Vegas December 2015

Day Two - Aria

Last Updated: 2015-12-08 13:17:43

Poker is always more fun when you're involved. Of course, it's fun when you walk away with more money than you came with too. Sunday worked out on both fronts.

Nick slept in so I headed downstairs for an early lunch. Usually I don't start pounding black-and-tans at 10:30 in the morning...but I have a schedule and when I see Guinness on tap and I'm eating lunch or dinner, well, it's noon somewhere isn't it?

So on to Aria and into the 1:00 tournament. Things started out pretty well outside of a slowplay that turned into a bad hero call.

I caught trips three times in the first three levels, got paid at least something for all of them but I was only able to milk one of them to the river. Naturally I got aces along the way and got nothing but blinds. Haven't seen a lot of them so far.

You'd think such good fortune would have me well above starting stack at the break. Alas I had a hand where I raised out in late position with A-Q suited and got two callers. Flop came K-10-x with two spades. Checks to me and I c-bet my gutshot. Two callers. Turn is an offsuit Jack. Nice!

I have the nuts, I can't believe someone with a set wouldn't have already gone over the top on the flop bet so with an incredibly safe board for me I decide to check to try and get paid on the river.

River is a rag spade. Checks to me, I lead out for 1500, probably about 2/3 of the pot and the first guy goes over the top for 2000 more. I think for a while and call. I think I just wanted to know...of course he turned over 9-2 of spades.

OK, at least I know his range includes any two suited cards.

Into the break around 9K I think from the 10K starting stack.

From that point on, tho, I couldn't have written a much better script. I was stack building all day and took only one more backwards step.

Got paid nicely when I caught trips for the 4th time in the 4th round I think, and then in the 5th round I was in middle position with two limpers, look down at A-K off and raise out 4.5 big blinds. One of the limpers called. Flop came J-10-Q all spades. I can't remember if he check-raised me or if he just led out all-in. I think I checked to see if I had a spade, I didn't, but it didn't matter. I've learned to never fear the monotone board. I called quickly and he rolled over K-9 with no spades. No ace to save him and he was within a couple of hundred of my stack so he was out and I was doubled up to 30k.

After that came the aforementioned step backwards. I led out with pocket 10s, a guy with 9K shoved over the top of me and I made the call. I probably should have folded, the pot odds were marginal even if I was right that he most likely had two overs...A-K. Flop came all hearts, I have the 10h. Nice! Wait, he has Ah. Crud. Heart on the river...

Later I would have a similar opportunity and walked away from it...I think it was 9s or 10s again.

So into break #2 with 22K. If you told me at the first break I would go into the second break more than double starting stack I'd take it, but I should've had more.

Side note: While this is going on I'm also somewhat distracted by the Eagles stunning victory over the Pats. What a game. They tried to blow it, but held on.

E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES!!!!!

And go Cowboys tonight. Much as it pains me to say that, Eagles can earn a first place tie in the pathetic NFC LEAST. The dream is alive again! Chip Kelly is a GENIUS (hehe).

Nick had busted out I think before the second break, he headed out to play in some cash games.

So 130 entries, we're down to 60, we're paying 12 places and I'm above average stack. From that point on I was never more than a little below average the rest of the night.

At the color up I was 28K, down to 50, still above average. I get moved to a new table in a table balance.

At the new table I'm not there too long, so I don't really have reads on anyone yet, when my next big hand came up. It's usually pretty obvious within a round or so what's going on at this point in the tournament...generally the gear-changing has stopped, you can see who has the big stacks and who has all the small value chips and you can see who' playing pots and who isn't. You can definitely make some generic type reads.

So I raise out with A-10 under the gun, one caller directly to my left and he hadn't been overly active.

Flop comes A-3-3. I lead out for 1/2 or 2/3 of the pot and he beats me into the pot all-in.

This is usually in instant call for me. Oldest tell in the book. I've doubled up so many times in this spot. But for once I actually go into the tank.

The instant shove is the biggest sign of weakness in poker. And it's usually effective in these tournaments because most of the players aren't thinking players and all they see is a big pile of chips going in in a hurry. Guy must have a monster, right?

No. Almost never. It's someone who's almost certainly weak who's trying to scare you out of the pot.

His stack looks pretty similar to mine. I think a little, take a deep breath, take a chip off one of my stacks and toss it in indicating I call.

He has A-7. No help for him on the board, he has me covered by one big blind. I double up to 50k.

60K at the third break, 28 left so 16 from money.

28 dropped down to 23. Better than 50-50 shot.

