Vegas June 2017 (WSOP)

Day 5 - Aria 7pm

Last Updated: 2017-06-19 13:47:47

This will probably be a short one today because I'm pressed for time, but we'll see how fast I can ramble on...

Got to our room around 8:30 am Sunday. Got a couple of hours of sleep, typed up the BLOG and we headed out for a little shopping since I clearly wasn't playing in the 11am at Aria again. Picked up a few things at Fashion Show Mall, then ran over to Tom's Urban at NYNY for an early dinner. Then it was on to the 7pm.

A lot you know that when I lived in Colorado Springs I played in a home poker game with a well known author who has sold more books than Stephen King. I've never mentioned his name here because I don't think he likes his name being associated with poker even tho he does sometimes play in tournaments where his name could appear in an online list of winners. There is a guy who also plays in that game who seems to manage to come to Vegas it seems like almost every time I'm here and also plays at Aria. This guy doesn't remember me, apparently, but I remember him.

First hand out of the gate I try and buy a pot with Q-J suited in clubs. The 10-seat had raised preflop and that early of course I'm going to see a flop with those cards. Flop comes 3-2-3 with two clubs, 10-seat does not c-bet but check calls my flop and river bets (I missed!) and I'm down out of the gate.

A few minutes later who walks over and talks to the 10-seat but the guy from Colorado Springs! After he leaves I chat up the 10-seat a little, he's playing in that home game now and yes, Patrick, apparently Matt still goes to pretty much every game.

After that, tho, the first two rounds were pretty kind to me. First my buddy in the 10-seat gave me way more than I gave him on a bluff. He raised out pre-flop and I looked down at A-Q. He fired three bullets on an A-K-X flop, A turn and a blank river. I called him down and he said "you got it" so I never saw his cards.

Picked up another nice pot with trip Aces again and I ended up over 23K in chips by the end of the second level. Downhill from there for a while, however. I went card dead in the third to leave me with 20,600 from my 15K starting stack at the first break.

I stayed card dead for the next three levels, so that's two hours of poker barely playing a hand and not having much work out on the ones I did play. I missed with A-K (raised preflop, tried a C-bet on an unhelpful flop, had to give up on river) and at the second break I was down to 13K.

Into level 7 I managed to win a few pots with some junky hands. I couldn't just wait forever, I figured I'd have a lot of credibility since I was hardly playing anything and it worked. Then finally a big pot thanks to a little luck...

Blinds probably 600/1200, I'm late to act, there is a limper or two and I look down at KK. I make it 4500 to go, two callers. Flop J-3-5 rainbow. Guy at the other end of the table goes all-in, guy sitting to my right thinks about it and calls. As I type those words it occurs to me that this should have been a red flag, but I'm not folding KK on that board no matter what I don't think. I go over the top for not a lot more, guy to my right calls.

Dude at the other end rolls over 88. I get it, that's not a bad flop for 88, if we're playing A-Q/A-K he can steal a nice pot.

Guy to my right rolls over 33. That's a better flop for 33.

King on the river...I triple up to 62K.

I end up taking out the guy who caught the 3 not too much later when I have JJ and he shoves into me with another smaller pair (5's maybe?). Time to look at the clock and it shows we're down to 77 players out of 230 paying 27 places again.

I blew a chunk of chips when I started out with 77, raised out and the only caller was a guy who liked to play just about every hand but usually folded to pressure. Flop was all broadway cards, I tried to rep the A on the flop of A-J-T, then when the board ran out Q-J I obviously wasn't winning the pot at showdown so I fired another bullet on the river...and got check-raised. Oof. Oh well.

Still tho I'm above average at the time and go into the next break at 47K, dead average.

Apparently that guy only folded to pressure from everyone but me. Not too long after that break he raises out and I call with K-J of spades. Flop comes A-X-T two spades, so I have a nut flush draw and a gutshot. I assume I'm a small favorite, he leads out, I push over the top and he thinks a little and calls.

We're almost a dead coin flip when he rolls over A-Q off. Odds are 49.8-50.20 specifically because he has a Q, one of my straight outs. About any other card makes me a favorite.

Still, tho, I still think it was a good play on my part as the aggressor against a guy who could have almost any two cards and often folded to pressure. I just got unlucky that he happened to have hands every time I tried.

Board gave me no help, I'm back down to starting stack and less than 10 big blinds.

For a while I get to play the all-in game and it works. I have just enough chips that nobody really wants to call me and double me up. I work my way back up over 30K without seeing a flop. And we're 22 from the money.

Up to 45K without seeing a flop...bustouts continue and I'm not one of them...

I get in with A-9 against 66, win the flip, suddenly I'm at 95K! Just above average stack, back from the dead! 90K at the next break just 7 from the money.

I work my way up to 105K when we get to the bubble, then win another flip just after the bubble bursts with A-9 against 55 to score another knockout and I'm up to 170K.

At the time that was a pretty good sized stack, but as bustouts continue and blinds go up and I stop winning pots my stack is starting to look smaller and smaller.

So we're at 19 remaining, 18th place is a small money bump. I'm in the big blind, small blind had already tried to steal my blind 100% of the time it folded around to him and this hand was no exception. I look down at A-6 and call, probably should have reraised in that spot. It wouldn't have mattered.

Flop comes 7-2-6, all the chips go in, he rolls over 99 (of course he did...) and I'm done in 19th place. A profit but less than double my buyin.

What a trip this has been so far. I've played 3 tournaments and I've made Day 2 at the WSOP and cashed in both of the other two. I'm afraid to actually say the "H-word" but it's starting to feel like it.

Today I'm playing in the seniors event at Aria. The good news about my 3am bustout is that I actually got 5 hours of sleep instead of 2 like the previous night. 5 hours is about normal for me so I'm feeling pretty refreshed. I feel like I definitely have an advantage on the field in most seniors tournaments and obviously I always feel like I'm better than the field at Aria in general so I'm really looking forward to this one. I'm pretty sure my top 3 cashes all came here.

Down the road I'm badly waffling on my plan for tomorrow. About a week before the trip started I began to consider playing PLO Wednesday at the WSOP instead of Stud 8/b Tuesday. I still can't make up my mind. I really want to play HORSE Thursday, from a schedule perspective Stud 8/b makes more sense. But my only WSOP cash was PLO/PLH and I really like the game. But I also have a good Stud 8/b game...so I dunno...this will be a game time decision.

I will say this, skipping Stud 8/b would probably force me to take a day off and I probably should take a day off. Part of me hates to when it's going this well, part of me knows it would probably be in my best interest to step away for a day and really get a good night sleep.

We shall see...