WSOP Fantasy News and Reviews

2: Vladimir Schemelev 33
3: Alexander Kostritsyn 58
4: Jennifer Harman 19
5: Sam Trickett 7
6: David Pham 1
7: Vitaly Lunkin 10
8: David Bach 1 Comments: Best value here may be David Bach who is set to play a full schedule of mixed game events, and also is a previous winner of the $50,0000 Players Championship. Sam Trickett is a no limit specialist, and 7 seems like a bit of a steep price for a specialist, but he is a good one. This team will rely heavily on a big series from Dwan, a repeat performance from Schmelev, and the always dangerous Kostritsyn. With Harman it’s always a question of number of events played, if she plays 12+ then 19 is a fair price. Team #2 Barry Greenstein
1: Barry Greenstein 64
2: Phil Ivey 108
3: Chau Giang 19
4: John Pham 2
5: Ralph Perry 3
6: Ted Forrest 1
7: Joseph Serock 1
8: Jimmy Fricke 1 Comments: Go big or go home! Barry chose to draft the most valuable player in the draft, Phil Ivey, to complement his own full schedule of events then fill the team with whoever he could get really. best value could be Jimmy Fricke as he’s been playing mixed games more and will likely play a full schedule. Chau Giang at 19 seems a bit high as he is hit or miss in terms of events played. Ralph Perry and Ted Forrest are both potential superstars, but will they play? Team #3 Robert Mizrachi, Greg Meuller, Jared Bleznick, “Crazy” Mike
1. Daniel Alaei 80
2: Robert Mizrachi 51
3: Josh Arieh 26
4: Hoyt Corkins 5
5: Chad Brown 24
6: Marco Trani

Bellagio since late 1998 when they opened their doors, Bellagio has been the central hub of all high limit action that previously occurred at the Mirage. Up until this year, really, if you wanted to play high limit poker, this would be the only game in town. The room is laid out very well. There is a top section for higher limit games, and then they have the exclusive Bobby’s Room which has two tables, a sitting area, and plenty of room and privacy. There is a podium right outside the glass doors where a floorman will usually stand to help ensure that there isn’t a lot of traffic going in and out of the room. Nevada laws do not allow private games in casinos, so the doors to Bobby’s Room must remain open. However, there are two doors, and one is usually closed which makes random tourists more hesitant about just walking into the room and up to the table. That really is kind of important. When people are playing for high stakes, or any stakes for that matter, they don’t want a stranger standing behind them just “hanging out.” Food situation is very good at Bellagio. For the high limit players, they get comps to any/all restaurants in the casino. This isn’t a big deal to me personally as Patty usually packs me a lunch/dinner, but it is a nice luxury for most of the players who’ll often go down there to play and also have dinner. Parking situation is also decent. North valet is pretty close to the poker room and is far less busy than the main valet. The room location is probably the one knock in terms of tourist traffic. The poker room is kind of tucked away next to the sports book, so you don’t have much traffic walking by like you would at Mirage (more on that later). There is no bathroom in Bobby’s Room. They certainly had plenty of room to add one, but decided that the smell could be an issue so opted not to add one. The trek to the bathroom from Bobby’s Room is a bit of a walk. You have to go through the poker room, then over to the sports book. That’s only an issue for guys who don’t really want to miss a hand! In terms of game selection, Bellagio offers a wide variety of games and if you are a limit hold’em player, it’s pretty much the only place in town to play. In recent years, I’ve heard lots of complaints from the $200-$400/$300-$600 players about the way they were treated by staff at Bellagio. I’ve never personally had an issue with any of the staff there, but the group of people dissatisfied with the staff was large enough that it prompted a move to Aria. The regulars who would normally play at Bellagio, have successfully been able to move the game to Aria (more on that later). In closing, the room is well organized. The top section holds five tables with plenty of room in between the them, and there is an element of privacy to it, as it’s slightly elevated with frosted glass surrounding the whole area so no railbirds on the lower section can get a peek at your cards while you play. The lowest limit games are on the left as you walk into the room, the limit hold’em games to the right, and of course Bobby’s Room is straight back and is the best high limit room in town. Aria The new kid on the block took an aggressive approach to trying to win over poker players, by offering free food. That didn’t last long, though, as many of these poker players are gluttonous vultures who were sure to ruin a good thing by ordering $500 dinners and inviting friends and family to pig out in the Ivey Room. It was one of those “Too good to be true” scenarios that ultimately fails because human nature is to abuse a good thing. As Mr. Anderson from the Matrix points out, the human race is a wasteful bunch! Seriously though, these guys who would normally order a $35 dinner all of a sudden would go off for as much as they could because it was free. Did they really think that would last? No poker room can fade a group of overweight poker players going to town on the high end menu day after day. Eventually, Aria changed it’s policy and now offer a $40 food comp for poker players during a session, which essentially comes to about 2.5 hours worth of rake, as they pay $9 every 30 minutes. That seems more than fair to me. As mentioned previously, I’ve never really had any issues with staff at Bellagio or Aria, but I listen, and the players seem a lot happier with the floor staff at Aria. There is no bathroom in the Ivey Room either, but the walk to the bathroom is much shorter than the one from Bobby’s Room to the bathroom. If you left during a hand of badeucy, you could drop a deuce, shave, brush/floss your teeth, and still not miss a hand in the world’s slowest form of poker 🙂 The Ivey Room isn’t practical. It’s not big enough to squeeze two tables in there, and it probably should have two tables in there. It’s also too big for one table. There is just a bunch of dead space the way it’s set up. You walk in, there is a tiny bench on one side and then a counter on the left for the floor. It’s shaped really weird. The Ivey Room does have something HUGE over Bobby’s Room, and that’s a private cage to access your safety deposit box. It’s definitely a luxury that the players appreciate, myself included. I don’t really like playing in the top section at all. If you want to start a high stakes game, but don’t get there early, you won’t have access to the Ivey Room. It’s one of the key reasons they needed to have two tables in there. The top section is a bit chaotic and cramped. You could be playing $1500-$3000 and have a $12-$24 limit game going right behind you. It’s also pretty wide open for tourists to walk through and rail. Parking situation is average. If you live in town and are driving in, you’d likely avoid the strip and come in through the back way on Harmon. The valet walk from there to the poker room is just a little further than the walk at Bellagio. The room is also tucked away and doesn’t really get much “show traffic” which seems to be the way most of the newer poker rooms are placed. Not like the days at the Mirage, more on that later… I’m not sure exactly why this is, but there seems to be more random walk ins while playing in Ivey’s Room. I’m not talking about people looking to play, just randoms who walk in and stare. The staff at Aria seems a little more reluctant in asking these people to not stand behind the table and I think they should be a little more aggressive with it. Whether you are playing $1-$2 or $1500-$3000 the floor should have every right to tell people not to stand directly behind the players as they are playing. It’s uncomfortable. All in all, the Aria room doesn’t blow me away as it seems to have with the regulars, but in the end, you go where the action is, and they do have a regular game going both days and nights. Wynn When the room opened I was hired as the poker ambassador and did that for about six months. Back then, I offered an open challenge to anyone in the world to play me for anywhere from $100,000 to $500,000 in any of the following games: Hold’em
Omaha H/L
Razz
Stud
Stud 8 or Better
No Limit Hold’em
Pot Limit Omaha
