Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[tikay]

The thing is, I don't play NLH these days, I just completely suck at the game. I'd play PLO & PLO8 every day if I could, but it's not a game which attracts much enthusiasm or interest, so opportunities are rare. And I have a good - winning - record @ PLO & PLO8. But not at NLH, so I knew I was dead money before I even sat down.

I rarely get time to play "Live" though, my previous Live Poker was the UKPC Omaha, And I doubt I've played 5 MTT's since Vegas 2013, just not enough time these days.

But, you know, you always think, maybe, if I concentrate, & run good, I CAN still play NLH.

Well that was the thinking......

[Eso Kral]

Hi pops

I am sure you may have read this over the weekend but this is a great insight into the life of the marker who plays with the players who have to play their rounds at Augusta and he seems to be a fairly decent player himself

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/golf-devil-ball-golf/meet-jeff-knox--the-guy-with-the-greatest-job-in-golf--augusta-marker-155021216.html

That's a great little story, Mr B, thanks.

Loved your "Shop" story & the background to it, too.

Good to see you over the weekend. Day 2 did not go as well as I'd hoped.......Apologies for not bading farewell, but I wanted to get home to watch Messrs Watson & Spieth do their business. That went rather better.

I must have a Doppelganger at DTD then as whilst you were not cashing there I was also not cashing at Southend

[tikay]

Hi pops

I am sure you may have read this over the weekend but this is a great insight into the life of the marker who plays with the players who have to play their rounds at Augusta and he seems to be a fairly decent player himself

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/golf-devil-ball-golf/meet-jeff-knox--the-guy-with-the-greatest-job-in-golf--augusta-marker-155021216.html

That's a great little story, Mr B, thanks.

Loved your "Shop" story & the background to it, too.

Good to see you over the weekend. Day 2 did not go as well as I'd hoped.......Apologies for not bading farewell, but I wanted to get home to watch Messrs Watson & Spieth do their business. That went rather better.

I must have a Doppelganger at DTD then as whilst you were not cashing there I was also not cashing at Southend

FML.

I KNOW I saw you there. We chatted several times. Definitely. 100%.

This IS you, right?

[RED-DOG]

Bugger! I knew that wasn't him at Southend.

[tikay]

Anyway, where was I before Shaun interrupted me?

Oh yes, 50,000 chips.

Well, to be fair, when I've not played "live" before, I do get a bit trigger happy, so I maybe pre-ejaculated a bit.

But it was a nightmare, I had no idea what to do.


Everyone - the entire table - limped EVERY hand.

Well I was not having that, so I tried raising.

5 callers. You gotta be kidding?

Then I tried the limpy thing, though I felt embarrassed, so I only tried it twice.

Tried raising again, on the Button, obv, FOUR callers this time.

I had Q-Q, & the flop came 5-5-3. Seemed safe enough to proceed, I'd have said, but 5-2 man had me all wrapped up. Once he took a 2nd peek at his cards, I suspected as much, & we checked the turn, & I paid him off his small river bet, just called him. 50p.

Then I tried it again with A-Q. Bash was sat to my left, but was busy talking to Ash, & never saw me raise. He "called", but was forced to forfeit his call, or call my raise. He called.

I liked the Q-8-5 flop, & in went the remnants of my much depleted stack. "I've got the nut Queen" I mistakenly announced.  "No, I have a better Queen" says Bash, as he tables Q-8. Another 50p.

And that was that. Or should have been.   

[tikay]

With no intention of setting fire to another £250, I decided to go home, but a weird thing happened, & soon I was sat down again, with another 50,000 chips. Incidentally, I quite like the "no reg fee" thing. But as I fail to cash more often that not, I would. (The Reg Fee is deducted from the Prize Pool).  

A "better" table this time, perhaps because the blinds were bigger, but I felt able to play on this table.

Mr Fullashit was on the Table, telling all of us - & me in particular - how bad we all were. It was quite pleasing to get no less than three re-steals past him. "You only play Aces & Kings, I'll let you have this one". Thanks mate.

Inevitably, though, as per, I started to fall behind. Above ave, ave, below ave......

I had about 30 Bigs, but Blinds were about to increase for the day's last level, and I'd have 25 Bigs. Deduct the final level, & I could be looking at returning with 20 Bigs. Time to do something.

