Vegas June/July 2022 (WSOP)

Days 8-10 - Couple days off, Aria

Last Updated: 2022-07-02 18:43:34

Covering three days here so it might be long :-)

That and I had quite a run at Aria for my Friday night...

Wednesday for Peter's birthday we took him to our favorite steakhouse, Smith and Wollensky, and then Blue Man Group down at Luxor. Unfortunately we thought the show was at 9, not 8 and ended up a few minutes late but he thoroughly enjoyed the show.

We also got ourselves sucked into a sweepstakes that MGM Rewards is running where you have to find a QR code in each of their properties that are "hidden in plain sight". We found all of them except for NYNY that night.

Thursday I was going to play in the PLO Deepstack at the WSOP, but decided to spend another day with Peter. I've got another week and a half here, lots of time. Since Peter plays video games that involve guns I thought it would be fun if he fired a real weapon. The plan was for Joann to take him while I played poker so I signed her up too.

Both of them had a blast, Peter was supposed to get to fire four different guns ranging from a Glock to a small machine gun, he added on a bigger machine gun. That thing was a cannon, I was standing behind him recording and could feel the force of the shots in my chest.

Peter was scary accurate with the pistol for a kid who never picked up a gun before (in 10 shots 2 bullseyes, 7 in the next circle out, only the first shot a little farther out). Joann, also never shot a gun before, started out a little farther out but after a tip from the instructor she was dead in the middle too. She only shot 3 guns but did add an extra mag for her Glock.

We also found the last QR code at NYNY, then Peter chose the Hard Rock Cafe for his last dinner in Vegas.

I was going to take Peter to the airport between going to the pool with Joann and poker at Aria, but due to storms in Denver his flight was delayed until late afternoon so chauffer duty fell on Joann instead (and Peter did make it home Friday night, eventually).

It's been a tough trip so far, but the fact of the matter is I know I'm playing solid I'm just not getting the results.

In fact, I've been reading a Jonathan Little book on playing a Game Theory Optimal (GTO) strategy and if you've been following along the BLOGS there were several key decisions I made where I literally read a chapter in the next day or two that described decisions for my exact stack size and in one case happened to use exactly the hand I had and how I played it as an example of correct play.

In Orleans with a 15-ish big blind stack I raised instead of going all in with K-Q and called off an over-the-top all-in from a non-tight player. Read exactly that hand played that way the next morning.

In the Tag Team Sunday I had called off a chunk of our stack with 77 after raising out against a guy who was going all in often with a short stack and pushed on me. Thought calling off with 7s was right on the edge of a correct call and that it might gnaw at me a little that it didn't work out if we didn't cash.

Two days later, that stack size, that situation, actually supposed to raise and call a shove from a guy like that with any pair down to 22 and a range of other non-paired hands. Absolutely correct call.

All I can do is make good decisions...

Aria didn't start out great. Make it 800 to go at 200/300/300 with pocket 9s and get 3-bet to 2700 from the big blind. I call with position, he leads out on a K-7-6 flop and I'm done with the hand.

Flop open ended with K-Q off on a board of J-J-T, try and buy the pot on the flop but get called quickly and end up giving up on the river when I miss my draw and get bet into.

Pick up Kings, raise out second to act, only the small blind calls and he folds to my bet on a 9-high flop. Can't buy pots, can't get action with big hands, story of the trip so far...

Got my 2700 chips back from that guy from the pocket 9s tho, I see a flop 5 handed with Q-T suited after it was raised to 800. Flop comes 10 high, he makes it 2700 to go and everyone except me folds. Turn is a blank and he check/folds to my 4500 bet. Back up close to starting stack.

Lose a big chunk with A-K, someone makes it 1200 to go and there are three callers. I pop it to 6000, only one caller. Flop Q-T-Q, we end up checking down and he shows pocket Jacks. I don't think there was any chance he was folding to any bet I would have made so I lost the minimum there, but down to 16K from my 25K starting stack.

Drop down to below half a starting stack and under 20 bigs, but then finally win a couple of pots and go into the first break at 15,600. Not ideal, will be just under 20 BB after the break with blinds going up.

But FINALLY! All in with Jacks preflop on the button, big blind thinks a bit and makes the call with 99, Jacks hold up, double up!

Sometimes it's the hands you fold...

A limp into me and I make it 2000 to go with QQ. A blind and the limper call. Flop 5-6-8 with two diamonds. They check to me, I make it 3500. First person goes all-in, second person calls, I quickly fold. 55 vs A-10 with diamonds. 5 on the turn, Queen(!!) on the river. If 5s had slow-played I'd have gone broke. But he couldn't with straight and flush draws out there.

I know the one area I really need to improve on is 3-betting light more often. My buddy from the pocket 9s makes it 1300 to go, he usually raised a little more preflop so I make it 3000 on the button with A-6 suited. He looks at my stack and says I don't have enough chips to be bluffing and folds.

I need to 3-bet more often...

Win some/lose some for a while, I'm maintaining my stack but blinds are going up so I'm just staying above 20 bigs.

Then I get put in a tough spot. I message Joann as much. Guy sits down two to my left who is playing 90% of pots, calling most preflop raises and floating continuation bets. This makes it very difficult for me to raise out with anything non-premium because if I miss I have problems out of position against him. Which pretty much leaves me with one move...

Eventually I go all-in with K-Q suited on his big blind, he thinks a while and calls off most of his stack with 44. Queen on the flop, I double up and cripple him. Perfect result! I take him out next hand when I pick up "Anna Kournikova" (A-K - looks great, never wins) and he tosses in his last 700 with 9-T suited. Nothing but air for both of us and he's gone.

