What Is It Going To Take?

I might take a slightly different road each time, but they all seem to lead to a place where I get stacked by an inferior hand at the final table.

I attended my regularly scheduled weekly Riverchasers freeroll last night on the golf course. Turnout was fairly strong with almost 7 full tables ready to go at 8:00 PM. I love when Griff is running the game; he just does a phenomenal job. Anyway, once again, we are playing the double stack format that will become the standard come 2008. Predictably, I start off slow missing flops completely with hands that have potential. I drag a small pot in a blind vs. blind battle at level 2 when I flopped a set of fives. SB must have had some real garbage as the board had all kinds of drawing possibilities. Alas, a small pot is better than none.

Garbage, garbage, garbage. Then 3 limp to me in the SB where I find QQ and raise 4.5x BB. Loose BB player calls, but the other 3 go scampering away. Flop comes A high, all clubs. Although, I didn't know that until after I had already decided that BB either missed completely or picked up some kind of weak draw. While I was watching him, he watched the cards come out and just sort of stared directly at them as if trying to figure out what exactly he could make. So, even though it was all kinds of scary for QQ (no club), I figured a c-bet would take it down, which it did.

Back to card dead for a long while until I decide to raise 3x BB UTG with ATo. TAG woman 2 to my left calls VERY quickly and I got the feeling she really liked her hand. Not good. Since I just raised 1/3 of my stack preflop, I was either going to shove a really good flop or check-fold anything else. Flop was Q high so I opted for the latter option after a pot sized bet by my opponent. There were just entirely too many hands that explained both her action and mannerism (as well as her history), to make me think I had even ever been ahead in this hand.

1 orbit later, at 15/30, I have less than 4 BB left and this same player makes it 70 to go from UTG+1. Everyone folds to me and I look down at K♥J♥. Time to gamble? You bet. I knew she wasn't going to fold to an allin, but in they went. She calls with AQo and I'm soooted and live. Q on the flop, K on the turn and I'm back up to around 7 BB. Time to start playing, blinds are getting big and going quickly.

Q♥T♥, I complete from the SB. Flop is A high with 2 hearts so I push and just about double again without a showdown. Very next orbit, I'm in the BB and everyone folds to the SB who pushes allin for 4x BB. I have him covered by 2 BB, but pick up KK and instacall his Q♥T♥. OESD after the turn, but the cowboys hold up and I'm up to 700 as the final table starts.

Fast forward to the end. Blinds are now 100/200, all fold to the SB who completes and has 200 behind. AK for me and I put him all in which he calls with 76o. Not one, but two 7s on the flop, I need a J on the river to straighten but no dice. 300 left, of which 100 is now in the SB. Again, everyone folds so I raise allin with T8o, but 6♥2♥ in the BB flops a 4-flush and completes it on the turn and I'm gone. Once again, I can't catch a break at a final table and actually win a critical hand where my chips go in good.

And The Beats Go On...

I got myself to two different Riverchasers game over the weekend. The first when I decided to bail on work at lunch time Friday, and the second when my parents wanted to spend a little time with my girls.

The Friday game was in Limerick and went according to script. I tried to see flops early on the cheap in lieu of any real cards and find a spot to double. I went down about 15-20% looking for a good situation but finding none. Then my table broke pretty early, and I was moved to one where two players had evidently busted half of those formerly there. With hefty stacks, they were more than happy to see every flop and, more often than not, every turn. Unfortunately for the rest of us, they kept hitting those boards with whatever garbage they were dealt so they had even more chips to play with. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

ok - finally I find KK in the BB at level 2 after the entire table limped, and pot raised. UTG decides to get fancy and puts me all in. There is almost a 0% chance I am ever folding KK pre-flop in a Riverchasers game, so I call and he flips... 66. Other than the oesd that developed on the turn, everything came out all right and I doubled plus 5 or 6 other single bets.

Then we go card dead for about 45 minutes while the big stacks pummel the the rest of the table, and each other. Since the game only started with around 4 tables, we actually got to the final nine players at level 5 (10/20). But with only 6.5 BB, I was looking for a spot. After I managed to pick up the blinds uncontested following a shove with A3o, I found 33 UTG in the last hand before 20/40. My shove gets called quickly by KJ, but I win the race and double.

