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Bubble

We had a stay-at-home day today, in theory so I could get some work done but this didn't go to plan when I started an online satellite for the Poker Stars WCOOP and wasn't done until nearly 2pm. There were 3 seats into the $500 Event #1 up for grabs in a $3 rebuy tournament and I was in for $6 as I took the first rebuy straight away. Places 4-17 got $33 each and $27 for 18th. I decided to play for a money place first before going all-out for the seat and turned on the agression as soon as we were down to two tables and I was just below the average chip stack.

I took a hit pretty quick though and was second to bottom going into the final 9. I clung on and with 5 left I had about $90k compared to everyone else with $250-$400. I doubled up and one more player fell, and by this time it felt like it was my day. Virtually every 50/50 I was in went my way, and I cracked aces along the way too.

I picked up quite a few rounds of blinds with some pretty good hole cards, showing them every time as I thought this would give me some respect. Which is why the way I was knocked out on the bubble made no sense. On the button, I raised with AJs - actually the weakest hand I'd raised since we were 4-handed. The player on BB was only just ahead of me in chips and had been acting pretty weak, so I was a little surprised when he immediately re-raised all-in. Figuring he didn't want a call with such a big bet and hoping that he was making a stand with a weak ace I called.

I was right about him not wanting a caller. He showed 89s, but a 9 on the turn cost me, effectively, $497.

Oh my god, they killed the Plaza tourney

A few days to update here so I'll try not to waffle.

1 August 7pm, Plaza
$50 + $10 for 1500 chips, one rebuy for $50 for 1500 extra
Blinds 20 mins: 25/50, 50/100, 100/200, 100/200/25, 200/400/50 ...
25 total entries, 4 rebuys, 14 addons, $880 1st, $175 4th
Can pay $100 up front and save $10

This is the tourney we really enjoyed playing at Christmas. However they've completely screwed it up now. Instead of a nice steady blind progression, the levels double so the rebuy is virtually useless unless you go out in round one. I took it after losing 300 chips with 88 so my stack of 2675 was just about big enough to play at 100/200 blinds. I saw two flops the entire game, once with KQ and had to fold to an ace on the flop and then I was all-in against QQ before the end of the first hour. I didn't catch. I'd had to fold JJ and 88 earlier in the game and felt I had to take a chance when the opportunity arose. This tourney is not a patch on what it was last time we were here, and I doubt we'll be going back.

2 August 7pm, Orleans
$40 for $300, $5 for 25% extra, $20 unlimited rebuys for $300, 1 $20 add on for 300.
Blinds 15 mins: 10/15, 10/20, 15/30, 20/40
Then 20 mins: 30/60, 50/100, 75/150, 100/200...
123 entries - 10 paid, top prize around $2500
$5 bounty paid for each person you bust out

I intended to take the rebuy early on but missed the boat. I was the first big blind and caught two pair with my T7 which became a full house on the river so I started with too many chips to take the rebuy! Not a major problem, except that I realised after the first hour I never needed to use my entire stack so I could have had 300 more going into the freezeout stage.

You only get a bounty if the person you bust doesn't rebuy. So when I took out A9 with TT on a scary QJ9 board (let's say I was brave, and he was stupid!) I didn't get the bonus cos he took the first of several rebuys. Generally though, the play was pretty sensible. I saw TT twice, QQ twice and AA in the first hour with moderate success. I also folded 99 earlier on to a big raise and one other caller, and with a flop that came AK9 I could have made a lot more!

At the break I topped up to about 1000 chips which should be playable with 30/60 and 50/100 blinds coming up. I didn't really get going though and ended up moving all in with a pair of 6s, called by a guy who thought he was great with QTo and spiked a T on the river.

3 August 12 noon, Orleans
Same tourney structure as above.

Came straight back next day to have another go. About 70 players this time, quite a few gobby old guys but still a fairly sensible game. Took the rebuy up front and got up to 1900 by the break, including beating QQ with AJ by catching two aces on the flop and the jack on the turn (at this point the guy with QQ was at the other side of the room).

My toughest decision yet came just a few hands after the rebuy period ended, blinds 30/60. I had JTo on the big blind with one minimum raise in early position and everyone else folding. I called for 60 more. The flop was a beautiful J98 giving me top pair with an open-ended straight draw. I checked and he bet 120 and I quickly re-raised to 400. He thought for a while and moved all-in. To call would leave me with only 200 chips, or I could fold and hang on to 1200.

