Some notes / hands from Paradise nightly WPT tourney - LONG

Lurshy · #1 10-22-2004, 03:23 PM

Last night I placed 4th in the nightly WPT tourney on Paradise Poker. 1st place is buy-in + 1500 for Foxwoods WPF (or Shooting Stars) main event, 2-4th paid 1600 to 650. 5th Place 0.00! It is a $25 buy/rebuy/add-on tourney. 12 minute levels. 1500 starting chips, (2500 for addon). I took 1 rebuy immediately, and the add-on. I was in 35th position after the 1st break out of 185 or so still in. My confidence level was high having played well Tuesday night in a $5 1000+ player MTT (placed 2nd)

My play was tight aggressive, but I did turn weakish towards the end which I will get to. I was an above average stack for most of the tourney, and often I was one of the top stacks at my table, though I was never a 'big stack', and I often had the chip leader on my left. The biggest PP I had all tourney was 10 10, though I did have AK 2 or 3 times.

With about 30-40 people left blinds were 2000/4000 with 200a, I was in SB with 10 10. I was 2nd in chip position at table with ~75000. Chip leader immediately to my left (bb) with 158K. UTG+1 (about 60K) open raises to 12K. I put him on a steal, and reraise to 24K (folded around to me), hoping to take it down. Comments? He reraised to 36K??? I called (12K to see a flop with about 70K and I have 10 10). Luckily, I hit top set - I opened, he raised all in on flop. I bust his AA hmmmmm.

After that hand I'm 2nd or third overall. Blinds going up, lots of short stacks under pressure. Lots of short handed play as we get down to last couple of tables and final ten. Here is where I think I shriveled a bit. I went card dead, didn't want to double up short stacks and lose my big stack status. It was a tight, all-in fest. Usually the opener would take it down, and the opener if a short stack went all-in. Occasional a caller, and 1 is gone...

What steamed me a bit was the only two times it was folded to me, I have nada, my balls shrink, and it is folded to the BB (I was MP or Cutoff). This was shorthanded, I had big stack on left, and I didn't want someone to wake up and ruin my stack - weak???

I would have gotten aggresive if I had hands, but I didn't. So instead, the blinds eroded my stack, and brought me back down to the middle of the pack. The pack was smaller though, and when they break my table to form the final table, 2 are already all-in and get busted. So the final table actually starts with only 8 players (Top 4 pay with 1st getting the trip).

I did take down 1 pot shortly before getting to the final table (maybe my tight image paid off), so I started the final table in 4th position w/136k. Small stack has 77K, Large Stack has 253k and is two to my left grr. The stack ranges are pretty even as far as final tables go, so really anyone can take this tourney. The blinds were at 4k/8k, 400A. 1st few hands, not much action as people tightened up so close to the bubble. Big stack seized upon this, and quickly began getting laggish. He was also periodically complaining that he'couldn't see his cards, and had to keep exiting. I never saw him as disconnected, though, and thought this was BS, to try and bait us.

Bonehead play --> UTG I min-raise with 66 - mistake #1. Somone comes over the top and I call - mistake #2. I Miss the flop (Q84 all hearts) and check/fold to all-in, yuk, now I have 90K.

Bonehead Play? that works out? --> with 81K (preposting) in SB (4k/8k 400) LAG Big Stack (250K) in UTG+1 open raises to 16K. Folded to me. I have Ah9h and Push !? He calls with Qs9s ??, I double through.

I should have remembered his aggressiveness (and stubborness), because with several subsequent semi-steals, he reraises me or bets into me on flop or turn, where I lay down e.g. I fold A7os on LAG turn bet to 8KTT board. My healthy 180K dwindles to around 80k again.

Key decision --> 6 handed. I have Q10 os in SB. A hand I normally hate, but it does get a little better 6 handed? We are now at 6k/12k 600a. There is a new leader at 400k, two 250K stacks, I'm at at 84K. Chip leader open min-raises to 24k. 2nd smallest stack goes all-in for 61k. Folded to me. I go into think tank. I am short-stacked, but short handed the hand is +ev?. I have an opporunity to win a big pot. If leader takes us both out, I miss the money (going out 5th). The short stack could be on any PP / 2 broadway / Ax, if he is reading the leader for a steal. The leader had been tight. I think he has a hand. The SB may also. Because he had been playing tight, I wasn't certain that I could push the big stack out with my reraise to isolate the Short Stack, I also couldn't be sure I was ahead of the short stack (Ax,PP). Is this weak? I folded. Yes this may be results oriented, but I did go into the think tank on this hand.

Paradise Poker (6 handed)

Preflop: Hero is SB with T[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], Q[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]. Hero posts a blind of 6000.
UTG folds, MP raises, CO folds, Button raises, Hero (poster) folds, BB folds, MP calls.

Flop: 8[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img], Q[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], 9[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] (2 players)

Turn: T[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] (2 players)

River: Q[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] (2 players)

Final Pot:

Big Stack bet 61,564, collected 143,528, net +81,964 (showed hand) [ 4s Ks ] (a flush, king
high)
2nd Shortest Stack lost 61,564 (showed hand) [ Jh Jc ] (a straight, eight to queen)
Hero lost 6,600 (folded) [ Td Qh ] (a full house, queens full of tens) - Boo Hoo

In hind sight, The Big Stack may not have even called a reraise with Ks4s. But anyway I folded and missed the Boat (pun Intended)

It is now five handed. I am in trouble with 77k stack 6k/12k 600a. I am on Button with K 10os. It is folded to me. Short stack on my immediate left is in sb. He has <9k left after posting. LAG is in BB with 250k. I really want to go to Foxwoods. I really want to make money after 4 hours of this. Who pushes who folds?

I folded. With the SB so crippled and the blinds coming around so fast, I was willing to limp into money unless I got a real premium hand. Short Stack actually folded also, but went out a couple of hands later.

So now, I am in the money. Loosen up, get stupid, and am out a few hands later when I called a small raise in the BB, Bluffed all in with a 447 flop, and got called by the 10 7os preflop raiser. Guess if I was going to defend my bb, I should've reraised preflop. Oh well.

Thanks for any feedback, and my apologies for not posting full hands with the Bison converter, but either I am lame, or it is not interpreting Paradise hands properly.

Bernas · #2 10-22-2004, 03:46 PM

Since when does a flush beat a full house?!?!?!?

SossMan · #3 10-22-2004, 04:01 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Since when does a flush beat a full house?!?!?!?

[/ QUOTE ]

he folded preflop

Bernas · #4 10-22-2004, 04:05 PM

Man, I am right on the ball today.
Sorry, it's Friday and I am tired.

Lurshy · #5 10-22-2004, 07:01 PM

Sossman et al,

Do you you push with Q 10 in that spot?

What about with the K 10 with the short stack and lag to my left? I figured the LAG was calling, he never gave up his blind PF (Then again K 10 good vs random hand) I thought the short stack would fold as he had folded his BB the hand before. He was definitely looking for someone to go out before him.