Still at 20/40, pocket 6's guy had been raising pre-flop about every 3rd hand, so when he 4x raised my BB I was pretty sure my A♠T♠ was good and reraised all in. Insta-call. With KQ. Ten on the flop, but he catches one of the 34 kings and queens still in the deck and IGH 8th. Another Limerick final table, another bust with the best hand pre-flop. Ick.

Sunday is quite a bit more brief. AA in the BB. I make a pot sized raise and get 3 calls from very loose players. Flop is a very dangerous JT8 with 2 diamonds. Pot is just about the size of my stack, so I push and get called by 2nd pair with a gutterball. Hits trips on the turn and, just to rub it in, straightens on the river to send me home in the first hour. Ick ick.

Then, I find out I bubbled the Aussie Millions TOC writing contest with an Honorable Mention. How typical of my life right now. Ick ick ick.

My Aussie Millions Entry

The following humble post is my submission into the Full Tilt Poker Aussie Millions Challenge: Write Your Way To Australia... inspired by some of the most famous Australian Rock/Pop acts of the last 25 years.


I returned home from Melbourne 4 full days ago, but have finally recharged my physical, mental, and emotional batteries that I nearly drained while living a dream. I just want to thank Full Tilt Poker, Crown Casino Resort, and Riverchasers Poker Tour for allowing me to live out a fantasy that would, otherwise, never have been possible. Although the final result was not the ideal scenario, I wouldn't change a thing. Well maybe one...

To tell the final tale, I introduce 80's sensation, Melbourne's own Men At Work:



Down Under (to the tune of Down Under)

Intermixed among all the pros
Tomorrow comes, they all become foes
Chris Ferguson, Phils Laak and Ivey
All these greats, I feel so tiny

And they said, Did you win the trip down under?
How I did I'll always wonder
Will I make historic thunder?
Where hammers drop in their bluffing splendor

Catching cards right from the first deal
Was enough to make my nerves heal
Got involved with the professor
Even though he was the pre-flop aggressor

And he said, Did you win the trip down under?
From his stack I want to plunder
Wasn't sure if I was stunned or
Did my fives really take down the pot?

Short on chips, we're on day three
I push all-in, 5 cards to save me
Joe Hachem asks are you trying to bluff me?
Then he stacks my chips, I leave abruptly.

And I said, Oh! I won a trip down under.
Single moment, major blunder.
My poker dream ripped asunder
Hammer drops but doesn't save the day


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm going to Australia!!!!! W00t!!!!! Delivering the recap of the Tournament of Champions, Sydney's own AC/DC:


T.O.C. (to the tune of T.N.T)

See me all-in with the nut flush
He is drawing to a boat
Just four outs with two to come
That's all she wrote
Donkeys to the left of me
And LAGtards to the right
Got all the cards, got all the chips
Sometimes it's just your night

Won the T.O.C
I could do no wrong
T.O.C.
I'm where I belong
T.O.C.
I'm a winner cos
T.O.C.
I'm going to Oz!!!!

I'm lucky, brave and downright strong
Stay out of my way
You're the next one to the felt
Push and pray
So fold all your hammers n' don't chase those draws
Don't even think of reraising because
I'm still stickin around
Just lay it down

Won the T.O.C
I could do no wrong
T.O.C.
I'm where I belong
T.O.C.
I'm a winner cos
T.O.C.
I'm going to Oz!!!!

T.O.C
I could do no wrong
T.O.C.
I'm where I belong
T.O.C.
I'm a winner cos
T.O.C.
I'm going to Oz!!!!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Also hailing from Melbourne, Kylie Minogue:


The Riverchasers (The Locomotion)

The newest blogger tourney is on Thursday nights now
(Everybody plays the riverchasers)
I know you'll get to like it
If you give it a chance now
(Everybody plays the riverchasers)


No, no, no! That is all the Kylie Minogue that will ever see the light of day on my blog, even in parody. I won the thing, ok? It was Thanksgiving night and the turnout was unusually light. I only played the premiums early on and still got paid the few times I picked one up. Then when I needed to ramp up the aggression, coincidentally (and thankfully), my hand quality began to vastly improve. I managed to make the final table, but then went card dead. That's just not good when everyone's M is so low.