2-7 Triple Draw In total, I played 9 matches. At the outset, I was 1-4 then went on to win my next 4 matches going 5-4 and showing a small profit. I played the likes of David Oppenheim, Joe Cassidy, Mimi Tran, Tony Bloom, Barry Greenstien, and a guy named “Persian Sean.” More recently Tony G has been starting games there as high as $2000-$4000, I think Omaha H/L and maybe Pot Limit Omaha. The parking situation at Wynn is the best in town. Self parking is literally right next to the poker room. The trek to the bathroom, however, is a bit further than most of the other rooms. Wynn doesn’t have a private room, just a top section with about 5 tables. It’s been a while since I’ve been there so I’m a bit unfamiliar with what they have to offer in terms of games, but if you are looking for lower no limit hold’em games, I hear the games at Wynn are pretty good. Mirage This is the room where I sweat blood and tears back in the late 90’s when I was first trying to make it as a poker pro. I starting out playing $10-$20 and $20-$40 limit hold’em, and eventually rose to the $40-$80 and occasional $75-$150 limit hold’em games. I love that place to be honest. I don’t know if it’s just nostalgia or the fact that the room is easier to concentrate in due to the darker colors, but I can still smell the Mirage when I think about it. I loved the energy of that room. It’s the one room I’d call home. I can still remember the lonely walks back from Mirage to Budget Suites at Paradise and Twain at 3:00am after I went broke for the umpteenth time. Soul searching, analyzing what went wrong, then trying to figure out what I was going to do next. My life back then was very different. I’d wake up, take a quick shower (sometimes) then walk about 20 minutes to Mirage. Once I got in a game, there was no eating. I’d take a round off once in a blew moon to get a croissant and a yogurt at the snack bar. I’d barely miss one round. All I did was play poker. It was kind of awesome in a twisted way. I loved the game, loved the life, and loved the challenge of taking on the Las Vegas locals in the hopes of becoming one. I lost that challenge time and time again, but persevered, never quit, and eventually broke through and beat the game. I remember even later, going broke in a $40-$80 game then running into a friend from Toronto named Zvi. I let him know “they got me” and he loaned me $500 to go back in there. Yes, I know it’s beyond insane to play $40-$80 limit hold’em with a $500 bankroll, but those were different times. I turned that $500 into $2500, and a week later played my first ever WSOP bracelet event, the 1998 $2000 Pot Limit Hold’em tournament. It was also my first time playing pot limit, and I ended up… winning the whole dam thing! From $500 to a $169,000 payday in about a week. You’d think that would straighten me out for good, but no, I wasn’t satisfied with being a $40-$80 grinder. After staking people, bad loans, and playing higher stakes, I blew all that money too. It was all part of the learning experience, and I promise you I wouldn’t change one thing about it. So the Mirage. Bathrooms right next to the poker room- check. Parking wasn’t too close, but when I ended up getting a car I’d always self park. So weird, because even today when I drop by the Mirage I still like to self park, force of habit I guess. The one thing the Mirage had/has that no other room had is show traffic! The poker room was smack dab right in the middle of the casino and there was always tons of tourists that would walk by the room. That made the games amazing. Guys would take their women to a show, and when the show let out, they’d HAVE to walk by the poker room. Often they’d have a few drinks, and play for a few hours. There were more tourist drop ins at Mirage than at any time in poker history. It’s a shame the big games don’t still go there, I’d love to go back to playing there again. Venetian For most of you, this will be the best poker room in town. It’s HUGE and always seems to be pretty busy with a wide variety of lower limit games. They don’t get high limit games, but if they did, they actually have one of the better private rooms in the city to play in. We did play $4000-$8000 there for a short time, and they have a very exclusive two table poker room pretty much away from everything. The room is perfectly designed. It’s no Commerce Casino, but it’s the closest facsimile Vegas has to offer. My assistant Patty and her partner Lisa play there all the time and they love it. The staff has always been very friendly and helpful and they offer a pretty regular schedule of low limit tournaments as well. I’ve done a few corporate events/appearances at Venetian and they are always very accommodating. It’s not a room I expect to play in, as I don’t play low/mid stakes anymore, but if you are a grinder looking to build your bankroll, Venetian gets my recommendation. Hope you enjoyed my brief look at some of what Vegas has to offer. The Orleans really should get a quick honorable mention as a place I used to cut my teeth playing $20 daily tournaments. I don’t even know if they run anymore, but the Orleans Open in the summer used to be my “WSOP” when I had no bankroll. The main event was a $500 buy in with daily tournaments ranging from $100-$300. ********************************************************************** In other news, I just came in 3rd place in the $100k Super High Roller event at Bellagio for about $450,000. 29 players started, and I wasn’t even planning on playing until I heard there was already 15 registered. That’s my second high roller event, and I’ve placed 2nd in January for $1,000,000 and then the 3rd here. Not too shabby, and the best news is since it got over 27 players I even get Bluff Player of the Year points! Ha. Tonight I’ll be flying to Reno to take part in Jennifer Harman’s annual charity event for the NSPCA. If you can make it, you should come out because it’s always a fun tournament and it’s for a good cause. Jenn loves animals as much as anyone, and I’ve been to the NSPCA to see first hand the work that they do, and I promise you it’s a worthy cause. Then next week it’s WSOP time!!!!! I am absolutely going to smash/mangle the tournaments this year. I’m more prepared this year poker wise, having played mixed games at Aria, and then the run in the high roller tournament. I’m expecting long days, every day for about 6 weeks which means I won’t be doing P90X like I did last year. I’ll try to get some exercise in when I can, but my focus is going to be on winning, and there is absolutely no way I won’t be winning. There are three high profile events this year that will get my extra attention: the $25k NLH Heads Up, the $50k Players Championship, and of course, the $10k main event. Have I mentioned yet that I’m going to crush this WSOP? Willing to take 3-1 on a bracelet bet and also willing to make bets on player of the year points. Let’s gamble! ]]>

1:00pm P90x
3:00pm Golf 18 holes
8:00pm Play poker at Aria
2:00am Quit the game
3:30am Sleep Today, I didn’t golf, the course is closed Mondays, so I decided to write this blog before eventually going down to Aria. I did do my workout, and even chipped a little in the backyard, but took the day off golf. Feel like I needed a bit of rest anyway. I’ve played three sessions so far down at the Aria, and so far I’m very disappointed in the lack of action. The game plays $300-$600 or $400-$800 and there hasn’t been a hint of anything higher. An even bigger problem is the rotation of games. They play: Badeucy
Badacey
Badugi
2-7 Triple Draw
2-7 Single Draw NL
2-7 Razz
Limit Hold’em
Omaha H/L
Stud H/L
Stud I don’t mind playing any games, as far as I’m concerned you can make it a 16 game mix and that won’t bother me at all. The problem with this game is two fold 1) Not enough big bet games (PLO, NLH, PLO8) 2) Split pot triple draw games like Badeucy and Badacey are so slow that you’d barely get 15 hands an hour in during those rounds. It’s worse than that. Since the game plays 6 handed, two players sit out. With 8 hands of Badeucy and 8 hands of Badacey, you’ve just burned up an entire hour of play and were dealt… 12 hands. Blah, that’s not all that attractive to any new blood looking for action. I’m still hoping we’ll see some bigger games with a wider variety of big bet games, but there doesn’t seem to be anything happening anytime soon which is disappointing. I tried to get a game together with Sammy Farha, Sam Stein, and BenB the other night, but it played super small. $50-$100 NLH/PLO. I genuinely thought there would be more action this week, but maybe I’m just being impatient. I just really want to play poker, but I don’t want to play 12 hands an hour either. I’m going to continue to go down there and play 5-6 nights a week, 8pm-2am, but if nothing really materializes in terms of higher limit poker, I’ll have to find some other games somewhere. I’m sure some games will pop up somewhere, I’m just anxious to play. The game in Bobby’s Room at Bellagio died a long time ago due to online play, and I’m not sure if the game will resurface. If it does, I don’t even know if it would happen at Aria or Bellagio at this point. It seems like there should be enough players to start a $1000-$2000 mixed game, I just have no idea where they are? Where is everyone? Come to Vegas and I’ll start whatever games you want, provided we don’t play more than one round of Bad.. anything. ********************************************************************** My next and last trip before the WSOP is going to be Madrid for the EPT Grand Final. I’ve never been to Madrid, but absolutely loved Barcelona so I’m hoping it’s a similar vibe. While the US has obviously taken a hit in terms of poker, the game is thriving internationally and I expect to see a decent sized field in Madrid. Possibly down from last year, but I don’t think the numbers abroad will decrease too much at all. In the US, I definitely think the numbers for events will shrink. The WSOP, for example, will see a massive decline in the number of entrants both in the daily events, and especially the main event. The number of players for the main event will likely revert back to 2004 type numbers in the 3000 range. Not a lot of great news in the poker world of late, and my heart goes out to all the families that this will effect, both from the media side, as well as the professional poker playing grinders who are supporting a family. This can’t be easy to deal with. As bad as things are now, I am hopeful for the future. For those of you struggling to figure out “What now?” it’s time to dig deep and “be like water.” Adjust, survive, and thrive. The game of poker is loved by so many people across the world and that’s never going to change. ]]>

