blonde poker forum

Following back to back cashes in EPT and WPT Prague, my appetite for big tournament success is as big as ever, so I'm super pumped to get back out there and play another big tournament. From speaking to a number of people, it is widely accepted that the Deauville leg is the softest stop on the tour, and from my experience playing EPT Campione and Prague, which were both softer than I imagined, I expect this to be even better value.

http://pokerdb.thehendonmob.com/player.php?a=r&n=186500

Two thirds of all my online volume is spent playing on French sites, so I have a really good idea how they play and think about the game, and have a lot of experience playing in live tournaments, with 3 wins in side events last year, and a £22k and £77k scores in 2011, so I won't be phased by the potential huge money jumps, despite only playing a handful of tournaments of this size before. I felt really comfortable and confident during the EPT and WPT in Prague, and over 6days of play, I only came across one table that wasn't really soft, and even that wasn't as tough as your average big162 table.

With all that in mind, I've decided to mark it up at 1.26 and sell a total of 55%.

1% = 66.78 EUR or 54.47 GBP

Exchange rate locked at 1.226.

Payment via stars, bank transfer, cash or moneybookers in that order of preference. Will get the winnings paid into my stars account, and they handle exchange rates more or less to spot, so you will receive any returns back using their rates.

Thanks for reading.

Alex

The Team:

Ed Gascoigne   5
Scotty77   3
Bobalike   5
Geordieneil   3
Michelle Bennett   2
Tikay   2.5
Eso Kral   3
Jamie Sykes   2
Honey Badger   5
Steve Warbuton   10
Stato   5
Yian   1
Nick Hicks   2.5
Doobs   6

5% please

3 please.

me too please

3% please  glglgl

2% please

2.5% please Alex.

All booked thanks.

Cheers, 272.35 Shipped by bank TX

3% pls

No highroller?

163.41 just shipped via bank transfer.  ty

haha, there's a french poker series event on just before with a 2.7k hiroller i might play actually! reserve 50%?

your 3% is booked

I'm a lucky staker filthy degen so obv would take some

5% please Alex

2% booked for Jamie Sykes


booked

24.5% left

Steve Warburton has taken 10%

Stato_1 has taken 5%

9.5% left

2.5% please

Rest

Booked ty.


Yian pmed me for 1% before this, so this = 6% and is booked and we are SOLD OUT :)

The team

Ed Gascoigne   5
Scotty77   3
Bobalike   5
Geordieneil   3
Michelle Bennett   2
Tikay   2.5
Eso Kral   3
Jamie Sykes   2
Honey Badger   5
Steve Warbuton   10
Stato   5
Yian   1
Nick Hicks   2.5
Doobs   6

Sigh, missed thread.

If a couple (3 max) % becomes available first reserve?

Absolutely. Will free up 1% for you regardless though.

How come you do not try to win a seat on Pokerstars for EPT's rather than getting staked and using your own money?

Cheers Alex. Shipping on 'Stars . Cool Avatar :)

recd ty

How do you know he doesn't ?

shipped the euros on stars.

Gogogo in the highroller

recd ty. its pretty tough going actually!

£243.35 sent. (5*£54.47 - stake of me and the father)

out of interest how are you travelling to Deauville?

getting a lift with the gascoignes and their chauffeur obv!

Lol - hope you didnt think I was being funny! Was a genuine query.  And nice work !

I was just looking where it was today incase I fancy a very last minute jaunt, I guess people car and ferry do they? Via Le harve?

That ferry is looonnnngggg. Eurotunnel and the 3h15min drive ftw.

Really  - thanks

Maybe even fly to Paris (given im in Leeds) and rail to Deauville?

Hmmm - probs not a go-er for a last minute decission! ty anyway

Think the Portsmouth-Le Havre ferry is like 8hrs.

The Paris-Deauville train is about 2-2h30mins from memory and fairly pleasant. This said, outside of peak season they don't run too often - perhaps 4/5 each way each day.

Just recd cash from honeybadger

£136.18 PAID by Bank TX this morning.

PS - Alex - easily the favoured way to travel to Deauville is.......


TRAIN from Notts to London.

TRAIN from London to Paris

TRAIN from Paris to Deauville.

