Bond18 - Around the World in 90 Days: Day 63

Posted by Bond18 | Filed under Bond18

Today’s event at the WSOP is the $1,500 Shoot-Out Limit event, the only format in which Limit can be slightly interesting. For something like the fourth time this WSOP, I’m seated at a starting table with Marco Traniello and the majority of the rest are entirely unknown faces, except for fellow Full Tilt Poker blogger Michael Craig across the table. I introduce myself and tell him I work for Tilt as well, but he does not seem to know who I am. That’s OK, I don’t have the time to read anyone else’s stuff during the series either.

As I’ve said before, my Limit game is pretty rusty, but I’ve talked enough with some very good players during the series that I think I’m starting to get the hang of it again. We start with 3,000 chips and the table is a winner-take-all format. In Limit tournaments at the WSOP you have to play sort of nitty to peoples’ aggression, as their unfamiliarity with Limit means its way less likely they’ll be getting out of line.

My first interesting hand happens about an orbit in:

Stacks: ~3,000, limits are 50/100, I hold A-To in MP2.

Pre-flop: Folds to me, I raise to 100, folds to the BB, BB calls.

Flop: 5-A-7 rainbow

BB checks, I bet, BB raises. BB looks like a nitty and straight-forward player, so I decide to just go into call down mode.

Turn: J

BB bets 100, I call.

River: T

BB checks, I bet 100, BB calls. I table the A-To and he mucks.

The table is quiet for the most part and since everyone knows the only way they can win and advance is they bust everyone else, it’s not exactly the best format for a friendly game. It’s not long before I’m involved again:

Stacks: ~3,000, limits 50/100. I hold Kc-Kd UTG.

Pre-flop: I raise to 100, UTG+1 calls, UTG+2 calls, folds to the BB, BB calls.

Flop: Ts-5d-3c

BB checks, I bet 50, UTG+1 raises to 100, UTG+2 folds, BB folds. The UTG+1 player is a very weak player and I think there is no way he four bets a good 10 here. I decide to check-raise the turn, since I think it gets an extra half bet out of this player. I call.

Turn: 5

I check, UTG+1 bets 100, I raise to 200, UTG+1 thinks for a while before calling.

River: Q

I bet 100, UTG+1 raises to 200. Fuck, this guy is so weak tight, but can he really have a 5 here? I decide to just call and he tables the As-5s. God, Limit is such an awful game.

I fold for the rest of the level and the blinds go up to 100/200 before I get involved in another interesting hand:

My stack: ~1,600, Michael Craig: 1,025, limits 100/200. I hold Js-Jh on the button.

Pre-flop: UTG folds, UTG+1 calls, Craig raises to 200 UTG+2, folds to me on the button, I raise to 300, folds back to UTG+1, UTG+1 calls, Craig raises to 400, I raise to 500, both players call.

Flop: 3h-4s-8s

UTG+1 bets 100, Craig raises to 200, I re-raise to 300, UTG+1 folds, Craig raises to 400 with 25 behind, I raise his last 25 chips, he calls. He tables Ah-Kc.

Turn: 8c

River: 3s

I shake hands with Michael and the table starts to get a little more short-handed. It’s not long before I get involved against two very loose players again:

My stack: ~2,800, everyone else covers. Limits 100/200, I hold As-Kd on the CO.

Pre-flop: Folds to me on the CO, I raise to 200, button raises to 300, SB folds, BB calls, I raise to 400, both call.

Flop: 7h-7s-3h

BB checks, I bet 100, button calls, BB calls.

Turn: 5s

BB checks. Hmm, I think I still might be good here. I bet 200, button folds, BB calls.

River: 8h

BB checks, I check. BB shows Ks-8s. God limit is the worst game ever.

With a pretty short stack, I manage to get a bit of value from A-9 when I 3 bet a HJ raiser with a dead BB. The flop comes A high and I get two streets of value out of him.

After that I go incredibly card dead and wind up folding for a while. On a loose Limit table, there is very little you can do if you don’t have some cards or hit some flops. There’s no such thing as open shoving or re-stealing in Limit poker, and the game keeps aggressive young donks like me in line.

After getting quite short, I re-raise 8-8 into a late position raiser and he four bets me. I cap for almost all my chips and he calls. The flop comes K high and he bets out, I raise the rest of my chips, and he calls and shows A-K. The turn and river blank out and I’m eliminated pretty early in the day.

With that, the preliminary events at the WSOP come to an end. It wasn’t a bad series for me, with four cashes and one final table. There’s still the Bellagio Cup preliminary events upcoming, so my chances to grind off more make up are not entirely over.

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