There was a kid on the table, Mr Loose Goose - pleasant & amiable - who made Albert Sapiano look like a nit.  Opened EVERY pot, called every bet, bet every street. He's the mark, then.

And sure enough, I find A-Q in my BB, & he has opened to 5,600 @ 1,200-2,400.

How best to play this? He'll call if I raise, & if I miss the flop.......

I decided to make the daftest play ever ever ever. I had 76,000. I plonked all my purples in, 60,000, lol.

"Why did you not go all-in?" was the unexpected question.  

Before I could reply, he'd announced ALL-IN. No, surely he's not woken up with a real hand this time?

In go my chips, & he shows K-10, boom.

The flop was a bit scary, J-9-x -, so my queen was dead, but A high was enough, & I'm a chip monster.

Day Two then.

So I CAN still play NLH.  

I spent the drive home & back musing on what I'd do with the £8k up top.

[tikay]

Very little in live poker gives me more buzz than "bagging up" at the end of Day One, & un-bagging on Day Two. Guess it is a bit of a novelty, I'd struggle to count more than 20 occasions when I've done it. It's probably more, but it seems very rare.

Anyway, I returned, & to my delight, the seat draw had me next to Chili. I'd been chatting to her a lot lately on the 'phone, but not seen her for ages. I did see Carla Goddard on Day One, who I sometimes confuse with Chili, they look so alike, but not the real Chili.

We had an awesome 20 minutes. She was a bit unlucky, I thought, there was a serial peeler behind her, & he had her number well & truly, so she soon departed. She does open a LOT of pots.

I held station for an hour or two, seemed to be well in control, but then I had my first accident. 

Kid to my right opens, I have J-J, & backraise him, think I msde it 25k or somesuch. Elderly Gent round the back now moves all-in, for 90,000. Whoops.

Traditionally, this is a fold for me in this spot, but of late, I've changed my stance completely, mini-cashes no longer float my boat, I play to win. Only taken me 12 years to learn that. 

I give it a moments thought, & am pretty sure he does not play QQ or better this way, & he MUST have A-K or A-Q.

Lets do it.

BOOM, A-K, nailed it.

First card Ace, in yer eye Kendall.

When we have A-K, we EXPECT to hit, & it seems somehow right that we do. Big hand.

When we have the underpair, it somehow seems unjust that they ALWAYS (seem....) to hit.

Anyway, maybe it was a fold, I dunno, but I had no complaints, & I'm glad I at last found some bottle.

So it was shove time, usual schmusual. 

Walked to the Blinds, the SB makes up, & with Q-2, I can't find a shove. My man, who was a bit tricky, lead out on the Q-10-7 flop. Nah, not buying that. In they go.

He dwells. "I have a queen" he says". Whoops, I have the nut worst queen, lol. 

Eventually he calls, he has Q-5, but we must be chopping, surely? The 8 turn did the job, chop chop. The 5 river buggered me.

My gut instincts, I can't play NLH these days, were right.  4 cards only from now on. Deffo. 

Most enjoyable, though, & I'm glad I played.   

I really ought to make the effort to play more Live Poker, I love it.

[tikay]

Whilst we are on the subject of poker, I want to jot down my UKPC Omaha thoughts. I started to do it about 2 months ago, but never finished.

Look away now, it might seem a bit chirpy, but it was a big deal for me, for various reasons. For once, from the very get-go, I played to WIN. That was a fail, but it may have been the best I've ever played.

[tikay]

Tourney report would be good too, if you can still remember it. No rush.

I did some brief notes the other day, but I want to jot down some notelets from that Omaha thing.

I was pretty stressed out all week, & everything is a bit of a blur, & even now, I'm struggling to remember much of what happened.

There was no room for the Omaha Tourney to start as planned @ 6pm, & there was a huge queue waiting to enter. Simon Trumper & I both decided we'd not enter until & unless everyone else was seated, & the Waiting List had cleared.  

In total, there were 79 Entries. Can't have been many £550 Omaha Tourneys in the UK of late which attracted a field of that size, surely? I had expected 40 at best.

The Tourney eventually began at around 8pm, & we both took our seats 3 hours later, just after 11pm. The structure was so good, it made no odds, really.

It was a Double Chance Freezeout, but I have no recollection at all of taking the 2nd Chance, but I suppose I must have done.

