Back in Biloxi...What Next?

First I should address the positive:

Congratulations to David Nicholson...who was running like crap the first week in Shreveport...even loaned him money for a SNG at one point...which I should note he quickly returned, who has just won the first WSOP-C Main Event of the season...taking down $168,000 in the process. David is a really nice, low-key dude who I have always regarded as a good player, on the fringe of a big score. Good for him!

My good 'ol boy trucker friend Kenny Milam...who also ran like crap all week, carried the short stack for most of the second day....and kept getting critical double ups when he needed them worst, to hang around. He called me twice on my drive home from Shreveport yesterday, the final time to tell me he got knocked out 10th. Ugh. That is so irritating, but admittedly, the way my summer has gone, I would have loved to take 10th in the Main.

I stopped off in Metairie, at the Apple Store...where they were nice enough to exchange my iPad2...which had a locked volume switch, and an expired warranty...for an upgraded WiFi 3G iPad 2. Sweet. For almost nothing in cost. That kind of made my day.

I also wish to report, that despite only getting maid service a grand total of 3 times in the 12 days that I stayed in Bossier City...the front desk was nice enough to refund my 4 days that I won't be staying there. Yes...I screwed up and booked it til the 23rd. And Hotels.com has a policy of not refunding you in those situations unless the hotel agrees to it. I got screwed by the hotel up in Hammond this spring under the same circumstances. But thanks, to Days Inn of Bossier City for letting me have that money back. 

Dancing with the Stars has started their new season, and I will admit that I watched it tonight. About the only thing I can see missing from this season is Casey Anthony. I mean...its getting comical, the people they decide to put on this show. Nancy Grace? Funny, but you never see her from the chest down...I had no idea what a dumpy, frumpy cow she was. It was fun watching her plop around on the stage. I hope they keep her around just so we can all laugh at her! As for Ron Artest...or 'Metta' as they were calling him, along with his dance partner, Peta? Pita? Petta? Ronnie, who auctioned off his NBA championship ring for some mental health charity (how fitting)...now has decided to change his name to Metta World Peace. I swear to God...every day I live on this planet, shit just keeps getting more weird by the second. Click on that DWTS link up there to see The Big Dancing Dummy.

I drove 375 miles in each direction and failed to get a speeding ticket. I also failed to incur any more damage to my vehicle. Huge victory.

I have decided that there are a few things that I simply cannot stand anymore. Not sure when it started, the whole....Facebook post...where certain player lists his current standing in the tournament, or chip count...followed with a 'Letsss Goooo"..but I only remember Jason Young doing it, and it was okay hearing from him...because that is exactly how he talks. But now its rampant. And its just stupid. I'm pretty sure there is even a beer commercial now with a motto of "Lets Go!" If JY did in fact create this moniker, I think he should be getting creative credit. I vow to never use this on my Facebook, Twitter, or face...ever again. And would like to urge everyone else to do the same. Come up with your OWN shit people.

I love the commercial with the song "Party Rockin" and the rodents dancing against the robotic killing machines. I think its a KIA commercial. 

After holding onto the movie "The Conspirator" for the entire 12 days I was in Bossier City, I finally watched it on my drive home yesterday. It was about the whole conspiracy to kill Abraham Lincoln...and the people involved, and why the Constitutional freedoms were completely ignored at a time of crisis in the US. Directed by Robert Redford...it was exceptional. And further proof that when people in positions of power wish to reach a pre-determined conclusion, they will do whatever it takes and circumvent any normal path of societies expectations to arrive there. 

Spent the first part of the day on Day 1 of the Main Event next to a guy who was hilarious. Very dry sense of humor. And now, like an asshole, I forgot his name. I want to say John Dudley...but that doesn't feel right. But he says he remembered me from 4 years ago at New Orleans...and says he used to think I was a total spaz, and a tilt-o-saurus...and that now he doesn't even recognize me, that I have totally chilled out. I think that felt pretty good. We had a good time playing together, and he sent me this hilarious video that he had on his phone. I must share!

