Well I manage to hit rock bottom here after a week. I knew things couldn't possibly get any worse. Then on Saturday, I slept in...started the day by winning a $12/45 sng on Pokerstars...which at least got the feeling of total hopelessness out of my system.
Then I headed over to the casino. Got into a $125 SNG...including a $100 last longer with a guy who was full of information about all his various sponsor deals and his 'tight' relationship with the poker 'legend' T.J. Cloutier...who was on his way to the casino to make a 'guest appearance' and sign autographs. He bristled when I shared my negative opinion of Mr. Degen. He kept insisting that T.J. is a fantastic human being. Whatever.
This same guy would get lucky on a draw and be tripled up early in the SNG. Nice start. No worries though, I stayed patient and he played loose and stupid, and eventually he would get knocked out, I would chip up...and then eventually win, and end my long drought of SNG defeats. A much-needed boost to the 'ol bankroll, as well as my confidence. Then went to play another one. Started good. Got down to 4...was getting excited about two in a row...but then got snapped. Bummer.
Had time to play one more before the 9pm nightly started. Andddddd cue the circus! Yep, as one player I know quite well who was sitting in the 5-seat turns to me and says, "Pretty weird huh Monkey? Being on this side of it? Now you know how we all feel when we sit at your table!" What am I talking about? Here is a picture:
This guy's name is Bob Sura. If you are a sports fan, you may remember him from his days playing college basketball at Florida State, and then later for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA. He now lives in Houston, and was hanging out with a group of guys, including little Gabrielle, a pretty good player I met a few years ago and who gets deep in a lot of tourneys. Bob and his boys had been in the quarter all day and were hammered. Another of his buddies was also in our SNG, a guy who had never played poker. He was really skinning and wearing a hat like Ralph Kramden on the Honeymooners. Or wait, was Ralph the Jackie Mason character? Not sure....I think he was a DJ or something. But the two of them together were putting on quite a show. This old, heavy set woman sitting next to Bobby was about to lose her mind. They were talking in the hand, showing cards, telling everyone they were going to raise if anyone raised. Holding up the game every hand...it was actually pretty silly, but I couldn't help enjoy it. And then Bob started something I know the dealer loved. Every time he won a hand he was tipping her $100. He must have tipped her about 5 or 6 times.
His buddy would get knocked out finally. Then Bob spilled his drink on the table and we got moved into the Manor Room, a.k.a "The Meat Locker" which is always about -32 degrees. Once we got back there Bob decided he wanted to start drinking Jager Bombs. Most people arent entitled to Jager without pulling out the magic 'Seven Star' card. But I have a pretty good repoire with the waitstaff, me and Squirrel's friend is the beverage manager, and my other buddy is the manager at Masquerade, where the waitress has to go to get a bottle of Jager. So I told Bob I could hook it up. And it was on! I end up getting knocked out 4th again. Which wasn't a total disaster, as I was able to get to the 9pm'er on time. And I would be happy, as I started out hot...winning 5k chips in the first 4 hands.
The nightly ended up being a blast. I found others to drink with. Then my waitress comes back, tells me she could kiss me. Hmmm....let me guess...did Bobby give you $100 back there? Yep..he did. Turns out, Bob is a pretty cool dude, and really has his shit together. He is still young, retired from the NBA, owns a piece of 4 different companies...and appears to really have a fun time. Nice to see an athlete with all their ducks in a row. I ended up getting one of his buddies at my Mega satellite table the next day, and when they all came in to check on him, Bob came over to shake my hand...so I guess he wasn't too drunk to remember me.
