Royal Sampler Play of the Month Award (April Edition)

I probably should re-name this the 'bad beat blog', but I think that one is already taken. Not sure if you're sick of hearing my bad/tough beat stories. I'm a bit sick of telling them, to be honest. But I just have to get it out of my system otherwise I'll implode. I guess this blog is what they call carthartic in this regard.

Three wicked tough beats in three consecutive SNGs a few nights back. Check this out:

(the next three paragraphs are 'bad beat' papagraphs, and not particularly interesting. Skip at your own discretion).

First SNG, first hand, I get dealt T9s (6-handed). I limp on the button. Flop comes down with an ace and one of my suit. Everyone checks. Turn comes a fourth of my suit. I semi-bluff given no-one seems interested, and get one caller. River completes my flush. I bet, get raised, I re-raise, and get raised again. Hmm. Ok, I just call. He turns over AQs for the nut flush. Ok, sure. No pre-flop raise, no bet on the flop with a pair of aces with Q kicker. Fine. Anyway, I was crippled after that hand and didn't last much longer.

Next SNG was a wild one. Still on the first level and only four remained. One player limps, I complete on the SB with 64 (come on - it only cost me 20), BB checks. Flop Q64, I bet, BB raises, Limper flat calls. Hmm. Not liking my hand as much anymore, but I think it possible one has hit a Queen and one has a stupid draw. I push. BB calls with Q4. Ouch. Limper calls and shows AA. Dufus. Turn is a Q. Oh dear.

The good news story is the one guy not in the pot had about 300 chips left, and so limped into the money when two bigger stacks got smashed on the same hand. So, I guess my demise gave him a pleasant surprise.

Last SNG of this trio, I am dealt KJs on the button about three or four hands in. I'm a bit shaky after the last two SNG and limp in behind two others with much apprehension. Flop comes (AT5) of my suit. Gin. I check behind everyone else. Turn a blank, I bet, two callers. River an A. I'm reasonably happy here as I figure one of the two callers has hit trip Aces. First position bets, I raise, he puts me all-in. Hmm. I sigh and call. He shows 55 for the rivered boat. Ah my, ah me.

May I continue in this vein? Or blue vein as the Champ would put it?

I shall.

Satellite into the 200k guaranteed at Party. 117 runners, four get seats, the next three get some cash. I play tight, solid play, restraining myself from trying anything tricky. I make it to the final table. With 9 left, I find QQ on the button. With blinds at 1000/2000/75, big stack raises to 8000, I come over the top for 32 000. He insta-calls - oh yes he does - for 40 per cent of his stack - oh yes it was - with his mighty A6.

Motherfucker.

I mean, seriously, Ace fucking six? On what planet is that a good hand?

Planet Earth, apparently, as my two sweet ladies got defrocked and sent out to the store for some beer and chips.

Before I move on to the much anticipated Play of the Month Award, I should say that I'm not under the illusion that I'm some sort of poker genius on a bad run of cards. I know this is not the case. But I do think it fair to say I am a solid novice experiencing a really wicked run of beats.

But anyway, this one is a beauty.

It's one of those WSOP Freerolls on Party Poker (I know, Freeroll + PP = Worst Beats Ever, by definition, but hear me out). So i've got K9 on the button (yes, yes, in know, bad beat stories can't start with the words, 'I was holding K9', but don't leave yet). Two limpers come in before me, blinds check.

Flop K95. Nice. First limper bets, next player calls, I raise, first limper goes all-in, second limper calls, I shrug and call.

First limper shows K5. Nice. Second shows A8. Huh?

Turn 6, river 7. The chips float over to our friend with the A8. For a moment I sit there stunned, wondering why I didn't win take the pot. Is there some sort of bug on Party? The computer has made a mistake, has it not? What is happening here? Then I see the runner-runner gutshot. Oh right, yeah. Cheers.

He was 3% on the flop. He committed all his chips after there was a bet before him, a raise behind, and a re-raise all-in in front of him. And he did it with Ace high and no draw. Kudos to you, nameless PP donkey (I was too stunned to take down his screen name at the time), for really making my night. I haven't lost many pots to an opponent who was 3% on the flop, but this one takes the cake for one of the most appalling calls I have ever seen.

The Royal Sampler Play of the Month Award deservedly goes to this little episode. Kudos.

***

Went to a free tournament at a pub out of town. I figured that while being free, it offered me an opportunity to practice some of my live poker skills. As further evidence of poker's skyrocketing popularity, this small pub found itself unable to fit all the players at the 8 tables it had set aside for the night, so they made a list of alternates in order to give everyone a shot (the tables were 8-handed). Including all the reserves, there must have been 90 runners.

Key hands:

#1) My starting stack of 1500 had been whittled down to 750 after being cold decked for four levels (I'm sure you'll appreciate that stealing pots is out of the question at an extremely loose table in a free tournament). With the blinds 100/200, I found AK UTG (easily my best hand of the night thus far). I push, getting three callers (as you'd expect). Flop AK5. Nice. Hand holds up against A4, 99 and 33, and I quadruple up.

