St. Martin/St. Maarteen trip report

[PokerNeal]

Didn't post it sooner because I didn't make it into the money! /images/graemlins/cool.gif But had time this PM and thought I would have some fun writing this up and making it fun reading for you all lovely members.

To begin with, I won this satellite on Party. I really wanted to win it (so I could go to St. Martin -- heard a lot about the place) and won the satellite. I suppose when you really have your heart set on something you try extra hard with all your senses tingling making the right moves at the right times. There are times when I play well but my heart is really not in it and in the blink of an eye a big misplayed hand has ended the tourney. Not this one.

Got in touch with the Party folks and a couple of 2+2 members who had won an entry and was told by Party that accomodations would be superb with rooms with balcony facing ocean and what have you. When I reached there however the place was oversold and I got a room with a balcony facing what seemed like a waste treatment plant. Turns out I was lucky because there was a guy who didn't even get his room and had to bunk with someone else.

Very nice island this and the resort was right next to the Princess Juliana airport. My first foray into St. Martin was find liquor. Wow, is it cheap here or what?! About 12 bucks (no tax!) for Glenlivet 12 year old and compare to that around 30 bucks plus tax around here! Sweet! Set my ipod up with the tiny altec lansing speakers and sat and watched the waste treatment plant and had a nice drink.

Went down to the casino across the street. No one from Party to be found there. Was told that they do show their heads tomorrow. So walked down the street where the resort and casino were and sat at an outside bar (it was actually a docked boat that was made into a bar) and watched the ocean and the planes. Turns out that this bar was at the end of the main airport runaway and there was a big sign warning of backlash from jet plane engines that were taking off. Said what the hell and took a drink and stood by the fence to watch a giant AirFrance jet ready to take off. The blast was so severe it took me into the air and knocked me a few feet onto the sand behind and my drink ended up in the ocean. Oh, well, only 3 bucks for the Scotch and am sure the scrape injuries would probably heal in the next week or two.

Went to the casino and played penny machines. Pressed the maximum button and the machine I think took 2500 pennies off the credit meter. Wow, hit a 200$ jackpot probably big by St. Martin standards.

Showed up for the main event next day and there was Marcel Luske (AKA Flying Dutchman) dressed in a pair of Bahama shorts and shirt giving a speech. "What is my secret you ask?" he said. "I don't wait for K-K or A-A or Q-Q... I make plays with hands like K-J and take your chips when you don't dare call my bet!" And on and on. Just two months back I had played with Marcel in Estonia (World Speed Poker) and he had knocked himself out of the tourney by going all-in hoping for a flush draw on the river. In that tourney I had secured a respectable 11th place and ended up in the money.

Went to the registration and got my seating card from a box which said table 3, seat 3. A whole bunch of unknowns at the table and the guy to my left had won the satellite I think on UltimateBet. Almost every attendee there had come from a satellite on PlanetPoker. I had never even heard of PlanetPoker.

