WSOP Trip = Donkdown

Well, you may have guessed by now that I didn't do well in my first WSOP event.

I lasted a little more than 3 hours and I'm pretty disappointed with my overall play.

I was seated at table #104 in the infamous "poker sauna". When I arrived to the table and took my seat, I didn't recognize anybody at my table, but did see Bill Chen sitting at the table in front of me and Michael Binger sitting at the table to my left. Eventually, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson would be moved to the table directly behind my seat.

My table started out pretty slow and pretty quiet. I didn't play many hands in the first few orbits, and even folded my button twice in hands folded to me.

With blinds at 25/50, I picked up 10-10 in EP, raised to 200 and everybody folded. That was my first scooped pot of my WSOP career.

Once, in the big blind, I folded 4-4 to an early raiser with one caller. The flop brought a 4 and I kicked myself mentally for the next hour.

In the big blind with 3 limpers ahead of me, I looked down at JJ. I bumped it to 4 times the big blind, hoping to get just one caller, but everybody folded, and I was happy to win that hand without having to see a flop.

With blinds at 25/50, and in mid-position, I looked down at KK. I made a standard raise to 150 and got one caller. The flop came Ace high, and I fired out 250 into a pot of 375.

He called.

The turn brought a blank, and I fired another bet, this time for 500 (hoping that if he flopped a weak ace, he would fold it).

He called.

The turn brought another harmless non-King and I checked and he checked behind.

I announced, "If you have the Ace, you win" and showed my KK.

He paused and said, "I have Ace-Jack."

"Ooookay," I thought to myself. "I didn't ask you what your kicker was dumbass... I thought I made it pretty clear that ANY ace was good..."

Whatever.

Before that hand, I was up to about 5,500 in chips (starting chip stacks were 4,000). I took a hit, but was still above the original 4,000 in chips although I was now below average.

I told myself that I was going to pick my spots and get that money back from that calling station. My chance would come sooner than I thought.

About 12 hands later with blinds at 50/100, I was in mid position with 6-7 of clubs. A limper ahead of me was already in the pot, so I limped behind him.

The donkey calling station was in the big blind and made it 300 to go. The original limper called, and I was holding exactly the hand I wanted to have in a 3-way raised pot.

The flop came down 5-6-8 rainbow with 1 club.

The original limper checked, as did I, and the raiser bet only 300 into a pot with almost 1,000 in it, and the original limper folded.

That bet told me he was either REALLY strong or REALLY weak.

I was holding mid-pair with an open-ended straight draw and faced my first real tough decision of the tournament. I only have two moves at this point... Raise or fold. I can't just call here.

I knew if I raised, I would have to bet out at the turn no matter what it brought.

As I stared at the bet, I thought to myself, "Why only 300?" He did raise two limpers in position, so AK or AQ was a real possibility here.

I announced, "Raise" and put out another 500 to make it 800 straight.

With little hesitation, he called. In hindsight, that bet was WAAAY to small for a check-raise. I should have put out a minimum 1000, maybe even 1200.

The turn brought a beautiful 4 hit giving me the straight. I wanted to represent a hand that he still had outs on, so instead of value betting here, I fired out 1500 which was more than half my stack. He contemplated, and after about 30 seconds, he called.

The river brought the next best card. An Ace. I almost giggled it was so perfect. His AK or AQ would almost guarantee a call!

I pushed my remaining stack into the middle and stared ahead at the felt with the brim of my hat tucked way low so nobody at the table could see my eyes.

I had never hoped so badly for a call.

After about a minute, with over 6000 in the pot and only 1600 behind him, he folded.

I let out a sigh, disguising it as relief.

There was a guy sitting in seat 6 who seemed to know what he was doing... he was your typical "Euro" player, complete with tight white shirt and Prada sunglasses. He had his name embroidered on his shirt and that scared me...

"Age Spets?" I asked as I butchered his name...

He corrected me, pronouncing his name, "Ug-yah Savets".

"So you're from Detroit, right?" I joked.