With that in mind, I arrive at this shocking news to share. While in Bossier City, I received a letter at the house. Squirrel shared it with me. Received from the Head of Security, I was informed that I have been 'Trespassed' from ALL, not just the Beau Rivage, but ALL MGM properties. Was I given a reason? Oh, shit...please. What do YOU think? Of course I wasn't. This one is easy. Johnny treated me like shit, didn't allow me to play the last event at the Beau...which I really didn't care about as you recall. But did care about the way he went about it. So I formed a group called "Boycott the Beau until Johnny Grooms is Toast" on Facebook...which sent ripples through the Beau Rivage's management, and even got my wife called in for questioning. Lovely, eh? So...yeah, I assume that I have been deemed a 'hostile objector' to all things MGM and had my rights to walk into their hallowed halls yanked from me.

Was this an operation waged by Grooms as retaliation for the nearly 300 people who signed on to my group to Boycott that place until they replace him? Possibly? Or is it just another knee-jerk reaction by a management group who refuses to look beyond the surface and just do what it thinks will eradicate a problem? I find it amusing, to be honest. They have a person in me who could do SO MUCH for them to help them grow, improve and promote their product, and what they choose to do instead is attempt to stymie me and silence me by closing their doors to me. Hey, knock-knock! Who's there? Nobody at MGM that has any bearing on my future, thats for sure. What major tourneys are run at MGM that I am freaking out about missing? Oh...right...none! The only casino they own that I even LIKE is Aria...and its kind of out of the way anyway. With a gazillion casinos to play at in Vegas, not being able to play at Aria is a mere hiccup.

So I sat down tonight and crafted a letter to their upper management, informing them of my confusion at their letter. Why would I not be given a reason? I was simply curious. I also let them in on a few morsels of information regarding their poker management that they are likely unaware of, but may become increasingly curious about investigating. At the conclusion, I even offered my services to them as their next Poker Tournament Supervisor...bringing with me a solid management background, coupled with my contacts in the poker world, with players, dealers...floor personnel and WPT/WSOP management figures. My wife is sick of me being gone all the time, and frankly, I am sick of being gone. I'm sick of the grind. I'm sick of the variance. Hell, I'm just about sick of sitting there loathing half of the people at the table...playing well for 8 hours, only to get that one spirit-breaking, soul-crushing card on the river that sends you to your hotel room searching for answers in a un-madeup room that sends you into a furious mission to get a damn towel from the front desk.

Where was I? Hating poker? No wait...I just had a major thought, and then poof, I clicked on 'Entourage' just now to finally watch the final episode, and that thought just left me. Maybe it will return. 

I'm almost positive that Pete Carroll is on a mission to secure the big prize in next spring's NFL Draft...Andrew Luck...who would have been the #1 pick if he had come out THIS year...let alone next year. The dude is a made-for-NFL QB who is ready to start today. I would love to see him in a Seahawk uniform. Our team looks like SHIT. Tavaris Jackson is a joke, and Pete won't turn the reigns over to Charlie Whitehurst, which can only mean he has orders from ownership to out-tank the Colts (missing Peyton Manning) in the chase for Luck. 

In an update that should surprise no one who has known me for the last 30 years...I still HATE the Dallas Cowboys.

My family owns 600 acres of oil rich land in North Dakota, that is currently under a 5-year mineral rights lease that sees us getting 15% of what it produces. They are currently sucking oil out of the ground on the next lot over and two lots to the north. We are talking about the kind of money that will lead to a lot of sitting around doing NOTHING for life! Dear Oil Drillers: no time like the present to stick that drill in the ground on the Souther's property!!!! I think my father and I would have a lot of fun gallivanting around the world hitting all the finest fishing holes!

One thing I think that would be incredibly fun, and hilarious...is renting, check that...buying...a kickass RV, getting a bunch of friends together and going all over the country, for football games, concerts, races, and poker tourneys. Going to poker tourneys...and finding those players we can't stand the most...and getting into hands against them with crap like 4-9 offsuit and worse, and trying to put bad beats on them. Having so much money that no matter what you play, no matter how much you lose...you leave laughing. Just living to drive assholes crazy. What a great, great time that would be!!!!

Oh. Yeah...poker. It was starting to look like my trip in Bossier City was about to turn around. I played the $1k tourney on Friday. It started well...I was amassing chips, and getting a little excited. Made the dinner break. Then everything went to shit. Two awful levels left me short stacked. Then...honestly, I can't even remember now, its been 4 days, and I put it out of my mind...but I lost. And when I lost, it was 8:20pm. I had half an hour to still get into the $345 Mega into the Main Event. 

