|
Title: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: TightEnd on June 12, 2010, 10:01:41 AM Continuing the dramatcially good deep runs of the Brits at the WSOP, in the event 20 $1,500 Omaha our friend, occasional blonde poster and great thread storyteller Peter Costa is currently 2nd of 12 with $256,000 for the winner
Event 20 British funk alert $1,500 PLO 12 LEFT Nenad Medic 600,000 Peter Costa 487,000 Ashkan Razavi 460,000 John Barch 450,000 Klinghammer Thibaut 365,000 Trai Dang 360,000 Chris Hyong Chang 333,000 Tyler Patterson 255,000 Blair Rodman 205,000 Thomas Redfern 152,000 Denton Pfister 114,000 Please cheer him on in this thread. Peter is known to many on blonde. Chili's Uncle for starters, Late Night Poker veteran, renowned hand reader and it would be fantastic to see him bag this. Good luck Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: outragous76 on June 12, 2010, 10:03:59 AM Gl peter
didn't he write an epic article in the last 12 months about coming back to poker and having the goal of shipping a bracelet? Glglglglglgl Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: TightEnd on June 12, 2010, 10:04:34 AM Gl peter didn't he write an epic article in the last 12 months about coming back to poker and having the goal of shipping a bracelet? Glglglglglgl Yes, I will try and bump it later if I find it. Or someone else can, pls. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Simon Galloway on June 12, 2010, 10:33:28 AM New pic of Peter required - unrecognisable from the player that left these shores..
GL Peter, get the lot. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: TightEnd on June 12, 2010, 10:36:26 AM Some classic Peter
Just as the WSOP was about to begin, my only thought was that of a frail old lady back in the UK. She was a special lady, a precious lady; she was Mum. At aged eighty-eight and with her vital organs working at less than 30%, it was becoming clearer by the day that were losing her. The nine siblings she was leaving behind thought the word was coming to an end. The eight in England traveled from all over place to spend as much time as possible with her. The one living in Vegas was the expectation. Having filed for my Green Card and unable to travel out of the country, I pleaded with the authorities to expedite my travel documents. They said it would take five weeks. I needed them in one. After further pleading, they promised them within five days. They fulfilled their promise and I booked the first flight I could find. The three day wait before I would get to see her was the most torturous period of my life. On the way to the hospital, the other siblings warned me how Mum had changed in the last few months. I assured them that I was prepared. I wasn’t. But then I held her hand. Her skin felt like velvet, it always felt like velvet to me. She then smiled at me - it lit up her face and made my knees go weak. Only this woman do that to me. Only a mother can do that to a son. On my last visit, I took a photo of her on my phone. I commented that she would be with me on the flight back to the USA. “What”, she said “you‘re taking me to Vegas?”. I said America and she said Vegas. She still had her faculties and that pleased me above everything else. She knew it was me - I had caught her in time. Back in Vegas, I try and get on with things and play some poker. After five events at the Rio, I get the expected and dreaded call. I again try to find a flight, but it was too late. I return for the funeral and to a kind of emptiness that cannot be described. Suffice to say that if you still have your mum, make the most of it. It is the most precious and unique relationship that a person can have. Returning to Vegas, I doubt if the Rio was an option. When just the big one remained, family and friends push me to play. I understand the thoughts behind the push. When my day arrives and I take me seat, I decide to play with as much fun as possible. Of course the miracle could happen and I could dedicate the win to one of the most loved people I would ever my in my life. However, I cannot bank on miracles. Instead, I dedicate every smile and every fun moment to her memory. Seat one soon gets that first smile going as he tells us how Phil Hellmuth, was his idol, how Phil was the best in the world and how he has read every book Phil had written. He even brought them along to read during the break. Within an hour two, we all start to wonder how Phil was the kid’s idol, when the kid played more like Gus? Raise, after raise, after raise. When did Phil ever play like that? I tease the kid by offering to call Phil so he could speak to him. Seeing his excitement at the prospect of speaking to the idol he had yet to meet, I tease a little further by offering to sell him