socalpokerjoe (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} socalpokerjoe) wrote,@ 2008-01-24 13:43:00 |
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Tournament Report - Enter Omaha
I'm super stoked today because last night I played in & cashed in my first ever B&M Omaha 8/b Tourney. I'm not only excited about cashing, but I'm excited about how i did it. I didn't just barely slime my way into the money by getting rockey around the bubble, I went to the final table with the third largest chip stack.
Let's back up a bit.
After much encouragement to play from both my wife and my buddy joepro, I decided I was definitely taking the drive down to Sycuan yesterday. In my opinion, this was the perfect barometer to give me an idea where I stood as far as my Omaha ability in a Tournament environment. I have been preparing mentally for the Harrah's $200 + $25 Omaha Tourney all month.
6:30 pm - We started the tourney with 72 players situated (I believe) at 8 tables. 20 Minute rounds and everyone started with $5K in TC. I started off pretty good, not afraid of getting involved in some pots with decent starting hands. No big scoopers but chopping some moderate sized pots. I blew it bit time when i got a sixth of a pot with the nut low. what was even more pathetic was that a measly pair of sevens took the high. At the first break (between rounds 4 and 5) i was nickel-and-diming it to $7,100 TC. There were a few players at the table who managed to get themselves short stacked but there was no real dominant chip leader.
I went on somewhat of a tear over the next few rounds, got a little lucky once or twice and at the end of level 7 I had accumulated $19,800 TC. Blinds were now at $700 - $1500. The specifics of the hands are a little blurry. I do recall one pot in particular where I had the nut low and hit a set of nines on the river to scoop a very nice sized pot. Level 8 was brutal, I don't think I made it to the turn once during the whole level. I was card dead, getting a lot of hands with no scooping potential. I was playing pretty tight but still managed to donk off a few pre-flop calls. At the second break, with the blinds going to $1000 - $2000 I was sitting on $17,500 TC.
After the second break I gave myself a little pep talk in the bathroom. I decided that with half the field gone and a better than average chip stack, I was gonna make myself a force to be reckoned with from here on in. The cards tried to cooperate but things didn't go exactly as planned. Twice I had an opponent all-in with better scooping potential; better low hands, better high draws, counterfeit insurance...once i got quartered and once I got scooped. It didn't deter me though. I kept getting my money in with good hands, trying to recover some of those chips. Keep in mind, player are dropping like flies at this point...three tables...now two tables...19 players...now 18. I finally got a hand where I really drew a line in the sand for my tournament life. I raised to $6,000 under the gun (it was my third pre-flop raise in a row) with A-2-5-10 double suited. The player to my left, who was about evenly stacked with me was furious at all my pre-flop raising. He re-bumps it to $9,000. it comes back to me and I cap it to $12,000. (at this point I only have about another $3,500). side note: there are other callers in the hand here, but I'm totally focused on this guy and getting all of my chips in the pot. Being first to act anyway, I fired out $3,000 before the flop hit and showed the guy my last $500 chip. He obliged me and put me all in. The flop came down a miraculous 10-10-A. after the turn bricked his back-door low draw I scooped a monster pot to put me in the cat-bird seat.
17 players...16 players. I played aggressive but smart from there on out...14 players...13 players. Play really tightens up around this point, I get involved in only a few pots and let my stack do the work for me...11 players...10 PLAYERS! When the bubble burst, I was quite pleased with my $55,000 TC. (Average stack size at this point is $36,000 TC) I was running 3rd out of 10 remaining players!
Unfortunately, the ending is a little anti-climactic. With the exception of one short stack, there wasn't a huge difference in the chip positions. Before the first card had been dealt at the final table, and as the tournament was about to enter its 5th hour, we collectively decided to chop the prize pool 10 ways guaranteeing every player 3rd place money, $288. I was happy. 3rd place money was twice as much as 4th place money and much better that 5th through 10th place money. Also, every player at the final table got a $50 Voucher for Sycuan's Super Bowl Sunday $10K Guarantee.
Finally, I was notified that the results of this tournament, and the other tournaments Sycuan is running as part of their Super Bowl of Poker promotion, will be published in a future issue of Card Player Magazine. Check that off the list.
What's the bottom line? I'm really excited to play in next Tuesday's Harrah's Omaha event and I'll have a few familiar faces there that I met last night. Give me a rooting interest, "as best as their interests don't conflict with my interests". And my poker figure for the year after a net gain of $240?