#2) After working my way up to about 6000, I find KK in second position with the blinds at 500/1000. UTG goes all in for about 4000, I push, everyone folds. UTG has AT. Flop is all blanks. Turn brings a third heart. I note that I have the Kings of hearts, but that my opponent has the Ace of hearts. River a fourth heart. Oh the pain. I feel myself burning with frustration and my capacity to stop myelf from howling in anguish faltering. Luckily I keep my mouth shut and just shake my head. Fortunately the person who cracked my Kings is a friend and was equal parts ecstatic and apologetic (and drunk on white wine). If anyone was going to crack my Kings, I guess I'm glad it was her. But it still fucking sucked.

#3) Next hand I am UTG with 2300 left in my stack. I am steaming. I see 97s and push all my chips into the middle with not a little bit of anger (although in retrospect it wasn't such a bad play given my stack - Harrington would probably approve). All fold quickly to the button who thinks for a while before folding. My king-cracking friend is on the BB; she thinks for even longer, and then folds. Button tells me he had J9, BB said she has A7 but felt bad about cracking my kings so didn't call. I tell them I had AJ and carefully unclench my bladder muscles.

#4) Next hand, I have 2800 left (with 1000 in the middle for my BB). Button raises to 2000 leaving himself 500 behind, SB folds, I look down on Q8 and say 'ok let's get it all in the middle') (I mean, what else am I going to do here?). Button puts in his last 500 and turns over A6. I'm not too far behind, and end up a long way ahead when I river a Q high straight.

Now I'm looking a bit better with 6800.

#5) I think I stole a few blinds in late position in the next couple of cycles. Perhaps three circuits later I get A4s on the button and push. The big blinds thinks a bit then calls... with A3. Flop has a four. Nice. He has me covered by a few hundred so I double up to about 14 000.

I steal a few more times and with about 20 people left, I have around 18000 in chips.

#6) I feel pretty comfortable after this and cruise to the final table (of 8). I think we're down to six when the button raises my big blind 3000. Unfortunately for him, the blinds are 4000 - 8000. There are no rules for minimum raises at the tournament so the bet stands. I have to put 3000 into a put of 23000 and so auto-call (with 96 - not that it matters). Flop comes T72. I check, my opponent checks. This player basically only bets when he hits, doesn't fold pre-flop, but was capable of folding post-flop when he missed. As such, I was going to go all in no-matter what if a blank came off on the turn. The turn obliged by giving me a wonderful looking 2, I push, he folds. Thanks.

#7) I still haven't figured out if I made a mistake this hand. Long story short, in a three way pot, there was 24000 in the middle. A player to my left goes all-in for 8000. The other player folds. The board reads (JJ8)(2) with three diamonds. I had K7 with the King of diamonds (I was on the big blind, ok?). The all-in guy had checked the flop. Off the top of my head, I figure if he has the jack, then I have 8 outs to the flush (discounting the 9th flush card which will also give him the boat). That's about 16% I guess or 5 to 1. If he has the 8 then I have 9 outs for the flush + 3 for the King giving me 13 or 26%. Which is about 3 to 1. A call is correct here. In retrospect I didn't put him on the Jack, so I guess I should have called. Oh well. (I obviously didn't include here option 3) he already had the boat and I was drawing dead (unlikely), or 4) he was on a pure bluff and I had the best hand (unlikely but slightly more possible than 3)).

#8) Still 6 left. Chip leader has about 50 000, I have about 25 000, everyone else is short-stacked. UTG goes all-in for 12 000, I look down and find QQ, and happily shove all my chips in. The chip leader is on the BB. He looks at his cards, looks at my bet, thinks for a while, and calls with 99. UTG has 55. Nice. Even if I lose to the 55 here, I still win a decent side pot (26 000).

So a 9 promptly comes out on the flop. Fuck. I shake my head, shake everyones hands, and go out 5th. The pub gave me a six-pack of Crownies for my efforts, so it wasn't all bad.

***

Live tournament last. 90 entry fee; three tables. I nearly double my starting stack of 3000 in the first round after a big stack bluffs a heap of chips to me when I have a boat. I lose most of them in not long after when a) I fail to see a third person in a pot, and bluff in I spot where I normally wouldn't (bad play - I was focussing on the good player at the table and didn't see the thrid player call my raise) (for the record, he had JJ and limped, she had KK and also limped (from chronic timidity - not trying to make a move or anything - I find TT on the button and raise. Flop was A62 rainbow, I feel that the first limper has missed the flop and bet - he folds, I go to rake the pot and hear 'call' from my right. Stunned, I turn and see a third player - a tight, sometime calling station in the pot. Great.)

I was angry at myself after this mistake. Steaming. A few hands later I hit top set on a board of 962, all diamonds. Early player bets, I put him all in, he calls with KJ (with the K of diamonds). Donkey rivers his flush and my stack is crippled.

I was unusually pissed off after this. Very, very frustrated. I think I may give that particular tournament a rest for a little while. Taking beats when you're a mile in front is one thing, but making fundamental errors like FAILING TO SEE ANOTHER PLAYER IN THE POT is something else again. I'll have to think on this one, but I think I deserve an honourable mention in the Play of the Month Awards.