First big(2k€) live tourney, many hands...

[KINGOFINLAND]

I'm mostly a cash game player. 5/10nl 6max and such. Every now and then I like to play some tournaments, regardless of the buyin - sometimes it's $10 sometimes $530. I just enjoy of playing them, and have had good results this year. I guess I play like 5-10 online tourneys month and 1 or 2 50€ live tourneys/month.

I've been looking for a while now to test my skills in bigger live tourneys, to find out where I stand compared to other players and maybe learn a thing or two. Unfortunately they increased the EPT buy ins to 4000€+(exc. rate about 1€=$1.2).
Luckily they have a yearly "Helsinki Freezout" tournament week here, and I had been looking forward to it for a while.
Still when the day to buy in came I was bit unsure if it was a good idea to play, but after all I bought my ticket to 2000€+100€ Helsinki freezout main event NL holdem tourney. Like 149 others, the max. number of players, creating the biggest prizepool ever in Finland.
It paid only top 9 which was bit surprise.

Now to action.

The structure was good, 20000 chips, blinds start at 50/100 and 60min levels.

I folded couple first hands until I got Q [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] Q [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] on EP/MP, UTG raised to t350 and I just called.
Button called as well and three of us went to flop.
Flop came Q [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] 8 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 6 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] UTG checked and I bet t1000. And both folded, should I have reraised here preflop or make something else on the flop?

2nd big hand came on 150/300 level. I had little over t20k, and raised UTG+1 to t1000 with A [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] K [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]
once again everyone folded to loose button(table was very tight) and he tried to raise to t900 so he either didin't see I raised or was trying to pull some move. Dealer told he must raise, so he mniraised it to t1700.
It came back to me and me being bit confused rereraised to t4000. He called.
Flop came T [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] 9 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 4 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] now I bet out t9000 and he folded.

Then to 200/400 level. Folded to my button with 9 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 9 [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] I had like t23k at this point and SB had t40k+ after getting lucky in few pots.
I opened to t1200 he reraised to t3000 I called.
Flop came K [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] 8 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 6 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] it went check-check.
Turn was A [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] and he bet t4000, and I raised to t10k planning to fold to reraise and unless river is 9 checking/folding. How is that play?

It worked this time, he folded face up QQ and I didin't show.

Very next hand I get A [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] K [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] it's folded to me and I make the same open raise to t1200 others fold, but BB calls he just came from other table with massive stack, like 60k. Flop came K [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] T :diamond 7 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] he checked to me and I bet t2400 he quickly called.
Turn was 3 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] check and I bet t6000 he thinks for a while and calls, river is Q he checks and I just check behind. Weak?

I get moved to other table.

Typical blind stealing stuff for couple next levels.
And everybody playing extremely tight.

At 300/600 50ante level comes next slightly interesting. I have about t40 at this point. Button is the most aggressive player in this table, with huge stack, he has called my open raise once before that time he thought for a while on flop when I continue bet and then he folded. As well he reraise my open raise once and I folded to it. I have A [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] 8 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] and raise to t3000 he calls and so does the SB(very tight) flop is J [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 9 [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] 5 [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] it goes check, check, button bets t4000 fold and I raise to t13000.
He folds pretty quickly.

Pretty soon after that Juha Helppi sits on my table, on seat 5 while i'm on seat 9, damn.

The folding continues, then Juha raises to t2500 with 300/600 ante 50 blinds, he has been been playing pretty tight, but I have the feeling he is just looking for the soft spots, so I decided to make a little move. And reraise to t8100 with K [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] J [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] he folds ATo face up.

Then comes maybe the weirdest hand of day. It's 400/800 ante 50, SB open limps I check my card and by accident flip over T [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]. Embarrassing. The rule is after that I can only check and call, and not raise or bet at any point of the hand. My other card is 8 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img].
Flop comes 3 [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] 8 [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] 3 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] she leads out for t4000, maybe I should just fold here?? But decided to call.
Turn was A [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] it went check-check, and river Q [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] and she bets t6000 and I fold.

Blinds are t600/t1200 I have ~60k UTG covers and open miniraises I call with 9 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 9 [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] two of us to flop which is A [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 4 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 3 [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] he bets out t5000 and I raise to t13000, he thinks for a long time and finally folds.

