Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[Boba Fett]

Amazing game for the Knicks last night. In case u missed it, lack of Lin updates was because last weekend was the All-Star break, about five days where there's no league games.

The Knicks didn't play again til last night, and their coach was pretty excited to get some time (in the shortened season with little down time) to work with Lin and his fit/available again two star players plus his other new guys, trying to make a team of them.

The game last night, home against a pretty ordinary Cleveland team, shoulda been easy, but in the third quarter the Knicks were 17 behind and it looked like a disaster. Not really with Lin's help (most of the starters were on the bench) they got right back into it, and the big guns came back to finish the job in the 4th, ending up winning by 17, 120-103.

Lin's stats were really good, 19 points (on six of 12 shooting), 13 assists and only one turnover. Pretty amazing to think he's now just accepted as a starter, superstar, leader of a storied franchise, and he's just expected to run the team and put up those lines, when he was just some punk at the end of the bench that never got a game a couple of weeks ago.

Trying to think of a football comparison. Maybe when Shef Wed were in the Prem, and they had an injury crisis up front, they threw a pretty ordinary centre half up front, Paul Warhurst, and he kept scoring in every game, to the point that the fit again players couldn't get back in and he even got called up by England I think.

At last, was beginning to wonder what had happened to our hero!

What is a "storied franchise"? Franchise I understand, storied I do not.

How much longer has the season got to go?  66 Games this season, just back from mid-season all star break so around 30 games left to play, will take around 2 months and then its the playoffs.

Do College players normally move up to the Pro game if good enough? If so, what sort of money could someone like Lin command? Is there a draft process, as in NFL etc?  NBA have a draft every year, 2 rounds of drafting (so 58 picks) made up of the best players coming out of college and coming across from Europe for the 1st time.  College players make up for most of the draft though.  Lin went undrafted because he went to Harvard, not known for their basketball program so good players never go there or come out of there.

The NBA semi-recently added a development league, sort of like a reserves league of NFL Europe and most undrafted players go there or go play internationally for some experience.  Lin played in the development league but the few times he went to NBA teams he didnt get much of a chance and dropped back down.

Players signed from the D-league or internationally are usually on the minimum salary.  I read that Lin didnt start his 1st game for NY until a few days before the deadline for contracts for that year to be gtd, so before Linsanity he was sweating being cut.  His contract for this season is league minimum so 1 year for around $200k  Next year he will absolutely make more for more years.

Soz for all the q's, but we are into this now, so we need the details

Tried to find the original Lin chat in here but couldnt, lin-k anyone?

[tikay]

Think she just won a seat to play devilfish this weekend tony. Rotty11 on dtd

That is the alias she used to use back in the days when I was at Sporting Bet. Jeez, I have some memories of that job, incredible.

They paid me fortunes, & sent me all over Europe to look after players in Tourneys. The top suit rung me one day "any chance you can go over to Monte Carlo for a few days, we will book you a suite in The Hermitage?".

Eh what? Just a bit.

I flew out the next morning, & I booked into The Hermitage, what a posh place that was.

It was the year that the "DTD Girls" were around, & Mr Zimbler was the PR chap, & he had a photographer there in Monte Carlo doing a photoshoot of all the girls.  I know "sex sells", but I don't much like that sort of stuff, it's about the only tacky thing DTD have ever done, imo.

At that time, DTD were sponsoring Dave Colclough, Carlo Citrone, Chubbs, & a bunch of others who I can't recall right now. Eventually, of course, that all ended, inevitably. 

Sporting Bet also stuck me in various Tourneys, I ran 2nd for £19,000 in a £500 Tourney they sponsored @ Gutshot, the "London Poker Masters". The winner was a guy who is now a blonde, "LPM Champ", John Curtis, also in the Final were Jim McShane & Willie Tann, with Flushy busting just shy of the Final Table. I ran embarrassingly hot, twice busting Aces with Kings, but got coolered Heads Up when we both flopped top pair.

I was, at the same time, trying to run a Blonde Live Update @ The Vic, & one of our Updaters let us down badly, an event which was won by Tony G, who I was quite close to at ther time.

