Results from West Side Poker Club July15th tournament
Thanks to everyone who made it out yesterday! I was driving to the tournament and see the road block sign and wonder how many people we will miss the tournament because of the construction and the detour. Al ended up directing people, thanks Al, so we ended up with 64 players out of the 76 and 8 full tables and started at 1:15pm. Buzzard Dave was one of my picks for the top 5, I game Cam and I play, and broke our record for the fastest to bust out 6 minutes and 20 seconds. 20 seconds later the Bus Driver walks in and asks for his seat. As at all events new players who come after the start time have the first 2 levels to be an alternate, Bus Driver took the seat formally occupied by Dave for a total of 65 players.
This was a 10.00 bounty tournament as well so that meant 650.00 available for bounties and a prize pool of 3900.00.
We introduced a new rule at West Side events in regarding exposed cards. Formally it would be a dead hand and in conjunction with the TDA 2007 Summit on rules and regulations in regard to tournament poker. The new rule would be a 10 minute penalty for the first time, second time 20 minutes for the second time and third time would be an hour and the penalty time would continue to double. A timer would be placed in their seat and they would get cards and play blinds and antes. I gave out one penalty.
We also tried no antes until the blinds started at the 500/1000 level with a 100 ante. Would be interesting to hear what people thought of this idea.
The final table started with 9 players as always.
1. Doyle 199, 000 3 way chop 900.00 4 bounties
2. Jeff C 34, 000 8th place 80.00
3. Happy 420 61, 000 6th place 240.00
4. Waltsfriend 12, 500 9th place free entry
5. Moose 96, 000 5th place 320.00
6. John V 103, 000 3 way chop 900.00 2 bounties
7. Chuck T 65, 500 7th place 160.00
8. Brad M 44, 000 4th place 400.00
9. Bus Driver 40, 000 3 way chop 900.00 5 bounties
Thanks to all who helped out, Cam was in the hospital all last week and I didn’t know if he would make it out.
See you all again soon!
Brent and Cam
This was a 10.00 bounty tournament as well so that meant 650.00 available for bounties and a prize pool of 3900.00.
We introduced a new rule at West Side events in regarding exposed cards. Formally it would be a dead hand and in conjunction with the TDA 2007 Summit on rules and regulations in regard to tournament poker. The new rule would be a 10 minute penalty for the first time, second time 20 minutes for the second time and third time would be an hour and the penalty time would continue to double. A timer would be placed in their seat and they would get cards and play blinds and antes. I gave out one penalty.
We also tried no antes until the blinds started at the 500/1000 level with a 100 ante. Would be interesting to hear what people thought of this idea.
The final table started with 9 players as always.
1. Doyle 199, 000 3 way chop 900.00 4 bounties
2. Jeff C 34, 000 8th place 80.00
3. Happy 420 61, 000 6th place 240.00
4. Waltsfriend 12, 500 9th place free entry
5. Moose 96, 000 5th place 320.00
6. John V 103, 000 3 way chop 900.00 2 bounties
7. Chuck T 65, 500 7th place 160.00
8. Brad M 44, 000 4th place 400.00
9. Bus Driver 40, 000 3 way chop 900.00 5 bounties
Thanks to all who helped out, Cam was in the hospital all last week and I didn’t know if he would make it out.
See you all again soon!
Brent and Cam
Comments
BusDriver...no need for a sponsor anymore for the Hill Games, right??
Prophet :2h :2s
Fred H.
It was pretty even when they decided to chop - almost immediately after the fourth place player went out.
Thank you for the kind comments, I am glad you enjoyed yourself and hopefully we will see you at the next one!
Brent
I had no idea I walked into the record setting bust out seat. Oh well, if it’s any consolation Buzz that seat had the wildest up and down swings I’ve ever played, I’ve never been all-in so many times.
I didn’t have too many seat changes, I didn’t like my first table. Nice guy and gals, but the dynamics seems to have all the tight players to my right, which tended to lull me into making moves, but all the aggressive players were to my left, and always seemed to punish me for any limp in, or stab at the pot. I was forced into a shell, which is pretty much my comfort zone tight/weak. The cowboy beside me totally unraveled me when he, not only bluff me out of a pot, but called out my hand (snowmen). Btw cowboy, good luck in Vegas, I hope you make a blog or post your adventures sometimes. And I hope the haters on here don’t turn it into a where’s Waldo joke. I have the utmost respect for anyone who has a dream, and is willing to take a shot at it.
I survive a couple of breaks, and escape with 7000, to my 2nd table. I sit down with my Ching Hill team mate, who kindly offers to take my measly stack and put it to better use. I’m also with the poor guy who got the penalty. Which I will say was some sort of ironic execution of the rules. This guy was a class act, true gentlemen poker player, to bad he had to be made an example of. Meanwhile (I don’t know any names), but I think there were a couple of loud mouth blowhards, at other tables who would have been better candidates for the penalty box. I spend the whole round whining about blinds and antes. I don’t think I play a hand. On the break, Justin and I cry about only having 5K left in chips.
