show). I got off to a poor start, with many of my big hands finding ways to be scooped or quartered (both horrible things to happen in a split-pot game). By the time the first break came I had slipped to just under 3k, which was not what the plan had been. After the break there were a few changes nearby, with a crowd building on the rail as Phil Ivey sat down at the table next to mine, while Sorel Mizzi joined my table. I managed to tread water for a while until just before I left for the Hard Rock. I managed to scoop a decent-sized pot (around 2k) when I rivered top set on a 63J9K board with KK42 (which picked up a flush draw on the turn) against Sorel Mizzi. This meant that I left the Rio with 5075 in my stack.
The show at the Hard Rock was great. Russell Peters was hilarious as expected with his take on different people & some of his life experiences. He's also able to improvise very well, with plenty of interaction with the crowd. Its also good to know that you get stuff before the rest of the audience. The one that stuck out for me was when he was talking about the terror attacks in India in 2008 & comparing them to the attacks on the US in 2001 he mentioned the comedy value of the date of the attacks, which co-incided with an anniversary of sorts of the USA attacks, with the difference being that the attacks on India were in July (at which point I started laughing, as I could see the punchline coming) ... and then Russell explains that yes, India ironically had their own 7-11, and the crowd joined in with my laughter. Of course as soon as the show ended, I tried to get outside to catch a cab to the Rio. This is where my plan really began to come unstuck! Once outside I saw that there was a line for cabs ... not a problem as there were a few cabs already queueing to pick people up ... but then I walked down the lime looking for the end of it ... and I walked ... and walked ... and walked ... until I finally found the end of the line, at least 60 metres from the door! At this point my genius really kicked in ... no problem, I'll just hail a cab on the street. Sounds like a plan, except all the cabs that went past (and there were a few) were either taken or ignored my outstretched hand. As I continued to walk down Paradise Road I came up with another plan ... go to another casino. If there are cab lines at the Hard Rock, then surely there would be cabs at other casinos too ... so I headed for nearby Terribles casino. Of course there were no cabs to be found at any of the three entrances! So back to plan B ... hail a cab on the street ... and waiting. I returned to Terribles as I saw a cab pulling in to the parking lot, only to see a couple who had been sitting at the entrance since before I got to the casino hop in the cab and drive off ... back to the streets. Eventually I found a vacant cab & jumped in ... TO THE RIO! Of course I also discovered traffic in Las vegas on a long weekend (Memorial Day) was horrible! Eventually I made it back to the Rio & power-walked my way back to my table.
As I returned I found I still had 4600 in chips, which was reasonable, with blinds at 150/300 & playing 300/600. Obviously I would like more, however it was still enough to get by, provided I could win a few pots before the next break. Of course I then managed to find ways to get either horrible or mediocre starting hands, which I folded, or good starting hands which either missed the flop completely (the old A23x double suited looks less impressive on a JQK rainbow board) or managed to make second-best hands (which are never good because you put chips in the pot, only to see them go elsewhere). Of course I managed to pick up mediocre aces (AA78 with spades) & was called by Sorel Mizzi (who was short) & another player. I lead out on the T55 flop, only for Sorel to announce 'I'm all in' with his stack of green $25 chips. As it turns out, he had more than a raise left, so he made it 600 to go, with only 100 behind. The other player in the hand called & I (somewhat foolishly in hindsight) decided to call as well, figuring it would only cost me the extra 100 to see the river. I was right about seeing the river for Sorel's remaining stack, but when he turned over a 2356 he managed to scoop the pot, with trip 5s taking the high & his 23 being good for the low (the board finished up T5567). Another classic of mine was raising with AQQ8 with diamonds after one limper (I was one of the only people at the table who did not open limp at times - perhaps that is a mistake on my part, perhaps not. More stategy later). After the obligatory calls from the limper & three people in late position we saw a flop of 468 rainbow. Not exactly the type of flop I was looking for & when I lead out, was called in two spots & raised by the button & called in front of me, I decided that my hand really didn't look so good after all & folded. Of course the board ran out QQ, so I would have rivered quads & taken half of a pretty sizable pot (4 players saw the river). Of course in a sense I was right (one player had 57 for the straight, while the other three all had A2 to chop the low), however it made me more frustrated with the tournament, with my stack dwindling & my better hands losing & my folded hands turning into winners. Of course just to rub salt in the wounds, our table broke when I had only 800 left. This was compounded when I sat down at my new table to find I was in the big blind (sitting next to Chad Brown, with Brock Parker & Mel Judah also at the table). I posted my big blind, saw a raise & 2 callers before it was back to me, pondered about whether I should look at my cards or simply go all-in blind, but looked & saw the less-than-inspiring 9972 with a suit & decided it wasn't the best hand, but it might make something with the right flop & with 3 people already in the pot I figured I might as well take a stand & hope to pick up as mich of the 3200 I was playing for as I could. I managed to flop a gutshot straight draw, however with a low card coming on the turn, it meant that my gutshot would also make a low possible, but it left me with some hope. The miracle 8 arrived on the river on the JT458 board, however my hope was crushed when one opponent turned over A2 for the nut low & the other showed Q9 for the nut straight ... and my brief stay in the blue section was over, with 520 or so players from the original 818 still remaining.
In more positive news, my friend Angelo made it through day 1 of the $1k NLHE event, so at least there was some positive news on the poker front.
Next on the agenda: Laundromat & cash games
I suppose its annoying when you are frustrated & distracted playing your first WSOP event. I decided to play the Omaha hi-lo event at the WSOP (the only 'small' buy-in O8 event at the series), but also had a ticket to see Russell Peters in his only Las Vegas show (He recently did a tour in Australia, but I was in Los Angeles when it was on).
What did this mean for the tournament ... well the plan going in was to try to chip up early from the 4500 starting stack, then take a cab to the Hard Rock for the Russell Peters show (which started at 9pm, which was just before the scheduled hour-long dinner break), enjoy the show, then return to the Rio, crush & make it to day 2. Unfortunately only one part a small part of that plan actually worked (the cab to the Hard Rock & enjoying the Russell Peters show). I got off to a poor start, with many of my big hands finding ways to be scooped or quartered (both horrible things to happen in a split-pot game). By the time the first break came I had slipped to just under 3k, which was not what the plan had been. After the break there were a few changes nearby, with a crowd building on the rail as Phil Ivey sat down at the table next to mine, while Sorel Mizzi joined my table. I managed to tread water for a while until just before I left for the Hard Rock. I managed to scoop a decent-sized pot (around 2k) when I rivered top set on a 63J9K board with KK42 (which picked up a flush draw on the turn) against Sorel Mizzi. This meant that I left the Rio with 5075 in my stack.
The show at the Hard Rock was great. Russell Peters was hilarious as expected with his take on different people & some of his life experiences. He's also able to improvise very well, with plenty of interaction with the crowd. Its also good to know that you get stuff before the rest of the audience. The one that stuck out for me was when he was talking about the terror attacks in India in 2008 & comparing them to the attacks on the US in 2001 he mentioned the comedy value of the date of the attacks, which co-incided with an anniversary of sorts of the USA attacks, with the difference being that the attacks on India were in July (at which point I started laughing, as I could see the punchline coming) ... and then Russell explains that yes, India ironically had their own 7-11, and the crowd joined in with my laughter. Of course as soon as the show ended, I tried to get outside to catch a cab to the Rio. This is where my plan really began to come unstuck! Once outside I saw that there was a line for cabs ... not a problem as there were a few cabs already queueing to pick people up ... but then I walked down the lime looking for the end of it ... and I walked ... and walked ... and walked ... until I finally found the end of the line, at least 60 metres from the door! At this point my genius really kicked in ... no problem, I'll just hail a cab on the street. Sounds like a plan, except all the cabs that went past (and there were a few) were either taken or ignored my outstretched hand. As I continued to walk down Paradise Road I came up with another plan ... go to another casino. If there are cab lines at the Hard Rock, then surely there would be cabs at other casinos too ... so I headed for nearby Terribles casino. Of course there were no cabs to be found at any of the three entrances! So back to plan B ... hail a cab on the street ... and waiting. I returned to Terribles as I saw a cab pulling in to the parking lot, only to see a couple who had been sitting at the entrance since before I got to the casino hop in the cab and drive off ... back to the streets. Eventually I found a vacant cab & jumped in ... TO THE RIO! Of course I also discovered traffic in Las vegas on a long weekend (Memorial Day) was horrible! Eventually I made it back to the Rio & power-walked my way back to my table.
