FULL TILT POKER BLOG

Posted by Editor | Filed under Me in live tourneys, WSOP 2008

I’ve never understood the psychology behind players who get excited and celebrate after winning a hand. I’m not even talking about the sportsmanship aspect (though I would try to control myself for that reason if I wanted to celebrated). But I’ve never wanted to.

When I’m in a hand, my focus is always on the next hand. And if I did something right – say gotten in cheap with an inferior hand, passed a bigger starting hand, and maneuvered all the chips into play – my thoughts are entirely on the hands that could beat me, or the outs the other player could have. My feeling at the end of such a hand is relief, not joy. Besides, I expect myself to play well. Should I really act surprised when I do?

If it’s the other way around and I get lucky, I don’t see the point of celebrating that. I’m not proud I played inferior poker and lucked out. I’ll take the chips, of course, but why celebrate luck?

After Devilfish self-immolated at 3:15 PM, I played another ten hours. There were many big moments, but the “highs” were only moments of relief.

My troubles with Maureen Feduniak continued. From the button, she raised my big blind to 600. I look at J-J and reraised to 1,800. She moved all-in. Remember, last time she raised my blind, she had J-9o and flopped a straight.

I’m probably supposed to call there but I didn’t. With so many chips and so much play per level, it didn’t seem right to bet the whole tournament on pocket jacks now. It also flashed through my mind that, in the Main Event last year, I lost most of my chips on a J-J hand, and then busted holding J-J.

By 4 PM, I was down to 10,000, half my starting stack, but at least I didn’t have to worry about Maureen Feduniak anymore. She busted holding A-A. A new player in Devilfish’s seat had 5-5 and hit a five on the flop and all the chips went in after that.

4:10 PM – The new player won another big pot, this time with K-K against A-Q and a queen on the board. He has about 65,000 and cameras, microphones, and reporters are coming by to get the count and his name. Another player said, “You’re probably the chip leader now.”

He looked a little dazed, so I said, “You just have to hold on for four months.”

4:30 PM – I’m down to 6,650. Still, after a limper, Kojack made it 1,200 and I folded T-T. I thought about it for awhile, but I fold. That makes at least three times I could have forced the issue. I hope I’m holding out for the right time.

4:45 PM – Just before the break, I got a piece of luck to keep from busting. I raised in late position with Q-J. Seat 4 in the big blind called. I bet the flop and the turn with a board of Q-7-5-5 and Seat 4 called both times. I thought the river was a jack and, when Seat 4 opened by moving all-in, I called my last couple thousand chips. I was worried he had a five and asked, “Got a set?”

He nodded and, because I was numb, it didn’t register when he flipped over A-Q. I turned over Q-J. It also didn’t register when the dealer started chopping the pot. First, I thought I lost because he had a five. Then I thought I won because I had queens and jacks.

Then I noticed, from the glare above the table, that the river card was not a jack but another queen. Had I initially noticed, the hand wouldn’t have played different but I’d have more quickly realized how lucky I got. I went into the break at 4:50 PM with 6,200 in chips, but it was cool … at least I thought it was cool.

5:11 PM – Blinds are now 150-300 so I have just over 20 big blinds. Tony Holden comes by with some kind words, which are much appreciated. My spirits are also boosted by Laughing Boy busting out, with K-K v. A-A, at 5:20 PM.

5:30 PM – 5,400.

5:35 PM – 12,150! A very tight player with a stack even shorter than mine raised from early position. Kojack called. I had A-K on the button and moved in. The raiser agonized before folding. Kojack thought about it, shrugged, and called. He showed … Kojack, K-Jo. The original raiser mentioned that he had 7-7, so I think he made a mistake folding. He couldn’t have felt any better after a flop of 6-7-8.

Then a jack came on the turn.

In that instant, it didn’t dawn on me that my Main Event had ended. I simply thought, “… Ace?”

And damned if that wasn’t what came on the river, doubling me up. Relief, not joy.

At 6:15 PM, I double up again, against Kojack again. I have T-T against his 8-8 and it holds up, bringing my chip total to 24,450. And at the dinner break an hour later, I have 38,650.