53,900 at the break and I have an above average stack!!!

Make that 53,500, with 4 chances I still lose the chip race removing the 100 size chips from the table when I get 2-3-7-3.

Numbers are in. 381 players, board says 189 left but I know a table broke so really 180 paying 48 places. Just 132 to money :-)

Card dead for over half an hour, but we lose about 60 players in that time and we're suddenly just 70 from money.

All-ins with KQo and Q9s get through.

Down to 14 big blinds as blinds keep going up.

All in with 9-7 of hearts, big blind folds J-10 of hearts face up. Another one through.

Finally almost an hour since the last break still card dead I finally get all in with K-Q, get called by Jacks, turn a queen and double up!

You gotta win some coin flips...

Up to 71,500, get a walk with A-10 suited.

36 from money.

A very loose player makes it 10,000 to go early to act at I think 2000/4000 blinds. A guy who also has been playing a lot of hands makes it 17K to go and I look down at pocket 10s.

If these guys are tight players this is a fast fold. But against guys that like to play a lot of hands like these two ... all in for 68k, I think I'm in the small blind. Original raiser quickly folds, 17k guy thinks a long time and calls with A-Q suited in spades.

Flop Jack high with two spades ... but blanks on the turn and river, boom I'm a little under 150k.

You gotta wins some coin flips ...

27 from money, I have an above average stack which means I'm usually in the top 1/3 of chips stacks. Generally 2/3 are below average with some really big stacks skewing things.

Take a couple of hits raising out with A-Q suited when my buddy from earlier who is a monster stack goes over the top. He has not been 3-betting often, I have to give up. Then double up a short stack with Jacks losing to her A-3 suited, Ace on the river.

Fall back to 102k, 34 big blinds, 22 from money.

I start the countdown for Joann. 20 from the money...

19...

18...

I steal blinds with A-J off.

17...

15...

14...

13...

12...

In my small blind second to act makes it 8k to go, monster stack calls, I look down at AA and make it 33k to play. Both fold. 118k stack now.

10...

8...

Oops, clock operator double-clicked. 9...

8... really this time

7...

Blinds knock me down just over 100k

Back to back bustouts at my table so 6 then 5...

4...

Blinds again. 87k. Card dead other than the aces.

3...

Two from the money and we are "hand for hand". Clock stopped, all tables play one hand at the same time, take 2 minutes off each hand.

Blinds go up to 3000/6000/6000 so I'm around 14.5 bigs.

I get to see a flop in the big blind with 5-6. Under the gun had limped, small blind called, flop A-6-2, I take it down with a small bet. 97k.

Someone busts, we're on the bubble.

Steal blinds then with A-K off, back over 100k at least.

Give up blinds and call a min-raise in the small blind with K-10 suited, whiff the flop, back down to 85k.

But then another bustout and we are in the money!!!

Little over $600 guaranteed for my $400 buyin, have to outlast 7 more for the first money bump.

I go all-in stealing with A-3, big blind folds 10-10 face up. Nice! Terrible fold on his part, that's a snap call.

Shortly after that hand my table breaks up and I get moved to the "big boy" table. A few huge stacks, most stacks bigger than mine.

Down to 85k after paying blinds, I actually thought I was at 70k but I later went all-in with K-Q and my chips got counted down to correct me. I steal blinds.

First money bump, up over $700 guaranteed.

Back down to 84k a middle position player who had raised a lot (and showed specifically 88 a few times) makes it 20k to go at 4k/8k/8k blinds. Guy immediately to my right who liked to call a lot preflop and fold post-flop calls. This is a perfect spot for a squeeze play with my stack. I'm all in with K-Q off.

Middle position predictably folds, other guy thinks quite a while and calls me with A-Q suited. What took him so long? Ugh!

Flop a King!!! Double and a half up to 204k. You gotta get lucky sometimes too :-)

Another bump and I'm guaranteed $880.

Fall back to 156k after giving up blinds and raising out with pocket 3s only to get called and see an all-broadway card flop and have to go away.

156k at the break.

Get a walk with 22. Glad I didn't have to decide what to do with them, really.

I make it 25k to go one behind the button with A-10 of hearts, small blind goes way over the top of me, I fold. He shows QQ. 131k.

Pay blinds again, now 5k/10k/10k. 1/5 of my stack in blinds, going to be 1/4 of my stack next time...

88 guy goes all in, I call off with A-J off. He rolls over 88. You cannot make it up...

Ace on the river. You gotta win some flips :-)

He busts out next hand with a very short stack, bump, up over $1000 and I'm at 192k.

167k after blinds.

Bump. Up over $1100.

I take out a short stack with AK vs his AJ. AK holds up, I think I'm around 270k. I never finish counting because next hand I look down at K-Q suited. I raise preflop and get one caller. Flop 9 high. I bet the flop, he thinks a while and calls, he doesn't seem to like his call. Check around the turn that pairs the board, I lead out again on the river that's another undercard to the 9 when he quickly checks to me and he snap calls and flips over K-9 off. Ugh. I could have saved that last 45k bet, maybe I got caught up in the moment a little? Such a dry board tho...

So now I'm back around 170k, get all in with 99 and run into kings. No help on the board, done in 22nd place out of 381.

I'll take it!

I might talk about the money bumps, but I'm never playing for another $125 when there's thousands at the final table. The bluff with air late was questionable, but I'm never folding 99 preflop with under 20 big blinds in that spot so whether it was 170k or 215k at 6k/12k/12k blinds I was going broke against kings.

Saturday will be another planned day off, Sunday it looks like I'll be at Orleans since Aria is running an $1100 buyin PLO and that's a little rich for my blood outside of bracelet events.