LV day 2
(Day 1 entry was friends only. Deal with it.)
Played in today's $2600 super. T5000 stacks, 25-50 blinds to start.
Early raiser to 150, 3 callers including one blind. Flop 556 with two hearts. I forget exactly who bet what when, but it goes something like: check to the raiser who bets, only the blind calls. The turn is some heart. The blind bets, raiser moves in, blind calls. 85s for the blind, AhJh for the raiser, blank on the river and the blind busts.
Early raise to 125, two callers, then one of the blinds re-raises 200 more. Flop QJx with two spades, sb bets out 300, raise to 800, sb calls. On the turn the sb check-raises all-in with AQ. Raiser has JJ and the sb busts.
Did I mention this is still in the first orbit? I haven't even been through the blinds yet (I started in the cutoff).
Different earlyish raiser to 150, called by the guy on my left from the blinds. Flop 862: check, bet 300, call. Turn is a 4. Blind bets out 600, call. River is another 4, blind checks. Thinkthinkthink. "I think you have the 6 of hearts. I check." Blind shakes his head. Raiser asks "No pair?" and turns over his hand: 77. It's good. Then he says "I knew you either had nothing or a six."
Later, I have a single T100 big blind. The blind from the previous hand limps in UTG. Same raiser from the previous hand makes it 150 from the cutoff, I re-raise to 600 with AhJh, limper folds. Flop 742, I bet 800 and he calls. Turn 6. The 2nd barrel would put me all in; I elect to check. He bets 1200 and I fold, after which he shows KdJd and shrugs.
Now, I have nothing against conversation about hands after they're over, and showing bluffs is fine, etc. but the way this all happened gave me the impression this guy thinks he is God's gift to poker or something.
Anyway since the two early bust-outs the table has mostly been tight. We've been playing 8-handed for a while and they finally bring us another player: oh good, it's Louis Asmo, this should loosen the game up (in case anyone doesn't know who Louis Asmo is, I'm being sarcastic -- he had the AA when David Chiu laid down KK pre-flop at the final table of TOC '99). But he's relatively short-stacked and he busts with QQ in the sb when he gets sort-of trapped by KK which raised and then flat called his re-raise and called his all-in on the flop.
I make it 275 UTG with QQ, guy next to me calls, next guy makes it 1250 to go. I give him credit for a pretty good hand, but I think I'm moving in here. So I do: 2300 more. He thinks for a bit, counts me down, and calls with AK. AJx98 and I'm out.
I sit down to play a $285 one-table for tomorrow's $2600 super. 4 seats are left when a short, overweight man with stubby arms comes up (I mentally dub him Mr. T-Rex). Not to buy into hateful stereotypes, but the most succinct way to describe his voice is "soft-spoken Southern fag" (I can say that since I'm gay, right?). So you have to imagine that in your mind's ear as you read the following conversations.
He asks if he can take the #4 seat. It's taken, only 1, 2, 7, and 10 are available.
T-Rex: Where is seat 1?
Floor: Right here next to the dealer.
T-Rex: Where is seat 2?
Floor: Right next to seat 1.
T-Rex: Where is seat 10?
Floor: On the other side of the dealer.
Spencer: Seat 7 is over here.
T-Rex: Oh, I'll take that one!
Just as we are about to get underway, a different floor calls down a $3000 one-table satellite.
T-Rex: Oh, what's the difference between the $3000 one-table and this one?
Floor: Two thousand, seven hundred and fifteen dollars. [pause] Seriously, the $3000 is a satellite directly into the big tournament, while this one is for tomorrow's $2600 super.
T-Rex: Oh, ok.
Also he has been carrying some WPT book (I think Antonio and/or Mike Sexton are doing book signings outside the Fontana bar). After not being able to find his friend to hold it for him, he decides to just put it on his chair and sit on it.
Some ways in, a tight solid player raises in early position, T-Rex calls. As we await the flop he checks his cards and I see he has Q8. The flop comes A98 and TSP bets out 700. I put him on AK and predict T-Rex is going to bust here. The turn is a blank, TSP moves in, T-Rex calls immediately. TSP in fact has AK and T-Rex busts when a 9 rivers.
T-Rex: That's ok. Good hand. [stands up] Well, this book didn't help very much.
Spencer: [unable to help myself] Reading it might work better than sitting on it.
I bust when I make a steal raise with A3, get called by someone who has been playing a number of hands but seems mostly reasonable. Flop J22. He checks, I move in ~size of pot. Oops, he has K2, IGHN.
