The check is in the mail, I hope

Like many others, I logged into Neteller yesterday to pull out what funds I had there. It was just over a grand. Not a princely sum like some had locked up, but nothing too shabby either. Guess it will fund my trip to Vegas in December.

Falstaff has the details on the WPBT Winter Classic

When - December 6 - 10Where - Las Vegas (hotel TBD)Who - You and your friends

Hotel rooms should be plentiful and cheap even with the National Finals Rodeo starting that weekend. I have been getting plenty of free room offers for the past 6 months. I doubt that is going to stop. Heck, I would be willing to stay at the Imperial Palace once again. Sure the place is a dump but the people that work there are top notch. They have always treated me well, and the the poker guys are willing to spread what we want.

That kind of hurts. Next vacation won't be until December. Ouch!

BBT Freezeroll

I tried to play in the BBT freeroll freezeroll last night. When everything froze up 40 minutes in, I knew I didn't have the patience to continue if the delay was going to be long.

I had half the starting stack and was playing like crap. I guess being felted in the NL ring game had me on a slight tilt. People were chasing their flush draws and catching. On most nights it would be a beautiful thing to have them chase and miss but this wasn't most night. Cards just weren't coming my way.

The funny thing was, I wasn't upset in the ring game, but it upset me in the tournament. I wasn't getting pissed off that they idiots were calling preflop raises with K 6s and catching, but it was making me get upset when I made those stupid plays in the tournament.

In the freezeroll, I was playing too loose. I was making dumb bets. You know, those bets that make no sense as you are only going to be called or raised by the winning hand. I made some bad bluffs as well.

Thus when the delay was over 20 minutes, I knew it would be in my best interest to just call it a night. My mind wasn't in the game and I would need to double up just to get back into the game.

Congrats to whoever waited it out and won. Thanks again to Hoy, Mookie, Al and Don for the time spent setting up the tournaments and keeping the standings.

Hopefully I will be in a better frame of mind tonight for the Riverchasers tournament. The 6 pack in the fridge will definitely help.

Is a crackdown coming?

Is a crackdown coming to the poker tournaments in Milwaukee?

There is an interesting article in the Milwaukee paper today discussing the popularity of what I call "prize poker" in the state of Wisconsin. In "prize poker", you do not win money but prizes (t-shirts, caps, etc.) and they keep rankings on how you finish usually for a big prize tournament at the end of a season. There are no entry fees. Usually a bar will pay someone to hold the event in return for bringing patrons into their establishment.

I had played in such a series a couple years back, Badger Poker. It was good to get your feet wet and play without having to pay. I tired of it for various reasons and quit going. One thing I wasn't surprised to see was a quote for the owner. I am sure he means well, but he probably doesn't realize he just put a bulls eye on his back. This comment doesn't help him:

....gambling restrictions here vague and confusing, saying that he was unaware
until recently that there might be a prohibition on any sort of prize.
"Until there's a law saying 'You can't do this' or 'You can't do that,' we're going to
still do what we do," he said.

I hope he talked to his attorney before talking to the reporter. Basically to tell the DA in the counties he operates to piss off is not a good business plan. His interpretation of the law won't be jacksquat to the attorney prosecuting him. Telling a judge that the law does not specifically say we cannot play poker is plain stupid. Even stupider might be to hold the actual tournament in Wisconsin but technically award the prize in Vegas and believe that means he is not breaking the law.

It also made me wonder how long the tournaments at the bar I frequent will last or even the smokers at local churches. They have entry fees and pay out cash. To claim it is a fundraiser will not hold water. The article mentioned a fund raiser for a sheriff's department that was shut down. Their prize was a box of cigars. Even Johnny Law is being held to enforcement.

But there is hope. A sheriff in Dodge County has taken a sensible approach. As long as the stakes don't get unreasonable (reasonable is $20), he will let them be. Good to see logic coming into play on what is basically a victimless crime among responsible adults.

