Something Bad, Something Good

I went to go play yesterday. My plan was to get a couple of hours in before the heads-up tournament started at 4pm. I had already bought my $125 ticket to the event a couple weeks ago because I expected the 64 player cap to be hit. I show up just before cash games start and I wander over to the bulletin board to see if they have the number of entrants listed. Looking at the board I see that the event was YESTERDAY. Fuck Fuck Fuck. There is $125 down the drain. I now know how much I need to make in the cash games to break even on the day. The goal would be $125 and get the hell out.

I was on the 3rd 1/2 table to get going about 10 minutes after they opened. Early on there was a raise to $6 and I called with KJdd along with 4 others. Six ways to the flop it comes AhQh10d. The raiser leads for $10 and I go ahead and raise it up to $25, everyone folds back and he tanks and folds AK face up. Just like that I am up to $140. I fold for about the next lap and a half and then pick-up 66 UTG+1. UTG raises to $12 and I FOLD!?!? What the fuck am I doing? If I can't call $12 with 66 in a 1/2 game why am I playing? After I fold I see 5 people call the raise and the flop naturally comes Q65. Here is where it gets interesting. SB leads for $12, next to act who is a total fish shoves for his last $40. It gets back to the pre-flop raiser who has $80 behind and he decides to send it in. Back to the SB who shoves for about $60 or so. What do they roll over? SB has KQ (lol) short stack had Q10 (double lol) and original raiser has KK. Turn brick river 10 and the fish gets shipped the pot. Shortly after that he gets up and moves to the 5/10 game ($100 buy-in, triple lol).

If I call the raise i would take down the approximately $150 pot (I assume the SB woulda folded). I seriously contemplated getting up right there. If I am playing not to lose I really should leave but do I? No. Turned out to be a great decision.

Thanks to my ongoing IM session with Zooks I have every big hand I played, and there were a lot of them in a short period of time. Sitting on around $140 I limp with QJ suited and go ahead and flop the flush. I bet the flop and got 1 caller. Turn brings a 4th of the suit and I bet again and get called. River brings a 5th of the suit and I check it back and my hand is good, he flashed the 10 for the 3rd nuts. Up to $172. Not long after I limp A3dd and the flop comes down J33 in a multi-way pot. I bet out in late position and the 4 others in the hand all fold.

My first losing hand I raised to $10 with QQ and only the player to my left calls leaving$25 behind. Flop comes A106dd. Playing with him for a while in the past I'm fairly certain he doesn't have the ace I lead for $20, he sends his last $25 in and I call. No he doesn't have the A, he has QJ for the 15 outer and he gets there and I am back down to $120.

About a lap later I am in late position and limp along with just about the rest of the field with Q9dd. Flop comes J10xdd. Guess it doesn't get much better than that. A late position player leads for $20 into the $12ish pot. I am next to act and just call along with two others and the pot has ballooned up pretty quickly. Turn brings me the flush and it's checked to me. I bet 30ish and its folded back to the flop raiser and he check raise shoves and has be covered. This dude was a major donator and got lucky early to build a stack. I called fairly quick. He says damn you have the flush and turns over 98 for the flopped straight and is drawing dead. I get better than the full double and am sitting on $285 after the hand.

Not longer after that (noticing a trend?) I flop two pair from the blind and it all gets in on the turn vs the same guy who doubled through me and this time he missed his 15 outs and I am up to $330. As my hands can now turn anything to gold it wasn't much longer I limp A9dd. Flop comes 789 and it gets check through 5 ways. Turn binks the 9. One player bets $15 and I min-bet it up to $30. A 3rd player shoves for his last $37 and we both call. Thinking I need the board to pair it comes in the way of a 7. Other player check and I bet $40 and he turbo-mucks 10J for the flopped straight face up. The all-in player also flopped the straight with 10J. After the hand I am now just a touch under $400.

This session isn't even close to over yet.

I raise 88 first in and get 2 callers. Flop comes 642 and I lead for $10 and get min-raised by the fish to my immediate left, next to act calls and I call. Turn 10. I check and other two check??? River 8 for my set. I lead for $25 and both fold. Not long after that the fish to my left decides to throw the $4 straddle on. It gets called in 5 spots before it gets to me in the BB and I look down at AA. I raise to $27 and EVERY ONE FOLDS. I will take it.

Then the inevitable cooler comes. I am sitting on $380 or so and call a raise to $6 with K9dd. About 4-5 people to the flop and it comes Q96dd. Pre-flop raiser bets $10 and gets 3 callers. Turn pairs the 6 and it gets checked around. River completes the flush. I lead for $15, fish calls and a tighty mctight min raises to $30. I make the crying call and fish calls. Tight had the A5dd and scoops. and I am back down to $320. Of course I was on my last lap at the table too.

Still on my last lap (last hand actually) I limp AK UTG and the fish raises to $6 like he has a tendency to do. Everyone else at the table knows he is a fish and 5 other people call the $6 before it gets back to me. I put in a small raise the $220 and everyone folds.

I ended up staying through the blinds and got up with $342 in front of me. A ton of hands for a 3 hour session for sure. Made up for that missed tournament.