In total we played 39 pots of 20k or more, and below you’ll find every one of them, including hands that I didn’t show. I ended up winning $26,500, EV adjusted was $55,000. Now, I know some people hate that I post the EV adjusted total, but I think it’s a very interesting note to add to the results of a session so I’m not going to stop doing that, even IF I start running above EV. In the two matches versus Isildur1 I ran a combined 70k below average in all in pots. I’m not whining about it I swear! Just posting the facts people. I added some comments below each hand, but plan on doing an extensive video for www.pokervt.com for the members there. Also, if you missed my video blog I did a couple days before the match, you can find it here: RawVegas.tv Of the 39 pots we played that were 20k or bigger, I won 21-18. Over both matches I lost 23-30. Hand #1
Isildur1 ($10,250)
KidPoker ($11,700) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qc As
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker raises to $2,200
Isildur1 raises to $10,250 (AI)
KidPoker calls $8,050
FLOP ($20,500) 7s Th 9s
TURN ($20,500) 7s Th 9s 8s
RIVER ($20,500) 7s Th 9s 8s Qh
KidPoker shows Qc As
(Pre 28%, Flop 20.2%, Turn 37.5%) Isildur1 shows Kh Kc
(Pre 72%, Flop 79.8%, Turn 62.5%) Isildur1 wins $20,500
***Once I decided to 4-bet I priced myself in to calling with a hand as strong as AQ. Didn’t love the call, but it was early in the match and wasn’t sure what he was up to yet*** Hand #2
Isildur1 ($13,750)
KidPoker ($11,500) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Ts Kc
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) Tc 8c 6s
Isildur1 bets $1,200
KidPoker raises to $3,100
Isildur1 raises to $12,750 (AI)
KidPoker calls $7,400 (AI)
TURN ($23,000) Tc 8c 6s 7h
RIVER ($23,000) Tc 8c 6s 7h Jh
KidPoker shows Ts Kc
(Pre 29%, Flop 24.5%, Turn 15.9%) Isildur1 shows Qc Qh
(Pre 71%, Flop 75.5%, Turn 84.1%) Isildur1 wins $23,000 ***Very draw heavy board, once I raise the flop I can’t fold to a shove.*** Hand #3
KidPoker ($10,100)
Isildur1 ($26,300) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 7s 7c
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker calls $200
FLOP ($600) 7h Js 8d
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 checks
TURN ($600) 7h Js 8d 3h
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 raises to $1,800
KidPoker raises to $9,800 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $8,000
RIVER ($20,200) 7h Js 8d 3h 7d
KidPoker shows 7s 7c
(Pre 69%, Flop 97.6%, Turn 95.5%) Isildur1 shows 3c 8c
(Pre 31%, Flop 2.4%, Turn 4.5%) KidPoker wins $20,200 ***Great turn card for me*** Hand #4
Isildur1 ($15,500)
KidPoker ($13,850) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 8h Jh
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 5h 2h 4h
Isildur1 bets $1,200
KidPoker raises to $3,100
Isildur1 raises to $14,500 (AI)
KidPoker calls $9,750 (AI)
TURN ($27,700) 5h 2h 4h 5d
RIVER ($27,700) 5h 2h 4h 5d 5s
KidPoker shows 8h Jh
(Pre 15%, Flop 98.1%, Turn 93.2%) Isildur1 shows Jc Jd
(Pre 85%, Flop 1.9%, Turn 6.8%) Isildur1 wins $27,700 ***This made me stand up, not gonna lie. Pretty key pot early on gave him the momentum*** Hand #5
Isildur1 ($28,700)
KidPoker ($10,050) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Ac Kh
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker raises to $2,200
Isildur1 raises to $28,700 (AI)
KidPoker calls $7,850 (AI)
FLOP ($20,100) Qd 8h Js
TURN ($20,100) Qd 8h Js 4s
RIVER ($20,100) Qd 8h Js 4s 5h
KidPoker shows Ac Kh
(Pre 70%, Flop 26.1%, Turn 11.4%) Isildur1 shows Qs As
(Pre 30%, Flop 73.9%, Turn 88.6%) Isildur1 wins $20,100 ***That made me say a few words I can’t type in the blog. Right after the Flush hand ugh*** Hand #6
KidPoker ($10,900)
Isildur1 ($43,550) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Td Qs
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker calls $200
FLOP ($600) Ks 3h 2c
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $500
KidPoker calls $500
TURN ($1,600) Ks 3h 2c Jd
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $1,400
KidPoker calls $1,400
RIVER ($4,400) Ks 3h 2c Jd As
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $41,350 (AI)
KidPoker calls $8,700 (AI)
KidPoker shows Td Qs
(Pre 65%, Flop 63.3%, Turn 77.3%) Isildur1 shows 4d 6s
(Pre 35%, Flop 36.7%, Turn 22.7%) KidPoker wins $21,800 ***Pretty interesting hand. I called the flop since he bets almost every flop and Queen high is going to be good a lot. Turn I have the straight draw. I hit on the river, but didn’t bet because I didn’t think he’d call me with a King since I could have 4-5 or A-2, A3, A4, A5 so I thought it was better to check, hope he value bets thin, or goes for a bluff. Worked out*** Hand #7
KidPoker ($29,700)
Isildur1 ($11,250) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Td Ts
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 raises to $2,200
KidPoker raises to $29,700 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $9,050 (AI)
FLOP ($22,500) 6s 3h Qc
TURN ($22,500) 6s 3h Qc 4d
RIVER ($22,500) 6s 3h Qc 4d 2s
KidPoker shows Td Ts
(Pre 18%, Flop 0.1%, Turn 0.0%) Isildur1 shows Qs Qh
(Pre 82%, Flop 99.9%, Turn 100.0%) Isildur1 wins $22,500 ***not much to add here, just a cooler this deep. You can’t fold 10-10 pre-flop 100 blinds deep*** Hand #8
Isildur1 ($33,500)
KidPoker ($20,950) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Jc Jd
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker raises to $2,700
Isildur1 raises to $4,350
KidPoker raises to $20,950 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $16,600
FLOP ($41,900) Qd Tc 7d
TURN ($41,900) Qd Tc 7d 5h
RIVER ($41,900) Qd Tc 7d 5h Ah
KidPoker shows Jc Jd
(Pre 19%, Flop 15.8%, Turn 4.5%) Isildur1 shows As Ac
(Pre 81%, Flop 84.2%, Turn 95.5%) Isildur1 wins $41,900 ***Le sigh. I guess I could have just called the 5-bet, but that seems silly.*** Hand #9
KidPoker ($21,200)
Isildur1 ($19,750) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Ks 9s
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker calls $200
FLOP ($600) 5s 6s 9h
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $500
KidPoker raises to $1,800
Isildur1 calls $1,300
TURN ($4,200) 5s 6s 9h Ts
KidPoker bets $2,700
Isildur1 calls $2,700
RIVER ($9,600) 5s 6s 9h Ts Kh
KidPoker bets $16,400 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $14,950 (AI)
KidPoker shows Ks 9s
(Pre 66%, Flop 75.9%, Turn 100.0%) Isildur1 shows 5h 7s
(Pre 34%, Flop 24.1%, Turn 0.0%) KidPoker wins $39,500 *** A lot of people might wonder what the heck he called me here for, but it actually made sense. Based on flow, I was checking pairs in this spot a lot. So he figured I was either super strong or I missed. Plus I’d been check calling flush draws, so the check-raise on the flop may have had him thinking I had something like A-8*** Hand #10
Isildur1 ($56,500)
KidPoker ($10,300) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Js Ac
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 calls $200
FLOP ($600) Jc 6d Ad
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 raises to $1,600
KidPoker raises to $3,200
Isildur1 raises to $56,200 (AI)
KidPoker calls $6,800 (AI)
TURN ($20,600) Jc 6d Ad Qd
RIVER ($20,600) Jc 6d Ad Qd 3s
KidPoker shows Js Ac
(Pre 60%, Flop 69.0%, Turn 9.1%) Isildur1 shows Kd 3d
(Pre 40%, Flop 31.0%, Turn 90.9%) Isildur1 wins $20,600 ***This was just annoying*** Hand #11
KidPoker ($10,000)
Isildur1 ($81,400) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Kh Kd
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 raises to $2,200
KidPoker raises to $10,000 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $7,800
FLOP ($20,000) 6h 3h 3d
TURN ($20,000) 6h 3h 3d Jc
RIVER ($20,000) 6h 3h 3d Jc 2s
KidPoker shows Kh Kd
(Pre 18%, Flop 12.0%, Turn 4.5%) Isildur1 shows Ac Ad
(Pre 82%, Flop 88.0%, Turn 95.5%) Isildur1 wins $20,000 *** 10-10 vs QQ, JJ vs AA, and to top it all off, throw in KK vs AA why don’t you!*** Hand #12
Isildur1 ($27,550)
KidPoker ($15,200) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qh Qc
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker raises to $2,400
Isildur1 raises to $27,550 (AI)
KidPoker calls $12,800 (AI)
FLOP ($30,400) 5d Jd 8h
TURN ($30,400) 5d Jd 8h Qs
RIVER ($30,400) 5d Jd 8h Qs Kh
KidPoker shows Qh Qc
(Pre 85%, Flop 80.4%, Turn 90.9%) Isildur1 shows Jc Ts
(Pre 15%, Flop 19.6%, Turn 9.1%) KidPoker wins $30,400 ***I was a little surprised to see J-10, but since I was 4-betting him a lot, it makes sense that he would start 5-betting light*** Hand #13
Isildur1 ($17,150)
KidPoker ($11,850) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Js 6s
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) Qs 4h 2s
Isildur1 bets $1,200
KidPoker raises to $2,500
Isildur1 raises to $16,150 (AI)
KidPoker calls $8,350 (AI)
TURN ($23,700) Qs 4h 2s Tc
RIVER ($23,700) Qs 4h 2s Tc 3h
KidPoker shows Js 6s
(Pre 34%, Flop 18.2%, Turn 6.8%) Isildur1 shows As Ts
(Pre 66%, Flop 81.8%, Turn 93.2%) Isildur1 wins $23,700 ***Ugh. I don’t like the way I played this hand. Calling the raise pre-flop is a bit spewy, and then raising the flop to get it in is bad. Not good.*** Hand #14