What with this & that, I never went to bed for 3 days straight, & I was in bad shape physically by then. My Final was televised, too, & everyone said I looked & played shite. They were not wrong.

A weird thing went off. A kid called Rolf Woods, Norweigan chap, owed me a favour, & just before the Gutshot Event I bumped into him @ The Vic. He stuck £100 in my hand, "here, I'll buy 20% of your action, by way of thank you".

I was sponsored in, & did not want to sell any, but he kind of insisted, & I was in a mad rush, so I said "OK, thanks".

After the Final ended @ Gutshot, they never had enough cash on the premises to pay me out, so I took a kite instead. I get a cab back to The Vic to meet Jen Mason, & see the end of the Final there, & Rolf is waiting for me - "can I have my 20% now please?". I never had the cash on me, just the kite, & told him so, & he got a bit arsey with me, insisting I pay immediately.  Ho hum.

Later, Jen & I had dinner @ The Vic, & Tony G owed someone some cash apparently. Seeing me sat there with Jen, he tossed me a £25,000 chip, & said "can you pass that on to xx if you see him". Just like that. I never saw "x" for several months, so I had his £25,000 in my pocket all that time. Nice.

The Final that Tony G won was a £5,000 thing, big event back in those days, & he cashed for £260,000 I think, tidy money even now. Runner Up was a nice, good looking Norweigan kid who ran hot for a year or two, Sverre Sundbo, & in third place was Ed Moncado, who had blitzed a WSOP PL Event shortly before, but who soon fizzled out.  Dave Rudling & Vik Kanwar - "Desperate Dan" also finalled, as did Max Pescatori.

An Irish lad, a good pal @ one time, Peter Roche, was in it too, I liked him muchly, but he disappeared off my radar a few years later, but not before a bit of a to-do with a very peculiar poker site he was involved with - "All-In Poker" I think it was called. Long, long, story that, & it all got a bit messy, & awkward. I've not heard of Peter for some years, & I hope he is OK. Sometimes, situations arise, & pals find themselves on different sides of a fence.  Back then, of course, poker was booming, & sites were starting up left right & centre, all trying to find an angle.

Chubby Nowab cashed, too, as did one Achilleas Kalakkis.   

I'm rambling. As per.
 

[tikay]

Going to take a bit of a R & R the next few days. Pop home tomorrow, see if I can persuade Angell into the car, & bring him down to London.

On Saturday, DTD for the £500, which I'm really looking forward to. Should be a great event, & I have action in 5 or 6 places, who all have a chance if they hit some run-good. I think it's a good event to buy action in, as I think, sadly for DTD, there might be a lump of overlay.

Sunday, just rest, & watch the football & golf. After winning the £500, of course.

Busy busy next week. We have just started Vegas satellites next door, always a busy time, & next weekend, it is SPT Brighton, & so I'm down there for a few days. The following weekend, I'm hosting 8 or 10 Team Sky Poker players at the Walsall GUKPT, & doing a little Live Update for it, too.

I am recording a TV ad next week, too, oooh.

If only there were more hours in the day.
 

[smashedagain]

Maybe rambling but I love it. One of the kids has just woke up and come and jumped in our bed. Luckily enough Catherine's teenage son is out tonight so I've gone And jumped in his bed.

Gotta toss a coin in the morning. Live sat at Dtd or play on line last chance saloon. Hope to see you there Saturday and one time wish to draw your table and listen to the ramblings

[tikay]

On tonight's Show, Plenners mate, "derp", who I assume is the lad features in all those gif things, was inolved in a whole bunch of Sky Poker cash hands.

Hope Pleno was watching, he'd have been cooing.

[smashedagain]

Yes guess you could say he is sky pokers isildur1.... He seemed to be in all your weeks top twenty biggest pots. Must confess its the first time I have come across channel 865 but then you came on 404? In high definition and the difference in picture quality of the two channels was amazing.

[Machka]

Did you ever see this Haynes Manual?  Looks like it might be your sort of reading material.