Then a series of amazing things happened. Griff and Hoy each went hog wild on the other 6 players at the table, each busting 3 within about a 5 or 6 minute time span. That left me as a huge short stack and Griff covering Hoy by just a few thousand chips. I pick up T♣T♠ on the button and raise 3x BB. Griff and Hoy both call. Flop is T♥J♥Q♥. Uh oh. I bet about 1/2 the pot (a little less than 1/3 of my stack) to find out how interested they were in the pot. Griff smooth calls from the SB and Hoy raises to all but one of my chips. I know what that usually means. I'm gone.

After I fold, Griff reraises to all but one of Hoy's chips. He re-hoyed Hoy's hoy? What in the world? Dutifully, the last chip goes in and Hoy tables 8♥9♥. Straight. Flush. Griff flips...













A♥K♥.

Unbelievable. Royal. F'n. Flush. 3 handed.

I type, "so, uh, Griff... you already have your seat, right?" "yup"
"i'll ship you 150% of the difference between 1st and 2nd if you let me have the seat..." "why would I..."
"two RPT players in the final 27...."
FTP Advisor: "Griff has disconnected"

See you at the T.O.C.

From Over The Weekend

I actually managed to get to attend two Riverchasers freerolls over the weekend. The first, on Friday afternoon, came about as all of the full time employees here had to attend an afternoon offsite thingy. Being an hourly paid consultant, I had immunity from such an endeavor and was told that if I wanted to do a half day, go right ahead. I went right ahead. Then, my wife had plans to be away from the family all day both Saturday and Sunday. I guess she felt bad for me when she got home as she said that if I wanted to get out and catch a game that night, feel free. I felt free.

Anyway, we'll do the second (and much shorter) recap first. Saturday night I played at the golf course. When I got there, there were already 9 or 10 full tables and another 12-15 players without seats. We needed to trek over to the banquet room to find more space and played the first hour over there. I saw a few flops, picked up a small pot or two, and folded to a few bets post flop. Cards sucked and I couldn't find a spot to really gain traction. Big Dave finally comes in to bring us all back in to the main room, and I get seated at aggro central. I have 185 chips at 10/20 and the blinds are coming around quick. Nothing through the first round of blinds, but then, at 15/30, I get 3 limpers around to my BB and see QQ. All in for 125 more and it's good that everyone respected the raise as I think every single limper would have either straightened or flushed on the board that came. Damn rabbit hunters.

Shortly after that, I get moved again, and in the first hand at the new table run JJ into both QQ and KK. Live poker is so rigged. Oh well.

Friday, was a different story, even though it started out quite the same. This was a traditional 100 chip starting stack tournament, so I usually play just a tad tighter than the double stack structure that will be the norm in 2008. I don't remember whether it was level 2 or 3, but I was down to about 75 or 80 of my original 100 when I got to see a free flop out of the BB with 62o. When the flop came 642 (2 hearts, 1 diamond), it was strangely reminiscent of the last time I played there. Flop was checked all around and the 8♦ fell on the turn. I checked, bet of 6, raise to 26, fold, fold, I reraise to 69 and am all in. Initial bettor folds and aggro raiser calls with A8o. No help to him and I double plus a little.

Now the hand of the day from my perspective. We're playing at 3/6 and I pick up 6♦7♦ in the cutoff and continue the limp train. Button raises to 15 and picks up a caller, so I throw in the extra 9 chips getting better than 5:1. Flop comes 5♠8♦9♦. I didn't even notice that I actually flopped a straight; I was actually too transfixed on the OESFD, but when the original raiser bet 10 after 2 checks and was called, I finally realized that, at least temporarily, I had the nuts. I called. Turn paired the 5 and the player to my right bet 15. I raised to 40 and that lost the original raiser, but the bettor called. A third 5 came on the river. The 5♦. I wasn't sure how much I was going to be able to bet and still get a call, so I threw out 50. She called and asked me if I had a 5 as she flipped an 8 to show her 5's full of 8's. I said, "better" and flipped the straight flush.

