Muckleshoot Tuesday $100 Report

[Schaefer]

Here's a recap of the tourney last Tuesday. I'm bored, working graveyard at the hotel, excited to play in the next Tuesday tourney, and I have nothing to do so here it is.

The tourney is $100+10 with one optional $100 rebuy. I take the rebuy right away and start with T3000. The very first hand, blinds 25/50, I get 45o in the BB. Cutoff limps and we see the flop 2 handed. Flop comes 236, rainbow. I check and he checks behind. Turn is an 8 that puts 2 clubs on the board. I bet T100 into a T125 pot and he calls. The river pairs the 8, I bet T300 and he pushes. I call quickly and he shows Q8o. I have T4500 in chips right away.

Blinds are 75/150. I still have about T4500 and get dealt 99 on the button. One EP limper and I raise to T500. BB, a loose sicko maniac calls and the limper calls. Flop comes 245 with 2 hearts. BB bets out T300 and the limper folds. I raise to T1000 and the BB calls. Turn is an offsuit 8 and he pushes immediately for his remaining T1100. He's been moving chips like crazy and folding here would be really bad IMO. I call and he has 8h3h for the open ended straight draw, flush draw, and a pair of 8s. A 6 hits on the river and I am down to ~T1900 in chips.

Blinds still 75/150. I'm down to about T1500. The table has tightened up considerably and even the sicko is folding most hands. Folds to me in the CO-1 and I make it T350 with JsTs. Cutoff and button both call and we go to the flop 3-handed. Flop comes 984 with 2 clubs. I'm not going to fold this hand and with a T1275 pot I push with my remaining T1125. The cutoff folds but the button, the sicko, calls with As8s. Turn pairs the 9 and the river is a Q! Brandon is back in business, right around my original T3000 chips.

I steal to maintain for a while and don't do much before the first break. Carl, my buddy who I came with, and I both have about T3000 and I comment that the competition isn't very good. He replies that we just need some hands and we'll go far.

The next hour is pretty tame as well. The best thing is that people have tightened up like crazy and the antes are huge. I think the first antes were T50 with blinds of 150/300. That meant there was 500 in antes for the taking! I get no real hands and basically just chop away, building my stack to about T5000 or T6000. Carl and I again are about even at the second break and I tell him confidently, this is our tournament to win. These guys are weak-tight rocks and they're getting blinded out. Again, he tells me that we'll need to get some cards and that I need to chill out.

Finally I get some hands to talk about. Blinds are 200/400 and I have A9o in the BB with about 8K in chips. This old man raises from the cutoff to T800 and I sense real weakness. He has about T3500 left and I really want to put him all in. I ask him his chip count and he laughs nervously and says he'll call and all of that. I just call and decide to reevaluate after the flop. Flop comes A97 and I'm loving it. I check and he pushes. He has 44 and I gain some chips. I really think I should have pushed preflop but man it's fun to flop top 2.

OK, I'm reaching the point where I don't really remember the details perfectly. These are key hands and I'll recap them as best as I can.

Carl is at my table and raises UTG+1 on my BB. A middle position player calls all in and I have 99. I consider raising but I have Carl covered and I feel comfortable playing a flop. I tell myself that I'm going to move all in if the flop comes lower than 9. Flop is Q84 or something, I check, and Carl pushes. I'm fairly certain that he wouldn't do this without a Q so I fold. He shows KQs and knocks out the MP player. We are down to 3 tables but it's just about to break into 2. I feel good even though I still only have about 20 BB.

Yikes. I'm tired. I'll skip some of the hands and only include ones I really want to talk about.