He was fairly loose-aggressive from what I could tell. He liked to play pots, and would almost always open for a raise in middle or late position if it was folded to him. His button would be my UTG, his cut-off, my big blind... but I was happy that I was sitting to his left.

He won a lot of little pots early on while other players were still trying to figure each other out. Pokernews update teams would occasionally gaze at his chipstack and write figures down and no less than three different photogs stopped by and snapped his picture.

Apparently, the dude is a pretty decent European poker player and is actually on Norway's version of Team Poker Stars. His biggest state-side cash came in last year's WSOP $1500 buy-in event where he took 4th for more than $178,000.

Anyways, as we chatted, I noticed that if he limped into a pot from EP, nobody wanted to raise his blind. So, I would often limp behind him with mediocre hands, suited cards, etc... just hoping to see a flop for cheap.

He took a couple of hits from the guy in seat 1 (a weak-tight player with goofy rap-around shades who's hands would shake even when he posted his blinds).

UTG, Spets limped for 2o0.

By this time, I had over 8000 in chips and looked down at J-10 suited. I called and so did both blinds. The flop came down J-2-2 with 1 heart.

Both blinds checked.

Spets checked.

I bet out 500.

Both blinds fold.

Spets looks back at his cards and says, "Do you have a jack?" and calls.

The turn brings a 4 which was also the second heart, now giving me a heart draw to go with top pair.

He checks again.

I bet another 500 saying, "We've probably got the same hand."

Oops.

He reaches for his chips and says, "I'm going to put you to the test" and raises it another 1000.

Did he really flop a 2 from EP?

It's 1000 more to me and there's almost 4000 in the pot. Sure, I have top pair, but I'm not crazy about my kicker... but I do have the hearts draw.

"I'll call."

The turn brings a King of diamonds.

Believe it or not, that card actually helped me. Now my 10 kicker doesn't play and if he did have JQ, I just improved.

He has only 1400 more and pushes. Immediately after he pushes his chips in the middle, he reaches for his Prada sunglasses.

I think for a moment. I have Jacks and Deuces with a King kicker.

He limped and check-raised the turn and pushed on the river.

"Do you want a call?" I ask him as I flash him my Jack.

No response.

"Okay, well... I call."

All I hear is, "yes I wanted a call" and I see him flip over two black aces.

The guy limps with aces UTG and the donkey who couldn't get away from top pair fell right into it.

I congratulate him on a nice hand and tell him how brilliantly he played the hand. He explains to me that he needed to take a chance and double-up and I agree.

I tell myself that I am to stay out of pots with Spets for the rest of the day.

... That didn't last.

About half an hour later with blinds now at 100/200, I pick up J-Q of diamonds on the button.

Spets raises to 600 and I'm the only caller. The flop comes down 7-8-9. He checks and I gladly check behind.

The turn brings a 3. Spets leads out this time for 1200 and I make a loose call with a gutshot straight draw and two overs.

The river brings the Jack, giving me top pair. He pushes and I ask for a count just to make it look like I'm actually going to call.

He has me way outchipped, and after only 5 seconds of counting down, the dealer tells me, "he's got you."

I show the Jack and throw my hand into the muck. He asks me if I want to see one card and he places them both on the table. I point to the card closest to me and he flips it over showing the 10 for the straight.

"Wow" I said.

"I flopped it" he says back.

"Stupid Jack-Ten... I hate that hand" I chuckle.

I was down to under 4000 and blinds were about to go up to 100/200 with a 25 ante. I would lose 500 chips every 10 hands at this rate. I decided I was going to either slowplay a monster pocket pair like KK or AA and try to double up or I was going to push with any ace in order to pick up the blinds and antes and give me some breathing room.

On the very first hand of the new blind level, a guy in EP who had been crippled a few hands earlier pushed his remaining 700 chips into the pot. Unfortunately, Spets called behind him. It was folded to me and I looked down at A-7.