Please include the TRAIN details in the Tourney Report. Timely running, Loco Number, Rolling Stock type & number, imtermediate Stations, etc. 

Serioiusly, the train journey from Paris to Deauville is splendid. What memories......

163.41gbp sent

TID GLGLGL

Shipped
GLGLGLGL

Thanks. Could those who haven't sent, send over next few days please.

All regged and ready to go today, kick off in one hour. Table 20 seat 3 is the god seat :)

Good luck Alex. Hope you have a bostin tournament.

Enjot it, Alex, & run good.

gd ruck alex x

Table is mixed. 3 young guys on my direct left who seem competent at the least. 5 punters though who will hopefully make life easier.

5 punters is huge for an ept.

enjoy it and have fun.

Wow, have direct position on someone who will give somebody on this table all his chips in the next few levels. Let it be me please!

Clashed several times with him already. He either limp/calls or opens massive and 3bets massive. So it's high variance cos he makes the pots so big. First time he opened he 4.5xs mp I have QQ and flat btn flats and he double pots 986! I call, turn T river K and we checked down he has TT :(

Lost another massive one to him after that down to 19k from 30 starting :(

Great table though except for the three guys on my left, one of which seems vgood the other two ok.

He's just cold called a 3bet from the bb with J9o. Donked for pot on 623r. 3better raises to 4k with 7k back. He jams and loses to TT. Incroyable.

He still got over 40k to distribute...

gl

get dem chippies

16k first break. Frustrated. But patient.

Best be quick to get a share by the sounds of it, gl..

plenty bb's.

glglglg

Bricked another big draw vs the superstar. 10k

Superstar has 95k :D

He just 3bet pre, bet flop, bet turn, check min raised river with QQ on 98875 and got called by worse. He shrugged his shoulders on the river when he got called in a "I have no idea whether I'm winning or not" way. Lovely guy, really enjoying his company and attitude to the game.

Think I'm adjusting to him in the right way, just not made a hand yet.

I remember posting similar to this in the last ept saying as soon as I make a hand I'm getting a stack, and I had 120k a few levels later, so hopefully the same will happen again.

Got duped by a dirty angleshoot, got in 35bbs with KQ vs QQ and binked a king for some sweet justice. Recovering, 26k at 150/300

Details pls

Don't you just love karma.

I open early position,  700 at 150/300/25, folds to him on cutoff he throws in 1k chip saying raise, dealer points out I've already raised he looks like he hasn't seen it. Goes as a min raise (to 1400 here). hes playing 10k. bb whale cold calls. I have 13k and jam (whale never calling and i figured cutoff had his standard cutoff opening range which despite being a 3.5x this was his standard sizing and he can't call very often at all, plus blockers etc).

Maybe it was genuine mistake but seems unlikely

Boom doubled to 47k. QQ vs AQ on Q723. That's more like it :)

Feeling good.

Did he just sit there sheepishly? Nice nice!

No I knocked him out! He went to shake my hand sheepishly though!

Sigh the superstar keeps owning me :( just peels every open and 3bet and donks for pot every flop. Just keep bricking flops or having 99 on A53 for example and he never stops betting, makes life hard without strong hands.

Here's a picture of him btw :D

(http://i1210.photobucket.com/albums/cc416/cambridgealex/B2AB289E-55F0-46CE-878F-C60489218E6C-338-0000002740682964_zps187b0e89.jpg)

36k 25 mins till dinner

Played with him.

Story checks out. Gogogogogogo Alex.

Devilfish looks good these days.

vgood Ah

36k going back to 250/500/50. Gonna be a big couple of levels before end of the day. Last chance to get chips off our friend...

It's very challenging playing against his style and I mayve adjusted suboptimally on reflection. Had good strategy chat with the boys in the dinner break and going with a slightly different approach post dinner.

Est end of day chip count: 100k or bust.

First hand back he pots flop with gutshot and pings it on the turn. I have top pair good kicker and have to pay off three streets vs this guy. 26k.

Got one back off him. Hijack opens he peels the sb with Q6 I call bb with 77. He takes off with no equity whatsoever on 84392 and I call down :)

37k

Fkn sigh he's just been stacked! 200k pot his 64o vs AQ on 66xQQ he bets river massive, guy raises, he 3bet shoves! So sigh, was only a matter of time.

