Reading Stanley £50 Double Chance Freeze-out Friday 14th April 2006

I did not win a single hand during the initial couple of hours up to the break and was sat on just 2800 chips with the blinds about to go to 200/400. Soon after the break I was dealt 66 UTG and went all-in. Everyone folded bar the button who called with AQ. The player to my left said he folded 77 (!) and when the first card off the deck was the seven of spades it looked like he had made a bad decision. When the turn card was the fourth spade I had a flush and he was relieved to have folded and dodged the bad beat. The player to the button’s right had dwelt for a time before folding and now claimed that he had passed AK with the ace being spades. If he wasn’t telling the truth he is a very believable liar. I think I got away with that one from him not knowing my play and the range of hands I might go all-in with here.

The very next hand I was in the big blind and Mr AK-Fold raised about 3000 more, leaving himself 3000 back. I looked down to KK and didn’t hesitate in re-raising all-in. With his chip position and after the previous hand I didn’t expect him to fold but was quite happy to take the 9000 pot uncontested when he did. He didn’t show his cards but claimed AQ. This time I didn’t believe him. If he did have AQ it was an amazing lay-down. I certainly wasn’t trying to hide the strength of my hand because the pot was nice enough without having to get my hand to stand up.

With a couple of pre-flop raises I got my stack up to about 11500 but then things started going downhill. I tried to nick the bb from the sb when he had 1200 of his 3600 in. He called without looking and his 57 beat my Q3. Then our table broke and I was moved to a table with the chip leader. The blinds were getting big and I either couldn’t find a hand or was beaten to the first raise. With 4700 left and 77 I called all-in after the chip leader had raised in a shit-or-bust type manoeuvre but unfortunately for me it was bust as his J10 hit a 10 on the flop. Another ten on the turn left me the river the make a full house but it wasn’t to be and I was out in 13th.
Again, I was happy with my play but it just wasn’t my night.

£50 Double Chance Freeze-out - Reading Sporting Club Friday 7th April

My tournament had a fairly slow start where I didn't find many playable hands. I took a small pot with KQ and then another small one from the blinds on a raggy board, but managed to give this profit away plus a bit more when I tried to semi-bluff the unbluffable player at the table.

At the first break I had just 3900 with the blinds about to go to 200/400. A5 hearts won me the blinds and then I dodged a major bullet. I raised on the button all-in (less than 10xbb) with Q4 and the bb agonized before eventually folding 99! Phew!!

I was moved tables and straight away picked up the blinds + one limper. Another move put me on a full table with plenty of action. I managed to stay on about the same chips with a couple of raises to take the blinds before another table move. This was the table where things warmed up for me.

With the blinds now at a juicy 600/1200 and my stack at just 7200 I was dealt 99 in early position. “All-in” was my play. “Call” was the instant response from the player to my left. Oh shit, I thought, here’s trouble. My fears were confirmed as he turned over JJ. The flop was no help and neither was the turn, but the river was a lovely nine. Not only had I survived but I now had 15k in chips.

A couple of hands later I had 66, and raised it to 4000, getting one caller from the big blind. The flop came 973 and he led out with an all-in bet and I had to fold.

With the blinds now raising to 800/1600 I didn’t fancy getting blinded down too low and looking at 107 of hearts in early position I felt like making a play, raising all-in. Everyone dutifully folded apart from the big blind who annoyingly found AK clubs and naturally called. My embarrassment at having to flip over the mighty 107 hearts was tempered quite considerably by the rivered flush. The unfortunate AK then launched into a tirade of abuse about how crap I was raising with such a crap hand from such an early position. Luckily I didn’t have to listen to too much because I was moved again. That’s what I thought anyway because I could hear him still moaning from my new table.

The first significant hand for me on this new table came in the big blind. The old guy on my left raised to 6000 (1k/2k blinds) and the next player, who was getting a bit short, called with his last 5k. Everyone else folded and I looked down at AQ spades. After a short think of what to do for the best I re-raised all-in, about 22k in total. The original folder reluctantly folded saying he had passed 22! The short stack called with A10 and when the board came with a Queen he was knocked out. The board also contained a 2 so my play was correct and Mr Two’s bemoaned his fold.

It wasn’t long before the player in tenth got knocked out and I took 28k to the final table. Shortly before this happened I saw my only big pair of the night, KK, under the gun. My 3 x big blind raise must have looked too suspicious when the usual raise was all-in because no-one bit.

Things went pretty well for me fairly early on at the final table. I was dealt AK in late position and after there was a raise before me to 14000 (1500/3000 blinds) I re-raised all-in. His reluctance to call told me I was in good shape but he was pot-committed and put his remaining 8000 in with AQ. The flop contained an ace, king and queen and I had taken another victim and leapt up to 50k in chips and a nice lead.

I then started bossing the table with a mix of good, bad and indifferent hands, using a combination of stack size and position. My stack grew steadily – 60k, 70k, 80k. I then got lucky when a move from the small blind with 63 clubs was called by the big blind with 109. I failed to see around the dealer (I was in seat 9) that he had 6k of his remaining 16k in the blind. A ten hit the flop but the turn and river completed my flush. Lucky, lucky, lucky. My victim left the table spouting some sour-grapes type comment about how he knew I was at it again due to me having one of the biggest tells he had ever seen (or something along those lines.) I’m not sure how accurate that statement is and I’m sure it had a lot to do with him being knocked out on a bad beat but I will keep my eye on that possibility.