On my walk back to the Mirage (where I'm staying) there is a knot of people on one corner and as I pass them I see they are all drawn around a 3-card monte game, right on the Strip. Wow, I didn't think there was anyone left who didn't know about 3CM.
Speaking of the Strip, yesterday from Mirage --> Bellagio I only passed 3 half-hearted porno/escort handout people, and today there were none at all. I suggested to my friend Gina that they mostly seem to be Mexicans, and Mexicans seem to trend heavily Catholic, so maybe they're taking Easter Sunday off. Gina questions whether Catholics would even be involved in the porn/escort distribution/solicitation industry. I allow that she has a point, but counter that maybe they are God's test proctors, tempting us to see if we will sin.
Other random tidbits not necessarily having to do with poker or gambling:
While standing around yesterday waiting for the evening $1060 tournament to start, I ran into The Gavin in the Fontana area and we chatted for a bit. He was waiting for them to start $3000 one-tables and said he was itching to get into action. So we roshamboed for $100, his scissors beating my paper.
The VP bug seems to have a hold of a number of poker players -- have seen John Juanda, David Chiu, and Phil Hellmuth in the high limit area. Did not hear Phil berating his machine. I also played next to James Woods for a bit today.
In the $1060 last night, some hand involving TT came up, and someone started a discussion about how TT is the easiest pair to play after the flop. I didn't quite follow the logic, but he also said he "begged Harrington" to put something in his next book about calling JJ "colored tens" but Harrington politely demurred on the grounds that it was too politically incorrect. I was mildly shocked at this comment. I know, I just called someone a Southern fag, but that was anonymously on the Internet, not out loud at a poker table.
I was playing video poker at the high limit bar at the Mirage after I arrived on Saturday afternoon and was pleasantly surprised to see the Leafs/Sens game on CBC on the screen. Apparently no one else cared that hockey was on. The sound was off though, so I could not figure out why Grapes was wearing a loud pink hockey sweater and matching pink tie on Coach's Corner -- anyone out there who can clue me in? [UPDATE: it was for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which was my guess at the time]
Speaking of sports, what's the deal with NBA players wearing pantyhose this year?
And lastly, if you ever thought it couldn't get any worse than "Nausea, heartburn, indigestion" -- they now have a rap version of the commercial too.
Oh yeah, p.s I hit a $5 royal at VP today.
Played in today's $2600 super. T5000 stacks, 25-50 blinds to start.
Early raiser to 150, 3 callers including one blind. Flop 556 with two hearts. I forget exactly who bet what when, but it goes something like: check to the raiser who bets, only the blind calls. The turn is some heart. The blind bets, raiser moves in, blind calls. 85s for the blind, AhJh for the raiser, blank on the river and the blind busts.
Early raise to 125, two callers, then one of the blinds re-raises 200 more. Flop QJx with two spades, sb bets out 300, raise to 800, sb calls. On the turn the sb check-raises all-in with AQ. Raiser has JJ and the sb busts.
Did I mention this is still in the first orbit? I haven't even been through the blinds yet (I started in the cutoff).
Different earlyish raiser to 150, called by the guy on my left from the blinds. Flop 862: check, bet 300, call. Turn is a 4. Blind bets out 600, call. River is another 4, blind checks. Thinkthinkthink. "I think you have the 6 of hearts. I check." Blind shakes his head. Raiser asks "No pair?" and turns over his hand: 77. It's good. Then he says "I knew you either had nothing or a six."
Later, I have a single T100 big blind. The blind from the previous hand limps in UTG. Same raiser from the previous hand makes it 150 from the cutoff, I re-raise to 600 with AhJh, limper folds. Flop 742, I bet 800 and he calls. Turn 6. The 2nd barrel would put me all in; I elect to check. He bets 1200 and I fold, after which he shows KdJd and shrugs.
Now, I have nothing against conversation about hands after they're over, and showing bluffs is fine, etc. but the way this all happened gave me the impression this guy thinks he is God's gift to poker or something.
Anyway since the two early bust-outs the table has mostly been tight. We've been playing 8-handed for a while and they finally bring us another player: oh good, it's Louis Asmo, this should loosen the game up (in case anyone doesn't know who Louis Asmo is, I'm being sarcastic -- he had the AA when David Chiu laid down KK pre-flop at the final table of TOC '99). But he's relatively short-stacked and he busts with QQ in the sb when he gets sort-of trapped by KK which raised and then flat called his re-raise and called his all-in on the flop.
