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#845 – A Gratuitous FTOPS XIII Update
Even though “the Internet is everywhere,” I’m far, far from FTOPS XIII for the next couple days. In the heady time after I finished runner-up in Razz at the World Series, I promised my family anything they wanted. I assumed they’d choose cars, high-tech toys, maybe a working vacuum cleaner. The rats, they picked ME.
Jo Anne requested a family vacation, all of us together for a week. Barry, Ellie, and Valerie concurred, and we created an itinerary for Parts Unknown. Now that the World Series of Poker is just a cherished memory – except to the nine remaining players who will reconvene in November and all of you who are expecting my remaining unwritten/unposted blogs from the Series – it’s come time for me to pay the piper.
It’s been awhile since we’ve all been together on a “family trip” and I’m learning all sorts of new things about my brood. For instance, did you know my son Barry is almost twenty and he’s five inches taller than me? Guess I should have been taking measurements and recording videos all these years.
But from your perspective, the important thing is that I’m out of commission, FTOPS-wise, until Sunday. I am missing the first five events of FTOPS XIII. (Because I’m so far behind in posting my blogs from the World Series, this has actually been a productive posting week for the blog, but that’s only because of my inability to finish things I started a month or two ago.)
To keep at least a hand in FTOPS, I’ve been monitoring things from a distance. I’m pleased to say that, despite my absence, FTOPS XIII has all the makings of a huge hit.
I’m not sure if you remember, but FTOPS XII was not a huge success by usual standards. A large number of events did not reach their guarantee. I attributed this to competition, not just from other sites’ big events, but Full Tilt’s own expanded schedule of WSOP Main Event satellites and MiniFTOPS.
Without all those distractions, what does FTOPS XIII bring?
A horde!
Last night was the first event, $200 + $16 NLHE. The guarantee of $1 million was easily exceeded, as 5,712 players eventually entered, leading to an announced payout of over $195,000 for first place, nearly $136,000 for second, and over $97,000 for third, and money for 720 players. (This will also be the first FTOPS with the final-table deal-making capability, something I’ll try to watch in action after I return and report.)
After twelve hours of play, this was how they finished:
1. Deception Pt
2. MaKaVeLi121
3. phil_ivey41
4. HoundsBlood
5. hir03yj
I wasn’t watching and don’t completely understand the deal-making features, but these were the payouts after the players’ deal:
1. Deception Pt $107,518.60
2. MaKaVeLi121 $131,692.33
3. phil_ivey41 $120,298.79
4. HoundsBlood $107,273.07
5. hir03yj $89,508.69
It was not a very good performance for the red pros. Forty red pros entered, for a total buy-in of $8,640. Six pros made the money, which wasn’t a bad ratio, but none made the big money. Total cashes were $2,513.28.
193. Christian Kruel $571.20
417. S Gromenkova $388.42
449. Isaac Baron $388.42
495. Brandon Adams $388.42
528. Scott Fischman $388.41
531. Eli Elezra $388.41
Event #2, $300 + $22 NLHE-6-shootout is going on as I write this. Entries are once again very encouraging, with 1,193 starters, far exceeding the guarantee of $250,000 and creating a prize pool of $357,900. Scott Fischman is hosting the event.
My timing was almost perfect. I had a great story involving Scott Fischman from the World Series and I wrote it up for posting during my vacation. But I needed to post the second half of my Ante Up for Africa experience so it won’t be posted for another couple of days. But look for it; it’s a cool story.
I will be returning in time to play the Sunday FTOPS events. I’m likely to miss Saturday but that’s currently up in the air. For sure, I’ll be absent from Events #1-5, all of which I would have played if I was home. Based on my FTOPS history, this means I’m probably saving $1,386.
Just don’t tell my family or they’ll want some of it.
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