At that point I started feeling like I could play a little, so I called a smallish bet on a 782 rainbow flop with JTo and turned a 9. I limped with A♣T♣ out of the SB and checked an A84 flop then bet the 9 on the turn. The BB pushed for not much more and I wasn't totally sure I was ahead, but called and busted her with 92o. From then on, when I entered a pot, it was for a raise. 3x BB every time. No more limping. A7o, no callers. QQ, no callers. When everyone folded to my SB, I stole the BB without looking at my cards around 2 or 3 orbits in a row. It is true that chips just seem to breed more chips. I don't get to play a big stack at Riverchasers events all that often, so I really enjoy it when I can.

We finally get down to the 9 handed final table and I find a couple of shorties, 1 monster stack, and the rest with healthy stacks like mine (at least for the time being). Blinds are 30/60 when we start, and I pick up AK on the button on either the first or second hand and scoop the blinds. We don't play 30/60 for very long, and at 50/100 it's go time for just about everyone. To a point. All fold to my SB and find T9o. I try to steal, but don't raise TOO much as I don't want to get myself committed to the hand. Good thing as the BB comes over the top and I decide to pick another spot.

I double through the monster who called my 77 with 64o, thank you very much. Then I picked off a shorty along with a bunch of dead money with AJ as he already had a caller, but I came over the top and the caller folded a weaker A. 77 scored me another set of blinds, but that just about defined the high water mark for the day. The blinds moved to 100/200 and we were playing 4 handed. I found A8o in the SB and shoved, but was insta-called by the BB with KJo. (????) Insta-called? Anyway, the deck waited until the river but paired the K nonetheless and IGH 4th.

I always seem to have good days at the Limerick as I final table that venue well over 50% of the time, and finish in the top 4 80% of that. One of these days, I'll manage to actually take it down.

No Sets For You

Last night's Riverchasers free roll was an exercise in futility. Every hand was 5 or 6 gapped and unsuited. Every flop was chock full of high cards. Every donk was in love with any Ace and any two high cards. Except for one AKs at level 2 that I took down pre-flop with a 4x raise, and a turned 2nd nut flush with K♦T♦ out of the BB at level 3, there was nothing.

Except the baby pairs. Seeing as this was all I was getting, and the table was pretty passive, I tried to set mine at least 4 or 5 times with 22, 33, and 44 from any position. Not. A. Set. To. Be. Found. I finally got frustrated with around 6 BB left at 10/20. When everyone folded around to my SB, I shoved. I barely looked at my cards before I did it. I really didn't care what they were, as I was planning on making that move in good position at some point soon. Anyway, the fact that I hadn't played more than 5 or 6 hands the whole night, or that the only time I came in for a raise I showed AKs, didn't stop donkette from calling me with ATo. Whatever. I know she thought that her stack warranted the call, but if she loses that hand, she only has around 10 BB left.

As an aside, how does a player build a stack up to 13 times what he started with, in a 45 person tournament, and NOT make the final table? As a matter of fact, the final 2 tables were still almost full when he busted. Sometimes I just don't understand this game or the people who play it.

Suicide Is Painless

We had the good ole deep stack riverchasers free roll at the golf course last night. Griff got things going just after 7:30 as the stragglers required an additional table be brought out. It was an interesting first table, to say the least. I think 3 or 4 of those guys play together fairly frequently, and 2 or 3 of them were definitely stoned out of their minds. Right before the cards fly, one of them comments to another guy that he thinks that he looks like Donald Sutherland. Personally, since I was not completely fogged by THC, I didn't see the resemblance but his assertion did lead to a discussion of M*A*S*H for the entire first level. Whatever. At least it was a little different than the usual witty banter I'm subjected to while playing free bar poker.

I finally found my first good spot about an hour in when a few limpers let me see a free flop with KTo. Since the SB folded and I was first to act, I checked the flop dark. Being as tight as I am, I like to check dark in this position to see if I can induce the looser players behind me to bet. That way, if I do hit the flop hard, I can actually make a little money on the hand. I'm not sure how much of an imbecile it takes to not notice if a player in the BB who has hardly played for an hour suddenly comes out firing on the flop in an unraised pot. I'm sure they're out there, but I don't think they were the ones still in the hand.