Isildur1 ($12,100)
KidPoker ($17,200) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qh Ad
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker raises to $2,300
Isildur1 calls $1,200
FLOP ($4,600) 2d Js 4h
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $2,300
Isildur1 raises to $4,850
KidPoker raises to $14,900 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $4,950 (AI)
TURN ($24,200) 2d Js 4h 8c
RIVER ($24,200) 2d Js 4h 8c Ts
KidPoker shows Qh Ad
(Pre 72%, Flop 71.2%, Turn 84.1%) Isildur1 shows 5d Ah
(Pre 28%, Flop 28.8%, Turn 15.9%) KidPoker wins $24,200 ***He raised me in these spots pretty light I think, so I decided to go with it, thinking if I was behind I could hit an A or a Q, plus some back door outs*** Hand #15
KidPoker ($10,100)
Isildur1 ($15,900) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qd 3d
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 5d Ad 4s
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 raises to $2,850
KidPoker raises to $9,100 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $6,250
TURN ($20,200) 5d Ad 4s 9d
RIVER ($20,200) 5d Ad 4s 9d 3c
KidPoker shows Qd 3d
(Pre 29%, Flop 41.9%, Turn 100.0%) Isildur1 shows 3s Ah
(Pre 71%, Flop 58.1%, Turn 0.0%) KidPoker wins $20,200 ***I 3-bet him light then flopped a pretty good draw. His raise on the flop didn’t mean he was committed at all, so I decided to see if I could win it without a showdown. Not to be, but I got there woot!*** Hand #16
Isildur1 ($57,900)
KidPoker ($11,750) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Kd Kc
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker raises to $2,200
Isildur1 calls $1,200
FLOP ($4,400) Tc 4d 9c
Isildur1 bets $55,700 (AI)
KidPoker calls $9,550 (AI)
TURN ($23,500) Tc 4d 9c Qd
RIVER ($23,500) Tc 4d 9c Qd 3h
KidPoker shows Kd Kc
(Pre 78%, Flop 79.4%, Turn 88.6%) Isildur1 shows 7h 9h
(Pre 22%, Flop 20.6%, Turn 11.4%) KidPoker wins $23,500 ***He mixed up his play and starting 3 betting me, then CALLING the $1200 more 4-bet*** Hand #17
Isildur1 ($25,500)
KidPoker ($13,600) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Ah 9s
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,000
KidPoker calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 2c 2d 3d
Isildur1 bets $1,200
KidPoker calls $1,200
TURN ($4,400) 2c 2d 3d 2h
Isildur1 bets $2,850
KidPoker calls $2,850
RIVER ($10,100) 2c 2d 3d 2h 9d
Isildur1 bets $20,450 (AI)
KidPoker calls $8,550 (AI)
KidPoker shows Ah 9s
(Pre 61%, Flop 73.4%, Turn 83.0%) Isildur1 shows Jc 8d
(Pre 39%, Flop 26.6%, Turn 17.0%) KidPoker wins $27,200 ***Kind of a cooler hand than it looks like. He knows, based on how I was playing that I never have 10+ here so he can fire 3 bullets and win it most of the time. Question is, what do I do if I don’t hit the 9?*** Hand #18
Isildur1 ($41,500)
KidPoker ($28,150) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Ah As
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker raises to $2,800
Isildur1 calls $1,700
FLOP ($5,600) 6c 5c Js
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $3,100
Isildur1 raises to $7,650
KidPoker raises to $25,350 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $17,700
TURN ($56,300) 6c 5c Js 5d
RIVER ($56,300) 6c 5c Js 5d 8c
KidPoker shows Ah As
(Pre 85%, Flop 81.6%, Turn 95.5%) Isildur1 shows Jh Qd
(Pre 15%, Flop 18.4%, Turn 4.5%) KidPoker wins $56,300 ***On a draw heavy board I don’t blame him for thinking J-Q was good.*** Hand #19
Isildur1 ($20,900)
KidPoker ($48,750) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 8c 7c
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 calls $200
FLOP ($600) Ac 9c Kh
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 raises to $1,600
KidPoker calls $1,100
TURN ($3,800) Ac 9c Kh 2h
Isildur1 bets $2,650
KidPoker calls $2,650
RIVER ($9,100) Ac 9c Kh 2h Kd
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $5,800
Isildur1 raises to $16,350 (AI)
KidPoker folds
Isildur1 wins $20,700 ***As I read this hand history just now I realized this was a bad bluff oops. I was trying to rep a King, but I probably don’t play a King like that on the flop necessarily. It was a hard sell. Was hoping he missed a flush draw also. Should have let this one go.*** Hand #19
KidPoker ($28,400)
Isildur1 ($10,700) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 5h 9h
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 2c 5s 2h
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 calls $1,200
TURN ($4,400) 2c 5s 2h 3h
KidPoker bets $2,700
Isildur1 calls $2,700
RIVER ($9,800) 2c 5s 2h 3h Js
KidPoker bets $23,500 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $5,800 (AI)
KidPoker shows 5h 9h
(Pre 31%, Flop 73.1%, Turn 70.5%) Isildur1 shows Qh Jh
(Pre 69%, Flop 26.9%, Turn 29.5%) Isildur1 wins $21,400 ***He didn’t raise me on the flop or the turn so I felt like my hand was definitely good, then I picked up a flush draw. The Jack looked like a complete brick so I fired hoping to get a loose call from Ace high. He hit the Jack, oh well*** Hand #20
KidPoker ($39,250)
Isildur1 ($13,000) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qc Jc
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker calls $200
FLOP ($600) 7s 9c 4c
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 calls $500
TURN ($1,600) 7s 9c 4c Kd
KidPoker bets $1,300
Isildur1 raises to $3,750
KidPoker raises to $38,450 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $8,450 (AI)
RIVER ($26,000) 7s 9c 4c Kd 5h
KidPoker shows Qc Jc
(Pre 47%, Flop 54.4%, Turn 22.7%) Isildur1 shows Ks 7d
(Pre 53%, Flop 45.6%, Turn 77.3%) Isildur1 wins $26,000 ***I took an aggressive line here, leading with two overs and a flush draw, then firing on the turn when I picked up a straight draw. In hindsight, when he raised the turn I should call and try to hit, because the board is so draw heavy he wouldn’t fold any pair I don’t think. I was thinking he may have 8-10 or J-10 also and I have that beat with Queen high.*** (not sure about this hand, will need to think about it some more) Hand #21
Isildur1 ($20,200)
KidPoker ($32,050) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 8d 8h
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker calls $800
FLOP ($2,200) 5d Tc Qd
Isildur1 bets $1,300
KidPoker calls $1,300
TURN ($4,800) 5d Tc Qd 3c
Isildur1 bets $2,850
KidPoker calls $2,850
RIVER ($10,500) 5d Tc Qd 3c 8s
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $8,100
Isildur1 calls $8,100
KidPoker shows 8d 8h
(Pre 67%, Flop 14.7%, Turn 4.5%) Isildur1 shows Ts 7s
(Pre 33%, Flop 85.3%, Turn 95.5%) KidPoker wins $26,700 Hand #22
KidPoker ($29,750)
Isildur1 ($39,900) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Js Ks
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker calls $200
FLOP ($600) Kc 3s Kd
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $500
KidPoker raises to $1,800
Isildur1 calls $1,300
TURN ($4,200) Kc 3s Kd 8s
KidPoker bets $3,100
Isildur1 calls $3,100
RIVER ($10,400) Kc 3s Kd 8s Qd
KidPoker bets $7,100
Isildur1 raises to $34,700 (AI)
KidPoker calls $17,450 (AI)
KidPoker shows Js Ks
(Pre 74%, Flop 78.8%, Turn 9.1%) Isildur1 shows 8c Kh
(Pre 26%, Flop 21.2%, Turn 90.9%) Isildur1 wins $59,500 ***Such an idiot! Gosh this is the worst hand I played the whole match and I hated myself as soon as I made the call. I tanked forever, but called. So stupid. He’s never bluffing here, and he isn’t raising me with less than K-J. I couldn’t beat anything really. I talked myself into it thinking he’d raise me on the turn with K-8 or K-Q. I hate this call and it will haunt me.*** Hand #23
Isildur1 ($16,700)
KidPoker ($38,700) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 7h 6d
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 calls $200
FLOP ($600) 7s Ts 6s
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 raises to $1,600
KidPoker calls $1,100
TURN ($3,800) 7s Ts 6s 7c
Isildur1 bets $2,650
KidPoker calls $2,650
RIVER ($9,100) 7s Ts 6s 7c Kh
Isildur1 bets $12,150 (AI)
KidPoker calls $12,150
KidPoker shows 7h 6d
(Pre 35%, Flop 17.4%, Turn 97.7%) Isildur1 shows 8h 9s
(Pre 65%, Flop 82.6%, Turn 2.3%) KidPoker wins $33,400 ***I think it would have been bad to get it all in on the flop with this hand. Even if I was ahead, if he called from behind he’d barely be behind with some kind of pair/straight/flush draw. I like the way I played this one*** Hand #24
Isildur1 ($11,400)
KidPoker ($37,000) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 7s 4h
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 calls $200
FLOP ($600) 4s 6h Qd
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 raises to $1,600
KidPoker calls $1,100
TURN ($3,800) 4s 6h Qd 5d
Isildur1 bets $2,650
KidPoker calls $2,650
RIVER ($9,100) 4s 6h Qd 5d 4d
Isildur1 bets $6,850 (AI)
KidPoker calls $6,850
KidPoker shows 7s 4h
(Pre 59%, Flop 70.6%, Turn 29.5%) Isildur1 shows 2s 5s
(Pre 41%, Flop 29.4%, Turn 70.5%) KidPoker wins $22,800 ***Lucky river for me, had him on the flop, but without a good turn/river he may steal this one from me with a bet or two*** Hand #25
KidPoker ($29,550)
Isildur1 ($10,450) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Kd Kc
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 8s Td 7c
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 raises to $4,500
KidPoker raises to $28,550 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $4,950 (AI)