I sat there and decided to play a solid game. Got mid pairs, limped in, even handled mini raises and ended up with ugly boards every single time. Bet on A-Q only to have a J or K show up on the flop. Bet on A-K only to have a Q or J show up on the flop. For 32 straight hands in a row I got hands like J-2, 3-4, 7-10, etc., and by break 2 I was less than half the average stack. I picked up a K-K and went all-in with a guy who flipped over A-J and won that hand. Still below average stack. Eventually with the blinds at 300-600 I went all-in on the button with A-8 only to have the BB call me with A-10 and he took me down because of the 10 kicker!

~~~ Funny note -- I was told that Marcel kept his word and went all-in with a K-J when he hit a J on the flop. Too bad for Marecl that his opponent held K-K and out went the dutchman ~~~~~~
The prize pool was pretty decent and I think paid only the top 36 or so. I was out in the 60 plus player range. The first prize exceeded a hundred thousand dollars. Came in next day to see the final table which was full of players speaking with European acents so I guess the Euros took that one down.

Next day early morning I checked out at the hotel tried to sock me with the entire bill including the hotel room that was supposed to have been paid by Party. Fortunately for me the Party girl rep showed up from somewhere and after half hour of island argument they took the room of my biil. Left St. Martin with a couple of bottles of fine Scotch and a T-shirt that said I was there.

All in all a fun trip. It was quite a bitch to get there taking over 12-16 hours of journey time. I assure you though it is a lovely place, lovely ocean, English speaking and everyone loves the dollar which is pretty much the defacto currency there.

PS. Went to a beach and watched plenty of topless Euro women while eating a cheeseburger and downing a Miller Lite. Turned out 3-4 of the Party sponsored folks had decided to take the day off and hang by the beach so it made for quite a good time what with good cheap beer, nice burger and the topless scenary....

[Lloyd]

Sorry we didn't get a chance to hookup. I was actually at that pre-tourney "lecture" with Enon but I guess we just couldn't connect. I've been meaning to post my own trip report so I'll probably just hijack yours and add some of my thoughts. And there is an issue that I have with Party Poker that we might want to team up about.

Until then . . .

[Enon]

[ QUOTE ]
Sorry we didn't get a chance to hookup. I was actually at that pre-tourney "lecture" with Enon but I guess we just couldn't connect. I've been meaning to post my own trip report so I'll probably just hijack yours and add some of my thoughts. And there is an issue that I have with Party Poker that we might want to team up about.

Until then . . .

[/ QUOTE ]

I actually mentioned this to Erika and she said that Party will be reinbursing people with the extra dough once all the expenses are tabulated. Lets hope she follows through on this.

[Lloyd]

Excellent.

[Lloyd]

Here is my trip report for St. Maarten. Unfortunately, I never got to meet PokerNeal although Enon and myself got to hand out a bit.

Party Poker Qualification and Customer Relations

It took me two satellites to win my entry into the IPF St. Maarten tournament. The first time I played I made it down to the final table (top 4 paid), and made a stupid blunder putting all of my chips at risk with TT. I was currently in 3rd place but with several players on my heals. I got knocked out by JJ and learned a valuable lesson playing in these types of tournaments.

I did not make the same mistake the second time. I got down to the final table with enough chips to essentially cruise into a spot and I only played premium hands. Eventially, the short stacks got gobbled up and I won the $4k prize package.

All in all, I found this a fairly easy tournament to play in. Much easier than even the Supers.

PartyPoker only started running satellites a few weeks before the actual event. Apparently, there wasn't enough pre-registration for the main event and the organizers got worried and went to PP for help. This explains (but does not excuse) part of the problems dealing with them prior to and at the tournament.

Once I won the satellite, I got no comfirmation at all from PP for several weeks. That confirmation (by email) essentially said congrats for winning and you'll get more info later (it was already just about a month before the trip). We didn't get any real details until just a couple of weeks prior to leaving, and the cash portion of the prize wasn't deposited into our accounts until the week before. That didn't cause me any problems, but I know for some people it resulted in them having to wait to book their flights meaning more expensive plane tickets. Other sites pay their cash immediately upon winning the tournament and PP should do the same. After all, it wasn't like it was their money they put up. It came from other players. And to make matters worse, Party Poker took $950 out of the prize package for the hotel which comes down to about $150 per night. But they only paid $60 per night for the room. This just isn't right and we're bringing it up to PP to have the extra cash paid to us.

Hotel

I had no problem checking into the hotel (Sonesta Maho Beach Resort) other than the room not being immediately ready. The common areas of the hotel were quite sufficient. They had a nice pool and a little beach area. There were plenty of restaurants both on the property and within a short walking distance.

The coolest thing (IMO) about the hotel was that it was essentially right on the final approach for the airport. You could literally walk down to the beach and have a 747 fly 60 feet over your head - no BS.
