This is taken from my site 604poker.com.
WSOP Report Part 1 The report and pics from the WSOP.
What an experience. It was finally here – the 2005 World Series of Poker. And I was able to play in it. Not bad after learning how to play hold em only 2 years ago, to the month.
Three Team 604 players were playing today. Mike, Vince (numb3rs), and I (Pete) were all lucky to get Day 1B (the middle day of three starting days). We wish each other luck and head of to our respective tables.
I sat down at my assigned table and looked around at my opponents. Everyone seemed to be a normal looking guy. So these were the people I play against on Party Poker. While a few were younger than me (I’m 29) most seemed older. I got stuck in the number 1 seat, directly to the left of the dealer. It makes observation quite hard, especially against the number 9 and 10 seats on the other side of the dealer.
A great wide-angle shot of Pete at the WSOP – in the Team Canada jersey and 604poker hat of course!
That's Jon Finkel to the left of Pete, and the Frenchman villian in seat ten. The Asian guy in Seat 9 would hold Pete's WSOP fate in his hands in Part 2...
The WSOP got underway with a little speech from the tourney manager, and then the American national anthem sung by some female poker player.
Soon after the cards were in the air, and the 2005 World Series of Poker was underway. Although I had some trouble getting to sleep the night before, I didn’t feel any nerves as the first few hands of the WSOP were dealt.
I expected to be nervous, and excited, but even as I pulled in my first pot, I felt calm and relaxed. Maybe it was because everyone started with 10,000 in chips and with the blinds at a micro 25/50. A few mistakes wouldn’t kill us right away. Also, with 100 minute long levels, that meant if we got to be a small stack, we would have plenty of time to build back up. Little did I know that was precisely what I would have to do.
I didn’t have to wait long to get dealt good hands, the Poker Gods decided to throw me right into the WSOP battle. My second hand dealt was AQ and I took down the pot pre-flop as no one called my raise.
I look down and see pocket queens as my fourth WSOP hand. I got right into the thick of things as UTG raised to 250. Seat 10, an older French professional, cold called. I decided to make the simple play and reraise to 750. Surprisingly, I got a call from the Frenchman. I bet 1,200 on an ATx flop, and folded to his raise to 2,400. Not a great flop for QQ.
Two hands later I get a feeling of déjà vu when I see QQ again. The same Frenchman raises to 150 and I reraise him to 300. He folds to my continuation bet on a 445 flop.
The very next hand I pick up AK. That’s AK, AQ, QQ, and QQ, in my first seven hands at the WSOP! I win the blinds.
My 10th hand in the WSOP was 77 UTG. I limp, and pick up a small pot when I bet the QQ5 flop, check the Q turn, and bet the queen river. Yep, that’s four queens on the table.
I wouldn’t have to wait long for my next premium hand, as I pick up AK in the BB during the next orbit. A French kid two to my left, raises in EP to 125. I decide to only call in the BB, and the two of us saw the flop heads-up. It was a great flop for AK - KT7 rainbow. I just check call his 200 flop bet, planning to raise the turn. He bet 800 on an 8 turn, and I raised to 1,500. Surprisingly he called. The river was another blank, and I bet 500, trying to get a call from a weaker hand. He bit – he called, but flipped over 96s for the straight! I was in disbelief. How does he raise that pre-flop in early position? How does he spike the turn gut shot but only then call my raise? My stack took another hit.
I pick up QQ for the third time during this 100-minute level later on. I reraise a 150 raise to 500, and my opponent called. This was the same Frenchman from the earlier hands. On an 854 two-club flop he called my 700 bet. The pot was now about 2500. The turn was a non-club 9, and now he bet 1500 into me. I decided to call. Immediately he checks the river blind. This threw me off. Why would he check the river blind? The 6c hits on the river, completing the flush and straight draws. I however bet 1,000 thinking I’m ahead, and fall right into his trap. He raises me to 2,700. I think a long time about how much of an idiot I am, and fold.
Mercifully, the 25/50 level ended soon after, and with AK twice, AQ twice, and QQ three times, I was able to deplete my stack from 10,000 down to 2200. Not a good start to the WSOP.
Although I felt pressured now with the blinds moving up to 50/100, I had to tell myself to slow down. Even though I was 20% of the average stack, I did have 22BB’s. I told myself that I would be very comfortable with that in any big Party online tourney and that I did have plenty of room.
In some ways, I was happy to have a manageable stack like that because once I did get into playing again, I felt more comfortable. Harrington says there are two types of players – post-flop and pre-flop players –0 and I guess I am a pre-flop player.
Just over two hours into the WSOP and I was already all-in! In LP I attempt to steal with K9s. The button, an American directly to my left, calls. The flop comes a very nice JT8 with two spades. I had the flush draw, an overcard, and an open-ended straight draw. I bet 400, and he raises – and I push all-in! He calls, and the dealer yells, “All-in and a call! Table 127!” This is so the ESPN camera guys can rush over and film the hand.
A 7 hits the turn and my opponent let’s out a brief hoorah until he realizes it makes my straight. However, he did have a re-draw to make the full house – but he missed!
Later on, Jon Finkel gets moved into that guy’s seat when he busts. He just gave away his chips to one of the pros on the other side of the table. Finkel is one of the best Magic: The Gathering pros and is the subject of a new book coming out soon.
Soon after I again was all-in. This was much safer though, as I pushed over top a pre-flop raiser, who folded.
I attempted a steal on the button with A3dd, and got called by both blinds – Finkel and the French kid, who busted me earlier with 96s in EP. The flop came a nice JJx with two diamonds, but Finkel, in the SB bet out 500. The French kid in the BB folds, and I push all-in. Finkel deliberates for a couple minutes, and I find it kind of hard to play against a friend (albeit a friend I don’t see often) in such an important tournament like this. We are both pulling for each other, when we aren’t in the hand, so it was weird to be all of a sudden foes. He ends up folding.
In the very next hand we clash again. It’s folded to me again and I raise with 88. Finkel reraises me to 750 from 300. I am unsure whether to reraise or just call. I end up calling. The flop comes an interesting 77x, and Finkel puts me all-in when I checked to him. Checking was probably a bad play on my part. I end up folding.
Afterwards we talked about those two hands, and he tells me he folded 55 when I had the diamond draw, and he had AK in the last hand. Those two hands show the power of betting. Both times the underdog won the hand because the player bet or raised.
An interesting situation came up during a deal. There was some confusion for one of the cards dealt to the SB or BB. The two players weren’t sure whose card was whose. The dealer said, “Misdeal” and immediately the three players on my side of the table and I all mucked our cards, sort-of showing them to each other. Seat 8 (on the button), starts complaining, saying he could figure out what happened, and that it shouldn’t be a misdeal. The floor gets called over, and agrees with the pro that the hand wasn’t a misdeal – the floor pretty much ignored the rest of us. Immediately Finkel and I get suspicious. We find out that the pro is “Miami” Jon Cernuto – apparently some reasonably famous pro. No wonder the floor seemed to basically let him make the decision.
A little while later, the 50/100 level ends, and I had worked my way up to 3,200.
Next time I will continue on with Part 2 of my WSOP experience, including my comeback!