Amazed there are heroes like this in EPT's. Shame you didn't get him.

GL mate!

Young guy opens utg2 1200 at 300/600. French guy 2700 from cutoff. I cold 4bet btn to 5500, young guy 5bets to 11500. He's 3bet folded to me before, seems pretty taggy. French guy tank folds. I 6bet shove 40k and he snap folds. Peak chip count 56k with an hour to go.

Oh I had Ace high :P wasn't loving life though.

Made day 2 with 56,850 which is just over average, coming back to 400/800/100.

WP Alex, when is day 2?

Tomorrow

GLGL Day 2 Alex.

What about day 3 ?

Nice, GL for tomoz!

UL not to get the superstars, WP, and gl for tomorrow!

GL shame you didnt stack him!!

Well done Alex, keep it going.

Had a good start. Great table again. Just played this funny hand:

Angry French fish opens cutoff 2100 (looks weak) I 3bet btn to 4500 with K6ss he peels. He donks 4k on Kh Jd 5c I call. Turn 9h he checks I check. River Jc he bets 5k, I beat almost nothing but getting like 5:1 and you never know with these guys... I call and he shows his cards to the dealer saying something like "ooh la la" (but angrily). He eventually turns them over (i'm ready for the slowroll)

6h 4h :D

Play any street worse?!

Up to 82 going into 500/1k

Lost med pot with JJ had to fold river. 65k

Up to 100k :)

Won nice pot 3bettibg the sb with Jh Th and cbetting Ahrt Qc 6c he peels turn Kc 8) I bet again he calls, river yucky Ac. Check check, good vs A9dd.

Moved tables, 6 confirmed bad players, 2 unconfirmed but suspected.

I'm out :(

Lost super tilting pot where I 3bet JJ guy peels oop I cbet Q94r he peels, turn 9 check check, river A check check he has A6. Very next hand get in 70k at 800/1600 with jacks vs aces in a standard spot.

Hate jacks!

Gutted to bust such a ridiculous value tournament especially after getting a decent stack. Thanks for the faith and staking.

Unlucky Alex. Nice try.

 :( Unlucky mate

UL Alex

I will do a proper tr for you guys, since you guys paid a decent markup, feel a TR should be done so will get on that ASAP.

The majority of day 1 was spent dealing with Claude. Let me introduce him.

(http://i1210.photobucket.com/albums/cc416/cambridgealex/B2AB289E-55F0-46CE-878F-C60489218E6C-338-0000002740682964_zps187b0e89.jpg)

Claude isn't his real name, I never found it out...

First hand of note Claude opens to 450 at 50/100 from middle position. I'm a bit taken aback by his sizing. He's been limping a ton, and this is the first hand he's opened. Think he's pretty fkn strong. I choose to just flat QQ next to act, not wanting to 3bet and face a giant 4bet and probably have to fold, or inflate the pot massively anyway so early on with no reads. We go 3 ways to 976 and he leads for 3k! Into about 1400! Just hating life so much! This it TT/JJ as much as it is KK and AA, plus we can't rule out AK/AQ, but basically putting him on TT+ for now. I call and the turn is an ugly T. He checks, I check. The river is a K and it checks through, I'm praying he has JJ but he has TT for the turned set, which is annoying.

Claude now has a target on his back! I have direct position on him which is awesome, but three players to my immediate left who also seem switched on, so my strategy was going to be isoing Claude relentlessly, rather than limping along / peeling and allowing them in behind. There may've been better strategies for dealing with him. Once he started donking every flop for pot, I should be keeping the pots as small as possible preflop I suppose. But I didn't find this out until later.

