28K Recap

I wish I could say that my 3rd place finish was solely the result of my superior poker skill & intellect, but as you'll see, I could have done just as well even if I was still in the womb.

Hour 1:

The premium cards started early and never really quit. Within the first hour I saw AK twice, AA once, KK once, in this hand here:

Seat 1: lucky mojo (1,155)
Seat 2: pokerflop (4,465), is sitting out
Seat 3: Fancyface13 (4,770)
Seat 4: generalsteakems (7,335)
Seat 5: ilikedags (3,615)
Seat 6: mclarich (3,425)
Seat 7: StckaD0nk (4,300)
Seat 8: Tha_Hiv (2,770)
Seat 9: Hinks74 (3,160)
mclarich posts the small blind of 30
StckaD0nk posts the big blind of 60
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to mclarich [Kc Kh]
Tha_Hiv folds
Hinks74 has 15 seconds left to act
Hinks74 raises to 180
lucky mojo folds
pokerflop folds
Fancyface13 calls 180
generalsteakems folds
ilikedags folds
mclarich raises to 660
StckaD0nk folds
Hinks74 has 15 seconds left to act
Hinks74 folds
Fancyface13 has 15 seconds left to act
Fancyface13 calls 480
*** FLOP *** [7s 2d 3c]
mclarich has 15 seconds left to act (I go for the delay trick to make it seem like AK in case he has something like A7 or 88+)
mclarich bets 420
Fancyface13 has 15 seconds left to act
Fancyface13 raises to 840 (hopefully I'm not up against 77)
mclarich has 15 seconds left to act
mclarich calls 420
*** TURN *** [7s 2d 3c] [8s]
pokerflop has returned
mclarich checks
Fancyface13 has 15 seconds left to act
Fancyface13 bets 1,200
mclarich raises to 1,925, and is all in
Fancyface13 calls 725
mclarich shows [Kc Kh]
Fancyface13 shows [Th Jh] (brilliant)
*** RIVER *** [7s 2d 3c 8s] [Qh]
mclarich shows a pair of Kings
Fancyface13 shows Queen Jack high
mclarich wins the pot (7,090) with a pair of Kings

Truthfully, I could see someone playing 77 the same way but my instincts told me I was ahead. Good ol' instincts! I finish the first hour around 11k.

Hour 2:

Got AA & AK once each. My stack grew mostly from one hand where I raised UTG with JT sooted, flopped an OESD that got there on the turn against 55 but a 4-flush board kept me from getting much else. Ended the level around 20k.

Hour 3:

Not much happened here. Lost some chips when AQ missed the flop, tried to float with connectors & that backfired. Took down a good pot when I put an UTG raiser to test with 99; luckily his raise didn't mean premium pair. Ended hour 3 at 28k, just below average.

Hour 4:

Probably the sickest hour of poker I've ever played. First, took down an 18k pot when 77 held against AQ. Next, I make some magic happen with some non-premium hands:

Seat 1: fuzzy (27,212)
Seat 2: TimT_21 (29,887)
Seat 3: combatmedic528 (33,220)
Seat 4: The Ruzzz (10,544)
Seat 5: DrawingDead19 (57,929)
Seat 6: Professor4Poker (75,370)
Seat 7: Jon 10 (6,177), is sitting out
Seat 8: mclarich (52,016)
Seat 9: HarassB (25,320)
fuzzynutz antes 250
TimT_21 antes 250
combatmedic528 antes 250
The Ruzzz antes 250
DrawingDead19 antes 250
Professor4Poker antes 250
Jon 10 antes 250
mclarich antes 250
HarassB antes 250
Jon 10 posts the small blind of 1,000
mclarich posts the big blind of 2,000
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to mclarich [3c 9c]
HarassB folds
fuzzynutz folds
TimT_21 has 15 seconds left to act
TimT_21 folds
combatmedic528 folds
The Ruzzz folds
DrawingDead19 raises to 4,000 (obviously he missed Hoy's lesson on bet-sizing)
Professor4Poker folds
Jon 10 folds
mclarich calls 2,000
*** FLOP *** [Ks 9h 3d]
mclarich checks
DrawingDead19 has 15 seconds left to act
DrawingDead19 bets 4,000
mclarich raises to 14,000
DrawingDead19 calls 10,000
*** TURN *** [Ks 9h 3d] [Kc]
mclarich bets 20,000
DrawingDead19 folds
Uncalled bet of 20,000 returned to mclarich
mclarich mucks
mclarich wins the pot (39,250)

He claims he had QQ; good thing he didn't call me down once I got counterfeited.

Then the cards started flowing. Seriously, grab a plastic bag to throw up in before you read this. Ready?

AA twice, AK twice, KK once, QQ twice, AQ twice, JJ twice.