My opening Table was everything I had dared dream.

Chris Brammer, Zimnan Ziyard, Ben Vinson, Adam Picken, Kev Allen, some regular guys, & little me, sitting with the Big Boys. Just what I wanted, oooh. I have very low self-esteem & confidence as a rule, but I genuinely believed - daft, I know - that with a decent structure, I'd go deep in this. Not because I am good at the game, but because so many players - & I don't include those guys in that category - play Omaha so badly, like sort of 4 card Hold Em.

More..... (sorry, but blame Vinny, he asked).

BUMPED to save me repeating myself...... (2 more to come)

[tikay]

This was, overall, a very tidy field.

In addition to Chris Brammer, Zimnan Ziyard, Adam Picken, Kev Allen & Ben Vinson, these lads (below) all played. Curiously, in an 80 runner field, I don't recall a single female playing it. Why that, I wonder?

Some of the field were just top notch NLH players trying a bit of 4 card, but even so, aggression is the key to these things, & they all do aggro real good, whilst I'm Lord Passive Nit.

John Burberry

Mad Turk

At It Bradley

Jerome Bradpiece (much respect)

Keith Johnson

Basha

Devilfish

Lord Gosney

Dave Lloyd

Simon Scobie (Scobie!) Trumper

Jamie Sykes

James Williams

Jeff Duvall. (Subject of my man love).


So, some tidy names, many of whom are pretty useful @ Omaha, but I suppose the bulk of the field were realy NLH players.

Not to especially diss him, but Jac Arama played, too. I've no idea if he used to be competent, but fair to say, he was either roffling around, or has "lost" his game, just as I have "lost" my NLH game. From what I saw, he played every single hand. Meanwhile, I tried to ensure I played at least one hand every Level. In a "who is worse" debate, it'd be nip & tick between he & I. Botrh of us need to learn to balance our rages a bit, suffice to say.

More follows.....(I know, I know. I still blame Vinny).

Bump # 2

[tikay]

So, the UKPC Omaha.

We get better perspective after time to reflect, & that whole Tourney has become such a great memory, maybe amongst my top five playing experiences ever. 

I was supposed to be working, not playing, though "work" is, I suppose, a loose term in my case.

Incredible embarrassment ensued when THE Big Boss came down from Leeds to look at the UKPC thing whilst I was playing the Omaha, but he was fine with it, & even sent me a private note of congrats afterwards.  By chance, I was sat next to At It Bradley, & he knows At It quite well, via Business. I was reluctant to enter, even though I was gagging to, but another of my Bosses - I report to about 5 different people, lol - insisted I should play.

I had to keep leaving the Table, too, to do pieces to camera, but the Boss chap - another - was very co-operative, & I was able to play my Blinds first on each occasion. No big deal, but it does mess with the focus, & concentration. And I had no right to complain, so it was just one of those things I needed to deal with. 

..........

[tikay]

For reasons I can't explain, I just decided to play for the win, & not played scaredy-cat poker, which is my default.

Early doors, on THE toughest starting table by far, I made 2 button raises into Ben Vinson's BB. He played back at me both times, as he knows I am weak passive. I'd pre-determined my play, I just needed to find some bottle. And I did. He folded both times. Yikes, that felt SO good.

The structure was a beaut, & I was never under prerssure.

The cash bubble duly arrived, & some players tightened up, but I opened up, & garnered a lot of chips in that spot. Even so, I managed not to waste a single chip when, in the SB, on the cash bubble, I was dealt

 

Somehow, I decided to just fold without "making up". Yes, it's a shite hand, but Heads up I could nick the blinds. It just felt a bad spot somehow.

I said to the BB "you'll never believe what I folded". 

And he showed me.....



 

   
What were the chances of that? Not often we are drawing dead (bar a 25/1 chop possibility) pre-flop. Good job it was not Online, or the conspiracy boys would have had a field day.



......

[tikay]

After what seemed forever, "FINAL", with Hi Diddly Hi Flanders being the unlucky absentee. He really did try to cling on, and I could see myself in what he did, exactly as I used to.

We moved to the Feature Table, where the Big Boys play so often. I was pretty excited, as much as during my recent WSOP experiences.