TURN ($20,900) 8s Td 7c 6s
RIVER ($20,900) 8s Td 7c 6s 2d
KidPoker shows Kd Kc
(Pre 83%, Flop 27.1%, Turn 22.7%) Isildur1 shows 8c Th
(Pre 17%, Flop 72.9%, Turn 77.3%) Isildur1 wins $20,900 ***Standard. I can’t get away from this hand 100 big blinds deep. If we were 200 deep I may just call the raise and get off the hook on the turn when the 6 came*** Hand #26
KidPoker ($10,200)
Isildur1 ($16,400) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Th Tc
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 4c Js Jc
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 raises to $2,850
KidPoker raises to $8,900
Isildur1 raises to $15,400 (AI)
KidPoker calls $300 (AI)
TURN ($20,400) 4c Js Jc 9h
RIVER ($20,400) 4c Js Jc 9h Qs
KidPoker shows Th Tc
(Pre 56%, Flop 11.0%, Turn 4.5%) Isildur1 shows Jh Ad
(Pre 44%, Flop 89.0%, Turn 95.5%) Isildur1 wins $20,400 ***I’m totally fine with this play. Isildur1 raised/called me on most flops in 3 bet pots, and often raised me with air, then checked back the turn. I wasn’t ever folding if I called his raise, so it made no sense to just call*** Hand #27
Isildur1 ($10,100)
KidPoker ($29,900) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 8h Ah
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker calls $800
FLOP ($2,200) As 7c 5s
Isildur1 bets $1,300
KidPoker raises to $2,600
Isildur1 calls $1,300
TURN ($7,400) As 7c 5s 6h
Isildur1 bets $6,400 (AI)
KidPoker calls $6,400
RIVER ($20,200) As 7c 5s 6h 8c
KidPoker shows 8h Ah
(Pre 67%, Flop 90.0%, Turn 86.4%) Isildur1 shows 7d 8d
(Pre 33%, Flop 10.0%, Turn 13.6%) KidPoker wins $20,200 ***Had him in bad shape this hand. Oddly, I think raising the flop made my hand look weaker than had I flat called. Normally in this spot with an Ace you’d just call, but I decided to mix it up here*** Hand #28
KidPoker ($12,050)
Isildur1 ($74,950) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 9h 9c
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 6s 7h 3s
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 raises to $2,850
KidPoker raises to $11,050 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $8,200
TURN ($24,100) 6s 7h 3s Jc
RIVER ($24,100) 6s 7h 3s Jc 8d
KidPoker shows 9h 9c
(Pre 89%, Flop 89.0%, Turn 95.5%) Isildur1 shows 7c 9d
(Pre 11%, Flop 11.0%, Turn 4.5%) KidPoker wins $24,100 ***I’m not folding over pairs on boards like this. Too many combinations of hands he could have that I’m ahead of*** Hand #29
Isildur1 ($60,250)
KidPoker ($26,750) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Ah Kh
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker raises to $2,800
Isildur1 calls $1,700
FLOP ($5,600) 3d 9d 3s
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $3,100
Isildur1 calls $3,100
TURN ($11,800) 3d 9d 3s 3c
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker checks
RIVER ($11,800) 3d 9d 3s 3c 5s
Isildur1 bets $7,250
KidPoker calls $7,250
KidPoker shows Ah Kh
(Pre 48%, Flop 22.6%, Turn 19.3%) Isildur1 shows 7d 7c
(Pre 52%, Flop 77.4%, Turn 80.7%) Isildur1 wins $26,300 *** I tanked on the river, and then finally called thinking he may actually value bet A-Q high in this spot. Unlikely, but meh, probably not a great call. Just didn’t think he was 3-betting me with hands like 77-99*** Hand #30
KidPoker ($39,750)
Isildur1 ($12,350) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker As Jh
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 4h 3s 9h
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 raises to $2,850
KidPoker raises to $38,750 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $8,500 (AI)
TURN ($24,700) 4h 3s 9h Ks
RIVER ($24,700) 4h 3s 9h Ks 7h
KidPoker shows As Jh
(Pre 71%, Flop 17.5%, Turn 6.8%) Isildur1 shows Js 9s
(Pre 29%, Flop 82.5%, Turn 93.2%) Isildur1 wins $24,700 ***This looks worse than it is. He raised me on lots of flops, but would often fold if I re-raised. Unless he had a set I figured I had two overcards and a backdoor flush draw if he called, OR my Ace high was good and he had a draw*** Hand #31
KidPoker ($18,150)
Isildur1 ($18,450) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Td Th
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,100
Isildur1 calls $800
FLOP ($2,200) 4d Ts 9c
KidPoker bets $1,300
Isildur1 raises to $3,050
KidPoker raises to $6,200
Isildur1 raises to $17,350 (AI)
KidPoker calls $10,850 (AI)
TURN ($36,300) 4d Ts 9c Js
RIVER ($36,300) 4d Ts 9c Js 2c
KidPoker shows Td Th
(Pre 80%, Flop 95.7%, Turn 97.7%) Isildur1 shows 4c 4s
(Pre 20%, Flop 4.3%, Turn 2.3%) KidPoker wins $36,300 ***Felt really good being on the other side of an unavoidable cooler hand*** Hand #32
Isildur1 ($72,350)
KidPoker ($14,650) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qc Th
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker calls $800
FLOP ($2,200) 9h 8h 3h
Isildur1 bets $1,300
KidPoker calls $1,300
TURN ($4,800) 9h 8h 3h 7s
Isildur1 bets $2,850
KidPoker calls $2,850
RIVER ($10,500) 9h 8h 3h 7s Js
Isildur1 bets $67,100 (AI)
KidPoker calls $9,400 (AI)
KidPoker shows Qc Th
(Pre 34%, Flop 0.3%, Turn 0.0%) Isildur1 shows Kh Ah
(Pre 66%, Flop 99.7%, Turn 100.0%) Isildur1 wins $29,300 ***I thought I loved that river giving me the nuts straight, but it was brutal because it cost me my stack. He would bet a 10 there too*** Hand #33
KidPoker ($35,750)
Isildur1 ($10,950) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Tc As
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker raises to $1,000
Isildur1 calls $700
FLOP ($2,000) 2d Jc 7c
KidPoker bets $1,200
Isildur1 calls $1,200
TURN ($4,400) 2d Jc 7c 3h
KidPoker bets $2,700
Isildur1 calls $2,700
RIVER ($9,800) 2d Jc 7c 3h Th
KidPoker bets $30,850 (AI)
Isildur1 calls $6,050 (AI)
KidPoker shows Tc As
(Pre 63%, Flop 28.5%, Turn 13.6%) Isildur1 shows 7s Qs
(Pre 37%, Flop 71.5%, Turn 86.4%) KidPoker wins $21,900 ***Someone called this a “triple range merge” but I have no idea what the heck that means. I was trying to get him to fold on the turn, then when he didn’t raise and I hit the 10, I figured I had the best hand and he might call me with a pair*** Hand #34
Isildur1 ($84,750)
KidPoker ($13,150) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qs Qd
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker raises to $2,300
Isildur1 raises to $84,750 (AI)
KidPoker calls $10,850 (AI)
FLOP ($26,300) 6h 5c 3d
TURN ($26,300) 6h 5c 3d Ts
RIVER ($26,300) 6h 5c 3d Ts 4h
KidPoker shows Qs Qd
(Pre 65%, Flop 81.2%, Turn 93.2%) Isildur1 shows Ac Qc
(Pre 35%, Flop 18.8%, Turn 6.8%) KidPoker wins $26,300 ***phew! He didn’t have AA this time and didn’t hit an Ace*** Hand #35
KidPoker ($48,400)
Isildur1 ($10,450) Isildur1 posts (SB) $50
KidPoker posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker As 8c
Isildur1 raises to $300
KidPoker calls $200
FLOP ($600) 3d Tc 5s
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $500
KidPoker calls $500
TURN ($1,600) 3d Tc 5s 8s
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $1,400
KidPoker calls $1,400
RIVER ($4,400) 3d Tc 5s 8s 8d
KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets $8,250 (AI)
KidPoker calls $8,250
KidPoker shows As 8c
(Pre 28%, Flop 14.3%, Turn 11.4%) Isildur1 shows Jd Jc
(Pre 72%, Flop 85.7%, Turn 88.6%) KidPoker wins $20,900 ***This hand may seem weird, but I think we both played it perfectly. No way he can ever put me on an 8 and has to get full value from a 10. As for me, Ace high isn’t a fold on the flop, I turn a pair to keep me in, then check the river in case he wanted to bluff at it. Betting the river would have been a weird bet.*** Hand #36
Isildur1 ($10,350)
KidPoker ($58,150) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker Qc Ks
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker calls $800
FLOP ($2,200) Qd Tc 3h
Isildur1 bets $1,300
KidPoker calls $1,300
TURN ($4,800) Qd Tc 3h 5s
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $2,700
Isildur1 calls $2,700
RIVER ($10,200) Qd Tc 3h 5s Ah
Isildur1 bets $5,250 (AI)
KidPoker calls $5,250
KidPoker shows Qc Ks
(Pre 25%, Flop 72.2%, Turn 84.1%) Isildur1 shows As Kh
(Pre 75%, Flop 27.8%, Turn 15.9%) Isildur1 wins $20,700 ***Yuk, I still don’t know about this hand. I didn’t think he’d check call K-J or A-10, was a bit confused and still am about this hand. I can beat J-9 or even K-10… hmmm. Interesting to here what people would do here, if you DIDN’T know his holecards of course lol*** (Might post this one in a forum for help) Hand #37
Isildur1 ($10,050)
KidPoker ($57,900) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker 5c 6d
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 calls $200
FLOP ($600) 3h 7h 4s
Isildur1 checks
KidPoker bets $500
Isildur1 raises to $1,600
KidPoker raises to $3,200
Isildur1 raises to $9,750 (AI)
KidPoker calls $6,550
TURN ($20,100) 3h 7h 4s Qd
RIVER ($20,100) 3h 7h 4s Qd 8c
KidPoker shows 5c 6d
(Pre 54%, Flop 91.1%, Turn 96.6%) Isildur1 shows 4c 6c
(Pre 46%, Flop 8.9%, Turn 3.4%) KidPoker wins $20,100 ***I flopped the nuts. We got it all in. Cool*** Hand #38
Isildur1 ($15,950)
KidPoker ($10,000) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100 Dealt to KidPoker As Qh
KidPoker raises to $300
Isildur1 raises to $1,100
KidPoker calls $800
FLOP ($2,200) Qd 4s 3h
Isildur1 bets $1,300
KidPoker raises to $2,600
Isildur1 raises to $14,850 (AI)
KidPoker calls $6,300 (AI)
TURN ($20,000) Qd 4s 3h 4d
RIVER ($20,000) Qd 4s 3h 4d 6d
Isildur1 shows 2h Ad
(Pre 26%, Flop 16.9%, Turn 9.1%) KidPoker shows As Qh
