Poker Week in Review

I'm pounding this out on a day off from work for MLK day. We are in the midst of an Upstate NY ice storm. I am roasting a small beef tenderloin, which I put a beautiful sear on. Oh yeah, I'm also making garlic mashed potatoes. Sounds good doesnt it? Yes, IG is multi-talented and my goal is to cook more in 2007. But more about my 2007 goals in another post. Why make New Years Resolutions? I believe in starting my day over at any time and that goes for my year too!

After my successful weekend last week, the momentum continued when I jumped into a 90 person sng on Full Tilt and finished 3rd last Monday nite. Only problem was it was $1.25 buyin. It was a blast though as my live league mates came by to cheer me on. First Trent (LGkeeper on FTP), who works three 12 hour days largely over the weekend. He kept me company till bed-time called. Then Eric and Tracy popped up until the munchies called and they went to get wings!! Not sure if Edawg was burning one down at the time for munchies to kick in but the wings sure sounded good.

Then Snake5970 popped in after his live game. The multi-faceted Ray didnt fare to well in his weekly live Monday nite tourney but never one to miss a beat he recouped his buy-in and then some at Pitch-Plus.. Note to self Pai Gow instead of Chinese Poker and UNO at our next multi-game challenge.

At the end I had Ray, Steve-O (our current APL league leader)and Eric and Tracey on the rail. When Eric or Steve commented on the payout being so low, I remembered the purpose I was doing the $1.25 buy-in. It was to try out the new style cheaply and continue the momentum in a MTT format. It worked. Of course having pocket 22's hold up against A3 when you river a set helps. My gutsy call of the evening (and I went into the time bank to contemplate this call)... With Q8 in the hole at the final table, I called the post-flop all-in of a push-monkey at my table. We had been tangling since i had gotten moved to the table where all the chipleaders were. I slowly decimated his stack. I had an idea that my 8 was good with a board of k8x and i was right. He flipped pocket 66's I believe and I felted him.

I got home on Tuesday to find an email from Snake that the 2007 WSOP was released. He had called Harrahs's the week before and they had said the schedule was to be released Monday. A day late but who cares. Its out there now with a nice mix of mixed games.

Tuesday nite I played the Poker Analysis Freeroll league game on Doyle's Room. It was an early out as I tried to bluff someone continuously who was on my left who I should know better then to try and get fancy on. The leagues good LAG player made an earlier exit then I tangling with the same person. Just as well, it had been a long day on the phones.

Wednesday nite after another 9 long hours and three Ibuprofen, I played the Poker Analysis $5.50 buy-in league game on Pstars. Snake had given up the computer for the evening to his youngest at-home daughter and railed me via phone. 1 1/2 hours later I managed a one off the bubble finish. As I broadcasted my play by play to Snake (possibly in preparation for some 2007 WSOP podcasting) his comments were "FOLD, FOLD, FOLD'.... "My God you are Card Dead", and a couple of "Are you Crazy?" when I wanted to raise with some non-premium hands. After I hung up with him it was close to Mookie time. I opted to pass which was just as well. My dad called right before 10 PM EST and it was another 1/2 with him on the phone.... Yes I talked non-stop for almost all my waking hours on Wednesday.

Thursday: Nine busy busy hours on the phones again and another 3 Ibuprofen. I got home only to have my mother call me or I called her to find out some test results she had had done. The AcesCracked pre-season league game on FTP wasnt listed and I didnt get registered for Pokerstars (which was set-up in a hurry by Penn. Snake had emailed me to tell me his good news. He Satellited into the FTP $750,000 Guarantee on 1/21/2007. I wound up getting into Al Cant Hang's Riverchasers tourney on FTP that started at 9:30 PM. I went pretty deep only to bust out before the cash. SIGH.

Friday nite. My weekly nightmare known as the Adirondack Poker League. After making 6 of ten final tables and 4 cashes the first half of our twenty week season, I find myself in a downward spiral and resenting about 4 of the league players. This week proves no different after taking down a few early pots using my small ball tactics and channeling my inner Negreanu I get into a pot with my nemesis who I would like to kick in the junk. I raise from EP with AA to $300 no callers except for numb nuts... The flop comes JJ6. Numbnuts checks. I bet out (note I didnt push like I did against Keith a few weeks prior) I fire and he comes over the top. I call only to lay down on the river when he reraises me again. That decimates my stack but I had to lay them down I needed an okay finish to stay in the top ten. He could have had QQ or KK but the fact is my early out would have been catostrophic for my league standing and spot in the top ten tourney where the $$$ is. Numbnuts aint in it and has no chance at it. I wind up mustering a mediocre finish when I run AQ into AK. When I flip my AQ to Bruce's AK I am out of the seat and into my coat without even looking.

It is the walk of shame over to Ray who is sitting at the bar (an early out for him) to tell him I'm out of there. I think he thought I was going to cry (Homicide was going thru my mind actually) and he did his best to calm me down. What a clusterfuck this was turning out to be. I left my little Buddha card capper on the table, misplaced my purse (left it on some chair). Ray bought me a drink amd I forgot to take the little paper end off the straw. I was that rattled. I threw a brat attack and told him in my best 5 year old voice "I dont care if I make the top ten tourney, I hate these people". "Dont say that.. you do care" 'No, I dont. And of course he is right, I really do care. But how many times when I need to catch a break am I gonna run AQ into AK?? Alot it seems if I play cards for the rest of my life. There is no arguing with a stubborn Irish-hot headed Italian girl unless you are a stubborn Irishmen yourself. "Doug went out before you, so all is not lost, you'll probably only drop a spot"..."My brother has more to lose then you do". Rich sitting in 11th bounced shortly after me and he needed a strong finish to move into the top ten.

And I am not the only one fed up with some of my league mates. Phil who got a late start as he was out of commission for the first few weeks of the season, had sat this week out with a sub. He was getting tired of flush chasers and river catchers. He showed up to watch and to play the ponies. "Oh a Grey horse!!!"" he announces. I look at him in disbelief. That is a girly thing to say and to do..... Bet a horse because of its color? Another Grey horse and another comes out. I look at him wide eyed and say Trifecta. No instead Ray and Phil exacta box the greys with another horse. They come in 1-2-3... Elmer the bartender and a former APLer tells Ray that the exacta will only pay off $18 or so. "I watch horses run all day he announces (we are at an OTB)". Ray says it should pay $30 at the odds the two horses went off at. "How much you want to bet?" and Elmer pulls out his tip money. Ray sneers and says "Put that away... thats nothing". Now, the evening is getting fun and I havent seen this much testosterone flowing since a couple of triathletes got into a whos is bigger contest with their uber-tri bikes. They settle on $1... When the payoff is announced and Ray is practically right on the nose. I look at Elmer and squeal "Pay the Man". When you live in horse country and spend a lot of your 20's playing the ponies you know what the payout will be when the horses who come in are going off at say odds of say 8:5 and 9.5 to 5.

Its before 9 PM, another early out and a 45 minute drive home. I look at Ray and with a grin and a wink say.... Im off to win a token!! Screw these donkeys, Im going to win me a WSOP seat this year. "Now your talkin, I'll look you up later on-line."

When I get home its out of my Tilly top and Cargo pants and into my yoga pants. The buddha had found his way back into his box, I had found my purse. I won a token and I finished on the bubble in an Omaha hi lo SNG at the same time. One Fish.. Two Fish.. Red Fish.. Blue Fish... Donkey Fish....Go Fish...........ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ....