Vegas June 2014 (WSOP)

Day 4 - WSOP Deepstack

Last Updated: 2014-06-30 12:11:42

Another day, another deep run. This is a good habit to be in.

Went for another long walk since I wasn't going to play poker until 3PM. This time walked to Wynn and back, scouted the buffet for when Joann and I come back in a few days.

Lunch at Chipotle. I needed a burrito fix, I've already eaten way, way too much and it's good to get in a quality meal now and then. After that it was on to the Rio one more time.

Here's an irony for you. As I've mentioned, Joann has been on the rail for me literally every minute of my WSOP adventures (well, except for when there's a really good final table going on and I lose her for a little while, but I can't argue with that :-) ) and the last few years she hasn't been able to be anywhere near my tables. Thursday would have been no different, but for day 2 I was right on an aisle. And of course I was on an aisle for most of this tournament as well. Even when I moved I was moved to one on the aisle, and when that table was broken up I moved one table over, close to the aisle and no table in between. Of course it worked out that way...

Quick aside, Hans played in the $1500 tournament. I think 2250 or so played, when I went by to chat with him for a few minutes they were in the 700s remaining, he lasted a little while longer than that but not money. Maria played over at Aria in the 7:00, didn't hear how she did.

OK back "on topic".

Yet another insane tournament. I had the good sense to get bought in by 2:00. There is a tournament cage inside the Pavilion room for this tournament but here's a tip - go to the main buyin cage for the regular WSOP tournaments. You can buy in there and apparently a lot of people don't know that.

So just like the Monster Stack, they were completely unprepared for the crowd for this one. Last Saturday they had 833 players. They would almost double that.

When I sat down to play, the line within the Pavilion room was wrapped all the way around my section of tables. I would guess at least 100 people. And growing

Just before we started, they announced that all available seats were taken, that some people who had seats were going to have to wait another HOUR to be seated because they section of tables they were supposed to be in was still being used by another tournament.

Then they just stopped selling seats. And the 100+ people I would guess were in line to buy in waited probably more than that hour before they even started letting people buy in again. And they all stood there and waited.

Around 4:30-5:00 they announced that people could buy in as alternates, they should come back at 6:00 (for a 3:00 tournament!!!) and they would be seated. And they promised that anyone who bought in would be seated at some point, guaranteed. And all those people proceeded to plunk down their money knowing that the deep stack wasn't going to be so deep for them...

The final tally would be 1561 players, a first place prize of $49,800, 171 places to be paid.

Started out very well for me. After about 3 levels I was up to around 26,000 from a 15K starting stack. Big pot was when I slow-played Queens and got paid off. It went like this: Raise into me, I just call with QQ. Sometimes I like to do that hoping for a very disguised set since folks generally don't fear a flopped queen as much as an ace or king. A short stack just calls. Flop comes all rags, original raiser leads out, I go over the top, short stack calls/goes all in (I think I had bet more than he had but I threw out a chip to indicate a call just in case).

Original raiser is very unhappy, later would say he had jacks, and folds. I call, short stack had 10-10.

But three levels later (30 minute levels) I was back down around 18K when I had a stretch without much in the way of cards and none of the few I did play were panning out.

Then in the 7th level I had aces cracked again. This time by 8-7. A fairly aggressive player sat down two seats to my right, exactly where I want him. And I got him to commit chips while way behind. Unfortunately he rivered two pair and my master plan resulted in me being crippled.

Next hand was a 4-way pot before it even got to me, so I sat out. Hand after that someone raised out, I'm very short stacked and I look down at 9-2 of hearts.

Yeah it's a crappy hand. But nobody is going to call this guys raise and as long as I'm heads up and he doesn't have a pair I've surely got two live cards and I'm really not that far behind.

He rolls over A-Q offsuit. 9 on the flop, I double up. Back up to 11K, which is barely 10 times big blind. And isn't even that when they go up again.