All within the same hour. Need proof? Here's three of the hands, back-to-back-to-back:

Full Tilt Poker Game #6318378080: $28,000 Guarantee (47413555), Table 35 - 1500/3000 Ante 400 - No Limit Hold'em - 1:41:26 ET - 2008/05/07
Seat 1: hellaxela (29,014)
Seat 2: TimT_21 (37,217)
Seat 3: jaguar700 (63,667)
Seat 4: The Ruzzz (32,623)
Seat 6: Professor4Poker (61,220)
Seat 7: Jon 10 (48,246)
Seat 8: mclarich (68,393)
Seat 9: HarassB (48,726)
hellaxela antes 400
TimT_21 antes 400
jaguar700 antes 400
The Ruzzz antes 400
Professor4Poker antes 400
Jon 10 antes 400
mclarich antes 400
HarassB antes 400
mclarich posts the small blind of 1,500
HarassB posts the big blind of 3,000
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to mclarich [As Ad]
hellaxela folds
TimT_21 folds
jaguar700 raises to 8,249
The Ruzzz folds
Professor4Poker has 15 seconds left to act
Professor4Poker has requested TIME
Professor4Poker raises to 60,820, and is all in
Jon 10 folds
mclarich raises to 67,993, and is all in
HarassB folds
jaguar700 folds
mclarich shows [As Ad]
Professor4Poker shows [Ah Jh] (lol jackace)
Uncalled bet of 7,173 returned to mclarich
*** FLOP *** [Tc 3d 9d]
jaguar700: idiot
*** TURN *** [Tc 3d 9d] [6d]
*** RIVER *** [Tc 3d 9d 6d] [Th]
mclarich shows two pair, Aces and Tens
Professor4Poker shows a pair of Tens
mclarich wins the pot (136,089) with two pair, Aces and Tens

Full Tilt Poker Game #6318384811: $28,000 Guarantee (47413555), Table 35 - 1500/3000 Ante 400 - No Limit Hold'em - 1:42:12 ET - 2008/05/07
Seat 1: hellaxela (28,614)
Seat 2: TimT_21 (36,817)
Seat 3: jaguar700 (55,018)
Seat 4: The Ruzzz (32,223)
Seat 7: Jon 10 (47,846)
Seat 8: mclarich (143,262)
Seat 9: HarassB (45,326)
hellaxela antes 400
TimT_21 antes 400
jaguar700 antes 400
The Ruzzz antes 400
Jon 10 antes 400
mclarich antes 400
HarassB antes 400
HarassB posts the small blind of 1,500
hellaxela posts the big blind of 3,000
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to mclarich [Qs Qh]
TimT_21 folds
jaguar700 folds
The Ruzzz folds
Jon 10 folds
mclarich raises to 12,000
HarassB folds
hellaxela raises to 28,214, and is all in
mclarich calls 16,214
hellaxela shows [6h Ah]
mclarich shows [Qs Qh]
*** FLOP *** [Jc 2h 5c]
*** TURN *** [Jc 2h 5c] [9h] (here it comes)
*** RIVER *** [Jc 2h 5c 9h] [4h] (on cue)
hellaxela shows a flush, Ace high
mclarich shows a pair of Queens
hellaxela wins the pot (60,728) with a flush, Ace high

Full Tilt Poker Game #6318389472: $28,000 Guarantee (47413555), Table 35 - 1500/3000 Ante 400 - No Limit Hold'em - 1:42:44 ET - 2008/05/07
Seat 1: hellaxela (60,728)
Seat 2: TimT_21 (36,417)
Seat 3: jaguar700 (54,618)
Seat 4: The Ruzzz (31,823)
Seat 7: Jon 10 (47,446)
Seat 8: mclarich (114,648)
Seat 9: HarassB (43,426)
hellaxela antes 400
TimT_21 antes 400
jaguar700 antes 400
The Ruzzz antes 400
Jon 10 antes 400
mclarich antes 400
HarassB antes 400
hellaxela posts the small blind of 1,500
TimT_21 posts the big blind of 3,000
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to mclarich [Qh Qc]
jaguar700 folds
mclarich: sick
The Ruzzz raises to 9,000
3427dj sits down
3427dj adds 45,226
Baskethead sits down
Baskethead adds 151,547
Jon 10 folds
mclarich raises to 33,000
HarassB folds
hellaxela folds
TimT_21 folds
The Ruzzz calls 22,423, and is all in
mclarich shows [Qh Qc]
The Ruzzz shows [Kd Kh]
Uncalled bet of 1,577 returned to mclarich
*** FLOP *** [6s 7h Ac]
*** TURN *** [6s 7h Ac] [7c]
*** RIVER *** [6s 7h Ac 7c] [Kc]
mclarich shows two pair, Queens and Sevens
The Ruzzz shows a full house, Kings full of Sevens
The Ruzzz wins the pot (70,146) with a full house, Kings full of Sevens

Despite the QQ hands not working out too well, I still ended the hour at 219k and somewhere in the top 3.

