You find that most new players will go for the smaller buyin events, dipping their toe in the water so to speak.
The problem is the rebuy merchants.
At walsall the 5 rebuy on fridays is an absolute joke with an average of 4 rebuys per person!!!
I really believe this is responsible for scaring new players away, and indeed a lot of the regular players don't bother on Fridays some even go to Luton!!
I would advise any new 'live' players to choose an event with a minimum buyin of 20 or a freezeout.
Ian

According to CheesyPoker, next tuesday's 50 buy-in is a no rebuy, no add-on tournament. Also, I'd recommend the rookie tournaments on Saturdays at Walsall too, only one rebuy or add-on allowed.

Well as it's your first live tourney I'd play very tight and just try to get used to the situation. There are likely to be some rebuy merchants there who will be very loose.

Essentially it will be a lesson.

I suffered once at the hand of a rebuy merchant. First ever live hand I played was the aces and he called with KJ and hit two jacks. Hence "No flops". I'm not so keen on the smaller tourneys where there are people like that and no house dealers. I'd rather play freezeouts and on the net.

If Barry Greenstein had a problem with the time taken, he should have called for the clock. That's what it is there for.

It's very common in 7 Card Stud when your opponent is on a drawing hand and you've got something like trips or two pair, you check in the dark for the river card so that you'll only have to call one bet instead of two if they make their draw.

And another, this is the Omaha Final......

That's quite a slope they're playing on... 

Retrospectively, apart from the BB who held the jacks. I felt I was ahead. The blinds were about to go up to 75-150 and there's already 700 chips in the pot and I've only got 1750. I hoped at the worst, I'd be heads up versus either the original raiser or caller and felt I'd be ahead at that point. Minimun raises are always tricky, but I felt the person making the raise was just trying to dissuade rags from coming for a cheap flop, or he was pot buiding with suited connectors or a small pair.

Or was I just very lucky in a pot that I couldn't escape from.

------HAND 5------
Game #626815984: Texas Hold'em No Limit (50/100) - 2005/07/04 - 20:48:48 (UK)
Table "Tourney 764575 - 10" Seat 9 is the button.
Seat 1: THEDUKE90 (2145 in chips)
Seat 2: slaperio (2055 in chips)
Seat 3: The_kiwi (2500 in chips)
Seat 4: Auntedith (5120 in chips)
Seat 5: jozo1 (1275 in chips)
Seat 6: obtiagre (2310 in chips)
Seat 7: chilly24 (2520 in chips)
Seat 8: Foaming_h (1750 in chips)
Seat 9: hazzer536 (1950 in chips)
Seat 10: JAGACANE1 (1410 in chips)
JAGACANE1: posts small blind 50
THEDUKE90: posts big blind 100
----- HOLE CARDS -----
dealt to Foaming_h [ ]
slaperio: raises to 200
The_kiwi: folds
Auntedith: calls 200
jozo1: folds
obtiagre: folds
chilly24: folds
Foaming_h: raises to 1750 and is all-in
hazzer536: folds
JAGACANE1: folds
THEDUKE90: calls 1650
slaperio: raises to 2055 and is all-in
Auntedith: raises to 3605
THEDUKE90: is all-in 395
Returned uncalled bets 1,460 to Auntedith
----- FLOP ----- [ ]
----- TURN ----- [ ][]
----- RIVER ----- [ ][]
----- SHOW DOWN -----
Auntedith: shows [ ] (A Pair of Eights, King high)
Foaming_h: shows [ ] (Three of a kind, Nines, King high)
THEDUKE90: shows [ ] (A Pair of Jacks, King high)
slaperio: shows [ ] (A Pair of Kings, Ace high)
THEDUKE90 collected 180 from Side pot #2
slaperio collected 915 from Side pot #1
Foaming_h collected 7050 from Main pot
----- SUMMARY -----
Total pot 8145 Main pot 7050 Side pot #1 915 | Side pot #2 180 | Rake 0
Board [ ]
Seat 1: THEDUKE90 (big blind) showed [ ] and won (180) with A Pair of Jacks, King high
Seat 2: slaperio showed [ ] and won (915) with A Pair of Kings, Ace high
Seat 3: The_kiwi folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 4: Auntedith lost
Seat 5: jozo1 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: obtiagre folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 7: chilly24 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: Foaming_h showed [ ] and won (7050) with Three of a kind, Nines, King high
Seat 9: hazzer536 (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 10: JAGACANE1 (small blind) folded before Flop (didn't bet)

I recommend anyone trying in the heats to go for the 6am start one, most free entries and least number of runners (well compared to yesterdays lists: - 998 at 6am - 30 entries, 1351 at 2am - 20 Entries, 2371 at 9pm - 10 entries.

I wonder how many runners there'll be. What's the max?

Well there's 60 qualifiers per day, and I think it's about 56 days of heats, so that's about 3360 players.

And all I can add is.....welcome to blonde, noflopshomer!

And I would not have played KK either. I just wait for Aces.

The first ever live hand I played was pocket aces in a small tournament at Walsall, and I lost to a KJ. He was one of those awful players who kept rebuying, shoving all his chips in every hand hoping to get lucky. Anyway, that's why I'm "No Flops". 

I'm always very wary of minimum raises, I don't like to use them personally because you tend to be inviting the call from rags in the BB.

Yeah, I did end up check-folding, fortunately I picked up Kings again later and doubled up against the same guy who had 9's.

This happened to me earlier today: I'm Foaming_H in seat 4.

Game #612745904: Texas Hold'em No Limit (100/200) - 2005/07/02 - 14:56:08 (UK)
Table "Tourney 762697 - 2" Seat 2 is the button.
Seat 1: rober (3335 in chips)
Seat 2: ProdigyNH (3110 in chips)
Seat 3: __dog__ (5070 in chips)
Seat 4: Foaming_h (5582.50 in chips)
Seat 5: Pasbesoin (12655 in chips)
Seat 6: donross (2785 in chips)
Seat 8: Dougyfish (6810 in chips)
Seat 9: Toadave (6915 in chips)
Seat 10: Tito123 (5495 in chips)
__dog__: posts small blind 100
Foaming_h: posts big blind 200
----- HOLE CARDS -----
dealt to Foaming_h [ ]
Pasbesoin: folds
donross: folds
Dougyfish: raises to 400
Toadave: folds
Tito123: folds
rober: folds
ProdigyNH: folds
__dog__: calls 300
Foaming_h: raises to 1200
Dougyfish: calls 800
__dog__: folds
----- FLOP ----- [ As ]

Now, as I have to act first, what bet would you make?