Check out this picture. (http://www.airliners.net/open.file/686219/M/)

The rooms themselves were adequate. They were clean but sparse. But you're not really going to St. Maarten for the hotels!

The Island

St. Maarten is the smallest island in the world that is actually two countries - half is French and half is Dutch. On the French side you could find amazing restaurants, cafes, fine art and jewelry. On the Dutch side it was night clubs, strip clubs, topless women getting free drinks in bars, and everything else you could want. Quite a different experience and very enjoyable wherever you were.

The International Poker Federation

This was a very well run series of tournaments. I've played in many other B&M tournies and these guys did a very good, professional job. They started on time and problems were cleared up quickly and fairly. And in general, you got plenty of chips for your money so you had some time to play around without worrying about getting blinded off quickly.

As in other major tournaments, the real action was on the side. There were usually plenty of side games going on. The only downside was that their rake was pretty large by American standards although apparently in line with what Europeans paid.

The craziest thing was to watch the Dutch players in side games. These guys were serious gamblers. There was one hand where everyone went all-in in the dark creating something like a $60k pot - this is real money we're talking about here. These guys, along with some of the other European players, really made for a good, competitive tournament. They were very aggressive, made plays at lots of pots, and apparently took lessons from Gus Hansen in their spare time.

$300 re-buy Tournament

I played in 3 tournaments with my first being a $300 + something with 3 rebuys when at or below starting chips. I rebought immediately which is my usual strategy for these types of tournaments.

I was off to a flying start. There was one guy in particular who I just had his number. He was consistently making bad plays from early position when I had a good hand. I don't remember a lot of details, unfortunately, but I won several pots and left for the dinner break at around T10k which made me the chip leader at our table.

After the break it was a different story. I kept getting cards but luck turned against me. I lost my entire stack to the same guy in two hands. He raised from EP with A9, I put him all-in with KK and he, of course, pulled an A on the flop. And I pushed with AK and his pocket 8s held up. It was a very disappointing turn of events.

$1500 Main Event

This was an interesting format - second chance. We started off with $2500 in chips but could get another $2500 chips at anytime up until the end of the 3rd round (rounds were 45 minutes long). I decided that I would wait until a couple of people at my table had doubled up before getting my extra chips. At that point, I reasoned I should have a big stack in case a double up situation presented itself. Before then, having extra chips really didn't do any good except making you a target from others.

I won a few pots right from the beginning and then went card dead for the next two hours. I managed to stay barely ahead of the blinds for awhile but returned from the dinner break shortstacked. I believe I had around T5k in chips and the blinds were in the 500/1000 neighborhood.

At this point, there was nothing for me to do other than wait for a decent hand to push with. The guy to my right was even more shortstacked and pushed with around T3k. I had AKs and pushed. We were called by a third person so I was quite a bit worried. The shortest stack had AQ and the third caller had TT. I hit a K on the flop. The TT made a flush on the river. Ouch. I'm done at 73. Had I won I would have been in pretty decent shape and could get back to playing poker. Oh well.

I watched Enon play for awhile - mostly to support him but it certainly peaked my interest when I saw Marcel Luske sitting two to his left. There was one hilarious moment when Enon did a little chip trick rolling a chip from his left hand to his right to protect his cards. Without missing a beat, Marcel did exactly the same thing. I don't even think Enon saw it but those of us on the rail couldn't stop laughing. It wasn't that Marcel was trying to show him up. He's just a very playful, fun guy and tries to keep things light around the table. From watching him here, and playing with him a bit, he was everything you saw in the WSOP. A gentleman, very helpful, friendly, fun, and a very aggressive player.

The tournament was won by a guy who bought the Planet Poker prize package off of someone for next to nothing. I think he paid $1400 and it included $2000 in cash, $1500 main event entry, $1500 in tournament chips. The second place winner went to someone who played in a sub-qualifier on Party (something like a $7+1 tourney). Good returns for both of them.

$500 NLHE Event

I was feeling pretty down over all. I hadn't placed in the money in either of the tournaments and had lost a little in cash games. The trip was definitely costing me money since besides spending a ton on great meals (and there were some amazing restaurants on the island), I wasn't making my normal profits online! This was my last chance at making some type of showing.

I don't remember too much about the first half of the tournament. I won several pots but nothing major. I had about 13BBs when our table got broken up. The first thing I saw when I sat down was several MASSIVE stacks on the opposite end. Two of the dutch players and one french player had just enormous piles. And to their right sat Marcel. What did I get myself into?!? I was a little intimidated at first but then thought I was in great position to double up as they (at least the big stacks) would perhaps be willing to take some chances.

