Borgata/Trop 10/14-16 Trip Report (long) (mostly poker content)

[ZeusXIX]

My wife and I took our bi-monthly trip to AC this weekend. Our standard MO is to basically eat sleep and eat poker, and that's basically what we did. We also came up with a bunch of people from our regular home game, which was a nice added bonus of some extra company to lament our bad beats.

We got to the Trop around 3:30, checked in, and I immediately go seated at a 1-5 stud game. Before I really get into the poker, I must say that none of this could be possible if i didn't have a wife who can sit at a poker table for as long as I can. So anyway, I've been itching to play more limit poker, planning to play limit games during the day and NL during the evening.

I often go up to AC with a goal or some skill I would like to work on or improve. I find it helps keep me focused and disciplined as I fold a my hands over and over again. For this trip I had been reading up on Dr. Al's 'Psychology of Poker'. Particularly, his chapter on loose passive games. In order to put those strategies in action, I thought the Trop's 1-5 stud game would be a perfect place to start.

The 1-5 stud is mostly filled with kodgers. Me being 25 and maybe a little cockey, I think they felt a little threatened by me or something because only one guy seemed to appreciate my presence at the game. The others sort of grimaced in disdain whenever I would make a bet or a raise. Also, I play a different brand of poker than many of them like playing so I can understand a little animosity. There were not many notable hands from that game, but I felt it was, as usual, a generally tough game to win anything significant, but a very safe game to warm up with and apply some new strategies. Up about $50.

Next, I sat down at a 4-8 hold'em game, which usually plays loose passive as well. It did not fail to disappoint me in the general lpp respect, but this game has always been my demon. I seem to always go cold decked when I sit down at the is game, and have blinded down my stack more in this game than any other limit or game I have ever played. So I got up after about 3 hrs of raise'em fold'em poker once I dropped a good chunk of my stack when my pocket AA beaten by the old 47s. Granted, I should have known that he had hit trip 7's when the board paired, but, as usual, I fell in love with my AA. At least I just check called after the turn. Down $120.

After the 4-8 debacle, we went downstairs and ate at the Adam Good Deli. I really like their sub rolls. They are the type you can only find in Philly/Jersey shore area. Although, if you really want a sub in AC you have got to go to White House. Truly the best!

After dinner I settle in at a tight 1-2 NL table. Over a period of about 6 hours, I gradually double my buy-in and am generally feeling pretty good about my play. On top of that, the deck is running pretty hot for me; pocket KK five times for example. But storm clouds begin to gather when I am dealt KQ in middle position and pair my K on the flop. He raised my flop bet, I come over top of him and he calls. I lead on the turn and he calls. I lead again on the river and he just calls. His calls made me think that he had a pair of K's with a kicker problem so I really pushed the issue. However, I was wrong, and he showed KT for top two pair, dropping about $225 in the hand. I was a little surprised that he didn't play it more aggressively, but I've often found many passive players at the Trop. Rest assured this hand is just the beginning of my demise for the evening.

I am on the button and the bigstack in the cutoff brings it in for $12 or $15. Looking down at KQd on the button, I naturally call. The flop gives me a four flush and a gutshot draw to the nut straight, so I raise his post flop bet and he just calls. The turn puts a potential middle straight on the board, but no diamond. He then bets into me again but for only about 1/3 of the pot, leading me to think that he may be holding an unimproved AK, but to be safe I just call. The river is an 8c, making the possibility of me holding a straight even greater, so he bets even less than in the previous round; just $45. Now I am convinced that he is weak, so I decide to push all in for my last $175 on a stone cold bluff, thinking he is weak and will definitely fold. He goes into the tank for about 3 minutes until he makes his crying call and after I show my busted flush and straight he turns over pocket KK to take down the pot. In retrospect, I realize that $175 was just not enough to push him off after the dealer took out his bet. As a consolation, I reminded myself my read was correct that he was weak and worried, holding an unimproved pocket KK against a very dangerous board and that had the bet been about $50 bigger I may have pulled it off. Feeling dejected, I went upstairs to get some sleep. Down $300.

The next morning, after KQd was tattooed into my dreams, I am determined to get to the Borgata, where I have had very much success in the past, to play 1-2 all day. The deck continued to be kind to me in what I have now come to consider a very typical Borgata game; very loose and very soft. I didn't have any notable hands here, but I manage to walk away a bigger winner here than in any other session for the weekend. Also, I had the added bonus that my wife got a seat to my left so we could chat it up while we folded our hands away. Up $700!

After our traditional dinner at the Trop Hooters for some wings, we hit the 1-2 again in the Trop high limit room. I got seated at a table that was a little more lively than my previous one here last night. I continued to play my usual tight game and had about $450 in chips when I look down at pocket KK in the small blind. A loose player three from the button raises preflop to $10. The cutoff and button both call and I reraise to $30. Only the initial raiser calls. The flop is KJT. So I've flopped top set, but I've got to worry a little about AQ. I lead into the pot for $60 and he immediately reraises all in for about another $150 on top. Wow! I am not very happy right now. I of course wanted to take it down right there and now he's put me to the test. I ask him if he's got AQ and he just starts blabbing away about how I should definitely call and find out. I started thinking that if he had the nuts he wouldn't be saying a word, and this guy was just talking on and on. So I finally make the call, pretty convinced he didn't have the A high straight. He then proceeds to turn over a set of J's and I take down the roughly $300 pot. A couple of hours later and one possible donkey fold, I decide to call it a night and hit the hey.

The next morning, my wife signed up for the Borgata Ladies only tournament and I played in their first SNG that they just started running this Sunday. The structure was pretty poor. $2000 in starting chips. That was fine. But the blinds jumped from 100-200 to 200-400. Everybody at the table agreed that it was a pretty significant jump, and a real quick crippler to everybody's stacks. I survived a few all ins including two miracles, but cruised into heads up play based on an observant all in call I made with ATs.

Neither of us were shortstacked but this guy had been pushing all in I think just about every time he was dealt an Ace once the blinds had reached 400. Nobody ever called him so he was basically stealing blinds and a few limper calls but our stacks were about equal and I was pretty convinced that my AT had a good chance of being dominant to what I thought would be a small Ace. My read was dead on and he turns over A6s. I double up and cruise to heads up as the chip leader and into the money. Although, our first heads up hands finds him all in with pocket 99 against my pocket 33 and I quickly become a 3-1 dog. Four or five hands later, he busts me when my pocket JJ is cracked by a Q3offsuit. Game over. Good game.

I felt I played well over the course of the weekend, with the exception of a few bad plays most likely attributed to fatigue. Every time I come up to AC, I feel the competition becomes easier, leading me to believe that my game is constantly improving. The final tally: Up $800-$900. Hope you enjoyed.

[Yarney]

It certainly is a blessing to have a wife (or in my case girlfriend) who can play poker all day with you. Sounds like a nice weekend to me, however I think the lesson for you is to not play $225 pots with top pair unless you have a spectacular read.

-Yarney

[ahnuld]

Good read, but you made some poker related mistakes. Raise your KK hand more preflop, like to 40 or more with 2 cold callers. As well, dont fear AQ on that flop. If he has it, who gives a shite, you imporve to a fh 35% of the time anyways. Never fold a set, especially on a flop like that in a 1-2 game. As well, I dont like the KQ bluff in live 1-2 games on the river. They will cry and cry but call almost every time. Anyways, just some comments, keep winning, gl.