Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Gone in an instant

Played a tournament at Garden City Casino in San Jose today.  I like the format, no rebuys or add-ons, and a deep stack of 10,000 chips to start.  There were 66 entrants, and the top 9 were paid.

I played good, tight-agressive poker, and managed to stay close to the average stack most of the time.   Slowly everyone else disappeared and I was at the final table.

The blinds and antes were getting ridiculous.  With six players left they were 2K ante, blinds at 6K-12K.

I had 120K chips and I was in the big blind.  Everyone folded up to the button and the button went all in, with just slightly less than my stack.  I had 7-7, and what went through my mind was "finishing 6th is already good and in the money, but this could position me for a top 2 finish and over a $1000 prize (on a $125 entry fee).

I call the all in, and the button turns over A-3 clubs.  I'm ahead, but the board comes quickly and turns my hope around, as an Ace comes on the flop and a 3 on the turn (as if he needed it).  No trip-7s come my way on the river.

My hard-earned stack is gone, and I'm left with the proverbial "chip and a chair", which I quickly lose in the next hand.

Not bad, though.  Six hours of poker and I finished 6th and won $350.


Other noteworthy things in this tourney:

1. A guy who was going all in with short stack desperation moves, once holding a 7 and once holding a 4, got a flop with two 7's and two 4's respectively, and doubled up twice with these lucky sets.  Very unusual.

2. The guy who was chip leader at the final table was claiming he got dealt A-A 10 times on the day.  I witnessed three of them, all of which he won big.  Its no wonder he was chip leader.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Anything Can Happen

Just played in a Bovada Triple-up Sit-and-go.  Nine players each start with 1500 chips.  The final three players triple their money.

After about 15 minutes I had gotten AA twice and KK once.  I won big with all of them, and had taken out three of the nine players at the table.  With 6 players left, I had over 6000 chips, almost as much as the rest of the table combined.

All I had to do is sit back and wait for the others to destroy eachother.  There's no way I could lose this one right?

Fast forward another 30 minutes.  We're down to four players...one more to the money.  But oddly enough,  I am now the short stack.  Everyone else is passing the chips around the table and I am getting blinded off little by little by little.  I played a couple A-K or A-Q hands, but lost them too.

Ugh...

As short stack of 2000 and the blinds now up to 300/600, I get hit with the big blind and I pretty much have to make a desperation move.  I call an all-in from the small blind, with an unimpressive 9-J.  He beats me with pocket deuces and I'm done in fouth place.

Can't believe I lost this one.