+$420
I'm super stoked today because last night I played in & cashed in my first ever B&M Omaha 8/b Tourney. I'm not only excited about cashing, but I'm excited about how i did it. I didn't just barely slime my way into the money by getting rockey around the bubble, I went to the final table with the third largest chip stack.
Let's back up a bit.
After much encouragement to play from both my wife and my buddy joepro, I decided I was definitely taking the drive down to Sycuan yesterday. In my opinion, this was the perfect barometer to give me an idea where I stood as far as my Omaha ability in a Tournament environment. I have been preparing mentally for the Harrah's $200 + $25 Omaha Tourney all month.
6:30 pm - We started the tourney with 72 players situated (I believe) at 8 tables. 20 Minute rounds and everyone started with $5K in TC. I started off pretty good, not afraid of getting involved in some pots with decent starting hands. No big scoopers but chopping some moderate sized pots. I blew it bit time when i got a sixth of a pot with the nut low. what was even more pathetic was that a measly pair of sevens took the high. At the first break (between rounds 4 and 5) i was nickel-and-diming it to $7,100 TC. There were a few players at the table who managed to get themselves short stacked but there was no real dominant chip leader.
I went on somewhat of a tear over the next few rounds, got a little lucky once or twice and at the end of level 7 I had accumulated $19,800 TC. Blinds were now at $700 - $1500. The specifics of the hands are a little blurry. I do recall one pot in particular where I had the nut low and hit a set of nines on the river to scoop a very nice sized pot. Level 8 was brutal, I don't think I made it to the turn once during the whole level. I was card dead, getting a lot of hands with no scooping potential. I was playing pretty tight but still managed to donk off a few pre-flop calls. At the second break, with the blinds going to $1000 - $2000 I was sitting on $17,500 TC.
After the second break I gave myself a little pep talk in the bathroom. I decided that with half the field gone and a better than average chip stack, I was gonna make myself a force to be reckoned with from here on in. The cards tried to cooperate but things didn't go exactly as planned. Twice I had an opponent all-in with better scooping potential; better low hands, better high draws, counterfeit insurance...once i got quartered and once I got scooped. It didn't deter me though. I kept getting my money in with good hands, trying to recover some of those chips. Keep in mind, player are dropping like flies at this point...three tables...now two tables...19 players...now 18. I finally got a hand where I really drew a line in the sand for my tournament life. I raised to $6,000 under the gun (it was my third pre-flop raise in a row) with A-2-5-10 double suited. The player to my left, who was about evenly stacked with me was furious at all my pre-flop raising. He re-bumps it to $9,000. it comes back to me and I cap it to $12,000. (at this point I only have about another $3,500). side note: there are other callers in the hand here, but I'm totally focused on this guy and getting all of my chips in the pot. Being first to act anyway, I fired out $3,000 before the flop hit and showed the guy my last $500 chip. He obliged me and put me all in. The flop came down a miraculous 10-10-A. after the turn bricked his back-door low draw I scooped a monster pot to put me in the cat-bird seat.
17 players...16 players. I played aggressive but smart from there on out...14 players...13 players. Play really tightens up around this point, I get involved in only a few pots and let my stack do the work for me...11 players...10 PLAYERS! When the bubble burst, I was quite pleased with my $55,000 TC. (Average stack size at this point is $36,000 TC) I was running 3rd out of 10 remaining players!
Unfortunately, the ending is a little anti-climactic. With the exception of one short stack, there wasn't a huge difference in the chip positions. Before the first card had been dealt at the final table, and as the tournament was about to enter its 5th hour, we collectively decided to chop the prize pool 10 ways guaranteeing every player 3rd place money, $288. I was happy. 3rd place money was twice as much as 4th place money and much better that 5th through 10th place money. Also, every player at the final table got a $50 Voucher for Sycuan's Super Bowl Sunday $10K Guarantee.
Finally, I was notified that the results of this tournament, and the other tournaments Sycuan is running as part of their Super Bowl of Poker promotion, will be published in a future issue of Card Player Magazine. Check that off the list.
What's the bottom line? I'm really excited to play in next Tuesday's Harrah's Omaha event and I'll have a few familiar faces there that I met last night. Give me a rooting interest, "as best as their interests don't conflict with my interests". And my poker figure for the year after a net gain of $240?
+$420