I put him on an overpair, and even though I would have pot odds to call (I figure I was a slight favourite against KK or AA, slightly behind to QQ as a ten wouldn't help me, but haven't checked this precisely) I laid it down. I showed the fold, to cries of "he laid down a straight" from one of the gobby old guys, which amused me somewhat.

However in retrospect I wish I'd taken the race. I ended up moving all in with a flush draw (9s3s on big blind) against KT with top pair and didn't make it.

3 August, 6pm Binions
One table satellite, $65 entry, $550 for winner

Claire and I both sat at this table and were joined by a group of three others that all knew each other and clearly wanted to own the table. They were full of talk and played a good game (the dealer commented that the last game he delt was full of novices and this was the complete opposite) but we got the luck. After losing with AJ (top pair, top kicker) to a straight draw with Q9, I came back with a string of big pocket pairs and caught virtually all the flops where I limped or got it for free on a blind! Claire gambled with A7 vs 77 and won when the board brought KK99; then with Q7 vs K5 and made a straight! In the last hand I moved all in with Ah8h and was called by J9 and flopped a straight. The didn't seem keen on letting us play to see who would have won, so we chopped (although I had more chips! :) ).

The long and not very winding road

Although the following, which we found on http://www.laughlinnevadaguide.com/belletournaments.htm sounded very attractive, the two hour each way journey to Laughlin was actually a complete waste of time as there were no such tournaments running.

Sit & Go Sundays Single Table Tournaments. Tourneys start as soon as
a table fills. See podium for registration info. $25 buy-in. $2 gratuity.
75% of prize pool to first place, 25% to second-7-Card Stud (1pm-5:30pm),
No-Limit Texas Hold 'em (5:30pm-10pm)

Got to see lots of desert though, and finally find a stretch of road where cruise control was useful...

So the only poker-related activity today was a trip to the Gamblers' General Store to get some Copag cards to try out, and we picked up about half a dozen books too!

Back to Binions

After finally making it to a grocery store to load up the huge refridgerator we have here (it only took 2 days to get round to it) we ambled down to Binions for the 2pm tourney again. 93 entrants this time, giving 10 paid spots and a top prize of $2370.

I only got to play 2 hands in the first hour, raising to 3xBB with AK and getting one customer. The flop comes KK6 with 2 clubs and I lead out for 200, which was called instantly. Had to bet the set as it was the first time they'd seen me do anything, and if I check the flop with a strong hand a continuation bet is useless later on if I raise pre-flop and miss. The turn is a beautiful 6 so I no longer care about the flush draw and bet 200 again. I should have paid more attention to the other player's chips as this only left him with 175 when he strangely only called but I got the remaining chips on the river (a Queen) so it turned out OK.

The only other hand I played was a somewhat loose call with 75s after limping pre-flop. One player moved all in for 175 more and I was first to call with a flush draw. Fortunately the other player in the pot was sensible and just called and checked it down - I didn't catch, but it didn't hurt too much.

At the first break I had 1575 (hey, it's more than I started with) and took the rebuy for 1000 more. I played AJ and AQ but they were no good, and then dwindled down to about 700 chips. With 9s7s on the button and one limper ahead I stuck them in, blinds folded and the limper called with AJ. I caught a magic 7 to stay alive - with antes in play this took me up to 2000.

Next hand I see QQ and push all my chips in again. Got a caller with A9 and they hold up - I'm back in the game! The roll continued for another hand when I limped with AT and a short stack went all in for 600. He turned over 9d7d and this time the best hand held up!

I don't really remember much after that, except that I moved tables and my luck changed. I clung and the 30 players remaining dropped to 20 remaining in not much more than one round of blinds. The sheer volume of all-in action meant I just couldn't take a pop at any pots without a very strong hand. I was left having to go for it with Ah6h on the button even with another all in ahead of me. It became a four-way pot and I was against JJ KQ and A5 - so I did have 2 outs. Two hearts came on the flop and I had a glimmer of hope but JJ took everything and I finished in 16th place.

First blood

Downhill all the way now that I have my first win under my belt! It was only a ten person tourney (they call it a "satellite", even though it's a cash prize) but I got to the last two with only slightly more chips than the other guy and we agreed a two-way chop for $275 each. This is a Binions sit-and-go thing, which apparantly they do all day every day and I have a feeling we'll be going back quite a bit. Costs $65 to enter, with $55 going back to players so quite a rake but the standard of play in this one was pretty poor so it could be beatable. Gonna try and find out anyway.