Two more all-ins that weren't called (AKo and 99) and I get back up to 16,500ish. Naturally when I just decide to blatantly try and steal blinds with K-7 off I get called by 99. King on the flop, but had given up some blinds beforehand so I'm only up to 28,000. My biggest stack of the day!

Then more waiting, more getting blinded off...until I got little payback. The aggressive guy who cracked my aces with 8-7 raised out, I look down at A-9, I know that's ahead of his range to raise and I go over the top. He instantly calls with A-5.

5 on the flop. But two diamonds and I have diamonds...Jd on the river, I double up again. Now I'm at 42K. And I can actually play poker, make moves and buy pots. And I do just that and work my way close to 50K.

A little later I'm in the big blind I think of 4000. It folds around to the very short stacked small blind and he pushes all-in.

I say I shouldn't even look (I shouldn't have, pot odds and a takeout) but I do anyway, I see an ace and I call. Then I look at the second card and it's another ace.

On one hand, it was nice to have aces hold up. OTOH it sucks that a very short stack was all the action I got. Maybe I should shut up and be happy they weren't cracked again.

Oh he had no-look shoved w/ 7-4 offsuit. Naturally he flopped a gutter and turned open-ended, but didn't get there on the river. 60K now in my stack. And look at that. We're down to 440 players!

Then aces actually hold up for me again and I'm up near 80,000 chips. Feeling pretty good about my chances at this point.

Less than 15 minutes later the clock is updated to show us down to 380, then moments later dropped again to 350.

Two orbits of blinds and nothing playable drops me back down to 60K. We get down to 310 left and go on a 30 minute break. I go see how Hans is doing. He's playing poker with Freddy Deeb, who knocked me out of the 8-game in 2012.

Back to my table, and no cards for a bit and I get blinded back down to 10 big blinds. Into all-in mode again. 90 from the money...

Within about 15 minutes the clock is revised down to 36 from the money. Then 27 from the money. But I'm bleeding chips...

A loose big stack raises out and I look at K-Q. I think I have a little fold equity and I figure I might be able to just pick up the pot and if I'm called I probably won't be in too bad shape. I go all in.

He thinks a bit, calls and turns over A-8. Flop has a King and I double up again. I'm actually up to 106,000 chips and I'm in good shape to get into the money. I didn't get too involved at that point due to cards, not because I was trying to eke out a cash. I play to win, not to place or show.

I pick up some blinds here and there, one eye always on the clock. 18 from money...9...5...they announce all dealers should stand up when they finish the hand they're on so they can get an accurate count. That hand eliminates someone from our table. 4 left?

The news is delivered to our table before the announcement when someone comes over and sits down saying his table broke up. 9 handed tables, if a table is broken up we're a new multiple of 9...we have to be in the money!!!

So down to 171, while 36 other people were being eliminated in the next 20 minutes here is the last of the hands I played:

Look down at A-9 off, raise out, short stack pushes all in, I call, he has A-10. I don't improve, 60% of my stack gone.

Very next hand I push again with A-5, this time called by K-Q. Best hand wins again, just a little below where I started this sequence. A few hands later the guy who beat me with the A-10 makes a raise that puts me all in, I call after looking down at A-Q. He has 7s, flops a 7, I at least turn a diamond draw but no luck and I'm out in 135th place, the next pay jump so I do a little better than the last 36 that busted.

Finally a cash!!!

For the week I had a 4 from the money out of 265 or so, outlasted 2/3 of the field and only busted because my aces got cracked in the WSOP, 55th or so out of 265-ish again (30 or so from money) and finally a cash.

I would obviously have liked to earn a little more money, but that's a pretty good track record if I do say so myself.

So even tho I'm down a few bucks, I leave extremely happy with my play. Maybe a few little things I could have done better, but overall an extremely solid effort.

We'll be back out here in less than a week, and I've decided to try and satellite into the main event.

Wish me luck!