Took the National Express for £34 to Nottingham, £200 for a couple of nights at Jury’s, £35 on taxi plus 5 x $109 (£448) entries Total £717
Bullet 1 – Played very badly but got very lucky, this hand shows how lucky…
Milan Harper limps for 300
Vincent Sanchez makes it 1000
Gary O’Farrell calls in the big blind
Harper calls telling us “its my favourite hand”
and they see a flop
O’Farrell leads for 1,000
Harper calls
Sanchez launches his last 10,000 over the line with a flourish
O’Farrell folds
Harper tells us “told you it was my favourite hand” and calls flipping over
I didn’t expect to see Sanchez turn over which he justifies with some chatter
the turn comes the
Sanchez is animated “any diamond. any ten”
the river is….
Sanchez doubles and has the good grace to look a little sheepish
That’s what comes of playing your favourite hand Mr Harper.
I later folded to an all in when I’d raised from MP with 910 and go two callers. I raised the 99Q for 3/4 pot and bet 3/4 pot on the 8 turn, I then lead the river for 10K to get shoved on. I was beating nothing but a bluff and decided to fold. He then showed me the bluff complete air.
“You’re supposed to bluff when people show weakness not when they show stength by betting preflop , flop, turn and river ….” I’d finally made a big lay down in a tournament and I was wrong!
Another awful pot. UTG + 1 opens for 1K the hijack calls 1K I bump it to to 7K with a pair of Kings. Thee of us see a flop of QQA rainbow and we all check . UTG + 1 went all in for his final 11K and for some reason – entitlement tilt – I call leaving myself with 5BB. Just awful…
After this hand I chipped up, only to lose on a hand where I opened for 3x under the gun with AK and got called by button and BB. On a rainbow flop of 65K I continued for 3/4 pot to be called by the button. The turn put a second diamond out and I again continued for 3/4 pot only to be re-raised all in. I finally decided to call, and the villain showed 6d3d for 4th pair and a flush draw. A second 3 arrived on the river to send me to the rail at about 9 pm. I’d played 4 hours of poker only two of them were good.
Bullet 2 – I joined the 8 pm flight 1 hour late but made level 16 and busted 15 minutes before the end. I played well, neat and tidy, found some spots and was happy with my game. The final hand was a bust, with 8BB I thought it had been folded to me in the SB and shoved my K80. I soon realised once the BB had folded, there was a limper to my left who called me with 88. Just pure tiredness, it was 2 am and I’d been up since 5 am and at the poker table for 9 hours. I have now done this twice, the other time being in Vegas also at the end of a long day. I need a new rule for this, make sure you 100% sure of the action before you act, a bit like looking left and right before you cross the road.
Key hand was when a mid-position player limped and I called with Queens hoping to get a raise behind, instead I got another limper and the BB just checked. Never slow play your big hands…there is a rule, my rule, when will I learn? Flop came Queen high 3 spades and I had the queen of spades. Initial limper bet 10K for 95% pot and I insta-shoved for 50K and got two folds and a quick call from the initial raiser who had Kings with the King of spaces. I faded the flush draw and doubled up to 110K.
Bullet 3 – Played the Saturday 1 pm flight and just didn’t get going. I played well and we ended up on the feature table which is great as you can review your hands with commentary from poker coach Paul Zimbler. It was a fun passive table with good guys but I was card dead and sat tight. I got lucky on the river when my pocket twos filled up to give me a full house, just as my opponent bluffed into me. The key hand was the one I went out on, I had a raise UTG from a tight player of 3x I flatted with AKs for 3K and got one caller behind. The flop came A56 two diamonds, UTG tanked and checked and I bet 6K into the 10K pot to get re-raised to 16K behind, I thought about it and called as my hand was under represented, UTG folded.
I checked the 10 turn and faced a bet of 22K. Now I was only beating draws and bluffs, I’m not sure of the players level, he check over shoved his set of nines earlier but still managed to get paid. I thought about it and went all in for my last 42K as if he had the diamond draw I wanted to charge him fully. If I am behind I’m committed to the hand, so I feel this is OK to get all in on the turn. He shows A 10 for 2 pair on the turn and I’m out. See 2:59 on video below.