I'm in the small blind when 2-3 people limp in. I call with 10-2 off. Good enough for Doyle, good enough for me! Big blind checks and we're off to the races.

Flop comes A-2-2. GIN! I check, it checks around. This had been a very active table, and with the ace on the board someone had to have one and would lead out, right? No. Argh.

Turn is a jack. Gotta bet now, right? I lead out for probably 2500 or 3500.

Big blind goes over the top for 8-10K.

Folds around to me and I make it 22K.

All the chips go in, and he rolls over Q-2. No way. I'm in big trouble so close to the money...Ace on the river for a chop. WHEW!

Not long after we get down to two tables and redraw seats. I score the one-seat. I HATE the one-seat. And just my luck, two of the biggest stacks are in the 2 and 4 seats. Crap.

Actually, it always seems like all the big stacks end up at one table and all the small stacks in the other in these redraws. It's always random, but it always works out that way. At one point we were 7 or 8 handed at the table with 5 above average stacks and nobody really short. Usually only about 1/3 of the players are above average, usually you have a few big stacks and several shorter stacks. So most likely at that point the other table had one player, if even one, above average. And the result of that is that it drags out getting to the money. At the big stack table it would be brutal to get knocked out close to the money with an above average stack. At the short stack table all anyone can do is go all-in and only a monster hand can call the all-in (and most of them are probably trying to just eke out a cash!) so they're all playing cautious too.

Then comes what Joann tells me is one of her favorite parts of the tournaments I play in...texting her the countdown.

7 from the money...

6...

5...

Big hand. I got a little payback. There's no three seat any more, I lead out with K-Q suited, monster stack 2-seat calls and almost monster stack 4 seat calls. Great, a battle of titans...

Flop comes A-K-Q. I lead out, both call.

Turn is a K. Wow.

I decide to check. Both of these guys are aggressive, hopefully this will look like a great steal card for one of them. 2-seat leads out, 4 seat calls. Wow!

I go over the top all-in. 2-seat folds, 4-seat calls and rolls over K-9. I'm gonna more than double-up!!!

Ace on the river. Kings full of aces for both of us, we chop the pot and I only "half up" because we split what the two-seat put in plus the blinds and antes from the other players (which totaled up was close to my original stack). ARGH! Guess it's karmic payback for the deuces.

4...

3...

2...

MONEY!!!

One bustout at each table. We're in the money with two tables of 6 players. We lose another one at our table and we're 5-handed.

At this point I pulled off a huge semi-bluff. I'm around 100K and I think blinds were 1500/3000. I look down at A-6 suited in hearts, at a 5-handed table any ace is likely the best hand so I raise to 7500. I get one caller in the big blind. Flop comes J-3-4 with two hearts. Great spot for a continuation bet.

I lead out for about 11K, he calls. Turn is an offsuit 5.

Now I have an open ended straight draw and a nut flush draw. Plus I have an ace so I have an overcard if he paired the board. But with so many draws I don't want to be bet out of the pot...so I check.

He leads out for 20K, about 20% of his stack.

I think about calling. But I'm not playing for 11th place...I'm all in.

He goes in the tank. He HATES this bet. Counts his stack, he's crippled if he calls and loses. He agonizes and agonizes...and folds and says "you have A-K of hearts, don't you?" I said (honestly) "I can promise you I was better than A-K of hearts." I had more outs than he thought I had :-)

That was pretty much all of the excitement. We get down to one table not long after that. When we get down to 6 players the guy who was in the 2 seat at my previous table had gone from 1/4 of the chips in play 12-handed to half the chips in play 6 handed. He wants to know if we're willing to chop.

He wants half way between first and second place money. If we even split the rest we all get a little less than 3rd place. But basically we had three people who were the shortest stacks, me included, two people who had about double what the short stacks had and then the monster. One of the bigger stacks didn't feel even was fair...so what we worked out was that the short stacks got 100 less than an even split, the two bigger stacks got 150 above even...so a 250 difference. All said and done I got about midway between 4th place and 3rd place. Well more than double 6th place had I been next out. I'll take it!!!

So Monday it will be Aria again. I'm somewhat tempted to play in the WPT Seniors event at Bellagio today but my game plan is to try and build a bankroll and Aria is the best way to do that.

I've done the math. I've covered all of my buyins for the trip with that cash, so anything I make from here out is gravy. Now it's about playing in as many tournaments as I can instead of trying to chase a big score. Had I been the guy between 1st and 2nd cash last night, well, it would be a different story.

Wish me luck!