Bond18 – Around the World in 90 Days: Day 64

Posted by Bond18 | Filed under Bond18

I first fell in love with the Bellagio during last year’s Bellagio Cup III. Not only is the hotel such a visual pleasure to walk through, but the Fontana Lounge where they put the tournaments is roomy and comfortable, in the direct center of the hotel overlooking the fountains. Also, the Bellagio Cup was the only place where I had even the slightest taste of success, finishing eighth in a $2,000 pre-lim for something like $8,000 and change.

This year’s schedule has been vastly reduced after the turn out for last year wasn’t as big as hoped. The $3,000 I’m playing today is the second pre-lim, and the starting stacks have been increased to triple the buy-in. Because of the cab being very slow to get here, Sirwatts and I are about 20 minutes late. That’s OK, I suck with deep stacks anyway. When we finally get seated, I look around at a table of unknowns.

The very first hand I raise K-To on the HJ, get re-raised and fold. I get involved in the very next hand:

Stacks: ~9,000, blinds 25/50. I hold As-Kh in MP2.

Pre-flop: Folds to me in MP2, I raise to 150, folds to the BB, BB calls.

Flop: 9d-Ac-2d

The BB checks, I bet 225, BB calls.

Turn: 5c

The BB checks, I bet 500, the BB check-raises to 1,200. Shit, this is pretty weird right off the bat. The BB is a mid 30s Asian guy who isn’t anyone recognizable. Could he be check-raising a worse hand for value? Or semi-bluffing at all? I decide to call and evaluate on the river.

River: Qc

The BB fires out 2,000, and I go into the tank. I feel like everyone has been trying to bluff me here, and who knows, he could be some spaz who doesn’t understand the value of his top pair. I call and he says “I got lucky on the river” and tables 9c-3c for a flush. I shake my head and feel pretty suspicious of my river call.

The table is playing quite loose overall and even though I’ve lost a considerable chunk of my stack immediately, I’m feeling pretty good about my seat draw. After a couple of orbits, I get involved again:

My stack: ~5,500, UTG: ~15,000, UTG+1: ~6,000, blinds 25/50. I hold Ks-Kc in MP1.

Pre-flop: UTG raises to 150, UTG+1 re-raises to 500, folds to me in MP1. I decide to flat because I think the UTG+1 player will fold everything outside of K-K and A-A if I cold four bet. That, and flatting here in live isn’t that suspicious. I call, it folds back to UTG, UTG calls.

Flop: 9-4-2 rainbow

UTG checks, UTG+1 bets 1,500, I call since the UTG player is the spazzy Asian guy who made the weird check-raise on me and I want to give him a chance to spew, UTG folds.

Turn: A

Damn it! That’s absolutely the worst card to get value out of, as even though it doesn’t make sense for me to have A-K, the live player will freak out and fear it anyway. UTG+1 checks, I check behind.

River: 5

UTG+1 checks, and I go for the cheap value bet of 1,500, UTG+1 calls and shows Q-Q after I table my K-K.

Not long after that, the blinds go up and I get involved again:

My stack: ~8,000, UTG: ~15,000, SB: ~12,000, blinds 50/100. I hold As-Ac on the HJ.

Pre-flop: UTG raises to 300, folds to me, I raise to 900, folds to the SB, SB calls, BB folds, UTG calls.

Flop: K-9-K rainbow

Both players check, I check behind.

Turn: Q

SB checks, UTG bets 2,300, I call, SB folds.

River: A

Well that makes things a ton easier. UTG checks and I go for my lame value bet of 3,000 instead of shoving again. The UTG player calls and shows Jd-Td when I table my A-A.

I fold through the majority of 100/200 level and stay out of big pots. I spend most of my time between hands chatting to the polite older guy on my left. He’s also playing quite tight when it comes to aggression. With that read, I get involved after another blind increase:

My stack: ~11,000, UTG+2: ~5,500, blinds 100/200 with 25 ante. I hold Ks-Qh UTG+1.

Pre-flop: UTG folds, I raise to 600, UTG+2 calls, MP1 calls, it folds to the BB, BB calls.

Flop: Ks-Ts-4h

BB checks, I bet 1,800, UTG+2 moves all-in for about 5,000, it folds back to me, I call. UTG+2 shows Kd-Jh and I’m way in front.

Turn: Qc

River: 7c

I become one of the larger stacks on the table. Only half a round later, I’m involved again, this time with the spewy Asian guy from the earlier A-K hand.