(Pre 74%, Flop 83.1%, Turn 90.9%) KidPoker wins $20,000 ***We were nearing the end of the match and it seemed like he was picking up his level of aggression so I decided not to 4-bet the A-Q and take a flop***
Hand #39
Isildur1 ($15,950)
KidPoker ($10,000) KidPoker posts (SB) $50
Isildur1 posts (BB) $100
AA-44 $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
all in pre]]>

When I started practicing for this match a few months ago, I started at the $5-$10 level and played various players, including Justin Bonomo, Eugene Katchalov, and Nanonoko. That went really well. In 15,413 hands I won $46,081, or 29.90 big blinds per 100 hands. I also ran lucky in all in pots. While I won $46,081, if the cards broke even in all in pots where there are no decisions left to be made, I would have only won $39,180, about $7000 over par. At the $50-$100 level, my luck ran out for the most part. I started out great picking up $100k vs K_O_S_T_Y_A, but then it was all downhill from there. In total, after 11,982 hands I’m stuck $333,731, or 27.85 bb/100. That’s a lot of money and would be discouraging, except for the fact that when I factor in how unlucky I’ve been in all in situations, I rate to only be losing $138,000. Still a lot of money, but when you are playing the best young players in the world for “practice” I didn’t expect it to be easy. If you ever want to be the best you can be, sometimes you have to pay for lessons, and that’s essentially what I was doing here. Having said that, my learning curve has been substantial and rapid. Since I tackled online poker at the start of 2010 my skill level both 6 max and heads up has improved dramatically. I’ve played less than 40,000 hands of $100-$200 6 max, $5-$10 HU, and $50-$100 HU combined. In the old days, that would have seemed like a ton of hands, but to the multi-tabling grinder this “a weekend.” I was so frustrated with how my match vs Isildur1 went. I knew I’d have to get lucky to win, as he is the more experienced player, but not only did he outplay me strategy wise, he got hit in the head with the deck too. I can’t do much about the bad luck, but I can do something about him outplaying me. Whatever happens next Sunday, whether I win or lose, the fact that Isildur1 is the better player won’t change. He is very tough to play against, and I got a lot of chuckles from various twitter followers who had the “fool proof” strategy to beat him! They were pretty funny, anything from, “Don’t call his overbets” to “When he jams the turn he has a flush draw.” It’s just that simple I guess. Ha! Truth is, Isildur1 played very differently against me than what I expected. I wanted to go into the match fresh, without really listening to anyone else’s view of how he played, but I obviously had heard things about his reputation. I wish I hadn’t, because it did affect my decisions in certain situations. The reason he won, aside from the lucky all ins/coolers, was that he figured me out pretty quickly and developed a counter strategy that left him protected for the most part. By the time I was prepared to make some adjustments, the match was already essentially over. There is more to losing those big key pots in a match than most people realize. Normally, if I was just playing a cash game, if my opponent was on fire I’d just quit. Not because I believe in “luck” and that it’s “not my day,” but because when someone is winning they are at a psychological advantage which will allow them to play better. The true test of a poker player is how well he plays when things are going terribly. The best poker player in the world, Phil Ivey, routinely calls it quits early in sessions when things are going badly. It’s the exact opposite of what 99% of poker players do! Most players chase, and just want to get “unstuck,” which means they’ll often play for days when they are losing. That’s a terrible way to approach poker as a business and it’s buried plenty of people. Had a few of those key pots went my way instead of his, I have no idea what would have happened. I’d obviously have won what was in the pot, but how else would that affected the match? Poker is a long term game and it requires an incredible amount of emotional stability and toughness to fight through the worst of times. Every player who’s ever played for any length of time has endured bad runs that make them wonder, “Am I the unluckiest player in the world?” The answer is no, just ask Mike Matusow 🙂 Mikey believes he is the unluckiest player in the world, so you can’t make that claim, it’s taken! I elected not to play the Wynn Classic, and instead devote my time to playing heads up on PokerStars all week in preparation for my rematch next Sunday. I haven’t decided how I will approach the next match, a lot of that will depend how this week goes. I’ll be doing some experimenting, as I mentioned, and I won’t know exactly how I’m going to play him until the match starts. If you want to rail, check my twitter feed as I’ll usually tweet when I’m playing. My twitter name is “RealKidPoker.” ]]>

Hand #1 KidPoker (Kh Qs)
Isildur1 (6s 6d) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker raises to 1000
Isildur1 calls Flop: Kc-4s-4h KidPoker bets 1200
Isildur1 calls Turn 10s KidPoker checks
Isildur1 checks River 6h KidPoker bets 3100
Isildur raises to 9600
KidPoker calls Isildur1 wins 20,400 Hand #2 KidPoker (Qh 9d)
Isildur1 (As 9s) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker calls Flop: 9c 2h 3c KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets 500
KidPoker raises to 1400
Isildur1 raises to 2650
KidPoker raises to 9800
Isildur1 calls Turn Ad River Ac Isildur1 wins 20,200 Hand #3 KidPoker (Qc 9h)
Isildur1 (10c Jc) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker calls Flop: 9s Qh 4h KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets 500
KidPoker raises to 1400
Isildur1 calls Turn 8h KidPoker bets 2700
Isildur1 raises to 8300
KidPoker calls River 8c Isildur1 wins 20,000 Hand #4 KidPoker (5d 6d)
Isildur1 (10c 8c) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker raises to 1000
Isildur1 calls Flop: 9d Qh 7d KidPoker bets 1200
Isildur1 calls Turn: Jc KidPoker checks
Isildur1 bets 2650
KidPoker calls River: 10h KidPoker bets 5150
Isildur1 calls Isildur1 wins 20,000 Hand #5 KidPoker Kd 6d
Isildur1 Js 3s Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker raises to 1000
Isildur1 calls Flop: Jc Ks 6s KidPoker bets 1200
Isildur1 raises to 2850
KidPoker raises to 5100
isildur1 raises to 13350
KidPoker calls Turn: 9s River: 5c Isildur1 wins 28,700 Hand #6 KidPoker (10d 10c)
Isildur1 (Ah 3c) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker raises to 1000
Isildur1 calls Flop: 5s 2d 4d KidPoker bets 1200
Isildur1 raises to 2850
KidPoker raises to 5100
Isildur1 raises to 12650
KidPoker calls Turn: Jd River: 3h Isildur1 wins 27,300 Hand #7 KidPoker (Js 4s)
Isildur1 (As 6s) KidPoker raises to 200
Isildur1 calls Flop: 9s Qd 10s KidPoker bets 200
Isildur1 calls Turn: 3s KidPoker bets 600
Isildur1 raises to 2350
KidPoker calls River: Kd Isildur1 bets 7950
KidPoker calls Isildur1 wins 29,400 Hand #8 KidPoker (Ad Kd)
Isildur1 (6h 8h) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker raises to 1000
Isildur1 calls Flop: 3h Kh Qs KidPoker bets 1200
Isildur1 calls Turn: 10h KidPoker bets 3100
Isildur1 raises to 10350
KidPoker calls River: 5c Isildur1 wins 25,100 Hand #9 KidPoker (Kc Qh)
Isildur1 (3s 4d) KidPoker raises to 200
Isildur1 calls Flop: 3c Kd 4s KidPoker bets 200
Isildur1 raises to 900
KidPoker raises to 2200
Isildur1 raises to 3850
KidPoker raises to 9800
Isildur1 calls Turn: 3d River: As Isildur1 wins 20,000 Hand #10 KidPoker (Ah 10h)
Isildur1 (Ks 7s) KidPoker raises to 200
Isildur1 calls Flop: 3d 2s 10s KidPoker bets 200
Isildur1 raises to 900
KidPoker raises to 2200
Isildur1 raises to 3850
KidPoker raises to 12602
Isildur1 calls Turn: 10c River: 9s Isildur1 wins 25,604 Hand #11 KidPoker (6d 6s)
Isildur1 (10h 2h) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker calls Flop: 6h 7h 3d Isildur1 bets 500
KidPoker raises to 1400
Isildur1 calls Turn: 6c KidPoker bets 2100
Isildur1 raises to 8300
KidPoker calls River 7c KidPoker wins 20,000 ya baby!!!! check me out woot woot! I never lose 11 in a row. Hand #12 KidPoker (Qh 4s)
Isildur1 (Ac 3h) KidPoker raises to 200
Isildur1 calls Flop: Qc 9c 5h KidPoker bets 200
Isildur1 raises to 900
KidPoker calls Turn: Ad Isildur1 bets 1700
KidPoker calls River: 3d Isildur1 bets 9150
KidPoker calls Isildur1 wins 23,900 Hand #13 KidPoker (Qh 8h)
Isildur1 (As Ks) KidPoker raises to 200
Isildur1 raises to 900
KidPoker calls Flop: 5d 3s Kh Isildur1 bets 1200
KidPoker raises to 3100
Isildur1 calls Turn: 7h KidPoker bets 7350
Isildur1 calls River Jh KidPoker wins 22,700 owned him pretty hard that hand! Finally made a flush… that won. Hand #14 KidPoker (Jc Ks)
Isildur1 (Ac Kh) Isildur1 raises to 300
KidPoker raises to 1000
Isildur1 raises to 10100
KidPoker calls Flop: 10s 7d Jd Turn: Qc River: 4d Isildur1 wins 20,200
That was the last hand of the match. In All in pots I ran 44,000 under par, bringing my 50-100 total to -180,000 under par since I took it on. All in EV only focuses on one aspect of luck, what happens when there are no decisions to be made. For example, if you go all in with 10-10 vs AK preflop and put in 10,000 before the flop, you rate to win about 57% of the time, so your expected value is 11,400. If you win, and profit 10,000, you are 8600 ahead of par. If you lose, you’d be 11,400 below par.
