So i'm thinking about something i saw on TV the other day.... - Page 2

elmitchbo · #11 05-28-2005, 10:02 PM

i think dan's great, but i also think he's more than just a TAG. as another player mentioned... he has the ability to make some very well timed moves at the pot.

elmitchbo · #12 05-28-2005, 10:08 PM

i think you're right. so i guess the question is which is more profitable? always finishing in the top 25% but rarely or never winning, or winning the whole thing 5% of the time and busting out the rest?

on the WPT you're talking about $1.5+ million for first place. when you get down to about 20th place it's more like $15k-$20k. it takes a whole lot of $15k finishes to equal $1.5 mil.

elmitchbo · #13 05-28-2005, 10:17 PM

i'm going to disagree. i think he has alot going on. i think his book will really be interesting, and will help all of us decide how good he is. i think his strategy is more than good hand reading and super aggresion.

he plays in the big game... so he's doing alot more than playing NLHE with noobs. he competes in the biggest cash game there is with the best players in the world.

Niediam · #14 05-28-2005, 10:43 PM

[ QUOTE ]

he plays in the big game... so he's doing alot more than playing NLHE with noobs. he competes in the biggest cash game there is with the best players in the world.

[/ QUOTE ]

Most people seem to believe that he is one of the losers in that game though... but who really knows what is true and what is just gossip.

RicktheRuler · #15 05-28-2005, 11:14 PM

Gus is obviously an intelligent player. He is without doubt a phenomenal tournament player. However, the word around the rumor mill is that he is stuck big in the "big game"--I know nothing about this. I can say thought that he takes it in the pooper playing 1/2 on Stars.

AliasMrJones · #16 05-29-2005, 02:09 AM

Gus has won enough that he must be a good player, but...

I saw him call all-in on TV with Txo. He did it on purpose. That's not good play. You can't bluff when you call, you aren't making a move. He drew out on the better hand and I think went on to win. In the final tables I've seen him play, he's gotten similarly lucky at other crucial points where I thought he made bad plays.

Oh, and NO poker tournament is 99% skill.

TStoneMBD · #17 05-29-2005, 07:47 AM

gus is supposed to be the biggest fish in the big game, and basically feeds the "big 4". just cause he plays there doesnt mean hes as good as the other players. hes definitely not.

CurryLover · #18 05-29-2005, 02:06 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Gus has won enough that he must be a good player, but...

I saw him call all-in on TV with Txo. He did it on purpose. That's not good play. You can't bluff when you call, you aren't making a move. He drew out on the better hand and I think went on to win. In the final tables I've seen him play, he's gotten similarly lucky at other crucial points where I thought he made bad plays.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're referring to his play against that Antonio guy I assume. The hand has been debated on this forum a lot. Some argued here that he did it for his image in future tourneys etc.

However, regardless of whether his call was a good one or not it was not a total fish move as you seem to imply. His read was that Antonio had an underpair, so he knew he would be just a tiny bit worse than 50/50. Taking into account the money that was already in the pot before Antonio's all-in re-raise, Gus was getting better than 50/50 odds on the call. If he was certain in his read then it was a clear call from a 'pot odds' point of view.

I know that tournament poker is not just about pot odds, and am not saying it was necessarily the right move to make. All I am saying is that it was not a totally useless and fishy play. Or maybe it was ... but you've got to admire his massive balls.

By the way, don't forget in some situations he could even be favourite. I think Gus had T8 suited, is that right? Well, if he's against a pair of 5s or 4s (which was probably one of the hands he was considering since he put the guy on an underpair), the T8s is actually a tiny favourite to win the pot.

elmitchbo · #19 05-29-2005, 10:30 PM

alot of people talk about what an amazing read that was, and how fantastic a call that was. nobody can know for sure what was going through gus' head.

i've heard that gus is stuck pretty good in the big game too. my point was that he isn't just playing with noobs. i've also heard that daniel is a donator in that game... who really knows.

who are the big 4 in the big game? barry, chip, chau...??? just curious.

Snoogins47 · #20 05-30-2005, 09:06 AM

Gus either had a)reason to believe that Antonio was pushing a wide enough range of hands, with the caveat that he may be more likely to be weak, to make the call profitable, or b)is a moron and likes to gamble.

I would be willing to bet the correct answer is A, even if in practice Gus made a bad call.