I'd had a few railers from the start, Holdy Foldy, one of my Bosses (yes, another one...), but right to the very end, Jen Mason & Tal. Railing me must be THe most boring thing ever, but it meant a great deal to me. Imagine what it must be like to have Team Shoe Bomb railing on a WSOP Final Table?

Decent Final Table, too. I had been very bullish about my chances from the start, but the Final looked a bit handy. I still genuinely thought I could win it though, as daft as it sounds. 

The line up.....

Mad Turk.

This was a plus, I sensed he'd be overly aggro. He never scared me at all.

John Burberry.

I see John as pretty tight & ABC. Again, I thought I could deal with him.

rfqqhjgdrt (Adam Picken).

He DID trouble me, he is a proper 4 card player, but we'll see. As long as I did not lose my nerve, I'll be OK.

At It Bradley.

Seated to my immediate left, my worst nightmare really. Way too good for me. Luckily, he got unlucky, if you get my drift. I actually would have been happy to see him win it, he's a smashing lad & a good pal of old.

Jason Beazley.

Did not really know him.

Ben Vinson.

Scared the life out of me, but deep down, I have him marked as a NLH player playing PLO. That is not meant to come across as badly as it seems to!

Russian Alex,

...who I know from Luton DC. I under-rated him, in truth, as he played great poker all Final, & deserved the win.

Let's win this.

I wanted that Bracelet SO badly. 

Even Heads up, the money never entered my mind. There was a £4.5k difference between 1st & 2nd. I was not bothered. I wanted that Bracelet.

......

[tikay]

I can barely remember how the Final played out.

Turk over-reached himself with middling hands, as I expected. He's the perfect oppo for me.

At It Bradley was just plum unlucky.

John Burberry played his big pairs & rundowns, but I think a bit more creativity was needed in this thing.  

Adam rfqqqfhtyfdg really played well, but just not his day really. Even so, one of THE great comebacks I've had the pleasure of seeing at first hand.

I don't recall how Jason Beazley played, or exited.

Which left Russian Alex, & Ben Vinson. And here I had THE most lovely piece of luck - position. Alex was opening light, a LOT. Ben spotted this quickly, & was re-raising him pre. Equally light, I surmised. And so I just needed the minerals to play back at Ben.

I did it three times, & I knew he'd draw the line soon.

Here came my biggest double up, when I re-potted him with bad A-K-5-4. I can't be in terrible shape here, but it was bad A-K. Maybe I thought I was playing PLO8.....

Anyway, he drew the line, & we got it all-in pre, & he showed up with bad A-Q, so I was a spot ahead.  He flopped his Q, gg Mr Kendall, but I turned the King. Phew! That mortally wounded him, then he got mega-aggro, & was eventually coolered badly.

Heads Up then. To say I'm the world's worst player Heads Up is no exaggaration, but never mind, I'm Mr Aggro now. Lets do it.

Sadly, he was just too good, & outplayed me for 30 or 40 minutes, I just could not find the right spots, cards, or guts.

Plan B then, take the play out of it, & try & force the action. Bit awkward, as we were playing SO deep, but he deffo had my number. Bit of luck needed, then.

Soon, I found my spot. Nut flush draw, gutshot straight draw, & two pair, including top pair.
  
The chips go in on the flop, not a moments hesitation on my part, & he had two better pair, whoops, but I still had my flush outs & the gutterball.  Just need a nice turn or river now.

[tikay]

So that was that, 2nd, & £7k, but no Bracelet.

I can remjember every "major" situation I have been in, & I have regrets about them all.

A small NLH WSOP Tourney, 8 years ago, 34th of 1,000. How could Mr Frenchie call with A-4 v my A-J?

My first & last EPT, in the semi-final, 2005, I made THE worst play ever, getting silly aggro against the Tables biggest Nit. He HAD to be good against A-10. Just think, an EPT Final went begging there.....

In my first WSOP PLO8, the $1,500, 12 of 1,000 left, & I can win it, but I mis-stepped & busted. I regret that play every time I think of it. A WSOP Final awaited.

In my 2nd WSOP PLO8, the $3,000, a really terrible play after the money bubble burst, & I threw my chance away.

But not this time, in the UKPC Omaha, I have no regrets at all, I left nothing on the Table. Except that bloody bracelet.

Damn Russians.


 

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