the number. His excitement increases as do the smiles from the other players. The photographers keep taking pictures of the kid, he seems be famous for something. We learn his name is Grant Hinkle. I’m still no wiser as to who the kid is, but I was crap with names anyway. In the meantime, I get a couple coolers that bring further smiles at the this game they call poker. At 16K, I still had time, but time for what? Another cooler seems to be developing. Grant again raises in early position and gets called by the SB. On the BB with K-K, it’s an easy decision for me to pump it up. Grant‘s re-raise causes major concern. He has one of three hands. A-A or Q-Q are the same odds in my mind, while A-K is about a 10% probability. If I call, I am left with about 9K from the 16K. It‘s not the best option by a long way. But it‘s still an option if I intend to call the expected set-you-all-in bet after the flop. With the odds slightly (very slightly) in favor of a full commitment to the hand, I suppose I could call and see if the Ace fails to flop. On the other hand, if a Queen flops, I would be faced with uncertainty and the major possibility that I would muck to the bet. And that could happen and if he held A-K. The J-9-3 flop does bring the bet I expected. It also brings another opportunity to see just how that bet is made. His quick all-in bet, would probably have come in the same manner, irrespective of his hand. I was therefore no wiser. Except for one little thing, I didn’t have bad vibes when the bet came. Of course, I allow myself some TV time, even though the cameras were not present. But when I do make the call, it was with more confidence than at any time after his re-raise. This was indicated my turning my hand over before he turned his. I fully expected to see Q-Q, instead it was the 10% shot and the old A-K soooted. The vibes indicated that he wouldn’t spike the ace on the turn or the river. On the table behind to my left, Dave Colclough begins to ask me what I would do with K-K after he had re-raised an early position raise only for the guy after him to come over the top all-in. Dave then began to explain that it was one of three hand etc etc. LOL. Actually Dave…….. “What did you do?”, he asked. Dave mucked his K-K. With his stack being closer to 25K at the time, I would have probably done the exact same thing. As it happens, the guy had pushed with Q-Q and Dave would have won a monster. But that‘s poker. As for me, I got my stack up to the dizzy heights of almost 40K, before another hand had me smiling. Limping on the button with A-8 sooted, the two blinds and I get to see a rainbow flop of A-8-2. Of course it gets checked to me and of course I make the expected steal bet. What I didn’t expect, was a re-raise from the BB. With having position, it would have been foolish to re-raise him there and then. No, that would come on the turn. That plan went to pot when he checked. I couldn’t imagine that the Nine was much use to his hand, but I still made a big bet. His call was surprising really. I didn’t think he had a hand at all and that his flop raise was a move and nothing more. When a Ten hit the river and he led out, it was an easy call to make. Yep, 6-7 got there. That was my day really. Nothing to write home about and nothing else to report. As for Grant, he made a great comeback after doubling me up. But poker being what it is, he got smacked in an unexpected way. On a flop of K-5-2 and two hearts, his continuation bet with 7-7 was standard. The call from his opponent indicated a flush draw. When Grant turned the set, I think he was past caring and fired out again. When a none heart nine hit the river, he fired again. The re-raise that set him all-in could not have been expected. It would have been tough to lay down considering his opponent could only realistically have the 6-8 of hearts. Sure enough, that’s exactly what he did have and Phil‘s greatest fan departed. Damn, I didn’t get a chance to sell him that number! PS, Must say a thing or two about Jon Kalmar. Having met him a few times now, I don’t think you can meet a nicer guy. He is again stacked up in this and I hope he goes deep. I love nice guys, they make it so easy to cheer for them! Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: TightEnd on June 12, 2010, 10:37:04 AM more or less became a poker pro back in around 2001 when I finally broke free from what you may call a meaningless existence. That drastic move also ensured that I went from a secure future that had taken twenty-five years to build, to journey that was uncertain in every aspect of life. I guess you would call it an all or nothing desperate plunge into the unknown. The funny thing was (or not so funny), was that I was actually starting with nothing to begin with.