As I returned I found I still had 4600 in chips, which was reasonable, with blinds at 150/300 & playing 300/600. Obviously I would like more, however it was still enough to get by, provided I could win a few pots before the next break. Of course I then managed to find ways to get either horrible or mediocre starting hands, which I folded, or good starting hands which either missed the flop completely (the old A23x double suited looks less impressive on a JQK rainbow board) or managed to make second-best hands (which are never good because you put chips in the pot, only to see them go elsewhere). Of course I managed to pick up mediocre aces (AA78 with spades) & was called by Sorel Mizzi (who was short) & another player. I lead out on the T55 flop, only for Sorel to announce 'I'm all in' with his stack of green $25 chips. As it turns out, he had more than a raise left, so he made it 600 to go, with only 100 behind. The other player in the hand called & I (somewhat foolishly in hindsight) decided to call as well, figuring it would only cost me the extra 100 to see the river. I was right about seeing the river for Sorel's remaining stack, but when he turned over a 2356 he managed to scoop the pot, with trip 5s taking the high & his 23 being good for the low (the board finished up T5567). Another classic of mine was raising with AQQ8 with diamonds after one limper (I was one of the only people at the table who did not open limp at times - perhaps that is a mistake on my part, perhaps not. More stategy later). After the obligatory calls from the limper & three people in late position we saw a flop of 468 rainbow. Not exactly the type of flop I was looking for & when I lead out, was called in two spots & raised by the button & called in front of me, I decided that my hand really didn't look so good after all & folded. Of course the board ran out QQ, so I would have rivered quads & taken half of a pretty sizable pot (4 players saw the river). Of course in a sense I was right (one player had 57 for the straight, while the other three all had A2 to chop the low), however it made me more frustrated with the tournament, with my stack dwindling & my better hands losing & my folded hands turning into winners. Of course just to rub salt in the wounds, our table broke when I had only 800 left. This was compounded when I sat down at my new table to find I was in the big blind (sitting next to Chad Brown, with Brock Parker & Mel Judah also at the table). I posted my big blind, saw a raise & 2 callers before it was back to me, pondered about whether I should look at my cards or simply go all-in blind, but looked & saw the less-than-inspiring 9972 with a suit & decided it wasn't the best hand, but it might make something with the right flop & with 3 people already in the pot I figured I might as well take a stand & hope to pick up as mich of the 3200 I was playing for as I could. I managed to flop a gutshot straight draw, however with a low card coming on the turn, it meant that my gutshot would also make a low possible, but it left me with some hope. The miracle 8 arrived on the river on the JT458 board, however my hope was crushed when one opponent turned over A2 for the nut low & the other showed Q9 for the nut straight ... and my brief stay in the blue section was over, with 520 or so players from the original 818 still remaining.
In more positive news, my friend Angelo made it through day 1 of the $1k NLHE event, so at least there was some positive news on the poker front.
Next on the agenda: Laundromat & cash games
Sunday, May 30, 2010
USA Day 25
Min cash time!
The HORSE tourney went south fairly quickly, with my demise coming in 48th place out of the 125 starters. Of course I simply ran horribly in the stud games & that was the end of my tournament. Of course the positive of this bustout was that I finished in time for the Omaha hi-lo to begin. I began very well & spent most of the tournament in the top few chips positions. Of course the structure for the Omaha was horrible (and was in fact the same as the HORSE, which started the previous day, when the Omaha was down to two tables!), so it became a game of flips when down to two tables, with each pot potentially creating a new chip leader. Of course I managed to run horribly when down to two tables & went from chip leader (or second) at the table to out in 13th place.