Blinds 750/1500 with a T300 ante, I think. 8d6d in the BB. 2 tables left, both about 7 handed. UTG raises to 4K and button flat calls. 86 is my favorite hand, I call it the ender, and I can't fold it for T2500 with the pot about 12K. Flop comes out 579 rainbow. Flopping the nuts is so much fun. I check, UTG checks, and the button bets T5000. I probably should have pushed here but I wanted his whole stack and didn't want to blow him off AK or something. I call, UTG folds. The turn is a 3, putting 2 clubs on board. I check and the guy pushes about 16K more. I call, show my hand and he mucks his cards face down. He says, how else am I supposed to play JJ! If I knew he had JJ I would have gotten him all in on the flop. A King or Ace woulda killed me on the turn. Anyway, I'm chip leader in the tourney now and we go to the final table shortly thereafter.

9 handed at the final table, blinds 1500/3000 I get AKs UTG+1 and put in my normal raise to 6200. My normal raises have been just over 2x the BB and no one has stood up to me yet. Folds to the SB who goes all in for like T200 more. He has KTo and spikes a T on the turn. No big deal, I still have about 60K left and I feel like it boosts my image, making it easier to steal.

Very next hand I get QQ, UTG. I make it 6200 and the second chip leader makes it about 16K, leaving himself with about 25K. I think he's sick of seeing me raise and is trying a resteal but I'm not sure. It folds back to me and I put him on a big Ace. He's played AA faster than this. I want a chance to get in as a big favorite so I just call, leaving myself with about 40K. I think I need less Hellmuth in me and I probably should have pushed. I felt like I was at worst 50/50. Anyway, I call and the flop is J75 rainbow. I move in and he calls me instantly. Sweet, AJ I think but he tables 66. You gotta love it. I'm quite large and my image is impeccable. Steal city baby. With the huge antes it's so much fun.

We get to 4-handed and everyone wants to chop. I tell them if they give me 1st place money they can chop the rest. The more they talk about chopping it, the more confident I get.

Finally someone stands up to my raising. 2 hands in a row, the kid on my left comes over the top all in after I raised to 9200 with blinds at 2K/4K. I had A9o the first time and QJo the second time. Both times I asked for a count and just couldn't call 25K more the first time nor about 40K more the second time. All of a sudden this kid has the chip lead and I'm about to lose it. The dealer's pissed because I asked for a count then folded both times and I'm pissed because he's pissed and should just do his job I stand up from the table, close my eyes, and tell myself not to blow this opportunity. Focus and you can win. I realize that the other 4 are there, ready to gamboooooolllll preflop and I'm not. I slow all the way down and start limping. I am so much more comfortable seeing flops and I calm down. I regain the chip lead and I'm feeling fine. To me, "changing gears" only meant one way....faster and faster. I finally realized that I could downshift and be more comfortable with these types of players. Fantastic. I was so close to absolutely losing it.

A little while later, blinds are 3K/6K with a T500 ante. They will remain like this for the rest of the tourney. UTG makes it 12K and I have KJo in the BB. I call. I have about 85K in my stack and he has about 50K. The flop comes K74 rainbow. I check and he bets the minimum, 6K. I raise to 18K and he immediately pushes for about 30K more. And I mean immediately. He looks so damn confident. Would this kid really push with a hand that I beat? Maybe KT or K9 but he looks so damn confident. WOW. I get it counted and it's T28500 more. Am I really going to fold this hand, getting 3-1 on my call? If I fold, I still have about 70K and I can build it confidently. He'll have 90K but I've chipped away at him before. GOD. I get time put on me and I fold with 15 seconds lift. he just looked so damn confident. He picks up his cards and taps them a few times like he's going to flip the over then throws them in the muck. I can't believe I did that. Like I said, I need less Hellmuth in me.

KJo on the button, I make it 13K to go and the BB calls. Flop JT6 and he pushes for about 30K. Easy call, he has T8o and we're down to 3.