Claude limps utg and I iso Ks Ts, bb calls and he calls. He was limp calling a lot. He donks for full pot on Js 7h 6d. I could obviously fold here, but I knew he was weak here  - he had donked a few times, and his bet sizes were always massive, so it didn't mean he was strong at all. He could have A4o or 33 for example. I decided to raise to a) win it there and then, b) win it later with pressure or improve c) backdoor straight flush draw + over(s) ftw . I raised to 2600 and he peels. The turn is a Q. I was planning to bet any Q, K or A turn plus any spade and maybe some lower cards depending on my read. Q is a perfect card because I now have 8 outs to the nuts, plus its an overcard to the J76 and any pocket pair he was stubborn with on the flop, so it's a must bet card imo. However, he did give away something when he checked as if he liked the card, but I couldn't be really sure of this, at least, it wasn't enough reason not to bet such a great card. I bet 5075 and he makes it 10150! So tilting! He obv has QJ! But I can't fold! There's 22k in there now, plus I have 18k behind if I call the 5k, which I'm getting 100% of the time if I ping an Ace or a Nine. So its 5k to win 40 which is 8:1, needing 5:1 to breaken. It's a no brainer. Get thereee! Sadly, the river pairs the 6 and although it now makes his QJ loses to AA and KK, I just can't trust him to fold at all  - so didn't consider bluffing the river really, so I gave up (he checked river) and lost to Qs 7s!!! Nice hand!

So we're down to 18k and we dribble off quite a bit more trying to make hands vs Claude. He's limping, I'm isoing vwide, and he's just donking every flop for pot! I narrow my isoing range and start to limp behind hands like 67s that don't flop top pair, but isoing (3betting - he's starting opening rather than limping now to try and curb my aggression, or just because he fancies it!) hands like KJ and A9 that can flop top pairs.I never made  a pair and got the worst boards ever and had to fold every flop, was really frustrating because once I made a hand, I was getting the lot.

I turned another strong draw vs him and got checked minraises on the turn again! Had to call again, and bricked AGAIN! Morale low. Patience thinning. Stack dwindling  - 10k

I open early position with KQo 700 at 150/300/25, folds to the cutoff who throws in a 1k chip saying raise, dealer points out I've already raised he looks like he hasn't seen it. Goes as a min raise (to 1400 here). hes playing 10k. bb whale cold calls. I have 13k and jam (whale never calling and i figured cutoff had his standard cutoff opening range which despite being a 3.5x this was his standard sizing and he can't call very often at all, plus blockers etc). He calls allin with QQ (perhaps was angleshooting) and I bink a K to bust him and take me to 26k. Pretty fortunate, I'd have been down to 3k.

Claude limps cutoff for 300 at 150/300 I raise to 1k with Ad 3d (should make it more like 700 tbh to keep the pot small but still iso and have initiative - until he donks that is :D), he peels and donks for 2500 on Jd Jc 3h! Gotta call. Turn Th and he snap bets 8k! I only have 20 total. Massive sigh fold, think I got bluffed there, but he can just have anything, KJ, T9, 55, can't trust him to fold any pair, and even hands like KQ or 89 he still calls off with and has great equity vs me. I'll catch him soon...

I start playing some pots with the other players, which actually works out much better. I opened the hijack to 700 with JTo and a weakish player peels the cutoff, and a good (possibly really good) player squeezes the button to 2300. I'm playing 20k, so can make it 4500 then he has to make a decision for my stack which is a lot of his stack (since 9k is the minraise in France, he cant click to 6.8 and fold to a jam like he could normally). Plus I have two blockers, and his range is super wide here, just think he's going to be full of shit a lot and dout he'll 5b punt in 20k with this soft table as a bluff. So I clicked it back and he folded.

Then we doubled with QQ, 3betting, finding a lovely Q72 flop, getting c/raised 8) and then he bets half my stack on the turn I shove he called drawing dead with AQ. Very nice :) 47k

Open KQo utg2 700, weak player flats, newish to the table, young competant looking guy 3bets 2500. Most people don't bluff off immediately after doubling or winning a big pot, neither do they 4bet light right after they've just got a 4bet through (whether they had it or not), so I kinda thought that he'd know / think that (perhaps optimistic, but it's not exactly ground breaking theory) if I 4bet here, he'd give it a lot of credit. Plus again, I have two great blockers and if he peels can flop strong or get a cbet through. I 4bet 6100 he folds. Two satisfying reads, I like getting inside good players' heads, working out what level they're on and reacting accordingly, it's really satisfying getting it right and I feel like it's a real strong part of my game being able to tell what they're thinking. 50k and making good progress.

200/400/50 American opens utg 800, seat 1 peels co, I peel sb with AQ. Flop of J32 gets checked through, J on the turn, I took a stab and got called in both spots. Give up river and ORs 99 wins. Turn bet definitely a mistake, was never getting through. Guilty of trying to push momentum there.