Getting ready for the live game

I finally played some tournament poker again on Tuesday. Went up against 1200 in the 20k (or is it 24k) guarantee on Full Tilt to get ready for the weekend. Finished at 705. Not too much happening. I got hurt by my K K. With a bunch of limpers, I popped it to 800 and had one caller. Of course the flop came A high. Why would someone limp call with A x? I felt my blood begin to boil and before I could reign myself in, I pushed and was promptly called by A J. Mother ^&@#$#$^& A J!! Yeah, the push wasn't the best move but to have some idiot limp call 40% of his stack to try and get lucky pissed me off.

I got off tilt quickly as I focused on building up again. With about 500 left, I fell back into "Aw fuckit" mode though. With the Hammer on the button, I pushed when it folded around to me. SB called with A 4. Interesting. 7 on the flop, 7 on the turn and I was good. It pissed my opponent off. He promptly tilted himself out of the game on the next hand, pushing with A K on an 8 high board and got busted by Q Q.

Last night I had some fun in the Mookie. Irongirl's 8 8 beat down my 7 7. It was an interesting call in that she didn't think twice about calling. Have I become that transparent?

I will be playing some live poker in a cornfield in Iowa on Friday. I believe this is the place I will be. Should be interesting to say the least.

Disclosure

I got into an interesting argument the other day about how a local tournament is run. My contention was quite simple. There is no information going in so why would you want to play it? My friend's argument was simple as well. He didn't care because he enjoyed it.

I guess part of it the debate is to me, his side makes little sense. The sheets announcing the tournament have no information about how much, how many chips you get or blind levels. Furthermore, it doesn't mention it is a rebuy tournament. The tournament is under the guise of a fund raiser for a softball team to boot. Bottom line to my part of the argument is that it is foolish to play a tournament without that vital information. They do not say how much of the buy in (only $25 I believe) is going to the team. They don't tell you how many rebuys have occurred and how much of that they are keeping. So the prize pool could be $1000 but they are paying out $600. Why would you play in such a tournament?

He says he doesn't mind as he has fun. It is the entertainment value. To an extent, I can see that. I say it all the time. If I am having fun, I don't mind losing.

Is it asking too much to ask for full disclosure? I wonder how many people would play if they knew how much the team was keeping?

Thoughts?

Little poker

I haven't been playing much poker lately. With it being Summer and all, there are a lot of other things going on that keep me busy away from the felt. Like beer gardens. I love beer gardens. Give me a reason to sit outside and drink beer and I will be there.

But I digress..

I did play in the RiverChasers tourney last night. Can't believe Al became such a fuggin' sadist and made it a double stack. Give donkey more chips and watch the fur fly.

I was involved with two plays that I found interesting. Neither was a bad beat so I don't owe anyone a dollar.

The first was an interesting re-raise. It is one of those calls that people usually say "what a dumb play, how can they make that bet!" as they get pissed by a really good play, not knowing what the other player is thinking. I was in the BB with 6 6. UTG gave a 3xs raise and I called hoping the flop would hit me. 2 3 5. Not bad, not great. I had an overpair with a gutty. I thought about betting out but decided I wanted to see another card, so I called his 2/3 pot bet. Turn was a 7. No help and now the board looks dangerous. I let him bet again, knowing I would re-raise a lot. He bet out half the pot this time. I popped it to 1400, thinking he had A K or A Q. I was a bit surprised that he then went all in. Hmm....was I wrong? With just 670 to call, I had to. He turned over 8 8. River was no help and I was down to 1100.

I like the bet. I had been on the aggressive side and had pushed him out of a pot earlier with pocket 4s. Making a move with just 8s there is dangerous. I had to call the last bet not just because of the odds I was receiving but it was a RiverChasers tourney. The play can be craptacular and I may just hit the jackpot early. Besides, I have confidence I can chip back up.

That is basically what I did. Got back over the starting stack, getting myself into a position where a double up would put me right back into the game. There would be no double as I floated like a piece of driftwood on the sea. Hands were bad and it didn't help that I was table changed to some crazy people. I had to tighten up. I figured it would help my image. Was I wrong.