Everyone starts with 1200 chips and blinds go up every 15 minutes, starting at 25/50. I'm pretty sure they skipped the 75/150 level but can't actually remember for sure. Took just over an hour to complete so you have to get lucky early on. I did - limping with Ah3h on the first hand, I bet the flop when a 3 appeared and got one caller. The turn gave me a flush draw and I took a free card and a lovely Th appeared on the river. Bet 300 and got paid off by AT who caught top pair on the river but had only ace high when he called the flop bet.

Key hand came with 4 players remaining and blinds at 100/200. I had AhQh and raised pre-flop on the button to 600. After some thought, I was called by the BB who bet out 900 on a flop of JT8 with 2 diamonds and no heart. If both my overcards were good, I had 14 outs (3 Aces, 3 Queens, 4 Kings and 4 9s) which made me a favourite with two cards to come. Turns out they were good - I re-raised all-in for about 2200 and he called with 55. Turn was a blank and then a magic ace on the river to take down a huge pot.

Binion's has a great poker room. About 50 tables, well away from the main casino so it's nice and quiet. They have four main tournaments every day as well as the satellites, and we also played in the afternoon game.

28 July 2pm, Binions
$60 for 1000 chips, $10 dealer bonus for 500 more
1 rebuy for $40 get extra 1000 (at any time)
Blinds 20 mins: 25/50, 50/100, 75/150, 100/200, 100/200/25, 200/400/50 ...
50 entries, 29 rebuys, 6 paid, $1460 1st, $146 6th

I gained a very useful tight table image before my first table broke, after getting QQ cracked early on and needing to rebuy. I was on the button with 3 limpers and raised to 300 (blinds 25/50). 2 fold and the last limper pushes for 525 more. As suspicious as the call-reraise is, I had to call and found myself against 99. The flop of 89T left me with a queen or jack to regain the lead and the turn 6 meant a 7 would split but it was not to be.

And so it was that the next time I raised, the player whose blind I stole piped up and commented that he hadn't seen me play much and had never seen my cards. Someone soon corrected him and pointed out that I got beat with the QQ and from then until the first break I got no action whenever I raised pre-flop. Could have taken better advantage in retrospect but I was happy to pick up at least one set of blinds each round.

After the break I picked up KK then QQ. No callers, but I showed both to try and set me up for some easy stealing, but the table broke soon after. Once antes kicked in I didn't get an opportunity to play a hand for about 40 minutes and the huge stack of green (25) chips I moved to the new table with had diminished into nothing. The best hand I saw was KQ which I couldn't play as it was raised and called ahead of me.

I was whittled down to 1200 and on the big blind for 400. Everyone folded to the small blind - with about 2500 chips - who raised the minimum. I looked down at my cards, having already decided that I had to go for it, and seeing 53o I stuck my chips in hoping that both cards were live. He called and flipped over As6s and a 5 fell on the river to double me up, and I had to endure much whining from the player I beat until the second break.

I continued to pick up virtually no cards but players dropped like flies at the 300/600 level and amazingly I made the final table with a tiny stack. Binion's have made a nice effort with the final table. It's in a section all by itself with rail on all four sides so there's plenty of room for people to watch. The table itself looks the bomb too, with an illuminated outer ring and it's the only table in the room that has a printed cloth: "Binion's - the place that made poker famous".

I lasted exactly one hand at the final table, picking up A9o in mid position and shoved in my remaining 2175 - with 750 in antes as well as 900 in blinds, it wasn't enough to expect to steal with. The player to my left called instantly with A3o and the BB thought for a while before folding (he said he mucked A8). Just when I thought I was in good shape to survive a little longer, the nightmare 3 fell on the turn and I was out.

Finally an update

Seeing as it's nearly 10am (6pm British time) and Steve is still in bed, I'd say he's recovered from the jet lag better than me. And it means that I have chance to post an update here!

So far played tournaments at Aladdin, Stratosphere and Sahara. No money finishes yet, but fairly happy with the way it's going. These tournaments all move just a little bit too fast compared to what I'm used to, so need to adjust or find one that doesn't move up as quickly.

Here's a rundown so far.