300/600/50 The villain who 3bet folded to me when I had KQ opens utg+2, and a 30something frenchie 3bets the cutoff to 2700. I have AKo on the button. I think the cutoff has a strong hand. We are almost 100 bbs deep. Definitely don't want to get it in vs him. I am offsuited too so if he 5bets, I hate peeling and hate jamming or 6betting, so I'm probably 4bet folding to him. Not a lovely spot really. Getting it through is fine, but the nut outcome is the OR mistankly thinking I'm fos and try a 5bet bluff. Which is what happened. I 4bet to 5500 and he makes it 11500, cutoff tanks for ages and folds, I jam for 40k and he snap folds. He doesn't know I'm never going to be light there, when the frenchie clearly had a good hand (he asked me where I was from afterwards and I said England, and he said "if I knew that, I'd never have folded :D). I think my image and previous antics got me that 5b bluff :). So all was good, we finished the day with a tad over average, 56k.

Claude caused us real problems. I mean real problems. It was hard to adjust to his style. I guess in numbers he was playing a sort of 70/30 vpip/pfr, and a fold to 3bet of 0%, and literally a 100% donkbet for pot stat! He didn't fold to resistance at any point it seemed (though people were too afriad to play back at him really!), and barrelled turn and river more often than not. I wasn't sure whether limping along and keeping the pots tiny preflop but allowing good players in behind us to come in was better than 3betting / isoing and making the pots bigger. In the end I never caught a hand against him and it was someone else, who won a 220k pot off him to stack him, and ended the day as chip leader, and is a top ten stack going into day 3 actually. All it needs is a hand at the right time and you're there.

Anyway, day two..

400/800/100 I open the cutoff to 1700 with JTo and a really fishy albanian guy makes it 3500 from the bb. I wanted to fold, but it was so cheap and I had position, I kind of felt he was weak too and would go bigger with a big hand. I know JTo is dominated so much, but I figured I would be able to work that out postflop easily enough. Getting about 5:1 preflop, I flicked it in. T94hhx, he checked. I know I'm good now. I'd check back vs some players, but I felt like the best way to get more chips off this guy was to bet now and let him check raise, rather than hoping he'll take off on the turn. I bet 4k he makes it 10k. He has 35k back, and I just shove - too many ugly turn cards I'm not happy calling off the rest on, just wanna take it down now and protect my equity and steal his (which is probably pretty high, 15-30%). He tank folds to the shove and I pick up a nice pot. 70k

Then this angry French guy opens cutoff 2100 (looks weak) I 3bet btn to 4500 with K6ss he peels. He donks 4k on Kh Jd 5c. Hmmmm, obviously calling is the only move here. Turn 9h, not a great card, probably folding to a bet now. He checks I check back. River Jc, another shit card, he bets 5k, which is like 1/5 pot. I beat almost nothing but getting like 5:1 and you never know with these guys... I call and he shows his cards to the dealer saying something like "ooh la la" (but angrily). 6h 4h :D Pretty comedy line from him - peel 3bet oop with 6 high. Donk KJ5 with no equity besides backdoor hearts, turn one of the nut cards the 9h and check! Then make a pathetic river bluff which is just never getting through! Boss :D

500/1k/100

Open JJ utg1 2200 btn and blinds peel I cbet 4700 on 862dxx btn peels Kd I check call 10300 river 5d I check fold to a quick bet of 16500. Pretty frustrating, think I'm good on the turn, but he can have 8x dd easily, T9dd,97 gets there, he can easily have flatted the flop with set, can't rule out him peeling pre with K8, or K6s or just getting the hood out with KQ. Pretty sure he had it.

600/1200/100

3bet JThh from sb vs cutoff open, he peels, I cbet Ah Qc 6c he calls, turn Kc I bet he calls, river Ac, check check and I'm good vs A9dd and that pot takes me to 100k :)

800/1600/200

Lost super tilting pot where I 3bet JJ btn vs cutoff, guy peels oop I cbet Q94r he peels, turn 9 check check, river A check check he has A6 grrr

Very next hand get in 70k at 800/1600 with jacks vs aces in a standard spot to bust.

Claude looks like Devilfish's better looking younger brother.