I get absolute no cards for rest of the night, but keep stealing blinds once in a while. So little after 3am the blinds are t800/t1600 and ante 100. This is the last hand of day, 49 players left, and I have bit over t70k which is about 10k more then the average.

Guy(t37000) who has been in the table for like 3hours and so far hasn't played even one hand limps UTG I have red queens on cutoff and raise to t8000 others fold he fairly quickly reraises t10k more. I thought for a long time and then mucked, I mean it feels bit weird that someone makes that kind of move with big hand, but at the same time that raise pot commits him so would JTs play that way?

The tourney continues at 2pm next day. Again I don't catch any cards at all in the beginning, and just trying to steal blinds every now and then.
Then comes the first time of tourney I go allin.
Blinds are t1200/t2400 and ante 200. Folded to cutoff-1 at this point I have approx t60000. And raise to t8000. Button calls, he seems to play pretty passive preflop, limping with bad hands etc. But trying to pick up pots postflop. Flop came 5 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 2 [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] 4 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] I check planning to reraise allin no matter what, he bets only t5k but I still shove and he folds.
My blind keeps getting robbed, and my best hand for next hour is AJo which i'm forced to fold after someone openraised to 9k and Helppi reraised to 35k.
So I have about 50k left on t1500/t3000 blinds and 300 ante.
8 handed at this point. Folded to SB who raises to t10k and I shove with AsQs he thinks and folds.

Little more bad cards.

SB from last hand now raises to t7000(bit weird) and I have 53k now and decide to shove it from cutoff with JTs again everybody folds.

Now 21 players left I have been getting ran over a bit, but this is because my hand's have been so horrible and stack so small I can't really even resteal.
Blinds 3000/6000 ante 500 I have 51k left in 7 handed table, folded to cutoff and shove J6s SB thinks for a long time and calls with 66 and that's it.



Summary:
First day was good, I didin't have to go allin even once and managed to over triple my stack, by making small steals and playing solid game.
Second day wasn't so good, my table image was bad for whole time, and couldn't increase my stack. I don't know what went wrong, in last hand button and blinds each had about 100k so I thought could steal the blinds and get bit time there.

I didn't catch any cards, and didn't really feel outplayed so I'm pretty happy about the tourney, but I think something went wrong the 2nd day. Other thing is my BB play was very bad, it got robbed every single time and I didn't play back even once. Horrible, but don't what I should do about it or how when I have like 10-25 blinds. I can't really call, and I found myself waiting for a great hand to shove...
Looking forward to play more big tourneys in future and maybe I will have some success..

I remember Gigabet writing something about how it's sometimes better to take coinflip to double up then just steal the blinds, think i'm starting to agree with that. Many times it felt like I won't do anything with the blinds and would rather have a coinflip to decent stack and keep increasing it or going out now.

There's a lot here but just on the first hand QQ. I understand the flat call in a shorter stack tournie but I'm raising this for value.
However, you've flopped a monster and you can give him a free card or cheap card(live, I think it's got be unlikely that anyone has the str8 draw).

[Roman]

I think you made wayy too many moves and are lucky you didnt run into hands earlier. Your AK off play when u bluff half your stack into the T high board was particularly bad.

I would call on the river with that T8 hand.

[KINGOFINLAND]

Hi Roman,
How would you play the AKo? Do you just call the "accidental" reraise, or how you avoide the situation.

[Roman]

reraise more preflop if thats what you are doin, that makes the flop easier to play. You dont want to be giving him good pot odds here with AKo out of posotion.

[betgo]

[ QUOTE ]
I think you made wayy too many moves and are lucky you didnt run into hands earlier. Your AK off play when u bluff half your stack into the T high board was particularly bad.

I would call on the river with that T8 hand.

[/ QUOTE ]

Why is that bad? Do you think he should have made a smaller continuation bet?

[betgo]

[ QUOTE ]
reraise more preflop if thats what you are doin, that makes the flop easier to play. You dont want to be giving him good pot odds here with AKo out of posotion.

[/ QUOTE ]

That is more standard, but the small reraiseafter his "accidental" reraise may have looked like a big pair, and may helped him take it down on a low flop.