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#052 – FTOPS Main Event A
The Main Event is starting. Full Tilt Poker hit its guarantee, over 3,000 entries. Clonie Gowen is sitting in my office playing as I play. (We are both also entered in the Mulligan.) We have three different internet connections between us – my home wireless, the Verizon wireless on my back-up computer, and Clonie’s Sprint wireless on her computer – but she can’t stay connected. Not my fault; we don’t even have a last-longer bet.
3,217 started in this tournament. 25 Full Tilt pros in the field. 459 will be paid. Bottom dollar gets $723.82. Final-table money starts at more than $21,000.
Top-3 dough is fantasyland stuff: $114,000, $175,000, $288,000. People win bracelets and make less than that.
Clonie is over 6,500, fast. She raised with K-K and got called from behind. The flop came K-4-2. She bet small (”I hope he comes over the top”) and was called. The turn brought another 4 for a full house. “I’m going to check and hope he bets.” He checked. After a jack on the river, Clonie bet a little less than half the pot and got called. The other player had 2-5s.
A few hands later:
“I have king-queen of hearts in the cut-off. I’m going to raise it … no, there’s a limper under the gun. I’m going to limp. No, I’m going to pot it – no, I’ll limp. I’m always worried about that limp under the gun, and I’ll still have position.” She limps and the player behind her makes it 200.
“Ruh-roh.”
Clonie does Scooby-Doo? “Yeah, I always do that.”
She folds.
Later, I’ll explain WHY Clonie Gowen is playing poker in my office, as well as my secret plan to abscond her on a multi-state poker spree that will include some combination of the Harrah’s Rincon WSOP Circuit championship, The WTP Commerce Main Event, some prelim events at the Wynn Classic, and the Heads-Up Championship. Now I just have to figure out how to get into some of those tournaments, how to afford the others, and how to get Clonie Gowen to be my accomplice.