I didn't play many hands and utilized position to steal the blinds. So when I had K Qo in the SB and there were two limpers, I figured it was a good spot to steal. I pushed knowing the first limper would have A rag at best and would fold. Wrong again. They called with A 8o. I would get no help. In fact an A would hit the river to rub it in. Someone willing to toss in 25% of their stack with A 8 on a tight player. I noted them and can't wait to see them at the table again.

I may be playing some live poker next weekend. Going camping and may end up in a casino in Iowa. There is a Friday tournament with a $50 buy in. I have no idea if the structure is any good. The website says each player get 1000 in chips and does not specify blind levels. Hopefully I can't go make me some corn fed cash!

New meaning to playing blind

Came across the story of the blind player at the Tao of Poker yesterday. Pauly made a reference to the article written by Change100 at PokerNews about Jason Holbrook, a player from California, who qualified for the main event even though he is blind. The people at Kick Ass Poker have a full story.

One excerpt from the Kick Ass story I found interesting was the reasoning behind the initial decision not allowing him to play:

It seems to be not the presence of the second person / helper itself that's the
problem, even though that technically would violate the "one player to a hand"
rule, not to mention take up precious space in what already must be cramped
walkways between the tables. Instead, it may well be the communication of
information between the helper and Holbrook that has caused the WSOP to draw the line.

That was my initial thought when reading the story, was the "one player to a hand" rule and how it would be handled. I then began to wonder what douchebag would throw a shitfit and invoke the rule when he got busted by Jason. Guess we won't find out as Holbrook was eliminated in day 1. But to qualify for the tournament itself is an amazing feat.

Run, don't walk

You know the drill. Keep up to date with Pauly.

Need to find your buddy who qualified on PokerStars? Otis has his story at the PokerStars Blog.

Fin

I felt like I had played 2 good hours of poker last night in the RiverChasers event. Unfortunately for me, the tournament would last longer than 120 minutes.

I had dodged some bullets and avoided the land mines. I did my best to put Waffles on tilt early by stealing a pot from him. When he did a normal 3x raise from EP, I knew I would call with 9 9 in the SB. Having someone else call along with the BB was just gravy. The flop was 8 high. It checked to Waffles who c-betted 120. I made a smooth call with every intention to check-raise the turn as long as the card wasn't higher than a Q. It was a small card. I checked as did the other two. Huh? I now knew A K was no good and it was possible that the BB had absolute crap. With the river 3, I bet it out and took it down. That was the probably be the best hand I would play all night. I knew I could push him off, especially when he didn't bet the turn. Guess not betting the turn is something one learns that from $1 HU matches.


From there I chipped up a little more before losing some to a full house made on the turn. Can't recall who it was that took my chips but I thought they played the hand very well. With two Jacks on the board, the check on the turn had me thinking they may have hit their A. I was shocked to see the boat. Probably could have gotten more off of me. Hell, I even thought about popping the river bet, but decided not to be a total idiot like most of the field.

I would recover from that debacle and make my way back into the top 15. I would stay there until I hit my own tilt moment. My notes on this player told me he was an absolute goof. Wild and lucky; not bright at all. Thus, I started re-raising him a lot. If he limped, I would raise. If he raised, I would re-raise with any face cards. It was working well. Thus when he tried to raise in a blatant re-steal attempt, I had no problem insta-calling with A Qo. My read was solid as he turned over 9 4 sooooted. He promptly went runner runner flush to cripple me. Sonnoffabitch!

From there I would float aimlessly like a piece of driftwood in a river. Chipped back up but didn't see any cards that were remotely playable. That part pissed me off. I had read Miami Don's post about his Venetian score. I paid particular attention to what he did with a mini stack and how he was willing to toss it in with just about anything. I was going to follow that strategy but it is hard when everything is a 10 2, J 4, or Q 3. Especially when the pots are raised before you can act. So when I found something that was remotely nice, A 10s, I would find myself up against 10 10. Done in 15.

