tp's table talk

I’d like to officially thank The Poker Hermit and Grubby for their words on Choice Poker. I’m 143 dollars richer thanks to their advice. First was the 23$ from the bonus, then the 120$ I just won from placing third in the new player freeroll.

With a good finish like that, you might figure I could weave a riveting tale of my ascent to the money. You’d be wrong, though. I was short stacked early and didn’t really like my chances to even make the money. There were 55 players in the tourney, after those who didn’t show up were pared away. But, I got called all-in in the first 5 minutes when the table was still mostly automated folding stations, and I was forced to abandon a sizable investment in the pot. Shortly after that the tables merged down to just those present and the tournament was on for real.

I managed to keep afloat for the next hour or so, maintaining my T800 stack (started with T1200) and snuck into the money (10-20 paid 20$) with T1100. But then things started clicking, I stole some pots going all-in and caught some cards. Before I knew it I was at the final table with T30K, double the chips for the next player. Suddenly I had the advantage, and hdouble was sweating me from the rail (he’d gotten the start time wrong, so missed the tournament. I think Grubby was still monitoring the action as well, after finishing 14th. BoyGenius from Gambling Blues was also there, and recognized my name from the WBT. Unfortunately, he didn’t make the money, as he was dominated going all-in and was beat the whole way. A good bet anyways.

And then there was RaySmuckles, who I assume is The Poker Hermit, though I could certainly be wrong. He made it to the final table as well, but went out when I put him all-in after he raised before the flop with pocket fours. I hit a pair on the flop and he was done in 6th.

I played reasonably well for the next bit, but the chips were evening out as it came down to the last three. Things went back and forth for a while and I was starting to wonder how long we’d end up going on for. That impatience led to a very bad call that took most of my chips, and my all-in from the SB didn’t catch, so my night was over. I was pretty happy at the time, but the more and more I think about it the more upset I get with the call. It was just a stupid risk for my chips, and it cost me at least $80, as I had a good shot to at least make second. And first was certainly a possibility. But, I didn’t take the time to think things through fully and it cost. Still, it’s money for nothing, so I can’t really complain.

And it’s my biggest single table win ever in poker. I had a few home game sessions that ended with similar totals, but that was Canadian dollars. Also my biggest day – 152$. And my biggest weekend – 194$ (hmmm…thought that I had topped 200$, but I forgot the 10$ I dropped at Choice on Friday). I did get a bit lucky in the tournament, but I also made some good plays, and I definitely played solid in my ring games. So overall, I’m feeling pretty good about poker right now. Of course that means I’ve got a business trip this week, so I won’t be back to the tables until next weekend to try my luck at 1/2. I think I’ll tuck a poker book in my bag and do a little brushing up.

This entry was posted on Sunday, March 14th, 2004 at 9:52 pm and is filed under Poker. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.