So I got in, and I steam rolled it. I was never short stacked in that one. Never was in doubt. Won it going away. Sweet, into the Main Event, another shot at redemption. Then after that, I got into a late night $180 SNG with a $40 last longer. We got down to 3...and me and another guy were in the last longer. I refused to chop that. Knocked him out. Then the guy I was heads up with wanted to chop. I refused. Sorry...but the current trip deficit was too large, I needed a 'win it all' victory. Back and forth it went. Then I raise with 55. He shoves on me. I call. He has 88. Oh shit. But then I river a 5! And it was over! $1850 win. Much needed win. And confidence. Heading into the Main. 

So Day 1 of the Main started awesome. Getting all kinds of great hands, and winning. We started with 20k. At the end of Level 3 I had 27k. Which sucks. Why? Because if I had picked up those hands at the 200/400 level or higher? I would have had a bazillion chips! But to only be up 7k was like a crime. 

I got to 28k before I would lose a big 10k hand against 'sort of attractive, but looks like she got smashed in the face with a frying pan' Asian lady who over bet EVERYthing she played. Watching her play was just annoying, and she took way too long to act on every hand. Well, with the blinds at 100/200 with a 25 ante...she raises to 1100. WTF? She's UTG+1. I am next in line with AKs. Do I re-raise her? Do I flat her? The overbet just screws everything up. I decide since I have 28k I will play it kind of semi-trappish. So I just call.

And I flop an ace. Along with a ten. Two clubs. No idea where she is. She checks. I check with the intention of re-raising the hell out of her on the turn. The turn though puts a 3rd club on the board. She bets out 2200. Hmmm....now I'm thinking that pot control might be the best strategy here. So when the river is a 5 of hearts...I kind of think I am good. So when she bets out 1800, I took that as total weakness, and raised to 6100...which I honestly thought was a value bet. She tanks. Again. And finally calls. And turns over QJc. OMG. Flush. What was she fearing? A king-high flush? There was no paired board. I seethed. And spent the next four levels of the night treading water. The cards got cold. 

On another hand against that...ahem...lady, she limps into the BB for 400, and I have KQh. I raise to1200. She insta-raises it to 5000. Come on! What the hell??? I frustratingly folded and spent another two orbits plotting against the entire continent of Asia. Finally Day 1 was over...and baggin up 16k felt like a defeat, but fortunately,  was able to go get some sleep...and re-focus, and think about the big picture. A chance to win $168,000...to make everything perfect in my life again. So I went back with a renewed vigor!

The other thing that had me feeling hopeful was my table re-draw. Now, I am known to be a little superstitious...but this was too good to ignore. I drew Table 55. Seat number 5! 5-5-5. Remember how I stuck that 5 on the river to win that SNG the night before? With a set of fives? Had to be a sign, right???

On the first hand of Day 2...I get AKc. I raise. Everyone folds. Good start. A while later...this nice guy who has a condition I'm unsure of, he can barely talk where you can understand him. And his bodily motions when he walks are out of control. Maybe some form of MS. Not sure. I played next to him in cash game one night early in the trip...and was being really nice to him, so when he saw that I was at his table he was excited. I don't know anything about him...but guys with 'conditions' I always root for them to do well in everything they do in life. Well, I watched him play a couple of hands pretty bad, bad calling hands...that on one he got real lucky on for a double up. Well, he raised my BB...and didn't seem to confident about his hand. Then the guy in the SB looked at his hand and bowed up. Aha...a real hand. 

He was about to re-raise...then just called. Well, I looked down at AJd...and decided I was going to make what I hoped would be an isolation shove-steal. I moved all in for 14k. The guy didn't really think about it too long before calling. Which prompted the guy on my right to fold pocket tens. I was pretty shocked when the guy turned over A3c. Wow! I flopped a Jack. But with it came two jacks. Oh boy. But I faded it...and now was up to 28k and feeling now like I might actually make a run and go home happy. Then our table broke.

My new table was made up of players I'd never seen before. A lot of fishing/hunting types. Lots of camouflage in this group.  Oh boy. Then it happened. I raise with AK. Texas A&M hat wearing redneck in the SB shoves all in....for about 8k. I call. He has KJ. Nice matchup there. The flop is A-3-J. Nice...but there is that damn Jack. Turns out the guy on my right folded J10...so dude was drawing to one card in the deck. But it's 2011...and when the jack hit the river, I just sank in my chair. I looked at the face of the dealer, Richard...a super nice guy, and great dealer who I have known and respected for years...and I could tell he was distraught. I couldn't decide who I felt worse for...him or my chipstack. I just can't get anything to break right for me this year. If he doesn't hit that damn one-outer...I'm sitting at close to 30k, instead of 12k...which was below ten big blinds. 