I had fun last night. Did my share of re-stealing of pots, made some erratic bets to confuse and was satisfied with my play. With a couple of tokens sitting around, I really need to play one of the guaranteed events on FTP. I haven't played them in a long time and had some success there. I don't know if I will be able to play the Big Game on Sunday. I should be down at Summerfest drinking and catching some good music.

It is a cash

I finally cashed in a RiverChasers HORSE event today. I played most of them over the last couple of months and would make the final table and then bubble on the cash. Though it was only a fourth place finish, I will take it.

I led a good chunk of the tournament too. I got some nice hands and was able to consistently chip up. I had reached a high of 24k when most people were still below 10k. But when the blinds got up there, my hands started to fall. In the Stud events I was running two pair up against straights or sets. It felt like nothing was going to hold up. Before I knew it, I was down to just 3k. That was a heck of a drop.

But I fought back. It started with pocket 4s that managed to hold up against A Q. From there I played a nice conservative game. Sadly, it was the Stud portion that led to my demise. Three Kings ran into 3 Aces. Ouch!

Big congratulations to Mike Maloney for the win. He played a nice final table. You couldn't tell if he was just stealing or if he had a good hand. He mixed it up well.

Also, congrats to Pauly for his cash at the WSOP. Took 119 in one of the donkaments. Well done Pauly! Wading through a crowd of donkeys is a hell of a feat!

Also need to congratulate Blinders and Joe Speaker. Along with Pauly, they have launch a cool fantasy sports game- Fantasy Sports Live. Like fantasy sports? Like poker? Just like a Reeces peanut butter cup, they took two great games and combined them into one. Check it out!


Bonus code STB will get you 10 bucks on a deposit of $50. Deposit more and get a bigger bonus.

Waffle free radio

For once, it isn't a I-busted-out-of-the-Mookie early posts. I went deep last night, all the way to 13th place. I was somewhat content with my play, but not totally happy.

I seem to find the wrong spot to either try to steal or put pressure on a player who has a monster. I guess my late game reads are going for shit right now. For example, I was over 6k when there was a raise in EP. I figure this person was trying to get some chips with a small pair so I re-raised with 7 7. They had A A.

This is a spot where I should have been either folding or calling and folding on the flop. Instead I played the greed card and gave away half of my stack. Not a good thing. I really need to work on patience and find the right spots to hit. Being aggressive is good, but finding the right time to hit is critical.

Later on in the Dookie, I would play loose, wild and free. Lots of raising with big pairs instead of solid O8 hands. It was a small buy in so I got my money worths of fun. I just need to learn to buckle down and take it slow and easy.

I listened to the Buddy Dank radio show as the tourney went on. It was good to hear the commentary of what was happening at the other tables. It provided another dimension to the game. Until they got Waffles on there and then it became a snooze fest. Unless you like to hear the best strategies for winning $1 HU SnGs or a full $6 SnG. Between him and the whisky, I was ready to pass out.

And what is with the music selection Dank has? It looks like he took over the apartment of a hippy lesbian that left her CD collection behind. More Melissa Etheridge than Metallica? He must have taken time to go around the country following the old Lillith Fair tour. Next thing you know he will have videos of the Indigo Girls playing. Need better tunes. Much better tunes.

Crazy

After reading Pauly's comments about the donkfests that the $1500 NL tournaments at the WSOP have become, it really got me to thinking. Specifically, if I don't like to play online tournaments with over 1000 players, why would I want to play one live? Sure playing in the WSOP would be fun, but do I really want to try and out last 2000 players over a couple of days? Having read Hoy's comments about needed to ease his body and mind on a dinner break, the answer is quite simply, no. Hell, with all I drink, I would be drunk by the end of the first day and pushing with anything.

A couple days ago, I had a revelation. If I would win an entry into any WSOP event, I know exactly which one it would be. Razz. That might be the one game where any blogger could compete against the top players and make a good run if they got lucky.

Plus, after following PokerStar's Katja Thater's Razz run, it seems to be the most logical event to enter. Damn did she play well in such a frustrating game. But with 300 players avoiding bricks, it would appear to be the best event to catch a bracelet. As long as you are not at Katja's table that is.