Decided to play a little limit Holdem after busting from the tournament (might as well play some cash at the Orleans, not just tournaments) & in typical limit fashion I managed to have AA cracked by A4cc after flopping top set when the board came running clubs & unless I managed to flop a set, any other pocket pair was also a loser.
Next on the agenda: a dilemma. I have a ticket to Russell Peters at 9pm, but am seriously considering playing the Omaha hi-lo at the WSOP, which starts at 5pm. Might play the WSOP, and skip a few hands to go to the Russell Peters show (which conveniently is around the time of the dinner break) & hope it doesn't effect my stack too much.
The HORSE tourney went south fairly quickly, with my demise coming in 48th place out of the 125 starters. Of course I simply ran horribly in the stud games & that was the end of my tournament. Of course the positive of this bustout was that I finished in time for the Omaha hi-lo to begin. I began very well & spent most of the tournament in the top few chips positions. Of course the structure for the Omaha was horrible (and was in fact the same as the HORSE, which started the previous day, when the Omaha was down to two tables!), so it became a game of flips when down to two tables, with each pot potentially creating a new chip leader. Of course I managed to run horribly when down to two tables & went from chip leader (or second) at the table to out in 13th place.
Decided to play a little limit Holdem after busting from the tournament (might as well play some cash at the Orleans, not just tournaments) & in typical limit fashion I managed to have AA cracked by A4cc after flopping top set when the board came running clubs & unless I managed to flop a set, any other pocket pair was also a loser.
Next on the agenda: a dilemma. I have a ticket to Russell Peters at 9pm, but am seriously considering playing the Omaha hi-lo at the WSOP, which starts at 5pm. Might play the WSOP, and skip a few hands to go to the Russell Peters show (which conveniently is around the time of the dinner break) & hope it doesn't effect my stack too much.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
USA Day 23 & 24
Day 2 again ...
Made it through to day 2 of the $330 HORSE at the Orleans today. 125 started, with 62 making it through to day 2. A sick, sick structure with plenty of play & deep stacks meant that there weren't that many bustouts during the day & some of the players complained about the structure being too slow, lamenting that there were too many players left at the end of the day! Yes, poker players will complain about anything!
The day before I headed to the Rio to check out the WSOP. Things were still getting set up, but the tournament area is just huge! Saw quite a few pros playing in the $50k 8-game satellite, including Gavin Smith, Jason Mercier, Sorel Mizzi, Allen 'Chainsaw' Kessler, 'Chino' Rheem & others. I decided to play a satellite & managed to dust off my 2k stack in a $330 mega satellite when my JJ ran into 22 on a 432 flop. Of course I then decided to play a $125 Sit'n'go & managed to donk off my 1k stack when I ran AK into QQ. After these brief disappointments I left the Rio & ended up at Aria & played $1/3NL for a few hours until I managed to run into monster after monster after a good start.
Next on the agenda: Day 2 of the HORSE, Russell Peters & probably some events downtown.
Made it through to day 2 of the $330 HORSE at the Orleans today. 125 started, with 62 making it through to day 2. A sick, sick structure with plenty of play & deep stacks meant that there weren't that many bustouts during the day & some of the players complained about the structure being too slow, lamenting that there were too many players left at the end of the day! Yes, poker players will complain about anything!
The day before I headed to the Rio to check out the WSOP. Things were still getting set up, but the tournament area is just huge! Saw quite a few pros playing in the $50k 8-game satellite, including Gavin Smith, Jason Mercier, Sorel Mizzi, Allen 'Chainsaw' Kessler, 'Chino' Rheem & others. I decided to play a satellite & managed to dust off my 2k stack in a $330 mega satellite when my JJ ran into 22 on a 432 flop. Of course I then decided to play a $125 Sit'n'go & managed to donk off my 1k stack when I ran AK into QQ. After these brief disappointments I left the Rio & ended up at Aria & played $1/3NL for a few hours until I managed to run into monster after monster after a good start.
Next on the agenda: Day 2 of the HORSE, Russell Peters & probably some events downtown.
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