Click to see full-size image.

[smashedagain]

What time did you get up this morning?

[AlunB]

What is a "storied franchise"? Franchise I understand, storied I do not.

Storied is a just an adjective meaning legendary.

Enjoyed the back in the day tales. More of those please.

[TightEnd]

what is a "kite" in the context of receiving that instead of money?

[RED-DOG]

what is a "kite" in the context of receiving that instead of money?

A cheque.

[RED-DOG]

Back in the day we used to hate to get a kite, (No bank account) but if you could persuade the giver to sign it on the back, you could take it to the bank and they would usually cash it for you.

[Marky147]

Amazing game for the Knicks last night. In case u missed it, lack of Lin updates was because last weekend was the All-Star break, about five days where there's no league games.

The Knicks didn't play again til last night, and their coach was pretty excited to get some time (in the shortened season with little down time) to work with Lin and his fit/available again two star players plus his other new guys, trying to make a team of them.

The game last night, home against a pretty ordinary Cleveland team, shoulda been easy, but in the third quarter the Knicks were 17 behind and it looked like a disaster. Not really with Lin's help (most of the starters were on the bench) they got right back into it, and the big guns came back to finish the job in the 4th, ending up winning by 17, 120-103.

Lin's stats were really good, 19 points (on six of 12 shooting), 13 assists and only one turnover. Pretty amazing to think he's now just accepted as a starter, superstar, leader of a storied franchise, and he's just expected to run the team and put up those lines, when he was just some punk at the end of the bench that never got a game a couple of weeks ago.

Trying to think of a football comparison. Maybe when Shef Wed were in the Prem, and they had an injury crisis up front, they threw a pretty ordinary centre half up front, Paul Warhurst, and he kept scoring in every game, to the point that the fit again players couldn't get back in and he even got called up by England I think.

At last, was beginning to wonder what had happened to our hero!

What is a "storied franchise"? Franchise I understand, storied I do not.

How much longer has the season got to go?  66 Games this season, just back from mid-season all star break so around 30 games left to play, will take around 2 months and then its the playoffs.

Do College players normally move up to the Pro game if good enough? If so, what sort of money could someone like Lin command? Is there a draft process, as in NFL etc?  NBA have a draft every year, 2 rounds of drafting (so 58 picks) made up of the best players coming out of college and coming across from Europe for the 1st time.  College players make up for most of the draft though.  Lin went undrafted because he went to Harvard, not known for their basketball program so good players never go there or come out of there.

The NBA semi-recently added a development league, sort of like a reserves league of NFL Europe and most undrafted players go there or go play internationally for some experience.  Lin played in the development league but the few times he went to NBA teams he didnt get much of a chance and dropped back down.

Players signed from the D-league or internationally are usually on the minimum salary.  I read that Lin didnt start his 1st game for NY until a few days before the deadline for contracts for that year to be gtd, so before Linsanity he was sweating being cut.  His contract for this season is league minimum so 1 year for around $200k  Next year he will absolutely make more for more years.

Soz for all the q's, but we are into this now, so we need the details

Tried to find the original Lin chat in here but couldnt, lin-k anyone?

Here it is m8 http://blondepoker.com/forum/index.php?topic=25486.msg1508274#msg1508274

[david3103]

Back in my banking days, to 'kite a cheque' was the act of writing a cheque when the funds to cover it weren't in the bank. Often, multiple cheques would be written, each bigger than the last, with cash deposited to the account from each to cover the next that might be presented. Used by many as a form of payday loan when the supermarkets used to allow you to pay by cheque and get cashback on a Thursday with no prospect of the cheque hitting your account for payment before the following Tuesday...

To call a cheque a 'kite' seems to imply that it is likely to be returned with the dreaded 'Refer to Drawer' stamp. Or worse, 'Refer to Drawer, Do Not Re-Present'

But the gambling and poker world have had their own argot for ages - it was only comparatively recently that I finally got clear in my mind the difference between a Pony and a Monkey. (one you ride, the other you sit in front of a typewriter)

[pleno1]

haha heard last night was fun