Playing the rush

Both the Mookie and RiverChaser tournaments were total abominations for me last week. I played little poker because of it. Did some Triple Draw and went south. Tried some SnGs that didn't pay off. Thus when I finally got on a rush, I went for it.

The game wasn't poker though. It was a booze raffle at the church festival.

Saturday night is when I hit my rush. I won my first bottle of booze right away, good old number 6, the last paddle bought. I came right back with a quick second win. I knew the streak was good and real. How could I stop now? Only 2 bucks a paddle. 4 bottles of booze being won every round. I was finally on a rush and had to keep going.

The rest of the people began to fear me as bottle after bottle was pushed my way. The cute brunette on the side was eyeing me up. She noticed who her competition was and looked to be changing up her play. Others stayed away. It took some time to sell the rest of the paddles one they saw I was in. When I won a bottle of wine on the next draw, I think I heard someone say "Same winners all the time!"

But like all good things, even rushes come to an end. The paddles soon went cold. I stepped away, booked my win and went off for another beer.

It did feel good to win again.

Chicago Poker

If anyone is in the Chicago area and would like to take a shot at some live tournaments that benefit charities, here is a list and the info you need.

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Cash prizes
Feature Tournament @ 6:30 PM
Cash Games
Sit-n-Go Table Tournaments

all events 6-11 PM
Tuesday, June 19, 2007 (benefiting Clearbrook)
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007

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Moo

I didn't last long enough to call it the Mookie. I believe I was in all of 17 minutes. Ran K K into A K and saw not one A, but a second as well to knock me out. All the money was in preflop and Zeem drew out. So it goes.

Now maybe I got spoiled by live tournament play this past weekend, but didn't these blinds go up pretty fast? Full Tilt has 10 minutes levels? Guess I never realized it before. I thought they were 15.

After the WPBT tournament on Saturday, I headed over with some of the guys to the Tilted Kilt before heading out to dinner. Just before I left, I realized I was sitting with some of the power brokers in the poker reporting world. Dr. Pauly of Tao of Poker fame was sitting across from me. On my far left was the Poker Prof of LasVegasVegas. You want to know what is going in Vegas? Poker, shows, shopping, news, pics? It is all at LasVegas Vegas. Also across from me was Dan Michalski of Pokerati. Though he didn't have a pink shirt on, it was nice to talk with him. His people have been attacking the WSOP both at the table and around. Spaceman from Bluff was at the far end with Rachel, the newly crowned WPBT Champion. Grubby, the bloggers slot expet- hey have I got a nice story for you on playing the Wheel of Fortune machine. Only people missing were Otis from Pokerstars and the Wicked Chops boys. Not that I left Change100 out, she of Pokerworks and Pokernews. I ran into her as I was leaving the Kilt.

Toss in the many other people I met for the first time on this trip- bayne, brainmc (you still owe me a beer), Irongirl, Alan's brother John, Poker Gnome, some of the Full Tilt forum people at the IP, among everyone else. Apologies for not listing you. A trip that I thought I may be disappointed with turned out to be very good.

Guess Metal Skool and strippers can do that for you.

Tournaments weren't good

There isn't much to say about the tournaments I played while in Vegas. Binions 2 am saw me out around 22 of 33. I may have notes at home on what happened but it doesn't matter. I believe I took a heck of a beat that crippled me.

I played in the World Poker Classic on Thursday. The H.O.R.S.E bucked me pretty good. Played loose in the H & O and found myself not hitting at all. So I tightened up. Really tightened up. It was until two hours into the tournament that I won my first hand in the Stud portion. It was that bad. I would soon be out when the H got back around. I played poorly in this event. No ifs, and, or buts about it.

The WPBT tournament was a cluster fuck. Bad structure and a dick for a director. I started off well. With Grubby on my right and bayne on my left, I knew I couldn't get too tricky. I chipped up early by restealing from Grubby when he acted like he would muck then tried to buy the pot. Even got away with laying down the Hammer and getting the pot with a pair of 7s.

