geek and proud

archives

| blog |

Friday, July 1, 2005

Ten Bracelets

Congrats to Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan for both surpassing Phil Hellmuth and earning their tenth WSOP bracelet this week. Absolutely amazing. The BRUNSON-CHAN STANDARD. All aspire to it; none can match it. Donkeys always draw.

I played in a few MTTs last night. The $20+2 NLHE at Stars, and a $10+1 stud hi/lo tourney. Was folding along around average in the hold ’em tournament, not getting much of anything. I had yet to see a showdown, 45 minutes in. I finally pick up a hand, KK UTG. The blinds are 50/100, and I make it 400 to go. Short stack goes all in for around 550 more. Other guy who has me covered goes all in. I call, and love it when I see their AQ and JJ. Until the flop is JTx and I’m drawing to runner runner (though with a K, I’d get back some of the pot, as I had the AQ covered). I get no help, and that’s that.

Strangely, I managed to make the money in the stud hi/lo tournament, finishing 23rd of 216, for $17.28. I would have done much better, too, if not for one beat and one hand where I bricked out. The beat I had a pair of queens against a pair of jacks, and the other guy caught two pair on the end and I didn’t. The brick-out I started with A238 all suited and got no help for either the high or the low hand. Still, considering my relative lack of knowledge about the game, I’m pretty happy with the result. I’m sure I sucked out on some people in it and don’t even know I played the hands badly.

My Stars account is seriously low. All I’ve been playing there has been the MTTs, and for the most part, I’ve been getting my money in with the best of it (with the exception of one stupid all-in checkraise recently), and losing. I still feel like I’m playing in them pretty well. I just wish the results would back me up on that.

While I was doing that, I was playing the $100NL at Noble, still clearing my bonus and ECD comp. One hand, I get QQ UTG, and raise it to $4. A few people call, and the big blind makes it $15 more. I figure I’m behind, but if I flop a set I’ll get the rest of the $120 he has behind him. Anything but a Q on the flop and I check-fold. Flop is Q high, and he immediately goes all in. I call, and hate the K on the turn, but then love the Q on the river, and my quads beat his boat.