I thought that if the original raiser had a big ace or big king, Spets would call with any pair. If he had a mid-pair like 88 or 99 I hoped that a re-raise here would get him off of it. Hell, there's no way he could call with just an Ace right?

I push and it's another 2400 to call. It's folded to Spets and he says, "I just don't see how I can fold here." I hate that line.

He calls.

The original raiser shows 8-6 off suit.

Spets shows...

A-Q.

I'm dominated.

I joke to him that he's ahead... for now.

The flop comes Jack high with no 7.

All I can think about is how badly I played this hand. "Call the pre-flop bet and push the turn, dummy" I tell myself.

The turn brings an ace.

Dammit.

"Well, at least I'm going to go out with top pair" I think to myself.

I have 3 outs with 1 card to come. If indeed, this is my destiny as Stewman had told me before the trip, I know what's coming...

... but it's not my destiny, and while the river brings another Jack, giving me two pair, the Jack also gave Spets two pair and his Queen kicker played. I stand from the table and he extends his hand to me. I shook it and smiled.

I was out of my first World Series of Poker event. And I was knocked out by a pro.

Disappointed, I walk out the door and keep my eyes on the floor the whole way. I call Stewman and tell him the bad news. He tells me he's up over 9,000 and I'm happy for him.

The walk of shame is a long one at the WSOP. Seriously, the hall leading from the Amazon Ballroom to the parking lot is like a quarter of a mile.

When I get back to the MGM, I decide to play a little 1-2 no-limit to clear my mind.

Bad mistake.

In a little under an hour, my KK loses to 55, I flop trip Jacks and lose the kicker race to the big blind, and my all-in for over $50 with A-J preflop is called by K-Q and he flops a King. So for those of you keeping score at home, that's - $2000 from the tournament, and - $600 in cash game buy-ins... all in under 6 hours.

I figure my luck can't get much worse and I tell Stewman I'm heading back to the Rio to meet him for dinner. When I get there, I see the satellite line is in full-effect so I head over there first. I have about an hour until the dinner break, so to kill time, I'll play another satellite and hopefully make up for the rest of the day.

I get called for a $325 and sit down in seat 8.

I love seat 8.

After about an hour, we're down to 6.

And then I see Stewman.

I didn't hear them announce the dinner break yet.

Shit.

He has his backpack on and he looks... well... he doesn't look good.

"I'm out" he tells me.

I stand up from the table and chat with him for a moment. He tells me what happened and excuses himself. I head back to the table and the first hand I'm dealt when I get back is JJ in the big blind.

The UTG player in seat 10 raises it up. The player on the button in seat 7 then re-pops it.

Shit.

I can't just call here. Can I?

It's going to be about half my stack to call the re-raise and there is still a player to act after me. If I'm holding AA, I probably call, but any other hand is a fold or a push.

Right?

Have I ever folded JJ preflop?

If I call, I know that I am committing the rest of my chips on the flop no matter what hits the board. If I raise, I'm pretty sure the re-raiser is calling, but I have no idea what the UTG guy will do. I do not want to see a 3-way flop with JJ. No way.

So I fold...

... And so does the UTG raiser.

Dammit.

I tell the re-raiser on the button that I folded JJ for him. He seems uninterested to me, which leads me to believe that I was ahead.

Oh well. If it's a cash game and I can re-load, I might call.

Not here. Not now.

We get down to 4 handed and I'm second in chips. Stewman comes back and I tell him I can't wait until the next guy goes out because I want to chop 3 ways.

The next guy doesn't go out for another 20 minutes. By then, I'm the short stack at the table.

When we're down to 3, I ask if the other two guys want to chop. Nope.

To make a short story even shorter, I push with K-8 and the chipleader wakes up with QQ. I hit my 8 on the flop, but no more help comes on the turn or the river and I'm out in 3rd for no money.

Before I can even stand up from the table, the chipleader is offering to chop with the other guy.

Ugh. That pisses me off.

I'll write about my Venetian Deep Stacks Extravaganza II Tournament in my next post.