I get my total above 42,000 soon after we start play again, but lose 8,000 when I get very unlucky in a hand. Several players limped on my big blind. I had 4-4 and made a set when the flop came J-4-2, rainbow. My only issue at this point is figuring out how to get paid. I checked and Seat 4, the first limper, checked. Another player made it 600. So not to be too coy, I made it 1,800. Seat 4, who checked, called! The original bettor folded.

A three came on the turn and I bet out for 3,000. Seat 4 instantly called.

The river was a five, resulting in a board of 2-3-4-5-J. My heart sank. I had him on a jack and knew, from how he was playing, that he would pay off with just one pair. But now if he had A-J, he lucked into a straight. I checked and he bet 3,000. I was sure he had the ace but just couldn’t give up the hand, especially because the pot was over 12,000 by now.

I called and, yep, he showed A-J. He had open-limped with it and was ready to pay me all the way.

Calming myself down afterward, I realize it could have been much worse. I was pretty sure he had a jack when he called my check-raise on the flop and I could conceivably have gotten him to call much bigger bets on the flop and turn, seeing how he valued top-pair. Then I’d have gotten unlucky for a much larger amount.

9:15 PM – Play has gotten weird. Blinds are 150-300 and antes are 25, but the opening bets have become very erratic. I’m trying to make opening raises of 800 and the player in Seat 9 is doing the same, but some players, including the most active players at the table, are open-raising for 1,200, 1,500, even 2,000.

A new player comes into Seat 8 with 30,000 in chips and loses them all in 20 minutes. He seems to have a death wish, raising every single hand and for big amounts. He open-raises for 1,700 and the player who folded 7-7 earlier moves in against him. Seat 8 has to call because it’s only about 2,000 more, and shows 9-5o.

What could he possibly be getting by putting in big raises in early position with 9-5o? Especially when the antes are at their lowest level, less than 10% of the big blind? Maybe it’s to “get paid” when he finally gets a big hand but he loses over 20,000 chips in 15 minutes and finally gets that big hand, K-K. But he runs into A-A and is gone. I didn’t get a single one of those chips.

I play very few hands during this level and, when we go on our last break at 10:45, I have just over 30,000. The last level will be 200-400 blinds and 50 antes.

Just after the restart, I made a nifty against the player in Seat 9, who I identify as, by far, the most skilled of my opponents. I raised with 6-6 and got two calls plus the blinds. (It was Seat 9′s big blind.) The flop was 9-5-3. Seat 9 bet out for 2,000. This smelled so much like a steal, or a marginal value bet, that I quickly raised to 6,000. Everyone else folded and he immediately followed.

Still, by 11:45 PM, I am back to 30,000. I folded A-K in my big blind after Seat 6 raised and Kojack reraised to 8,000.

12:10 AM – My patience has been rewarded. I have 63,000 and I have Kojack to thank. He raised my big blind and I could feel, from the way he handled the chips and his body language, that it was purely a steal-move. I called with K-J (Kojack). I didn’t want to get crazy by forcing the issue now, especially because I knew that he’d conceivably call a big reraise with a substandard hand and that would leave me out of position, depending on who hit and missed on the flop.

The flop came K-5-7. He made a big bet, so I put in a big raise. He pondered briefly, then quietly said, “I’m all-in.” I called pretty quickly and he showed K-6. My hand held up and he was left with under 1,000 chips. He busted on the next hand.

My next few raises are met with reraises so by 12:30 AM, I have 55,900. By 12:50, it’s 50,000. I raised with A-J and the flop came jack-high. I bet, but was raised (by 7-7 who made a set in Seat 4) and called (by Seat 9, who had 9-6o in the big blind and caught a flush draw with three clubs on the flop and made a straight on the river). I folded. This means that two of my very best flops – raising with A-J and hitting a jack-high flop and making a set out of 4-4 in a multi-way pot – both resulted in losses, totalling about 12,000 chips.

The day ended at 1:02 AM and I finished with 49,150. It was my first time (in my third Main Event) making it to Day 2. I play on Tuesday at noon and feel free to stop by Red Table 22, Seat 3 in the Amazon Room.

So what’s the feeling of surviving Day 1? That’s easy: relief.

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