In hindsight I could have let it go 42K was still 42BB. OK so I’d put in a third of my stack in but I could have found better spots. His turn bet meant what it said, in hindsight he’d have taken a free flush card on the turn if he was drawing. His bet most likely said I don’t have a flush draw. I need to print the rules out, as once again I didn’t have the discipline to go through the script. I need to be more calculating in these spots, I played one hand badly and was out. If I’d 3Bet I’d have got it in against UTG’s QQ and would have doubled up, but the reason I limped was because I didn’t want to flip my whole stack versus a big pair.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6BtNYjpP50
Bullet 4 – I rebuy immediately on busting and sit down at a table with blinds at 200/400 UTG+1 raises to 1,000 and I call with KQ0 even though I thought in my head “let it go respect the gap concept”. 4 callers behind me and the button who looks like an action player makes it 3500. UTG+1 folds and I call all remaining players fold. Flop comes Queen high with 2 hearts and I check, initial raiser makes it 5,700 and I re-raise to 11K only for him to jam. I tank then call and he shows AQ and wins, how to set light to $109 in 5 minutes and one hand. Just beyond awful.
I need to review Jared Tendler’s The Mental Game of Poker again as I am mentally weak, it is a part of the game that I really need to work on.
Fortunately Emma from PartyPoker was heading into town for a drink and took me with her, so I avoided avoid doing further harm to my bankroll. After three prints of Guinness and some pleasant company, I could feel the tilt leave me and felt ready for my last shot.
Bullet 5 – This was a blast, Antonius Samuel who I had shared a table with in Manchester which was very lively was checking in just before me and we make our way to our seats. In Manchester we’d met late in the day and some sledging was exchanged between us at the table.
“How did you win a £100K when all you do is fold? Any good player would have adjusted by now” I bawled, It is fair to say he gave as good as he got.
I didn’t recognise him at first and then it all came back to me, any hostilities were forgotten and he said it had been a fun table. “Big Daddy had been on his sauce that day” I said by way of apology.
There was a gentle old lady in her 70’s sat the table surrounded by a young aggro crowd ready to get lively. Almost on the first hand we had an open, a call from Antonious and a raise from the older lady who I would put in her 70’s. Two calls and the flop came Q79, Antonius led for nearly pot and the lady called with one fold behind, turn was a Jack and Antionus bet again only to get re-raised and he called. He checked the river and the lady shoved, Antonius called showing Q9 for top two pair and the old lady showed a pair of Jacks for trips.
It seemed only fair to give him a rub down “I’ve still not played a hand with you” he looked dazed, “Apparently he won a $100K once..” I said
Shortly afterwards I raised AQ to 3.5K from the BB after a table of limpers and only the old lady called. I c-bet 5K on a KQ7 board and she called. I checked the blank turn and she bet 5K, the table was laughing as I meekly folded. “Show the bluff” they demanded, she kindly showed a King to put my mind at rest.
Next hand I had an UTG raise to 1K I made it 3K to go with queens and get an all in of 18K, almost all my stack. What does this mean? Well it should mean it is not Aces or Kings therefore it is either AK, Jacks, Queens or Tens, I called and he groaned showing his pair of tens. The flop came 89J27 for a rivered straight which summed up my weekend. Sometimes the deck finds new ways of beating you down.
Next hand I shoved my AQ to get 5 callers. One player lead on the K47 board and got a caller followed by the old lady re-raising, more laughs and then a shove from the initial raiser, an0ther all in and the old lady joined the party. K4 was ahead for two pair, the second player was open ended with 56 and the old lady had AK. A seven on the turn counterfeited the initial all in’s second pair and the old lady busted three players in one hand. In 30 minutes she had destroyed the table and everyone was laughing, I wished her well as she stacked up a mountain of chips.
It was time to call it a day I went back to the hotel and watched the football.
