Thursday last week I headed into the Rio early cause I couldn’t help myself. I felt like a kid that was going to Disneyland in the morning, but if I wanted, I could drive 20 minutes and walk around Disneyland without playing on anything the night before. I love the WSOP.
I walked around for a bit, really appreciate their new Miranda room, so now they have poker tables going from the Amazon room all the way to the back doors. I explored for a while, found the pokerroad booth and hung out there for a while, and then heard about free beer at WPA.
Turns out some of my favorite people were there (shocker) because they heard about free beer too. I don’t know what it is about poker players but they’re not too excited in general about free beer. I suppose three months of living in a tent on the side of the river 90 minutes from a beer selling vendor will give you a lifelong appreciation.
So, myself, Shelley, and half a dozen media peeps like Danny and Lizzy hung around and drank free beer until they stopped giving it away at 7:45, but at least now I have a story of something that WPA has done for me (I’ve been a member since their inception).
I reg’d for the $1500 O8, sweet, and came back to play it Friday. Oh man I would pay $2k to play this tournament every day. They got over 900 runners and most of them did not know what they were doing. One special hand I saw was when, after limp/check/calling every street on a board of KQ4, 2, J, this goofy old dude is holding his cards up and has AKTx.
I know this because I’m standing behind him talking to Jim Arvanetes, Daniel’s nemesis on the golf course. We watch wondering wtf, dude has the nuts, just check/called the river. So Ryan “Cardsharps” Nicholson tables his hand, something like A378. Eight high. “Uhh, what is that? Is that a straight? What’s he have dealer?”
“He has eight high, sir.”
“Eight high? Oh, I can beat that. Oh, I have a straight too!” He tables his ace-ten.
I’ve never seen the nuts check/call the river and then slowroll eight high.
Anyways, my personal four card enema came with the ol’ AA23 that I 3-bet v A358, board comes J46, 3, 2. Sigh. I busto’d shortly thereafter.
I head directly to the cash games, find two 50-100 Stud8 games, jump in one, start a 50-100 HORSE game, can’t catch a card to save my live, stuck $2200.
Saturday was the $1k “stimulus special”. They sold this thing out at 6k people. I started in the Miranda room. I recognized eleven people in the room by the time I left. It was great. I had a super easy table with an open seat to my right. I had chipped up a few hundred in the first 40 minutes, just taking my time with 3k in chips at 25-25, and then Amir Vahedi sits to my right.
First hand AA (after Amir) UTG 4x’s to 100, Amir calls MP1, I’m to his left and make it 425 with red kings, both call. Flop 9d7h5h, check, Amir bets 1500 into 1325 (nice overbet), I shove (Amir has 1k behind), I lose to 57ss even with the 3h on the turn. So, I went to the lake:
Sunday I played online and couldn’t get anywhere at all. I made it to like 400 in the Sunday Million, but everything else was like immediate busto. I doubled up a couple of times, but then got coolered immediately after both times, and had a pretty frustrating day.
Monday was the $1500 PLO. They’re using these new redemption chips, these little red add-on things that are good for 1500 chips each at any time first three levels that you’re not in a hand. We start with t1500 and then 2 red add-on chips. Whierd.
Chad Bautista is at the table, has everything explained, and his face was priceless. He processed the information, then came to the conclusion, “More chips now? Duh? Of course I want more chips.” He takes the two add-on’s that don’t cost any money (somebody needs to coin a phrase for these stupid things or get rid of them completely.
Nobody else takes one. I end up busting in level 4. Never really got into a groove, I didn’t use my add-ons cause Chad was to my left and all the fish to my right hadn’t used theirs. Therefore we all kinda played short stacked and gambooly with barrels. I didn’t like it.
After the PLO I jumped into another 50-100 HORSE game, and this game was excellent. Played for several hours, made $2800.
Tuesday was the first of the $1500 NLHE’s. Here’s how my tournament went.
1st hand: folds to my button, I raise 33 to 150 at 25-50 4500 starting stack. Humberto Brenes (who’s name on the registration card is Jose) folds the SB, and a random calls the BB. Flop 965 with a suit, I’m deciding if I’m gonna c-bet or not, he bets 600 into 325. I say out loud, “What the F***?” and fold.
I fold every other hand for the rest of the level. One hand I was in the SB with 55, limped after some limpers, and check-folded the flop.
I move tables in the 2nd level. Fold every hand for a while. Get QdQs, raise to 300 UTG, called by the cutoff. Flop Ad9d7c. Check/check. Turn 4d. I check, he bets 500 into 750, I call. River a something, I check, he shoves like 4k, I fold.
Fold another 15 hands or so, get AdKd, get 3k in vs. QQ, flop QQx, although I did have the backdoor royal flush draw. Missed. I suppose I can only hit one running royal when needed once a year.
0 fer 4, I’m annoyed by it but happy with my play and the fields, that’s why we play 29 of em cause tournaments are silly like that. Just nothing you can do sometimes, and sometimes all those sometimes come in a row.
I went hiking with my afternoon. Ended up heading up with my manager’s brother Chris to Mt. Charleston, we did a couple of trails, the Robbers Roost to this sweet rock face that was bolted with over 40 routes, all 5.10+. This dude was self-belaying a 5.12. There’s some great limestone climbs in the Spring Mountains and if I ever find a climbing partner in Vegas I’ll have to check some of them out. After that we went around the backside to Lee Canyon, hiked the Upper Bristlecone Pine Trail to the highpoint, sat on a log, and watched nature, listening to the wind through the trees. It was literally so awesome that I forgot to take pictures, but I remembered on the way down.
Robber’s Roost
Ski slopes within 1 hr of the strip
Today I play the $2500 HA (Pot Limit Hold’em/Omaha) at 5pm. I’m stoked that I got to go to the lake and the mount, but dangit, I’m jonesin to be playing some poker!
Until about three minutes ago quote of the day belonged to Jan Fisher during the Omaha 8 tournament, commenting on the new WSOP/sponsors felt. “I’m really thinking about getting that gamma-o to boost my testosterone.”
I think my accountant just won though, with this in an e-mail:
“So, the rule is with filing this Form is that if you have $10,000 or more at any time in your account(s) during 2008, this form has to be filed by June 30th. I think it will be hilarious when you have to put in a bank account number and all you have is a screen name like “illfkuover”, etc. on the form!! I’m not even sure where some of the sites are in order to fill in the location!!!” – re: F(u)BAR, Foreign Bank Account Reporting and online poker accounts.
Peace and good luck,
Devo