With my stack at 120k (out of 210k in play) and just three left a crucial hand happened. The small blind made the standard play in the circumstances and went all-in for 34k. I had A7 and called. He had Q4 but hit a queen and was back in business again. If I could have won this hand I would probably have come first, but it wasn’t to be.

A couple of rounds later we were all fairly level and made a deal to take £400 each and play for the final £215.

My end came in the small blind with 109 on a board of 55510Q. We checked it all the way to river where I bet 10k into the 16k pot only to get re-raised another 50k. I called hoping for the best only to get shown the case five! Doh!

I was all-in with my final 16000 or so next hand but couldn’t make a hand and was out in third.

I felt I played pretty well throughout and with hindsight don’t regret anything I did. I certainly had my share of good luck at crucial moments but took full advantage of them. I was particularly pleased with how I wielded the largest stack of chips I had ever possessed.

Awesome,awesome Arsenal

Last night against Juventus The Arse were superb. 2-0 flattered the Italians and by the end of the game they were in disarray.

Could this be the Gooners' year?

Crazy Sunday Nights

Sunday nights on Poker Stars can be crazy.

In one game a player raises the standard 3 x bb and gets a caller. The flop comes A high and he calls a 1400 bet with KK and his opponent has A9 and knocks him out. He then hangs around calling the A9 player a number of expletives. The x's were all over his chat. A complete xxxx!

Later on I have struggled up to 2600 in chips after being down to 650 with five left in a 9 player S & G. The blinds are 75/150 and I have KQ in the BB. UTG raises to 450 and I call to see what comes: KJ3. That'll do for me, I think and bet 1500 which would put the raiser all in if he calls. He does call with AQ( !) and then hits the ten on the turn! Arse!

In the next hand I try to knick his BB with nothing and he has AJ and I'm out.

I hang around to ask why he called out of interest (not to abuse) and he says he called because I had been doing a lot of raising (while I was dragging myself up from 650 to 2600). He also lamely mentions pot odds. Maybe I was blagging but does that justify laying your tournament on the line hoping A-high is still ahead?

Blogging

It's easy to start a Blog, and everyone is doing it these days, but it is another thing entirely to keep it going.

The internet is littered with the corpses of dead Blogs, started with good intentions to make regular entries but cast aside within weeks (somedays days) of starting.

Where does that initial urge to Blog go and what causes it to go?

I started mine with no requirement for people to read it and didn't feel the need for anyone to read it. So is it the lack of an audience that causes the departure of inspiration?

What does it matter anyway how regular a Blog is updated. Regularity is a subjective matter anyway. My regular might be another persons irregular.

Leroy Lita & Awards

Poor old Leroy Lita broke his ankle on Saturday in Reading's 3-0 win away at Burnley. It's a real shame for his first season to end like this.

I hear that Reading and their players did not win a single award at the Football League Awards. Amazing - are the voters not aware that we have pissed the league, setting records left right and centre, with our players gracing a number of international squads.

And as for Kevin Doyle not winning young player of the year - what a load of nonsense. If David Nugent of Preston is a better player than Doyley he must be one hell of a player.

Palace Of Cards

Last night I played in a £30 freeze-out at The Palace Of Cards poker room in Didcot. 41 people entered and I came 12th.

I went down to about 3200 fairly quickly (starting stack 5k) but used aces and two callers to move up to about 7000. I then was moved to another table and won a nice pot with 88 utg against a mid position raiser on a board of 226. I checked it to him and he put his last 2900 in, I called and his AQ didn't improve.

Another move saw me add a couple of thousand to my stack, mainly thanks to AQ suited in the BB on the first hand at the 600/1200 level. Also a couple of blind raises added further chips.

When this table broke I was moved to a table where I couldn't get my raises to work. I lost about 5000 in two hands where I had to fold and things were not looking great.

Then I got AK in the sb and after two limpers I pushed my last 5500 in. The bb called instantly which was not a great sign. But after the two limpers folded he only showed AQ and my K was good to get me back in business. The limping button then showed he had folded 88, which would have knocked me out.

The blinds were rising quite steaply and every hand saw someone all-in pre-flop. With the blinds at 1500/3000 I stuck my last 11200 in utg with Q2 of clubs but the button had AQ leaving me just 1400 in the bb.

In the next hand UTG went all-in, everyone else folded and was left with 104 against his AK. It looked liked curtains on a flop of AK5 but a 2 on the turn and 3 on the river gave me a miraculous straight.

I was still in the game with 4200 but had to put 1500 of it back in the sb next hand. Everyone folded to me so I full my final 2700 in blind. The bb looked at his cards and groaned. He had to call but with only 93. It turned out to be a monster as I flipped over just 32. The board of K10JJ8 meant his 9 just played and I was out in 12th.

I was fairly happy with my play. In hindsight I left it a little bit late to start pushing for the blinds and got myself into a do-or-die situation.