Hour 5:

First another mid pair (88) held up against a shorty's AQ. Then this crucial hand:

Seat 1: Stroszek (208,518)
Seat 3: fishhooks212 (189,819)
Seat 4: BAI2 (195,831)
Seat 5: PoorB4 (107,072)
Seat 6: rlsmith3 (143,293)
Seat 7: mclarich (295,768) (second place)
Seat 8: ROCCOTHEROOK (368,104) (chip leader)
Seat 9: TheDeparted 1 (81,240)
Stroszek antes 1,000
fishhooks212 antes 1,000
BAI2 antes 1,000
PoorB4 antes 1,000
rlsmith3 antes 1,000
mclarich antes 1,000
ROCCOTHEROOK antes 1,000
TheDeparted 1 antes 1,000
ROCCOTHEROOK posts the small blind of 4,000
TheDeparted 1 posts the big blind of 8,000
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to mclarich [Ad Ah]
Stroszek folds
fishhooks212 raises to 21,000
BAI2 folds
PoorB4 folds
rlsmith3 folds
mclarich raises to 80,000

So I'm up against EP raiser, sitting on my 5th pocket Aces of the night, when the most glorious thing in the world happens.

ROCCOTHEROOK raises to 367,104, and is all in

Are you fucking kidding me?

TheDeparted 1 folds
fishhooks212 has 15 seconds left to act
fishhooks212 folds
mclarich calls 214,768, and is all in
ROCCOTHEROOK shows [As Kh]
mclarich shows [Ad Ah]
fishhooks212: wow
Uncalled bet of 72,336 returned to ROCCOTHEROOK
*** FLOP *** [6h Js 8c]
fishhooks212: 88
*** TURN *** [6h Js 8c] [2d]
fishhooks212: damn
*** RIVER *** [6h Js 8c 2d] [9d]
ROCCOTHEROOK shows Ace King high
mclarich shows a pair of Aces
mclarich wins the pot (626,536) with a pair of Aces

Unfortunately that huge stack didn't last too long when my AK < JJ and A9 < TT. The fact that I was in both of those hands is questionable, and I'll probably do a separate post for that AK hand.

By the time I got to the final table, I'd already seen the AA hand plus AK three times. Here's how the FT looked:

Seat 1: Stroszek (286,018)
Seat 2: PhilZone (159,066)
Seat 3: fishhooks212 (523,044)
Seat 4: DMAN824 (473,522)
Seat 5: Chip_StackEn (229,670)
Seat 6: rlsmith3 (415,752)
Seat 7: mclarich (238,831)
Seat 8: repoman21 (334,079)
Seat 9: neaker (415,018)

Dropped down to 175k then doubled up with another premium pair, KK, vs 88. Made a somewhat bad call shortly thereafter with AT vs JJ; it was button vs SB battle but SB was fairly tight & should have know that I probably only had one live card.

I built my stack back up when I push from the SB with K5. End up against KQ but river a 9-high straight, then win a race on the next hand with KQ vs 77 to jump up to 568k. End break at 530k, 4th place out of 5. For those keeping count, Hour 5 had AA once, KK once & AK three times.

Hour 6:

I couldn't get anything going in the final hour. By the time we got down to three, the stack sizes were:

Seat 1: Stroszek (715,042)
Seat 4: DMAN824 (1,965,996)
Seat 7: mclarich (393,962)

I made the most of what I could with what I was dealt, but couldn't get anything working and ultimately went home pushing QJ into A8. Ace on the flop and I was pretty much drawing dead.

..................................................................................

Needless to say, this was a huge win for me. The money itself is great, but what's even better is that I can finally say this:

My bankroll challenge is over!

I didn't expect to do it all in two strokes, but I'm not complaining either. It's such a relief to know that I don't have to mess around in the smaller stakes anymore. I'm glad I took the time to grind out at the lower levels because it's taught me the importance of having & maintaining a bankroll; I can safely say that I won't blow this score away like I did my last one.

Even with the abundance of premium hands, I feel like this "victory" is also due to improved focus in my poker game. The key that I noticed in this score as well as my last one is that I played much more patiently & thought out my actions a lot more. I feel like I'm on a pretty good roll right now. Not a Lucko-sized roll, but with those two scores, plus another one today:















I'm definitely making progress one way or another.

So another goal ($2k bankroll) is not only accomplished but crushed. Now, I need to complete another goal; break this habit of these runner-up finishes and finally take one of these bitches down.

Thanks for all the comments & all those still keeping up with my blog. I know I was MIA for a time there but let it be known; I'm back.