25 July 1pm, Aladdin
$50+$10 buy in for 2000 chips
1 rebuy for $40, 2000 more chips (can be taken any time)
Blinds 20 mins: 25/50, 50/100, 100/200, 200/400, 300/600...
47 players, 6 paid, $1100 for first, $232 for 6th.

My first pot of the trip was won with a mighty ace high. Blinds 25/50, I limp with Ah9h in late position. 2 callers. Flop QJJ no hearts. Both check to me so I bet the pot (150). One caller and it's checked to the end. He'd called with an open ended draw (KTo) and I took it down.

First all in was with 77 and was a re-raise after the player to my right went all in for 750. I stuck about 2200 in the pot to force out any other callers. It worked (although having seen plenty of 4-way all-in action since, I may think twice about doing the same in future!) and it was a classic poker showndown as he held AQ with the ace showing up on the turn.

I took the rebuy at the break taking me up to 3100. Only had 15 BBs but had landed on the button for the start of round 4. Had very little opportunity from then until I saw AK with blinds at 300/600 and pushed my remaining 2700. One caller with KK and the ace didn't appear.

Claire had a much better run in this one, and hopefully she'll post here about it!

The room isn't bad - it's separate to the casino floor in a kind of pod right in the centre. The crowd was fairly young, mostly WPT fans.

27 July 9am, Stratosphere
$20+$2 buy in for 500 chips, $3 dealer bonus for $200 more
1 rebuy for $20 gets 500 extra (at any time).
Blinds 15 mins: 10/25, 25/50, 50/100, 75/150, 100/200...
4 tables - 4 paid
It's early days for the Strat's poker room but this tourney lacks common sense. The first round of blinds is 10/25, which is just pointless. Red (5) chips are used for 15 minutes only and only removed after round 4, and the 15 minute level only gets half way around the table so half the players never even have to use them! Every time there's an all-in, it's for 210 or 195 and the dealer has to borrow red chips from all over the place to make up the right pots. We had one four-way all-in that took over five minutes to dish out (because the first hand of level 3 started with only ten minutes on the timer!). With blinds at 50/100, one player put in a 100 BB using 18 chips - 15 red and 3 green! That's just silly...

Our first dealer, Lulu, had never dealt a tournament before and was getting heat from some of the players that thought they knew better than she did. A card flipped during the deal, she made it the burn and did everything correct. But someone didn't like the flop so started causing a fuss and saying she had to burn three or something.

Also, for some reason they decided to change dealers with 2:30 on the clock before the first break. Makes no sense.

I'd managed to get a bit of a lead early on, up to about 1400. The biggest pot came when I limped with Kh7h in late position (6 players) and the flop came KKJ. There was an all-in raiser ahead of me with a jack, who must have figured that his odds were good enough with only 10 other down cards and 2 kings left in an unraised pot. Not complaining...

On the last hand before the break I saw AQs on the BB. Can't remember the betting on this one, but ended up in a 3-way all-in vs Jc9c and 9sTs. Pretty good, you'd think. Flop comes 9d7s6s, so A or Q in spades no longer works for me. The turn is a delightful Qc and then I'm mortified to see the last 9 in the deck appear on the river.

With 600 chips left, blinds at 100/200 after the break and me on SB straight away I decided a rebuy was pointless for just 500 more. Stole on first hand back with 87o, then thought about it on next hand on button with K2o but decided to wait - of course the SB folded!

Got to see a free flop with 73o on BB and caught 753 with 2 diamonds. SB bet 200 on flop and I pushed for 700. He folded and said he had a 5, so I doubt I'd have got any more and it was a scary board to flat call on. Not completely sure the push was correct with a BB special like that though...

I was sent packing with A9 and tried to steal. Two callers with KJ (for 300) and AQ and the board came JJQ so I had a tiny chance to take the side pot with running 9s and of course didn't do it.

I liked that their blinds start at 25BB and include the 75/150 level but 700 chips isn't enough. Claire suggested we could play this one like a freezeout and take the rebuy at the very start, giving 1200 starting chips and I might give this a try. In fact, I don't think you need the rebuy straight away, but if someone else at the table has a decent win before you do, then you should top up so you can tackle his whole stack. This could be a good strategy for all the single rebuy tournies.

With us both eliminated by 10:30 we walked up the street to the Sahara just in time for the 11am tourney. Will post about that one later!