But with the tournament in turbo mode, I knew I either had to chip up quickly or have no chance to get deep. I was willing to gamble to get there. When Fuel55 got aggressive, I followed his act. He pointed out that at level 3, we basically had an M of 10. So, I raised with 7 7 in EP and called his push. I knew I had him covered and if I won the hand, I would run over the table. I expected to see A high from him but was surprised to see J J. Ouch! The flop was live for both of us- 8 9 10. I caught a nice 6 on the turn for my straight. But in grand suck and resuck fashion, a Q hit to give Fuel the higher straight. Two hands later I would be out. Such is the game.

Ironically, cash game were better for me, especially playing the 1/2 NL at the MGM and Hooters. In the past I made bad moves, trying to be overly aggressive and push people around or make calls when I knew I was beat but talked myself out of it. I listened to what Blood had to say. If he said the table was beatable if I played conservatively, I went with it. I guess that is why I even sat down at the 2/5 at the Rio late one night.

Following his advice, I played some straight forward poker to begin with. Nothing fancy, nothing aggro. Once I got a read for the table, I began to loosen up against certain players. Yep, play the players, not the cards. I got a feel for who I could push off a hand, who I could maximize value with, who I should avoid, etc. I came away with a feeling of confidence. In fact, there was only one hand that I wish I would have played differently.

2/5 NL at the Rio. Again, Blood told me to take a seat saying I could handle the higher stakes with these players. I was up about $50 when I decided to call 10 more from the BB with 10 7s. Flop came 10 high. I decided I was going to check raise the guy. He didn't seem strong and I felt my 10 was good. He bet 30 and I raised to 75. He called. Maybe I should have raised more. I then checked the turn. Here is where I think I made a mistake. I should have bet out, showing strength. I believe he may have folded. He checked behind and the river was checked as well. He showed A 10 for the win. Would anyone have been more aggressive there?

Apart from that hand, I was pleased with my NL game this trip. I look forward to developing it next time I am out there. I may even make a trip to the Indian casino in town.

I only played a bit of limit at the MGM. 4/8 on a very loose table. I felt like I was just unlucky. People kept hitting on the turn and beating me. I didn't play my best because of that. Plus, I had to sit next to the mimosa drinking Falstaff. Guess that explains the skirt! But I got the waitress to call him mimosa boy and had her ask the bartender if he wanted to see the lady that was pounding down the girlie drinks.

Final thing. Big congrats to Mrs. Spaceman! She took down the WPBT event in a very tough, entertaining match up with Grubette. The head to head battle was very exciting to watch as these ladies dumped my horse at the table. Yeah, I bet on Waffles to take it down and had confidence he would. But a suckout later he was done. At least I had some side action against Grubette. Nothing against her, I just took a bet against the huge stack from winning it all. Once again, congrats to Rachel for the win.

Vegas

Tournaments were bad. Especially the abortion that was the WPBT at the Orleans. Worst. Tournament. Ever. Falstaff did a great job with setting it up but the tournament director at the Orleans was a complete dick. Man, was he an asshole.

Cash games good. Miami Don was right. Things were on the soft side. That is why I avoided confrontations with other bloggers.

Dealer choice with bloggers at the was a drunkfest. Or at least I was but what do you expect. Downing Makers Mark for 5 hours prior to showing up can do that to you.

Oh, and Metal Skool totally fuckin' rocked!!! It was a great time hanging with Blood and hearing some good music.

More later.

Played like a fiddle

I had some fun in the last Wheatie. Wasn't playing tight, nor was I playing loose. I think my table would disagree with my claim of not playing loose. I was a tad loose in the blinds, but played like a rock from early position. When the time seemed right to snag a pot with air, I took it. I guess my instinct was on during the first hour.

But it left me in the second. I made a terrible play and got bounced. I didn't think about the hand my opponent had when I made the call. I was in the SB with around 3k and had been dealt A Jo. There was a raise from MP. I called to see a flop of K K x. It checked around. With the turn J, I bet half the pot, around 550. I was quickly raised.