So about two orbits later...when the button raised from 700-1400 to 3000 and I looked down at pocket 9's, I had a good feeling that I was about to double my 12k back up to about 24k if I could get a loose call. I shove all in, he snap calls, and turns over KK. Shit! And no miracle help for me...and I was out. 157th out of 475 entries. And only one hour after I busted, I looked up to see they were already down to 91. Wow. I sat around feeling glum before they finally announced a $65 SNG. Oh good gawd. I guess I will play it...and then at 5pm, they had the final tourney of the event, a $345 ring event.

SNG went great, till we got 4 handed. I raise with AKh. Get raised by one guy...short stack shoves all in....I go all in. Three way action, one guy with QQ the other with JJ. Standard. Flop a King. Sweet. Turn...a queen. Fuck. Done, son!

Went to go eat. Received service from a ditzy blonde girl who was maybe the worst waitress I have ever had, anywhere, ever. On the flip side, I ordered the BLT (yeah I know, real good for my cholesterol!) and it was one of the best BLT's I have ever had in my life.

Then went to play the $345. Same thing as usual. Great start. Lot of good hands. Even had a really cool bunch of players at my table. Lost a few hands, won a few...was just kind of treading water. Then the wind started acting up. Bad. Finally, they announced they were evacuating the tent, and forcing us all to suspend play for the night. Shit. So that was that...and we were done for the night.

I come back the next day...excited and confident to end on a strong note. On the very first hand...with the Big Blind not yet there...which always presents an awkward situation, where people always THINK you are just trying to steal the big blind. Well, I had pocket Jacks...and was NOT stealing, obviously. So I raise, and get called by the small blind. Turns out he has AQh. Nice hand. The flop comes 7-7-2. He gives me a look and says something I didn't understand...almost sounded like 'Sorry' and bets out about half the pot. The only thing I can put him on is either A2, or a pair like 88,99 maybe...or a flush draw, as there are two hearts out there. And I am not folding. So I re-raise him all in. He calls, and yeah...flush draw. He misses on the turn...then hits the 4 of hearts on the river. And just like that...ONE EFFING HAND...I was out. Jeezuz.

Went back to my hotel, packed, took a nap, haggled with the front desk to get my last 4 nights refunded back to me...and hit the road. Nice trip. 

What is next? I'm not sure. A lot depends on my backer. I have not been doing too well for her this year...so its kind of up to her. I was thinking about Southern Indiana...which starts next week, but I think I am more inclined to just stay home for a couple weeks, then go to Hammond/Chicago and play those mega huge fields for some big paydays...in a place where SNG's get off on a regular basis.  Then come home for the IP event after that. 

Oh...I remember what that thought was a while back. People keep emailing and texting me asking why they can't post to my Facebook wall anymore. Simple answer. Used to be you could post on my wall even if you weren't a Facebook Friend of mine. Well, I put the brakes on that because of one person. Chad "The Orange Troll" Burns. I didn't really care what he had to say to me...I was able to take him for what he is, a pathetic human being who is short, Napoleonic, with small hands and a fake tan that couldn't hit a piece of ass if he fell upside down into an outhouse. But I didn't appreciate the incredibly ugly things he was saying to people on my wall who I do feel I needed to protect, so I just disabled that function on there.

I am currently up to about 94 people in the PENDING mode on my Facebook friend request list. Bottom line, I don't know who they are. And they don't send me a note telling me who they are. When they do, I will probably approve/accept them. Its not a huge big deal, I just like to KNOW who is on my list if I can help it. So if you read my blog (and I thank you!) and want to be able to talk to me through Facebook, just send me a message on there when you make your friend request and tell me who you are and its all good. That's not hard to understand, right?

A lot of people sent me a bunch of messages today about the whole announcement/article that the Wall Street Journal and Forbes magazine did about Full Tilt Poker and their den of thieves. I have a lot of thoughts on that mess, but I won't feel too good about airing my opinions until I hear a bit more information and do a little research first. Not that hundreds of you are going to lose sleep 'wondering what Monkey thinks about the FTP mess!!!!!'

Okay. I'm done, I feel like that was plenty for today. I will be in my cave hiding for the next few days...if anyone needs me, send a courier.

Monk