Foxwoods
WPF 10K WPT Event Trip Report: You Play
the Hands... Part 3
Third
(and Final) Part:
Day
Two Table 4 Seat 2:
There
are 77 left in the field of 313 starters,
I am the 2nd shortest stack with 6,200.
My starting table by seat and chip count:
1) Max Stern 65,3000
2) Joan Hadley 6,200
3) Maureen Fedunaik 27,600
4) Mark Seif 94,600
5) Chris Bjorin 41,400
6) Mordecei Benowitz 38,700
7) Joseph Anthony 8,300
8) empty
9) Gerald Cheatham 42,100
I arrive at the table knowing that I have
to get very lucky or I am not long for this
tournament. Starting in with my usual "trash
talk", opening my bagged chips and commenting
that about 10K is missing. Without skipping
a beat the dealer replies "if you played
better you'd have more chips". Before some
of you think the dealer "fresh", the dealer
knew me and it was pretty funny. I let Mark
Seif know, I know who he is and I receive
a "shock" when he asks if I am AlwaysAware
on rgp.. hmm, does he know that from reading
the Foxwoods updates? Or, has he read the
weak tight advice that I disperse? I don't
inquire but I file it, and, the thread about
being known or unknown swirls in my head.
I state that I am going all in the first
three hands and Mark replies that four doubles
and I will be the chip leader at the table.
The button is in 6th seat? with blinds of
400/800 and antes of 100.
I power all in on the very first hand and
everyone surrenders. They KNOW how dangerous
I will be if they double me!!! I show the
AK of diamonds. I will need to steal and
I want them to know that I actually had
a hand. I can't count on the card gods blessing
me with big hands and I will need to be
fairly active early, so I don't want them
wondering.. I want to be able to STEAL,
STEAL, STEAL... even with the 5 9 of clubs
if need be :-)
I don't recall what happened on my blind.
But when folded around to me on my small
blind I move all in and Maureen folds. Piece
of cake playing a short stack :-) Interestedly,
the next orbit it is again folded to me
in my sb and this time I surrender the chips
to Maureen. Maureen says "thank you" and
it occurs to me that she may have thought
I stole from her the first orbit and was
wondering if it would become a habit :-)
Joseph is gone and Gerald has taken a hit
on his chips (though I don't recall now
how it happened). He goes all in (must be
on my blind) cause I call and say "I ain't
got much, but I'm not blinding out" and
I turn over KQ to his JT. My hand holds
(Q I think appears with a possible draw
for him that doesn't get there). The very
next hand Gerald Cheatham is out.
I
now have the most chips I have had the entire
tournament 24K - but I am still have a long
long way to go, medium chip stack is about
55K. As I am stacking my chips I find 99
and make it 3K to go. Mark Seif flat calls.
The flop comes J84 and I fire out 6K (as
I briefly look at the flop while stacking
my chips from a previous hand) and Mark
moves in a mountain of chips, enough to
cover me. DAMN! Redo Redo!! Do Over!! Crap..
Yes, I was as rattled at the table as these
words depict. Does he know I am weak tight
and will fold a big pair here? Does he think
I will marry a big pair and pay him off
if he has a set? The board is rainbow and
not all that dangerous (would he call a
raise with 9T, probably would if it was
suited or if he thought he could move me
off on the flop), no reason for him to move
those chips in now since I have been betting.
But if I check the turn does he think I
will shut down to a bet? Is he trying to
get the money by getting it in now, or is
he pushing around a weak tight player knowing
that I will fold? Damn Damn Damn.... I fold.
He tells me he had a set of 8's. I, of course,
believe him until I rely the story to others.
He had shown a few hands and then said "no
more show and tell". If he really had a
set it would make sense for him to show,
to reinforce that weak tight players like
me should fold to his bets and he can bluff
me out later. I don't know if he had a set
of 8's or not. Players with skill tell me
that if he did, I should have gone broke
there, that I should have called. All I
can say is DAMN DAMN DAMN...
Phil
Hellmuth and Stan Goldstein arrive at the
table. And with them the table dynamics
change.
Chris Bjorin does his share of stealing.
I end the level with 15,800. The next level
is 600/1200 with 200 antes.
Mark
Seif has been reraising a lot, possibly
due to his reraising Max Stern limps instead
of raising utg with 99. The hand is three
way with him and the blinds (Stan Goldstein
is the sb) and the flop comes low 247 or
some such. I don't remember the action,
I believe Stan bet, the bb folds and Max
raises and Stan moves all in and Max calls?
Anyway the money gets all in. Stan has 24
and doubles up. Max moves all in the next
hand utg and is out.
I play my best survival poker. And then
it happens. The entire tournament I have
looked at my hand only once before it was
my turn to act. I do this for several reasons
including no "preplanning" my action. I
wish that I had written this weeks ago,
because I don't remember my hand. Many of
you will find that "odd". Many people torture
themselves by going over the details, every
detail... over and over, on their final
hand or hands they may question if they
should have played differently. Not me.
I torture myself by going over the "concept"
over and over :-)
Anyway, I think I had A5 of clubs. I know
it was a suited Ace and I believe it had
a straight possibility. I have already decide
I am "going in". But wait, Phil Hellmuth
has raised. I have played with Phil and
watched Phil enough to form an educated
guess. And I am fairly confident that it
is a "steal raise". I should shut down,
but I don't. I decide instead to power in
and see if he will release. I do it with
little or no hesitation. I want him to "fear
me". I don't remember now the exact chips
counts, nor did I take the time to figure
the math... but I am fairly certain that
he is getting the right price to call (I
am still a struggling stack, he is healthy)
I don't want to hesitate and take the time
to "think it through" as I know I will fold
and I WANT him to fold (my mother says "wish
in one hand, spit in the other" and certainly
applies to what I was trying to accomplish
here :-) Phil says "I need help, but I have
to call" I reply "damn those math guys".
He has Q9 offsuit and a nine hits the flop
with no improvement for me and my time is
now roasted, toasted and done:-(
Yes,
I would have liked to make it to the money
(27 more spots). Maybe I could have gotten
they maybe I wouldn't, but.... the "regret"
I have is missing the experience of playing
this field in this spot. I can play weekly
tourney's or tourneys online, but they just
won't give me the experience or education
these players in this tournament would.
I started the day the second shortest and
out lasted 23 other players and yeah we
all got paid the same..... zippo, but what
I "learned" in my 2-3 hour play on Day Two
can be captured in an MasterCard commercial"priceless"
Later
that night Russell and Ed and I go out to
dinner and Russell sums it up this way.
Was it a good play? No. Was it horrible?
No. You thought you were ahead and you were.
At some point you needed to switch gears
and stop playing survival poker. Was that
the spot? Probably not. It's bad in the
sense that if you planned to continue to
play survival poker, you "knew better"
Someone
later tells me that Phil Hellmuth picked
up quite a few chips by play Q9 shortly
after that and making a comment referencing
how Q9 had worked earlier for him and because
of that decided to take a shot with it.
I don't know if it is true or how actually
I related it here... but, it did make me
smile thinking yeah, and Varkonyi had a
working relationship with QT a couple of
years ago and Phil chastised him :-)
Three
times the charm? I certainly hope so, Hey
Mike, you got the 2004 WPF schedule yet
:-) Speaking of which, kudos to Mike Ward,
Kathy Raymond, Lena Boles, Kimberly Lake,
All of the Foxwoods Floor Staff and the
dealers that worked endless hours to make
the WPF a success.
Joan
Hadley
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