My stack: ~16,525, MP1: ~30,000, blinds 100/200 with 25 ante. I hold As-Kh on the button.

Pre-flop: Folds to MP1, MP1 raises to 700, folds to me on the button, I raise to 2,000, folds back to MP1, MP1 calls.

Flop: T-6-7 rainbow

MP1 checks, I bet 2,500, MP1 calls.

Turn: K

MP1 checks, I bet 4,500, MP1 shoves and I call. MP1 tables A-To and I don’t think he has any idea of whether he was bluffing or value shoving.

River: 2

I count out my stack and he slides the lot over. Suddenly, I’m one of the largest stacks in the tournament, just as we go on break.

When we come back our table is broken almost immediately and I’m moved to a new table that has numerous players who have chipped up. After a few rounds of getting adjusted to the players, I get involved in my first major hand:

My stack: ~33,000, HJ: ~35,000, blinds 200/400 with 25 ante. I hold Jh-Th in the BB.

Pre-flop: Folds to the HJ, HJ raises to 1,300, folds to me in the BB, I call.

Flop: 2c-Qs-Kh

I check, HJ bets 1,300. When a player fires the exact same amount as their pre-flop raise, it normally means strength. I decide not to get creative and just call.

Turn: Ad

I check and the HJ bets 2,600, I reach down for my stack and add 5,000 more to his bet, making it 7,600 total. The HJ eyes me suspiciously, then calls.

River: 7c

I think over my bet size, then lead out 10,000. The HJ thinks briefly, then calls. I table my nuts and he mucks.

Not long afterwards, I call a MP1 raise on the HJ with 7-7 and it folds to the SB with about 4,500 who shoves. It folds back to me and I call, then lose the flip to his Jh-Th and take my first hit since running up a huge stack. Not long after, I’m involved again:

My stack: ~50,000, CO: ~12,000, blinds 300/600 with 50 ante. I hold 9s-9c in the SB. The CO is a rather old guy, though I think he’s European and a bit more aggressive than a regular old guy.

Pre-flop: Folds to the CO, CO raises to 2,500, button folds. I decide to call instead of shoving, since I think shoving here is pretty much a bluff against his range since he won’t call 8-8 or worse. The BB folds.

Flop: 9h-8d-3h

I check and the CO announces all-in. I quickly call and he tables about as bad a hand he can have for me, Ah-8h.

Turn: Js

River: Kc

I drag another considerable pot and have now very possibly taken over the chip lead in the tournament. I’m involved almost immediately again:

My stack: ~60,000, BB: ~15,000, HJ: ~9,000, blinds 300/600 with 50 ante. I hold Ts-Tc in the SB.

Pre-flop: Folds to the HJ, HJ raises to 1,775, folds to me in the SB, I raise to 7,000, the BB shoves, HJ folds. The BB is a middle-aged European guy I remember playing with and thinking he was very aggressive, though I can’t remember from where. That, plus getting 3 to 1 makes this a pretty easy call, so I call. He tables Ac-Qc and immediately taps the table and stands up with his eyes toward the door like he knows he’s going to lose.

Flop: 9d-7d-3h

Turn: 3d

River: Ks

I once wondered why nobody ever stood up for me. That’s the first time someone’s been half way out the door in a coin flip anyway.

The old guy who I busted with 9-9 was replaced with a cowboy hat wearing Jennifer Tilly. She’s been fairly quiet when we get involved:

My stack: ~75,000, Tilly: ~16,000, blinds 300/600 with 50 ante. I hold 9s-9h in the BB.

Pre-flop: Folds to Tilly on the CO, Tilly raises to 1,800, folds to me in the BB, I call.

Flop: Kc-9d-3h

This looks familiar. I check, Tilly bets 3,000, I call.

Turn: 6h

I check, Tilly announces all-in and I quickly call. She tables K-Qo and is drawing dead.

River: J

My stack soars over 90,000, more than the average when we go into the money.

A few hands later a young guy in MP open shoves for 9 BBs and I call in late position with Ad-9d. He shows K-K and the board blanks out to double him up. Not long after, we go on break and everyone makes the obvious “How does Jennifer Tilly not put you on Kings there?” joke, myself included.

Back from the break, the blinds have gone up to 400/800 and it’s not long until I’m in a hand against a mid 30s Australian guy whose blind I’ve been raising a ton lately.

My stack: ~95,000, BB: ~18,000, blinds 400/800 with 75 ante. I hold Ad-Kh on the CO.