I make it 275 UTG with QQ, guy next to me calls, next guy makes it 1250 to go. I give him credit for a pretty good hand, but I think I'm moving in here. So I do: 2300 more. He thinks for a bit, counts me down, and calls with AK. AJx98 and I'm out.
I sit down to play a $285 one-table for tomorrow's $2600 super. 4 seats are left when a short, overweight man with stubby arms comes up (I mentally dub him Mr. T-Rex). Not to buy into hateful stereotypes, but the most succinct way to describe his voice is "soft-spoken Southern fag" (I can say that since I'm gay, right?). So you have to imagine that in your mind's ear as you read the following conversations.
He asks if he can take the #4 seat. It's taken, only 1, 2, 7, and 10 are available.
T-Rex: Where is seat 1?
Floor: Right here next to the dealer.
T-Rex: Where is seat 2?
Floor: Right next to seat 1.
T-Rex: Where is seat 10?
Floor: On the other side of the dealer.
Spencer: Seat 7 is over here.
T-Rex: Oh, I'll take that one!
Just as we are about to get underway, a different floor calls down a $3000 one-table satellite.
T-Rex: Oh, what's the difference between the $3000 one-table and this one?
Floor: Two thousand, seven hundred and fifteen dollars. [pause] Seriously, the $3000 is a satellite directly into the big tournament, while this one is for tomorrow's $2600 super.
T-Rex: Oh, ok.
Also he has been carrying some WPT book (I think Antonio and/or Mike Sexton are doing book signings outside the Fontana bar). After not being able to find his friend to hold it for him, he decides to just put it on his chair and sit on it.
Some ways in, a tight solid player raises in early position, T-Rex calls. As we await the flop he checks his cards and I see he has Q8. The flop comes A98 and TSP bets out 700. I put him on AK and predict T-Rex is going to bust here. The turn is a blank, TSP moves in, T-Rex calls immediately. TSP in fact has AK and T-Rex busts when a 9 rivers.
T-Rex: That's ok. Good hand. [stands up] Well, this book didn't help very much.
Spencer: [unable to help myself] Reading it might work better than sitting on it.
I bust when I make a steal raise with A3, get called by someone who has been playing a number of hands but seems mostly reasonable. Flop J22. He checks, I move in ~size of pot. Oops, he has K2, IGHN.
On my walk back to the Mirage (where I'm staying) there is a knot of people on one corner and as I pass them I see they are all drawn around a 3-card monte game, right on the Strip. Wow, I didn't think there was anyone left who didn't know about 3CM.
Speaking of the Strip, yesterday from Mirage --> Bellagio I only passed 3 half-hearted porno/escort handout people, and today there were none at all. I suggested to my friend Gina that they mostly seem to be Mexicans, and Mexicans seem to trend heavily Catholic, so maybe they're taking Easter Sunday off. Gina questions whether Catholics would even be involved in the porn/escort distribution/solicitation industry. I allow that she has a point, but counter that maybe they are God's test proctors, tempting us to see if we will sin.
Other random tidbits not necessarily having to do with poker or gambling:
While standing around yesterday waiting for the evening $1060 tournament to start, I ran into The Gavin in the Fontana area and we chatted for a bit. He was waiting for them to start $3000 one-tables and said he was itching to get into action. So we roshamboed for $100, his scissors beating my paper.
The VP bug seems to have a hold of a number of poker players -- have seen John Juanda, David Chiu, and Phil Hellmuth in the high limit area. Did not hear Phil berating his machine. I also played next to James Woods for a bit today.
In the $1060 last night, some hand involving TT came up, and someone started a discussion about how TT is the easiest pair to play after the flop. I didn't quite follow the logic, but he also said he "begged Harrington" to put something in his next book about calling JJ "colored tens" but Harrington politely demurred on the grounds that it was too politically incorrect. I was mildly shocked at this comment. I know, I just called someone a Southern fag, but that was anonymously on the Internet, not out loud at a poker table.
I was playing video poker at the high limit bar at the Mirage after I arrived on Saturday afternoon and was pleasantly surprised to see the Leafs/Sens game on CBC on the screen. Apparently no one else cared that hockey was on. The sound was off though, so I could not figure out why Grapes was wearing a loud pink hockey sweater and matching pink tie on Coach's Corner -- anyone out there who can clue me in? [UPDATE: it was for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which was my guess at the time]
Speaking of sports, what's the deal with NBA players wearing pantyhose this year?
And lastly, if you ever thought it couldn't get any worse than "Nausea, heartburn, indigestion" -- they now have a rap version of the commercial too.
Oh yeah, p.s I hit a $5 royal at VP today.