I guess I'll just cut to the chase in the nightly. It was a long-ass grind. I would make the final table with relative ease. In fact, I was never all in on a single hand...until my final hand. It was just one of those nights where I just cruised. I needed this bad. It had been such a lousy week. First place was $5500. I wanted... I needed that hit. So when all of the other players wanted to chop when we got to 5 players...and it was well after 5:30am...I liked my advantage; as easily the best player at the table, and as the guy who wasn't about to fall asleep. So I resisted the offer of a chop. I also had Dwyte Pilgrim sweating me, and agreeing with me that I shouldn't chop with them. Well, it would blow up in my face. This old donkey raises me in the SB with KQ. I shove on him with AK. He snap calls...and it wasn't a 'priced in' type situation either...it was a huge call.
Flop comes.....oh....really? A-J-10-3-4. Perfect. I wasn't real pleased with that outcome. I guess later I felt a bit better about the $1700 hit. But like all of us...you don't ever want to go out like that. Left the casino...walked outside, and it was daylight. Oh boy.
So then, after sleeping 4 hours, I was back up...and headed back to the casino, for the noon mega satellite, which would get 135 players. 12 seats handed out...$3500 for 13th place. It would be a long, long grind. I would get almost NO cards all day. I never got a pair over 10's. I never flopped a set, never made a straight or a flush. I had to weasel and wiggle my way all throughout. Then, once the 6pm Mega came and went...and we were still not in the money I was getting a sick feeling like I was going to get froze out of another chance to Mega my way into the Main Event.
Then as we got close to 9pm...and I was down to 9 big blinds, this guy who nearly blew up a 70k chipstack raises under the gun with A7...I have 88 in the small blind...and decide this is the time. I shove all in. He is pot committed to call. A big crowd comes swooping in...and as the dealer flops me a set of 8's all tension was relieved, for me anyway! That was the only hand I really needed to lock up my place in the Main Event...we would wait for the shortstack on the other table to blind out. In between, we all kicked in $200 for the 14th place finisher...who would end up being my buddy John Wesstra, who went down with AK suited to Dan Walsh's JJ...and took it like the great sport he is.
My seat was secured...and it felt great! So with a nice SNG win, a Final Table in the 9pm nightly, and a Mega Satellite win, I feel like hopefully, I am heating up at just the right time. After that ended I got a couple of buffet comps from Steve Frezer, the greatest Tournament Director EVER...and went to eat with this guy Shane and Andy (Phillachuk or something like that) who won this Main Event two December's ago and who got heads up with Phil Hellmuth when Phil won his 11th bracelet. Good player, nice guy...was at my table most of the day and was a royal pain in my ass. He busted my 10-10 with Q-10 when he was short stacked, hitting a flush...but then did double me up when I had KQ to his 9c7c...after raising my BB for about the 47th time! He's real aggressive...but a solid, solid player. Hell the guy has over 1 million in earnings, so he is definitely doing something right!
After dinner I decided to play a little $125 SNG before calling it a night. I would take a couple players out...once when I flopped top two...and the lady called anyway with 44...another when I ran KK into another lady's A5. And just as I was thinking I might be going to bed with a win, my AQ raise...with 3 callers...got a flop of Q-3-6. When I bet...and this nice, older guy started studying me in kind of a weird fashion...then moves in on me....I didn't have any idea how to read it. The only thing I could think was that he got lucky and flopped two pair. But then again, I did raise....so I tried to convince myself he had QJ. He didn't. He had 666. Ugh. Ouch. That was it for me. I was done.
So I walked across the street, and 7 minutes after laying down in my ridiculously comfortable bed at the Hilton, I was asleep. Tim Burt wasn't in the room...I guess he must have been playing cash game. I have no idea when he came in, but I found some money for the hotel room, and his stuff gone...so I guess he isn't playing the Main Event. So its just me in the room now, and I just called and got my room reservation extended. So with 45 minutes til the Main Event starts...I am ready, and fresh...to go have a good Main Event run. There is NOTHING that would get my life back on track, and get me set up for Las Vegas next week...better than running good in this Main Event, and at least cashing. But to make the Final Table would really, really be a great thing for me right now. So I will be super dialed in today, and hopefully tomorrow in Day Two.
I will try to post updates.
Monkey
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