Poorly played hand that ended up perfect. I have 24o in the BB, the SB completes and I check. SB min bets at a flop of AQ3 with 2 diamonds. I think he would have raised preflop with an A so I just call, looking to take the hand from him on the turn. The turn is an offsuit 6 and he checks. The pot is right at 20K and I bet 25K, figuring that's enough to make him fold. He studies and studies then decides to just call, leaving himself with 6500 chips. WTF? I feel like I should have counted him down and put him all in here but I totally misread the situation. I am really pissed. River is the J of diamonds. He checks and I push. I can't check down a 70K pot with 4 HIGH! He thinks and thinks then mucks!, leaving himself with 6500 with blinds 3000/6000 with a 500 ante. UNREAL! Carl is sitting behind me and I show him my cards. The guy asks to see so I show him. He's incredulous. I have no clue what he had but man, what a crazy hand. He goes out the next hand against the kid with K9 vs K7 when a 7 spikes on the turn. I'm heads up against my nemesis.

The heads up structure is different than online, Button is the BB. I switch back into aggressive mode and steal the kid's money for a while. I'm at about 160K and he has around 60K. He raises to 20K from the SB and I make it 40K with TT. I would have pushed but I thought there was a better chance that he'd do it for me. He counts his chips and finally folds, saying that he didn't have enough to reraise. A few hands later he's back up to 60K, having moved in a few times when I couldn't call. I get ATs in the SB and raise to 13K. He flat calls. Flop comes T84 rainbow and I bet 13K. He moves in and I call. He has AKs with none of his suit on the flop. Turn is an A and the river is a Q. YES!

$5270 payday. Not huge but pretty good for me. Live tourneys are so much fun. This was my first Tuesday $100 but I'll be back. Thanks to those of you who read this all the way through. I bet not many of you made it. It ended up pretty long.

If any Seattlelites are there next Tuesday, look for me. I'm a big Asian and Ill be wearing a Seahawks hat. There was a guy at the final table named Bernie but when I asked him if he played online he said that he didn't trust the internet and didn't do anything but play Solitare on his computer. I don't think that 2+2 bernie plays online but I have a feeling that he would have answered my question differently. I should have just used a brown trout reference. Anyway, I just burned about 30 minutes of my graveryard shift and only have 5 hours left.

Schaefer

[B1GF1SHY]

Great report, thanks for the good read.

[Ryner]

Good read, congrats on the win.

[Wheezl]

Whats up man...I just moved from Seattle to Texas [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img], but I just wanted to say that your post is really making me miss being able to drive to a cardroom at any time. I played in that Tuesday tourney one time and made it to the top 3 and chopped it up even though my opponents were both pretty weak and I had the largest stack by a small margin. My ride had been waiting on me for hours already because he busted out early and his Girl was lighting up his cell.

Anyway, keep representing 2+2 up at the SHOOT.

[bernie]

That was probably bernie 'A'. Ask for bernie 'S'. The floor and most of the dealers will know who you're talking about. Most just come up to me and say they're from the forum. Im usually in the 10-20 or the 20-40 game. Primarily i try and get there and in a game a couple hours before the tourney goes.

Great tourney, isn't it?

b

[Roman]

nice win, congrats.

[edfurlong]

I was thinking about checking this out next tuesday, thanks for the report.

[nolanfan34]

Great report. How many people turn out for this? And how many spots paid? How fast did the blinds go up?

[bernie]

Last night it paid over $3000 for the winner.

Slow night though. There were only 66 players. Usually i think around 80 or 90 show up. Not as many players as the thurs. tourney, but the payout is bigger.

Make the final table and you get paid. Many times they'll do a deal and pay to 11th.

b

[Schaefer]

Yeah, 88 showed up last week and 1st paid $5270. 66 this week like Bernie said. It's really a pretty sweet tourney. There are some real bad players and some uber tight players that let you steal their blinds at will.

The crazy part is how big the antes are. Antes start in the 2nd hour and it goes up every 20 minutes 25/100/200 to 50/150/300 to 100/200/400. At a 10-handed table, you have 1K in Antes! I think this makes the tightness of a lot of regulars a big advantage to LAGs like myself.

Schaefer