That should have been the flashing light to get on out. I would still have enough chips to pick and choose a place to get back into the tournament. I was far from being crippled.

Instead I made a hasty decision. I put him on a mid pair and pushed. He flipped A Ks and I was done. My opponent played me like a fiddle.

I should know better than that. Laying down that hand isn't hard. I would have been alive and with an M around 15, could have found a better spot to make a play. But I had fun.

Big thanks to Wil for hosting these tournaments over the last couple years. It has been a good time. I can proudly say I won two of the Wheaties, though I am still awaiting my bracelets for doing so.

Now I need to sit at work for the next 7.5 hours. I won't get much done. My head is already in Vegas. Before the Wheatie last night I played some hold em, both limit and NL. I intend to play both out there. I know my NL game is weaker but I have had some success out there in the past. It has been my overplaying of hands that has cost me money. I know I can overcome that crutch. Hopefully I learn more this weekend and have some success.

I look forward to meeting new people out there. Just look for the guy with the Drinking for Jesus shirt on Thursday or the Brewers jersey on Saturday. I will be more than happy to buy you a drink.

3 days

3 days. That is what separates me from Las Vegas. 3 days of work.

Maybe I should put it in a better light.

69. Most people like that number a bit better.

69 hours until I should be at the Rio, cold beer in hand, looking to get my gamble on.

I know it will be quite a bit different this time around. It is the changing of the guard. Quite a number of people that had attended each event will not be present. That really sucks. That means I won't have the chance to spend time with old friends. I will have to spend the first night drinking until the sun rises. I will have to find someone to throw the dice with. Play Pai Gow with. To go see Metal Skool.

It would seem the crowd that is going out this time is more intent on playing poker than socializing. I will get some hours in at the tables, but the best part of the last couple WPBT events have been at the bars. Whether it be the Sake bar at the IP or the sports book bar at the MGM, it has been the conversations around the bar that are remembered most. Not the action at the tables. Something inside me says that may be different this year.

I hope not.

I look forward to meeting a new group of people. I know that someone is going to want to get their drunk on. Or at least do some drunken bowling.

Goals for this week...

• Watch Blood play some NL. I am a total donkey at the NL cash tables. I need all the help I can get, especially with all the action that will be out there.
• Win the majority of my baseball bets. The Milwaukee Brewers will be playing the Texas Rangers in Arlington. It should be easy money as the Brew Crew has a knack for beating up weak teams. They struggle against good team. But with this on the road, there are no sure things.
• But Pauly, Change, Otis, Jason and others covering the WSOP a drink at a small token of thanks for the work they are doing.
• Make money at Pai Gow. Or at least get nice and drunk doing so. Pai Gow is a drinking game. You will push a lot of hands. If you lost a lot, that is just really bad luck. One can spend a number of hours drinking Maker's Mark and ginger ale and catch a terrific buzz at a Pai Gow table. I intend to do just that.
• Play a daily tournament somewhere. Don't know which one or the buy in but I will play a live tournament other than Saturday's game.

I just need to get through the next 69 hours.

Wrong time to gamble

I was doing ok in the Riverchasers tournament last night. Was. I gambled in two spots and was out. All I wanted to do was last long enough to hear the new Poison album that I was obtaining, but I couldn't do that.

In both gambles, I made a mistake. In the first, I misinterpreted some tight play for a short stack push. Yes, he was short stacked but I hadn't noticed he wasn't playing many hands. I made a call with A 7s in the BB and found myself up against A Ko. Though after the turn I had both a straight and flush draw, neither would hit. I didn't mind that one too much. I wanted to gamble and went with it.

In the second gamble, I thought I could push TripJax off his hand. It looked like a steal from the button as he had been raising a lot. So with J 10o, I pushed back. He bet about a third of his chips and I didn't think he would call. I was a bit surprised that he insta-called with K 10, but later thought I might make the same move. Probably not but I might.

At the very least, I have learned a bit. The middle rounds of these tournaments have been rough on me. I lose patience and try to chip up with not-so-great hands. Hopefully I get this out of my system by the time I land in Vegas. Just 5 days now.