I sit back down to see 5K was an overstatement I have exactly 4400. This is exactly what tight/weak play will get you, blinded down, until you are out. I couldn’t wait for good cards anymore, I needed to get paid. So I force myself to change gears. So I did what any good poker player would do, I called upon the poker gods, and switched to lucksack mode. I managed to get a double up, some blind + anti steals. Next thing you know, I’m back in it. I remember telling myself to switch off, and I recall being in small blind begging the table not to raise. The next thing I remember I look down and see KK. Well, donkey brain takes over, and I get even luckier to have the table’s large stack catch top pair. He pushes, I push back, I double up. Thanks Papa. I’m now sitting on more chips than I can count. It’s like 70K+. I coast ‘till next break.
This is the big break, 45min. The room scatters, everybody gets into their pickup trucks and heads out their hunting lodges, and fills up on deer jerky. I’m stuck there, afraid to leave, because I know if I get lost, I’ll end up stuffed like a trophy on some Mountain Man’s wall. I go downstairs and railbird the cash game, and talk strategy with BigChris. I think this was an advantage, while all of you got fat and happy on fast food, I stayed hungry.
After the break we are down to two tables, the blinds are something rude like 1000/2000 with 500 antes. Someone mentions that the other table has something like 70% of the chips in play. Eliminations just are not happening at a comfortable rate. We know that they know, that we know, they all have the chip stacks to just ride out the high blinds and antes, and it’s killing us on the small table. We do some yelling back and forth. At one point I tell my table mates, we are just the 5th to 9th place holders, the final table is already happening over there. Regardless of the size of our chips, my table is tough. I have Moose, another guy who ended up being the final table dealer, and the penalty guy, all of which, are either beating me to the punch on blind steals, or challenging me when I do. Waltfriend and the other women player still left in it are low stacked but fighting hard. I decided, I’m not going to risk doubling them up, and the other guys are just too tough playing too strong to get into a confrontation with. I revert to tight/weak, and coast to final table. But not before my stack is chopped down to 40K.
Final table:
The felt covered table comes out, and we get a dealer. Now we truly feel the chip difference between us and them. 2 or 3 hands go by and I make a stab for Waltsfriend’s chips on her BB (only one of 2 players with less chips than me). And she gives them to me, thank you. Despite the majority of my play being tight/weak, I think this move early establish me as more of an aggressive player who was going to stab and grab at many pots. Jeff C goes next, then penalty guy. I’m glad to see him money, because it would have been sad if the penalty caused him to bust out. I’m even more glad there’s no obnoxious loud mouths at the final table. Well, except for me. It’s unfolding exactly as I predicted, everyone from my 2nd table is getting placed in the bottom half of the final. I can do nothing about it, except for bagger Doyle. I’m the favorite to go out next, but the poker gods have other plans for me, and keep giving me great cards. I get more than my fair share of steals, and clinch it by double up with KK. Now I again have more chips than I can count (130K+). I got back to teasing Doyle, who I fear the most, not only because of his monster chip stack, but he’s reading me like a book. He’s pretty much letting us battle it out, and I’m stealing a lot of blinds. I keep reminding him, I’m coming for his chips, but he avoids my slowplay when I flop a boat, and also slaps me down on another hand when I try to bluff. He’s playing too well, and I go back to trash talking, because bullying him with chips just wasn’t working. Then it happens I get KK for the third time. Oh ya, cowboys been good to me all night. John V. makes a weak raise ahead of me. Not even 3x the blinds. I figure I’ll just out raise him, and it’s mine, thank you very much. I more than triple John’s raise. It goes around to Happy who goes allin. That’s ok, I got Happy covered, then John V. goes all-in. Now, I’m worried, but donkey brain takes over. I call (not even knowing if I have him covered of not). John V. flips over AA, Happy shows some desperation cards, something like 76s. The only one who gets any help is John V who ends up with a boat.
That hurt, I mean really hurt. After we squared up, I had exactly 30K left. WTF, this is less than I started the final table with. On the inside, I was bleeding from the eyes, ears, and nose. I was yelling for Adriane. I went back to my corner, and told Mick I wasn’t going down no more. On the outside, I laughed, and told Brad, I didn’t want all those chips anyway. They were getting in my way. Now 30K, it’s a nice manageable stack. He laugh with me, but I know what he was really thinking. “You donk, you suck at poker, thanks, I just moved up a spot” I don’t even remember what happen next, I went blind with donk luck, and desperation. It was obvious what position I was in, and what I had to do, so no use hiding it. I was begging heavily for a chop. All I got back was blank stares. I think, I made a blind steal, which at that level was 10K. I got a double up somehow. And I’m sorry but I don’t even remember Moose getting eliminated, let alone me being the one who did it. I was still numb. When I came back to my senses. I had over 200K and was back to taunting Doyle. Brad got eliminated, and I begged one last time for a chop, and to my surprise they took it!
Now some people don’t like the idea of making deals, but I’m not too proud, the way I see it, I minimized effort, reduced my risk, and locked in the profit. All three of us playing at the top of our game, we would have had to do battle for another hour or more. Besides, when I called the wife during the dinner break, she was busting my balls, I was afraid when I got home my bags would be packed.
Once last thing. Brent you run a top notch game. I think to run a good tournament you need to have 3 things, a plan, good execution of that plan, and a tournament director who is savvy, quick thinking on his feet, and can adjust when the unexpected happens to jeopardize the plan. Brent you and your crew put together all 3 excellently.
Great Report.