What I did have, was twenty-five years experience of playing poker. That mainly came by way of small re-buy events and small cash games. In that time, I went from a maniac re-buy merchant, to super-tight and everywhere in between. It was fun. Why shouldn’t it have been? I had a business and a home and what seemed to be an ability to generate win after win. Actually, it was more than fun; it was seriously good. Having begun life as an addicted gambler while still in my teens, I made mistake after mistake in my twenties and perhaps the odd one or two when in my thirties. Admittedly, my personal life didn’t help matters. Unhappy in the marriage and unsatisfied by the lack of challenges (other than those of working 12 hours a day in a fish&chip shop), I perhaps had what could be deemed as justifiable cause. But at least by then, circumstances had dictated that mistakes were no longer an option. I guess that after years of paying for my mistakes, I had had enough of all interest I occurred. With a change in mindset, I took money management to new levels. Not only did it help secure the future, but it speeded it up to warp drive. I almost began to feel a sense of pride at the achievements. I even tried harder with the marriage, but it still felt that I was playing 7-2 out of position. Though 7-2 would bring the odd reward, it was getting harder and knowing there must be a better hand in life. I finally mucked that 7-2 for the last time in the summer of 2000. I wont bother you all with what happened when I did turn pro (that always makes me laugh - how can one be a “pro” without a bankroll?), suffice it was a stellar eighteen months as win after win came my way. I even found a relationship that felt like A-A every hand. But when A-A needed a third player with little tiny feet, it left me feeling that I needed to flop a set each time. When you start to doubt you are not the right person to play A-A, then I guess it’s time to walk away from the game. That was tough. I loved A-A so much. It sent me off the rails as well as back to playing 7-2 again. Only this time I was playing it alone. Not sure which 7-2 was worse, but I knew which one I would be playing for a long time to come. If I was still in the game that is! I wont bother you with more personal details (just in case I finish the book I started years ago), but I somehow managed to walk into another A-A relationship. What was surprising, was that I found this one in Vegas of all places. Of course I didn’t know it at the time, but it soon became apparent when I surprisingly kept flopping set after set. I had struck gold in Vegas after all. By around 2006, I didn’t feel like a poker player anymore, even though I played online to survive. I just didn’t want the circuit anymore. I was happy at home with my beautiful sets. In fact, the relationship started to river the odd quads every now and then. In time, I was hitting quads on the flop. Who was this woman? How did I find her? How lucky was I? I think with this new-found contentment, poker had to take a back seat. After all, this was something that I had hoped for all my life - I just never knew it existed. I don’t mean to suggest that my quad queen was to blame for my lack of poker life, as there were many other contributing factors. Creating new games was one of them. In fact when my partner (Phil Hellmuth), suggested that I forget about poker and focus on creating more games, it was an easy call to make. But perhaps above all else, health issues increased to the point where I don’t think I could have continued with the lifestyle. This was highlighted by a five day stint in hospital. I don’t think death itself scared me, but I sure felt an immense anger at what it would mean. There was so much left unfinished, so much yet to do. It was the warning that I needed. It took so much effort to get into shape. Having allowed my body to lose all muscle tone, I had one setback after another. One week it would be the hamstring, then the shoulder, then the back etc etc tec. This would normally tough for a young guy to handle, never mind in mid-life. But at least I had my massage therapist to guide me and to help heal my ailments. What a woman!. It my have cost me $15K a year for four years, but I would rather starve than miss out on her sessions. Anyway, slowly but surely, things have started to come together. The games company now six of my games and an option on a further half dozen at least. Suffice to say, we aim to change online poker in major way. As for the body, that has finally been transformed. In fact, I feel like asking Gus if he is willing to have another boxing match. Of course I would need odds of to reflect the age difference and the fact that I still smoke (shamed to admit that one); but I reckon $10K for $250K should just about be fair. As for poker, things started to change late last year when I won a seat on Stars for the PCA in Bahamas. I had to miss that event due to being in the process of obtaining my Green Card (which I now have), but at least I started to sense a little hunger for the game. With the WSOP now upon us and only playing one event this year (I think it’s just one), you could say that I am starving for poker. I don’t know if the hunger will last, but if it does, it will provide material for my other passion of writing. How long can I remain be a poker player again, I simply can’t say. Sometimes, I feel like I want to go flat out for a year and see if I can do it one more time. And sometimes, I feel like I don’t need it. I guess with contentment, the ego no longer needs fueling. But perhaps its more than that, perhaps back in 2002, I was still searching for an identity and my place in life? Perhaps I have found both?. But just perhaps, I miss the challenge that the poker offers - who knows? Anyway, I look forward to the six-handed event on Wednesday when I kick off with my first event. I hope I stay hungry and that I won’t need a Alka-Seltzer after week. Until next time (yes there will at least one next time), play well and stay hungry if you can! Peter (is it Silverfox or The Poet?) Costa Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Karabiner on June 12, 2010, 10:37:55 AM GL Pete ;cheerleader;
Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: TightEnd on June 12, 2010, 10:38:26 AM I have made two major mistakes since I started my new life in the summer of 2000, and each one would leave me with a mountain to climb. The first was in business when I tried to launch a game I had created. I lacked the infrastructure and financial back-up for such a project, but the passion I had for the game simply made it impossible for me to give up on the idea. And anyway, how else was I going to get my life back in track - play poker for a living?