Lots of other factors can determine luck in a match, but the others are difficult to quantify. For example, flushes over flushes, set over set, AA vs KK preflop, etc. That doesn’t even factor in how often the river card hits your opponent. I’ve been playing poker long enough to recognize when I’ve been unlucky, or when I just played really bad. When you raise with AA on the button heads up, and your opponent happens to fold every time, that can be annoying too since they’ll at least call 2/3rds of the time. It’s frustrating to run like that, but if you want to stay sane you have to just deal with it and move on. Sometimes that’s easier said than done.]]>

On Sunday March 20th at 12pm PST I’ll be playing Isildur1 heads up across 4 tables of $50-$100 no limit hold’em on PokerStars.com. We’ll both have a bankroll of $150,000 to play with and will play 2500 hands on the 20th. If no on goes broke, the match continues the following Sunday March 27th for another 2500 hands.
At each of the four tables we’ll start with $10,000 and auto top up for as long as there is reserve in the $150,000 bankroll. Depending on how action plays out, stacks may end up splitting if either of us can’t put up $10,000 on a fourth table. The SuperStar ShowDown was very intriguing to me when I first heard about it, the problem was, I simply couldn’t compete. I’ve never really multi-tabled, especially not heads up. So I decided to get to work on practicing and see if it’s something I thought I could handle. I played matches against a wide variety of players and pretty quickly adjusted to the speed of the game and that is not a concern in the least anymore. If you ever play Nanonoko 4 tables heads up, anything else feels like slow motion. My results in my matches helped boosted my confidence immensely. Not only did I feel “in the zone” while playing, but stamina across 2500 hands is also not an issue. The only real “issue” at this point is experience and skill. Isildur1 has a lot more experience then I do, but I feel I might match up well against him. We’ll have to see March 20th. My strategy going in isn’t a big secret so I don’t mind sharing: Pre-flop: I’ll be min-raising on the button probably around 95% of the time and folding the very worst hands. If he raises from the button, I’ll either fold, call, or 3 bet to 1000.
If I raise to 200, he makes it 900, and I decide to 4-bet, the bet sizing will depend on how deep we are. At the minimum, if he is in fact going to make it 900 as he did against Issac Haxton, my 4-bets will be to 2100 if we are only 10k deep. If, his 3 bet sizing is to 700, then I’ll adjust as well and 4-bet to 1800 if we are 10k deep. The deeper we get, the bigger my 4 bet sizing will be, but probably never more than raising his 900 to 2400. That will also depend on how often he calls my 4-bets, and/or 5 bets me. Flop: In position, when checked to, I’m betting 50% of pot ($200) a very high percentage of the time. If I’m check raising the flop, it’ll generally be close to 3 times his flop bet, whatever that ends up being.
In pots where I 3-bet him to 1000, I’ll be betting 60% of the pot, or $1200. Turn: In position in spots where he check called the flop, I’ll be betting $600, or 75% of the pot. River: I’m not telling! LOL, this will depend heavily on many factors that I can’t share without divulging too much information about my approach, but lets just say that I’m not exactly committed to any “small ball rules” on the river. I’m pretty sure this is an approach that Isildur1 doesn’t enjoy playing against, but I’m not exactly trying to make him feel more comfortable. My goal is to win, and this approach is the foundation for how I plan on doing that. I’m not worried about giving away this information, because within 100 hands it will all become very obvious anyway. ********************************************************* After Isildur1 lost his opening match to a formidable opponent in Isaac Haxton, Isildur1 hasn’t lost a match. Speaking of Issac Haxton, on a totally unrelated note I was horrified when Prahlad Friedman accused him of cheating on UB, without a shred of evidence. That one just boggles my mind to no end. This isn’t the first time Prahlad has wrongly accused someone of cheating (Jeffrey Lissandro “I don’t trust you” antegate from WSOP) and I don’t know exactly why he’d do something so foolish. Cheating is a very serious allegation and if you are going to accuse someone, you better have some concrete evidence. One thing is for sure, UB is finding ways to stay relevant on the newsgroups, but as always, for all the wrong reasons. In a previous blog I mentioned that I wish more people would speak out against UB, and I’m happy to see more and more players not standing for the garbage they are spewing to the poker world, and that they won’t ever let it rest. The goal for UB is obvious, and it makes sense: do everything you can to separate the “New UB” from the old regime. Logical. Problem is, the leader of the “New UB’s” initial reaction to the cheating scandals was to cover it up. So while the new leader wasn’t caught cheating, there is plenty of proof, and an admission, that the new UB was involved in a cover up that essentially aided and abetted the crooks of the so called “old regime.” Paul Leggat will always be connected to the old regime, because he tried to help them get away by wanting to cover it up. There is no excuse for that. If I ever found out something like that, it would be more than enough reason to walk away from any endorsement. How can Leggat ever be trusted after this has been exposed? How can anyone honestly claim to endorse this company and say that money isn’t the real reason for it? The icing on the cake for me is pretty damning. 2+2 sleuths uncovered 61 accounts linked to the cheating scandal. I believe that’s the number, but correct me if I’m wrong. Now, is it even remotely possible that the 2+2 sleuths caught each and every account involved? The odds of that being true are astronomical. So how many accounts did UB’s investigation uncover? Zero. No, I’m not joking. Does anyone believe that Paul Leggat and company really didn’t find even one other account involved in shady activity? If you are truly OK with the FACT that the CEO of your company was involved in a cover up, and didn’t come clean until after 2+2 caught him, then you simply live by a different moral code than I do. Wearing a UB patch is akin to sticking out your middle finger to the poker world. I just don’t see how anyone can rationally defend representing that company. I don’t hate everyone over there, but I completely disagree with each and every one of their decisions to support a company that’s forever tarnished, regardless of how much they are being paid. If you are truly a professional poker player, then having a sponsorship deal is NOT a necessity. It’s a choice. Do the morally right thing, or take dirty money to wear black and yellow.
