WSOP 2012

Meh. For some reason the paragraph's aren't working. I don't know how to fix it. I'm in a poker rut, but I can't expect anything else given how little I play lately. Its just like any other pursuit- you have to practice, you have to think about it, you have to study it. Its not really like riding a bike. Of course, I was never that good at it anyway, so the analogy sort of fails. For the past several years I've come to Vegas for a week or long weekend to play prelims. Back in 2006 I cashed in back-to-back tourneys, including a $2500 6 max that I thought was "easy." Well, perhaps in 2006 it was. I've played 4 tourneys here so far. I'm registered for the $3k 6max on Monday but I would rather head to LA to catch the Kings hoist the cup. $1500 NL Shootout: This was a first, and hopefully a last. I sit down in seat 2 and post the 25 big blind. James Van Alstyne sits to my left. A guy to his left raises to 75. Its folded to me and I call with 89o. Flop: 6-T-Q. Double gutter. Cool. I check, he bets 125, I call. Turn: Ace. I check, he bets 225, I call. Now, I'm at like zero level thinking here. All I'm concerned about is that if a Jack or a 7 shows up then I've made a straight and win the hand. Easy, right? Well, the river brings a 7. That's a Bingo! I lead 625 at it. He raises to 2000. Wat? I look at my stack, look at the juicy pot, realize its a shootout tourney and I have to win all the chips on the table at some point and what the fuck could he have anyway- some random two pair with AQ, right? So I shove. And then he shows me the nuts. And I bust a WSOP tournament on the very first hand. $1500 NL 6max: Not a lot on the highlight reel. Before the break I raise with KK and the BB calls. Flop KJ9. Woot! Fortunately (?) for me, the turn and river run out 8, T- and I lose the minimum to a flopped straight who had QT. Whew. I get all in with 77 versus AQ of Ashton Griffin's of ultra marathon fame. A Queen hits the flop but pocket 77 never loses and a 7 comes on the turn. Woot! Still, I don't really get anything going and slowly chip down. I raise with KQ, get shoved by a shorty and tank-call his 77. Of course he holds (cause they never lose.) I get the rest of my chips in 89s vs Ax and I'm out. Boo-urns. $2500 Razz: Being my first ever live Razz tourney I think I played pretty well. Lasted until level 7 and didn't make any egregious errors. Its a pretty fun game in small doses. Lasted pretty long with under 6 big bets, choosing my hands very carefully to get my money in. Alas, eventually this strategy fails. $1500 NL: Sigh. This started great. I won orphan pots. I three bet opens. The table feared me. Then they started playing back. There was an open to 150, a call, and I make it 400 from the SB with JJ. Flop is A-9-4. I lead and the caller raises. I fold. Iffy for sure. I think I lose value when I hold 77 on a A-7-9 flop and make a pot-sized shove on the safe river. Should have left the villain a little more rope. There's a raise and I flat with TT--then 4 of us see a flop of 8-5-4r. It checks around. Turn is a 2. Checked to me and I bet 2/3 pot. Two people call. River is another 5. Check-check and guy bets 2300. Yuck. Its about 2.5-1 to call. I'm not sure how I can fold. He's trying to buy it with a whiff a lot, and sometimes he just has A8 or the like. I call. He shows me 65s and I puke a little. I get relatively short and inpatient and make a stop and go with A9 that almost works, except I run into a guy who flopped a set and I'm done.