To cut a long story short, I borrowed from every institution I could, as well as putting my last £30K into developing the software and keeping the company going. By 2002, I was left in debt to the tune of about £50-60K, and with interest accumulating. You have to laugh! It was two years since I had to start with nothing, and all I had achieved was a growing debt. But that wasn't the worst of it. What really hurt was the fact that I was about to walk away from the woman who had saved me over those two years. Again, that's a long story, suffice to say, it was the most painful decision I had ever faced in my life. The irony was, she was the one who had taught me that guilt should never play a part in any relationship. And it was because of that lesson that I had no choice but to walk away. OK, so you are not left wondering....she longed for a baby but I was in no shape to consider becoming a dad again. So how do you deny a person what they MUST have. I couldn't do it - I couldn't look at her and know what I was responsible for. Over those two years with her, I had made much progress in terms of understanding the past. And though not yet fully "healed", I was also learning about relationships and how people should be. In effect, I was becoming human again. But just the thought of leaving her was too much - I began to slide towards the abyss again. In the midst of this madness, I was about to have a year in poker that one can only dream of. But the thought of what lay ahead would sometimes drive me to despair. I began on the path to self-destruct all over again. That was mistake number two! In all my years of going to Vegas, I avoided involvement with any other woman. Even when I knew my marriage was over, guilt didn't allow for such freedoms. But for some reason, it was about to change. Perhaps I could somehow sense that my end was in sight? And in truth, that scared me. It terrified me to think what my failure would mean to those in my life. And as was always the case, it was this fear that would make me snap out of destruct mode - even if it wasn't to be long before I was right back in it. Perhaps therefore, my reaching out to someone, anyone; was just a last desperate attempt to buy myself some time. The alternative would have been disastrous, not least of all, for the woman I was to leave behind. For she had shared in my dreams with the game, and the subsequent debts. I somehow needed to fight back again and to keep my promise that she would be looked after financially. Leah had only been in Vegas a few weeks. She too had to start over again after back problems had forced her to quit her job at a hospital back in Maine. Starting at the bottom, she became a craps dealer at the Plaza in Downtown Vegas. Considering her job and my state of mind, it was destiny that we would meet across the dice table. I don't know how many times I begged her to meet me for a drink and a chat, but she refused each time. I don't know what made her finally relent. Perhaps she could sense my desperation? Perhaps she felt she could help me? Maybe, just maybe, she succumbed to my final weapon - the English accent?. Whatever the reason, I was about to go on my first date in Vegas. Some say that our destiny is mapped out for us. Some say it's what we make it. Either way, I was about to date my future wife. Leah had moved to Vegas on the advice of her parents who had moved there a couple of years earlier. And before our first date, she made sure of telling them my name and where we would be meeting (just in case I turned out to be some sort a crackpot). But the apprehension she felt went both ways. In fact, when she finally relented and agreed to meet me, I seriously began to wonder what I was letting myself in for. But as we chatted away at the wine bar at the Rio, it soon became apparent that our fears were unjustified. And so began a friendship of two people from two different worlds. We saw each other almost every day over the next couple of weeks. And in that time, Leah would be a witness to an incredible period of self-destruct as she watched me turn my $3K bankroll into almost $50K playing poker; and then turn $50K into $0 playing craps. And yet, by the end of our time together, she had somehow fallen for the lost soul from England. So much so, that on the morning we parted, she had (unbeknown to me) withdrawn almost all her life's savings of $2K and left it in a box for me, along with a present she had bought for the woman back in England; the woman I was about to leave. A few weeks later, I was back in the US for what was about to be the most incredible run of results, and the most destructive period of my life. It's difficult to try and explain the emotions of that year. On the one hand, I would fight like hell on the poker table - as if my my life depended on it. On the other, the slightest thought of leaving the woman who saved me, would send me into a frenzy of guilt and destruction. Looking back now, I still struggle to make sense of the series of events that almost and perhaps rightly, destroyed all hope. Perhaps it was simply a combination of all that had gone before?. Perhaps I couldn't understand or cope with the pain and the torture I was feeling. Perhaps the challenge that lay ahead simply terrified me into believing that I couldn't possibly win enough from poker, and that there was a quicker way through house games? Or maybe I just used destruction as a way to try and justify the hurt I was feelings - to give it a reason for its existence? If that was indeed the case, then I did a great job. What irony 2002 brought as each win simply became just another casualty to the destruct. 