Badger Poker...Playing at the drunkard table

Tuesday night means heading downtown to play some poker at the HAND cafe. Parking sucked again. Not sure why. Marquette might have been playing or maybe the Admirals. I hope that isn't a sign of things to come. Same crowd, same strange poker play. I sat down at a table that would give me some space. At the table was the Worst Player Ever, still living up to his name. Omar, a guy I had played with before. Tigers hat sat on down. There was a stout guy to my left that liked to raise every hand. There was Pat (I had little idea whether it was a dude or chick when I first sat down. After 45 minutes, it spoke and I realized it was a chick). The Deadskins fan to my right. When he sat down, I was tempted to move or tell him to move. The guy with the yellow Brewers hat wasn't there too long. Corona drinking guy and finally, Peach Fuzz. This guy was very loose. Called a lot of hands down and got lucky. I was amazed by how the length of hair on top of his head matched his whole face.

Stout guy got the action going and raised the first 3 or 4 hands. I limped on in with K 10 the first time around with 4 callers. Nothing on the flop so I folded. Somewhere around the 5th hand, I caught pocker rockets. 3 people tried to limp in but only one called by 1500 bet. It was the Deadskin. Flop came down 8 8 5. I bet another 1500 at the pot and he folded. At least I got paid a bit on it. After that, things got a bit busy as I didn't play many hands. I paid 1000 with a pair of 4s but failed to make anything big of it. I tried to steal the blinds with K 4 but Peach Fuzz would have none of it. I fired on the flop and the turn, but stopped on the river. The board had paired up and I thought he had a pocket pair. Turns out he had K 6 and we split the pot. I should have fired on the river. However, this hand would help me later. Pat didn't last until the first break. Neither did yellow Brewers hat who made an extremely weak play. He got heads up with Peach Fuzz. You could tell when the flop came with an A & K that he was in trouble. He hesitated too much. You could smell the weakness. Peach Fuzz called his weak 3000 bet. They both checked the turn but Peach Fuzz forced him all in on the river. And he called. Stupid. Peach Fuzz, though he very loose play, was collecting some chips. I had to try and make them mine. He even knocked out three guys just before the break- Deadskin, Corona, and the Stout guy when he played his 5 2 suited and made a straight on the turn. He called an all in bet of 3500 on the gutshot. Ugh! One of the more interesting things that Omar pointed out was I kept flopping aces. Twice I tossed a pair of rockets on the board.

So after the break, we started short handed with 5. Of course, they break us up just after the blinds go by. Omar, Peach Fuzz and I go one table over. Do rag is there. The Mick is on my right. A yapper is on my left. A nerdy guy in yellow I will call Myron is playing along. The others don't matter as anyone new to the table seems to get killed. I unfortunately get placed into the path of the blinds. They are no help and I lose them as well. 3000 gone, just like that in the blinds. So when the button comes along to me, I try to steal some back. I raised it up to 3000 with K Q. Yapper folds but Peach Fuzz calls, of course. Flop comes with 2 spades but totally misses me. I bet 3000 again. He calls. Turn is a blank. He checks as does I. On the river, the board pairs up. He checks and I move all in for my last 1500. And he folds. I remembered the hand from the first table and knew there would be a chance that he would fold if I made the bet. Suddenly I have some life and doubled up. A couple hands later, Omar raises it up to 3000. It comes around to me. I see K K staring back at me. Once again, I think of a play that Omar made at the first table. I decide to push as there is a very strong chance he would call. He did with 10 10. I doubled up again to just over 20k.

Next hand I get A 8. I remember a strategy by Doyle Brunson. He advises playing the next hand after winning just about no matter what. So I limped in from late position. Flop comes K high with two hearts. No help for me. It checks around to me and I bet 3000 to try and take down the pot. Only Myron calls me. I figure him for a K. Turn is an A. Myron checks. I bet 5000 and he calls. He checks the river, which is a 6 or something. I check and he shows A Q. He called the 3000 with one overcard? If he was smart, he would have re-raised my turn bet. But suddenly I gave back a chunk of what I just won. Damn you Doyle!

At this point, Do rag suddenly starts to go all in on anything and everything. He doubles up at the expense of Peach Fuzz twice. First he pushed with 9 10 and caught a 10 over PF's Q 9 suited (WTF?). Then he busted Peach Fuzz with A Q over his A 10. Peach Fuzz didn't last long after that. The yapper was busted out. Omar went. A dude with a Miller hat and a stack soon disappeared. The Mick on my right kept trying to limp into pots but folded to a bet. I wonder how he had managed to double up when I didn't even see him play. Even when I was in the big blind at one point. I bet the flop with my 7 4 (to a board of K J 8) and he folded. The Mick is one tight rock. But after we shot down at half dozen players, I got moved to the drunk table.

I guess these guys were hitting hit hard. Rounds for the table. They had done a number of shots. Up there was Cowboys fan and MGM. Each had a good number of chips. The Doc was talking but he wasn't playing much. The Mick was put up there. There was a black dude to my left who interned at my place of employment years ago. And then the 3 buddies, one who was a puddle. The Puddle was blitzed. You could see him getting drunker by the minute. Apparently one of his buddies works at the HAND so maybe they get a deal. Anyway, the Puddle is basically showing his hand to half the table. He would bend his cards and twist the to the left and right. The Mick told him he should be careful but the Puddle didn't want to hear it. He yammered that he shouldn't be looking at his cards. That if this was a cash game, it would not be allowed. Whatever you drunk bastard. You show your cards like that, I will look. Stupidity should not be rewarded.

Anyhoo, the table was supposedly loose when I got there but tightened up dramatically. Hardly any flops were being seen. So I tried to get a bit aggressive when I could. But that wasn't going to work as I didn't have much to play. After seeing dozens of Qs matched with 6s & 7s, I get pocket 9s and raise to 5000. It folds to the Cowboys fan who thinks then folds. And that was pretty much the only hand I played in an hour. I kept some blinds when it folded around but there was no action except for the bending of cards by the puddle. After that hour was up it was moving time again.

We were down to 3 tables now. I sat down to the right of Do Rag and the left of Bagman. Me and my big can of Heineken were ready to do some damage. Also at the table was Tigers hat, a young black lady and the card snatcher. Of course, I went out of the first hand there. Never fails. Buy a big can of beer and you go out quickly. It started out well. The Hilton Sisters came to visit. with just 11200 left and blinds of 4000/8000, I had to push. Bad thing was Tigers hat called quickly. I knew right away he had either KK or AA. Sure enough, Cowboys were tossed down and I was tossed out.

I was content with most of my play. Should have bet Peach Fuzz a bit more, but I got value out of my big hands and had no bad beats. I can feel it now. Stenys will be good.

Bagmans words of wisdom- As always, Bagman is trying to impress the ladies. When I sat down at the last table, both he and Do Rag came back with 2 drinks apiece. Do Rag already had one at the table. Bagman, in his ever to be the smooth one, explains to the lady behind him that he had to buy his buddy a drink because he had bought him one. Nice gesture, but you are wasting alcohol. Your buddy now has 3 drinks in front of him and probably won't finish them. You know, you could have waited a half hour and bought him one when needed. Dipshit.