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I tweeted that I would write a blog about the corruption that takes place at Crown Plaza hotel which is connected to the Commerce casino, so here goes: I’ll start by saying that the Commerce has always been my favorite poker room in the whole world, I’ve been saying that for years and that hasn’t changed. If online poker didn’t exist, and I ever needed to go back on the grind, that’s where you would find me. The facility is really practical, which is a big plus for someone as anal as me. Also, with Matt Savage doing the structures for the tournaments, you always know you are going to get a ton of play in the tournaments. It’s the perfect place to play live poker and I’ve been going there for almost 15 years now. When I started going there, they didn’t have a hotel connected to the casino so I’d stay at Wyndam hotel (now the Double Tree) and would do the 8 minute walk to Commerce. Since the hotel was added, I usually stay there whether it’s for a Commerce tourney, or even for the WPT event at the Bike. I’d never really had a problem with the hotel before, but this year, some pretty shady activity came to my attention that just absolutely needs to stop. After shooting The Big Game myself, Phil Hellmuth, Joe Hachem, Phil Laak, Jennifer Tilly, Jason Mercier, and Brian Rast all got on a plane to LA since no commercial flights went out late enough for us. We all had rooms reserved at Crown Plaza. This wasn’t at all a case of “big time players” waltzing in at the last minute trying to steal someone’s room, quite the contrary. When we arrived, we were told that all our reservations were canceled! Also, there was only one room available at Double Tree which wasn’t going to work. Tilly and Laak went home, Rast and Mercier stayed with friends, and Hachem took the room at Double Tree which left me and Hellmuth without any place to stay. So how did this happen? A corrupt practice that entails greasing the right palm which will allow you to flat out steal a room from someone with a reservation. February is Crown Plaza’s busiest month and they’ll often overbook as many as 40 rooms which creates a bit of chaos. Now, Vegas hotels may often tell you they are sold out, when in fact they do have rooms reserved for potential high rollers, but no Vegas hotel will tell someone with a reserved room that their reservation has been canceled. Worse yet, at Commerce, people have literally been kicked out of their rooms in order to make room for someone who greased the right guy. I did a bit of research and found that this practice has been going on for years at the Commerce. It used to be a guy named Juan. If the place was sold out, you call Juan, give him a few hundred dollars, and he’ll get you a room.
The new guys name is Rodney. Give Rodney some money and all of a sudden rooms that were once reserved are canceled and “voila” you have a room. I was absolutely not OK with the idea that they’d kick someone out of their room for me. No chance, that’s just flat out wrong. Me and Phil packed up and looked for a place to stay. Rather than getting a good nights sleep in preparation for LAPC day 1, we were in a car roaming around LA looking for a place to sleep. I spoke to the owner of Commerce the very next day, and along with apologies for what happened, he also explained to me a little bit about what happened and that he is not at all OK with this practice. He gave me an example: during the tournament, say 40 rooms are reserved for people they know will be coming. They confirm those reservations with players (myself included) and assume that everything should be taken care of. Then, Rodney, or whoever is on the take at Crown Plaza, essentially steals that room and gives it away to whoever shows up with a few hundred dollars. Now, I live in Vegas. I get it. I understand how greasing a doorman can get you a table at a club, etc. What’s happening at Crown Plaza, and has been for years apparently, is a very different thing. Reserved rooms are being STOLEN. In doing some research on it I heard plenty of horror stories. The owner of Commerce was aware of these stories after last year, and thought everything was addressed for this year. Well, it hasn’t been. If I was told before flying out there, “Sorry, we are fully booked and there are no rooms,” I would have made other arrangements and realized it was on me for not booking sooner. That’s totally fine. I don’t need preferential treatment, and I certainly don’t want to steal anyone’s room. I just want to be treated fairly and I assume that’s what most of you want as well. It’s a corrupt practice and it needs to stop. I am not blowing smoke when I say I love playing at Commerce, but the Crown Plaza is now part of the experience and they need to be held to the same high standard as the casino itself, and that’s not the case at the moment. I’m hoping they can fix that for next year. ********************************************************* NBC Heads Up event starts tomorrow and as always there is plenty of controversy in regards to how players are selected to participate. People have asked me, and unfortunately, I have absolutely no clue who is on this committee, or if it even exists, and based on some of the selections I don’t feel like I understand “what it takes” to get an invite. I get that they aren’t trying to put together the best 64 players, and instead more focused on entertainment. That’s cool, but then how do you explain leaving Tony G and Luke Schwartz off the list? I really don’t want to start any trouble, and don’t want to name names, but there are WAY too many “old guard” players in this event that offer neither recent results, nor entertainment. Now, I’m not suggesting these two for inclusion, but old guard players like Dave “Devilfish” Ulliot and Men “The Master” Nguyen are a lot more entertaining to watch than some of the dry toast old school players on that list. The biggest snub is obvious. Carlos Mortensen is on the verge of winning his 4th WPT, is the WPT all-time money leader, and has a dynamic style of play that’s fun to watch. Kathy Liebert is also someone who has been very vocal about being excluded from these types of events. She ranks #1 on the all-time money list for women, and if I’m not mistaken, she’s never taken part in this event. I don’t know if it’s personal or not, but you would think she’d get an invite at some point out of respect for her accomplishments. Mike Sexton is also an old guard type player that deserves an invite, in my opinion, based on what he’s done to promote the game and he’s certainly a familiar face to the average viewer, and an easy guy to root for. There are loads of players left off the list that I’d invite, and loads I’d eliminate, but I don’t think it’s all that productive to call people out when it’s not their fault they got an invite.
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WSOP Schedule. One rule change for 2011 will make this the most enduring grind in WSOP history for those with bracelet bets or just looking to play a full schedule. The new rule allows for 4 levels of late registration, which means you could play a noon tournament, and if you bust, you can get into the 5pm event as late as 10:45pm with a fresh stack. A full day of play in a noon event ends at around midnight, so you could essentially play a full day one of a noon event and then play 3 hours of the 5pm event from midnight to 3am. A solid 15 hours of play.
In the past, the heavy hitters skipped a lot of noon events in favor of whats generally going to be a higher buy in, non-hold’em event at 5pm. Now you can expect to see more of those players (a la Phil Ivey) playing the smaller buy in noon events. By 11:00pm on day 1 of a noon event, if you are still in, you are likely going to be very deep in the tournament. If you bust at 10:00pm, you still have plenty of play if you jump into the 5:00pm event. I did my guesstimated schedule for this year and it’s jammed. ********************************************************* WSOPE announced a move to Cannes for this year. Apparently the venue is better and you can expect a higher percentage of local players entering which means bigger prize pools. Probably the best part of this move was the date change. In the past, WSOPE conflicted with the most popular online tournament series in the world, the WCOOP on PokerStars. Now that my September is free to play WCOOP’s, I’m looking forward to getting my first WCOOP bracelet. WSOPE will run a series of events from Oct 7-21. ********************************************************* The European Poker Tour (EPT) has announced their dates for the popular San Remo event, as well as the dates, and a venue change for the EPT Grand Final. After a few years in Monte Carlo, the EPT Grand Final will now be held in Madrid. I’ve never been to Madrid, but Barcelona is one of my favorite cities so I’m excited to see what Madrid has to offer.
EPT San Remo takes place April 27-May 3, and then just four days later you can hop a flip to Madrid for the Grand Final on May 7-12. I’ll certainly be in Madrid, but I haven’t decided on San Remo yet. At the moment it’s looking like I won’t be able to be in San Remo. ********************************************************* Bluff magazine announced some changes to their player of the year formula and I think it’s the best model poker has ever seen. Ideally a POY formula would include number of events played, but since that can’t really be tracked, one of the ways in which you can limit the inherit advantage the most active players have, is to limit the number of scores that count. So, your Bluff score will comprise your top ten scores for the year.
This accomplishes a few things, most importantly, as guys like Jason Mercier and Sorel Mizzi know from the past couple years, chasing all the small, side tournaments can be such an epic grind and hampers your quality of life. I did it for a few years in the late 90’s chasing CardPlayer of the Year honors, and after a few years it takes a major toll on your enjoyment of the game.
With this system in place, a player who has 24 cashes will only get to use his top ten finishes which gives all the top players a legitimate chance at the award.
Other changes included a minimum number of players. CardPlayer has always had that right, and now Bluff has followed suit with minimum field sizes based on the size of the buy in. A buy in of $25,000 or more must have 27 or more players to qualify, while a $10,000 event needs at least 48 runners to count. I’d call it the Fernando Brito rule 🙂 ********************************************************* Finally, UB made news again this week for all the wrong reasons. Aside from an absolutely hilarious parody on the song “Black and Yellow” starring Prahlad Friedman Black and Yellow
Travis Makar a UB insider recently did an interview spilling plenty of beans, claiming the cheating that was uncovered by the sleuths at 2+2 was only the “tip of the iceberg” and also claimed that the same owners at the helm during the Russ Hamilton scandal are still profiting off of customers rake.
He alleged that aside from the superuser scandal, disgruntled UB employees were actually hacking into player accounts and that plenty of players had money directly stolen from them.
Also in a recent thread on 2+2, a player details his interactions with UB support about some vanishing money from his account: Money Disappears
The interview with Travis Maker is quite long and there are plenty of doozies. You can find the full transcript here: Travis Makar Interview. He talks a bit about Phil Hellmuth, and how he’s a good guy, and then makes a few claims about Annie Duke. He claims that she borrowed money from Russ prior to the scandal to pay for her house in LA, but after the scandal broke, decided to not pay the loan back.
He then goes on to explain that UB was funneling money to Duke during her appearance on Celebrity Apprentice. Now, on the regular Apprentice this season a player was fired for having a friend drop him off money for a fund raising task. The Celebrity version is different, however, so while UB providing her funds while on the show isn’t against the rules, it certainly skews the idea that she was “raising funds.” Money from the marketing budget was allocated to Duke for the purpose of keeping her on the show longer. As Makar says, “So it wasn