2003 and three years since I started my new life. The debt was bigger than ever and hopelessness was really the only justifiable feeling. Even after winning the Aussie Millions that January, the split with my backer, the odd saver here and there and the wire of 110K of the Aussie money back to England and to my commitments; ensured that that the battle to overcome my past and my mistakes had only just begun. On the bright side, I had struck gold with Leah. I had found a woman who asked for nothing more than to be my wife, my friend and to share in my struggle. She got all her wishes that May. I think we had something like $37 after the ceremony and we celebrated with a burger at Binions. As for the next two or three years that followed? I wouldn't know how to begin to describe the enormity of the struggle or the pressure and anxiety that that was part of our everyday life. It was a tough way to live, simply because of the vulnerability that comes with such circumstances. It was like a nightmare, but one in which you are fully awake. As for the destruct? That began to subside as the bond between Leah and kept growing. What coincidence that of all the women in Vegas, I should happen to approach Leah?. Because the fact is, only a woman like Leah could have withstood the challenges we faced. And only a woman like Leah could have made me come through them. And we faced many. Not least of all, health. What did I say about being vulnerable to circumstances? Playing catch-up in life is no fun. Playing catch-up in poker without a bankroll, cannot be any more daunting. But that's exactly what we faced during 2003-2004. And if that wasn't enough, health problems began to mount as I developed severe back and sciatica problems. If things had been dire before, then we were about to reach new depths in terms of fear and apprehension. I don't know exactly how many times we had reached the point when one more unfavorable circumstance would have sent us over the edge, but it was to be many. But somehow, the miracles kept coming at the times when we needed them most. Some say that poker cannot be played under extreme pressure to win. Why? Was there another way? If there was, I had long forgotten how that felt. I guess there's lot more, but I will save that if I ever I do finish that book. On a final note, Surinder Sunar (a friend of over 25 years and probably my best friend over the two or three) had often mentioned how poker should have set me up for life. Perhaps he's right. But there are two ways I could look at the last seven years. I could bemoan my circumstances and my mistakes and agree with him. Or I could look at this period and feel extremely thankful that I found the kind of relationship I never thought possible. Because without Leah, the fight would have been over a long time ago. I guess therefore, as long as any of us have a fight to fight, it's a victory of sorts. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: kinboshi on June 12, 2010, 10:42:03 AM Get it won Chili's uncle!!!
;goodluck; Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: technolog on June 12, 2010, 11:16:57 AM Get it won Chili's uncle!!! ;goodluck; Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: redsimon on June 12, 2010, 11:19:11 AM Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Marky147 on June 12, 2010, 11:24:34 AM Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Laxie on June 12, 2010, 11:30:11 AM GL Pete ;cheerleader; Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Graham C on June 12, 2010, 11:42:04 AM Get it won Chili's uncle!!! ;goodluck; Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: pokerfan on June 12, 2010, 11:54:31 AM Get it won Chili's uncle!!! ;goodluck; Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: JaffaCake on June 12, 2010, 12:35:14 PM fraid he bubbled the final table :(
Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Peter Costa on June 12, 2010, 01:17:01 PM fraid he bubbled the final table :( Thanks all but thats poker. Either way, I will post about it soon as it's time for a rest after non-stop poker over the last week or so. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: the rage on June 12, 2010, 01:47:14 PM Unlucky Peter. Still a good effort though.
Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: byronkincaid on June 12, 2010, 01:48:31 PM Quote Suffice to say, we aim to change online poker in major way Rush? Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: booder on June 12, 2010, 02:03:38 PM Unlucky Peter. Still a good effort though. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Marky147 on June 12, 2010, 02:42:30 PM Unlucky Peter. Still a good effort though. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: GreekStein on June 12, 2010, 03:00:59 PM unlucky Pete, been quite some week.
3 comps, 2 final tables and a wsop 10th place. Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Chili on June 12, 2010, 04:27:23 PM Damn, Ive only just seen this thread. Unlucky Pete but still a great run. I know you'll have a rest then play a load more bracelet events. I don't doubt you will bag a bangle this year!
Here's a pic from Event 20 - $1,500 PLO Title: Re: The Funk for Peter Costa thread Post by: Skgv on June 14, 2010, 09:03:48 PM fraid he bubbled the final table :( Thanks all but thats poker. Either way, I will post about it soon as it's time for a rest after non-stop poker over the last week or so. |