So where am I going with this? Good question. The flop came down QJ9 rainbow. I had flopped the rocks. Unfortunately, there were no bettors after my dark check. Then the turn came with the 5♠, putting a second spade on board. Check, check. If someone was going to make a backdoor flush on me, they were going to have to pay to try. But I didn't want to shut out someone holding a ten either as half their straight cards would end up stacking them, so I bet around 2/3 of the pot and got 2 callers. ok - what am I probably up against? Maybe a pair and a draw, or even just the draw. And what cards am I afraid of? Definitely any spade. And I didn't particularly want to see a K or a T either. So the river brings an offsuit 2 and my rocks are now the nuts. Both opponents check and I bet about 3/4 of the pot which, at this point, is 1/4 of the starting stack. One caller. He showed JT for second pair and oesd on the flop. I really wish he would've caught his 8... or T... or J. He actually said he thought I was on a busted flush draw. Huh? Did my lack of play help him with that read? Thank you, sir. Well played.

Anyway, not too long after that I am sitting in the SB at 5/10. A fairly tight player min raises from UTG+1. Cutoff calls as do I with QQ. BB kicks in the extra bet and 4 go to the flop. Ten high. Both blinds check and the initial raiser continues which I call, as does the cutoff. Jack on the turn and I check again. All in for about 1/6 of the pot. We both call and check the river and the AT is all out. I flip my queens and the cutoff mucks in disgust. Sometimes sandbagging just feels like the right way to go.

Then a few hands later, I pick up 88 in MP. 3x BB raise chases everyone but the blinds. These are the same 2 players from the nut straight hand. Flop is AKx and they both check. I c-bet and the SB calls and BB folds. I'm done with this hand unless I can spike an 8. SB is definitely an any ace kind of guy, and probably won't lay it down, even to a bigger kicker. Which I don't have. We end up checking it down, and he flips KQo. Dammit. I probably could have gotten him to lay it down if I would have had the courage to fire another round or two. Oh well.

At this point, unfortunately, the table breaks and I get moved to the LAG-tard table. Just stay out of the way unless you have it and if they catch the miracle, that's the way it goes. I stayed out of the way, posted a few blinds and the table broke down to leave 3. My new table was all solid players along with the one solid player from LAGland who also happened to have a mountain of chips. At least I beat him over to the new table while he was trying to gather his chips and I sat to his left.

Blinds are now 25/50, I have 300 left, and we're playing 9 handed. I see nothing to play. Nothing. Down to 175 in the BB with K♥6♥. One early limper (KQ guy) and the big stack in the SB elects to fold (wow) and I get to see a free flop. I hit middle pair on a raggedy rainbow flop and we both check. When the 2♥ turns, I check-raise all in to a min bet and his A2 does not improve. Finally, I catch KK but it's UTG. Since blinds are 50/100, I push for less than 4x BB, but everyone folds. We come back around, now at 100/200 and I'm UTG+1 and find K♥Q♥. After the mountain UTG limps, I push for my remaining 475. Everyone folds to the BB who throws in his single remaining 25 chip and UTG does not feel like putting in another 15% of his stack. BB flips K♦4♦ and, of course, a 4 comes right through the door. Thankfully, the flop also 4 flushes me, but makes me wait until the river to catch one of my 12 outs.

So, just like that, we start the 10 handed final table. Although I've grown my stack to 1000, I'm now sitting directly between the two chip leaders. Joy. Plus, I get to be the first BB after redrawing for the button, and quickly lose my blinds. It's about that time, and the push fest begins. I find 52o three hands in a row, followed by a much stronger 92o. Then the blinds go to 200/400 and push-and-pray is in high gear. BB finally finds my position and in goes 4/7 of my stack. MP shoves for exactly 700 and all fold to my 8♠5♠. Pot is 1300 and I have to call 300 more with a 200 SB next hand. I call. He has A3o. I get 2 spades on the flop and both my hole cards are still live, but 15 outs twice is just too improbable for me to overcome and IGH in 8th out of around 60 runners. Well at least I didn't do anything stupid.

Due to conditions beyond our control, we regret to announce that lunch is now being served.
Shouldn't we say grace?
Praise the Lord and pass the sauce.