I went through an orbit without playing a hand. I then got 77 in MP and brought it in for a 3XBB raise. It was folded over to Marcel in the BB who called. Uh-oh. He called the first raise from perhaps a tight player out of position. What could he have. The flop came AT2. Check-check. Bet-fold. I might have had the best hand since Marcel is going to take advantage of his reputation and will certainly "play the player" more than the cards. But it just wasn't worth it.

A few hands later, Marcel had a short stack and pushed. I had AK and pushed. He turned over AQ and my hand held up knocking Marcel out of the tourney and (with the blinds and antes) doubling me up in the process. I'm back in it but am still a bit shortstacked.

Several hands go by, the blinds and antes increase, and I'm down to about 10XBB again. I have AK in EP and push. I get called by one person who turns over AA. Flop is QT4. Turn is a blank. River is a J giving me a straight.

We're down to 3 tables now (top 2 pay) and I've been moved again. And just like in my first tournament, there's one guy who I'm just killing. Every time he raises pre-flop, I'm coming over the top with a solid hand. He folded a couple of times and I showed down a solid hand a couple of times. He clearly "knew" that I wasn't making a play.

We're down to around 24 players now. One of the dutch guys was shortstacked and pushed. I had KK, and re-raised all-in. He called with Jx suited and made a flush. It took a bit of a chunk away from me but I wasn't crippled. It was then folded around to my "nemesis" in the SB and he raised. I had A3 and re-raised all-in. I knew this was dangerous but I was beating him so badly that I thought I could get him to lay down anything but a really strong hand, and I didn't think he had a really strong hand. He had KQ, better than I expected but I was still in the lead. I made a pair of 3s on the flop and my hand held up. Nothing much happened over the next several hands but several people got knocked out and we were down to the final table and in the money. Confidence restored!

I made a few pre-flop raises with decent hands and stole the blinds. At this point, I didn't care at all about getting knocked out. I really wanted to make some moves, build up a stack, and have a chance at the final table. I had about an average stack when my nemesis raised from EP. He was shortstacked so this caused me to pause a little and think. I didn't put him on a monster and thought he had A with a good kicker or more likely a middle pair. I had AT in MP. Now, normally, I would throw that hand away in a second. But I had established a solid image at the table and knew that if I re-raised I would certainly push out anything other than AA, KK. And I had consistently had this guy beat on every other hand we played (and we had played about 10 together). So I pushed. He blurted out "not again"! I felt really good with my decision. Unfortunately, at this point he was ready to take a stand and had AQ. But luck shined upon me and I pulled a T on the turn and knocked him out of the tournament. I was up to around T32k, won another pot, and went to the final table in 6th chip position with T37k.

There were only two Americans at the final table. I had played for at least an hour with all but two of the people so I felt good in that I had established myself as a solid player and had good reads on the others. There were two players who were very shortstacked and my plan was to play solid poker without taking any unnecessary gambles until they got knocked out. Unfortunately, both wound up doubling up (knocking out one person in the process) so there were several of us with equal stacks. I now had to start playing poker.

But I went card dead and couldn't even find an opportunity to go for a blind steal. There was one guy at the table from Norway who was incredibly aggressive. Essentially, ANY TIME it was folded to him he would bring it in for a raise. He probably raised 60% of the time pre-flop. I had played with him for awhile and knew that he was raising with trash. But I'm not going to play back with trash and it certainly takes the blind steal out of play.

One time I got 77 but a French player opened for a raise. He was very solid so I just threw my hand away. The blinds increased and I was down to about 12XBB. The maniac (who turns out to be 19 years old, was one of the leading cash players on Ladbrokes, and had just won $40k playing blackjack prior to this tournament) opened for a raise. I had TT and didn't hesitate pushing. Unfortunately, he had a real hand this time and his QQ held up knocking me out in 9th place.

Wrapping Up

Overall, I had a good experience in St. Maarten. It was a fun place to visit. There was lots of poker and good competition. Presuming they hold the IPF there next year I plan on being in attendance.

[PokerNeal]

Wow, you played more poker and had more fun than I did!

Good report!

[Enon]

There was one hilarious moment when Enon did a little chip trick rolling a chip from his left hand to his right to protect his cards. Without missing a beat, Marcel did exactly the same thing. I don't even think Enon saw it but those of us on the rail couldn't stop laughing.

Hilarious! You are right that I didn't notice this but even funnier is that I don't know how to do any chip tricks! It must have been a complete accident that the chip rolled like that. In actuality, I am super clumsy with chips and I can barely riffle my chips.

My trip report coming soon! (including some hands against Marcel)