Pre-flop: Folds to me on the CO, I raise to 2,200, folds to the BB, BB calls.

Flop: Ks-9s-5d

BB checks, I bet 3,000, BB shoves, I call. BB shows 9h-5h and I’m in surprisingly bad shape.

Turn: 7c

River: 2c

Suddenly, I begin a decline and things start going wrong. I get re-stolen on a few times and have my continuation bets blasted a couple times. The blinds go up to 600/1,200 and Scott “BigRisky” Clements is moved on my direct right. After the end of the 600/1,200 level, they take us on dinner break with the comped Bellagio buffet. I’m not a huge buffet fan, but the Bellagio buffet almost makes me one. There’s a reason there’s always a massive line out the door as the poker players are moved to the front.

When we get back, the increase has left me with only 40 BBs to work with, now much closer to average than my previous massive lead. Not long into the level, I get involved in a hand with Scott:

My stack: ~64,000, Scott; ~22,000, blinds 800/1,600 with 200 ante. I hold Qh-Qd UTG+1.

Pre-flop: Scott moves all-in, I move all-in as well, folds to the BB, BB folds 9-2o face up. I table my Q-Q and I’m feeling pretty invincible.

Flop: T-5-2

Turn: 3

River: 6

As we get closer to the bubble, I suddenly find a rush of cards. I take down a ton of blinds and re-jam on late-position raisers a couple times and take it down. By the next time I’m involved, I’ve become one of the leaders:

My stack: ~120K, BB: ~19,000, blinds 1,000/2,000 with 300 ante. I hold Kh-Jc on the HJ.

Pre-flop: Folds to me on the HJ, I raise to 5,600, folds to the BB, BB shoves, I call. BB shows Ah-Jd.

Flop: 2-3-3 rainbow

Turn: K

River: 6

My bubble dominance continues as my stack increases, and I begin separating myself from everyone else on the table and taking control. Right after we enter the 1,500/3,000 level, the tournament director informs us we are down to 19 and will be playing hand for hand. I fold the first hand, but on the second, get involved:

My stack: ~140K, button: ~60K, blinds 1,500/3,000 with 400 ante. I hold Ks-Kd UTG+1 on a 7-handed table.

Pre-flop: UTG folds, I raise to 8,000, folds to the button, button goes all-in, both blinds fold, I call. Button shows K-Qo and everyone in the tournament goes ape shit in excitement for the bubble breaking.

Flop: 7-5-J rainbow

Turn: T

They never make it easy for you.

River: 8

I enter the money with 205,000 and the second largest stack, behind the spewy Asian dude from my first table. We redraw the tables and my table ends up with something like 80% of the chips in play. Almost everyone on the table is deep stacked, outside one short stack on my immediate right who I’m soon involved with:

My stack: ~205K, SB: ~19,500, UTG: ~80,000, CO: ~240K, blinds 1,500/3,000 with 400 ante. I hold Ad-Jd in the BB.

Pre-flop: UTG limps, folds to the CO, CO calls, folds to the SB, SB shoves, I call, UTG folds, CO folds. The SB tables Q-Jo and I’m feeling pretty good.

Flop: Kd-Jd-5h

Turn: Ks

River: 2s

As players drop off the play gets more aggressive and short-handed. When we get down to 12 players, I’m moved to the other table and allowed to run them over before two players bust and we combine to one table of 10. It’s an interesting final 10, including online players livb11 and damurdera3, as well as some more old-school live pros like Will “The Thrill” and his New York buddy, who everyone calls Cuz because he calls everyone cuz non-stop.

A few orbits into the table it folds to the CO with about 10 BBs. In a previous hand, he made the comment of “I don’t give a shit about $2,000” and played a pot where he risked busting. With that read in mind, it folds to him on the CO with 10 BBs and he shoves. The button folds and after a think over, I call with K-Qo. The BB folds and he tables K-7o.

Flop: A-5-T

Turn: 4

River: 8

With that, we reach the final table at about 2AM. After counting up the chips, I’m going in with the chip lead of 348,500, just 500 in chips in front of damurdera, with everyone else a good 200,000 behind us.

I invite damurdera, real name Keith, over to hang out for a while since we’ve previously met through a mutual friend. We hang out and talk about the other players on the table until about 3AM, since we don’t have to be back at the Bellagio tomorrow until 3PM.

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July. America gets one year older and, hopefully, I get a hell of a lot richer. First is $193,000, and that would get me way the fuck out of make up.

Tags: Bond18