I ended up going to the Derby yesterday. I got done with my luncheon function and flip-flopped in my head whether to go home and change or just go to the Derby and play a little before the tourney. My truck found it's way to the Derby.
I got there around 3:00, got on a list and they opened a new 4/8 table almost immediately. I was in a very comfortable game - not too crazy, not too rocky and played pretty steady. I was down almost to the felt before I landed a decent pot to get back to even, then landed another pot to get up a bit, then had Qs cracked and bled a little, then won a couple........roller coaster session to end up $8 up when I checked out at 5:30 to get some grub before the thourney. No real dramatic hands to talk about. That works.
I was sitting next to the Derby's rep to the WSOP this year. He ("Splash")won thier satelite and finished something like 297 at the main event - a few tables short of the money. He was a pretty aggressive player - he didn't come into a hand without a raise. He wasn't a maniac though - he picked his spots and just didn't hit much after the first few hands and he was looking at more felt than chips when I left for dinner.
SJ bopped in around 4:30 and sat down at a different 4/8 table waiting for the tourney.
Got back from dinner and finally got seated for the tourney ($55 buy-in, 1800 chips, 25/50 blinds to start). There were several players at the other end who were obviously regulars and knew each other well. They had the usual "hope you all don't mind playing for second" banter. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Well, your tight ass hero found himself all-in on the third hand of the tourney. I was in the BB and limped with 66. The flop came something like J86! Yeah baby. I bet a hundred dollar chip and didn't say "100", thus violating the one chip rule, so the bet was 50. No big deal. The player in CO raised it to 200 and I came back overe the topt o make it 500. He called and the turn brought a pretty ugly 7. "If it's ugly to me, it's probably ugly to him" I says to myself and shoved my stack right out in the middle. The guy just froze. He sat and stared at the board and then at me and the board and......finally threw his hand away. I was happy with that result.
A few minutes later SJ comesover to check on me and I shoed him my improved stack and he gives me the thimbs up and I ask about him and he says that he just tripled up. Sweet!
My cards went back to the normal "Hagar" cards for quite a while. I looked over and saw that David had wandered in and was waiting out the reserve seat I called him over and we chatted over my shoulder for a few orbits.
I looked down and saw AKs from early position and raise the now 100 bet to 300. I get called from the button. The board was a bunch of blanks with only one of my suit. I decide to pretty much release the hand without help. Check, check. OK free card is gooooooooooood. Turn brings a Q (not of my suit). Check, bet 300, fold. I just wasn't gonna bleed off my very average stack chasing an over card. I figured button had AQ or maybe better.
A little later Button raises to double the BB, SB calls and I protect my BB AT off by calling. The flop comes Txx all diamonds, of which I had none. I watched as if it was an out of body experince as my hands shove my stack to the middle. "WTF are you doing!" was all I could hear inside my head. The button calls time "this is a toutgh one". He hems and haws and sweats and squirms and finally called. I almost flipped my cards up before the SB acted, I just didn't see his cards. He squirmed a bit himself and figured he didn't have us both beat and threw 'em away. I tapped tha table and said "nice call" fully expecting to be making my exit and the button flipped over....AT no diamonds! Wow. WE chopped the pot and SB tells his shoulder pal that he just laid down KK! I just laughed in my head, and secretly congratulated myself for making a very aggressive move that saved my ass. Of course, he wouldn't have mucked it if not for the button's call, so he get's some credit too.
I go back into the freezer and look around for SJ. There's someone else in his chair. Did he get moved? No they were still filling tables with reserves. He was gone. Don't have any idea what happened, hope he shares.
Right at the end of the third round, they break our table and I see David taking the rack he just bought for the 4/8 game back to the cashier as he got seated just in time for the tourney.
My table move was not a good one. The table I drew was extremely agressive. No limped flops, someone all-in before the flop on almost every hand. I got stuck in the BB and bled some chips for the first orbit. The blinds go up to 400/800 and I'm sitting with something like 1400 in chips. Come one dealer, throw me a bone. I get A2s and decide that it's the hand I'm gonna go with. The guy sitting 2 behind me puts his chips allin (not many more than mine) and we flip 'em up before the flop. I see AQs. Great timing. The board ends up 2 pairing so we get our money back plus a chop of the blinds. A few hands later I get AQ off from early position and shove 'em in. I get no call so I bought the blinds which was a big help. I have 3200 chips now - nothing impressive, but a little more breathing room.
On my next BB I look down to see 44. OK, any chance this will limp in? UTG cleared that right up by shoving his 1100 all-in. Next guy shoves his stack, just a little bigger. Guy in middle raises his large stack all-in. Everyone folds to me. Well, I would have easily called the first raise, but there's just no way I like the idea of shoving my stack in in this spot. I throw my 44 away. They show A2s, AQ, AQs. If I only knew. The board is so full of blanks it's not funny, but there was a 2. So UTG triples up, the other 2 chop the side pot. My 44 was good. OH, well, I'll do the same, in the same spot again, no regrets.
David bops by to check out my status and I shrug and say "still alive", and he says something about having quadrupled up on the first hand! Story please!
A few hands later I get AQ on the button. This hand looked very good. A little to good. I was planning to shove when it got to me, but CO bet enough to call me all-in. IF I would have thought for just 3 seconds I would have threw it away, but my impulse to shove turned into a bad reaction call. Well maybe it was borderline, but I really wished I had thought about it a bit more. Everyone else folded, he had 99, I caught no help and I was gone.
No big deal. I was in a spot where I needed to get lucky anyway and I knew it. I finished somewhere around 30 out of 108 players. Not what I was hoping, but not bad.
David was still in it (around 3-4K in chips) when I left. I hope he made it into the money.
