Live Blog - Stars 180 SNG

I know this isn't any kind of special event, since the 180 sng's for $20 are constantly running on pokerstars, but tonight I'm going to play in my first 180 sng in a few weeks. I have high expectations for myself in this event given the way I've been playing.

The cards are in the air at 10:36pm ET on Wednesday evening.

10:40pm: I've folded the first four hands I've seen. The best hand I've seen in these first few sets of pocket cards is 97s.

10:41pm: I check in the big blind with J4o. Flop comes KKJ. I check, opponent bets about the size of the pot, but is not giving off vibes of strength or confidence to me with that bet. I hesitate and then call, thinking I probably have the best hand. The turn brings a raggy 6. I check again, hoping for another weakish bet, and he bets again about the size of the pot. I think briefly and then raise him by 3x his bet. He quickfolds, and I'm up from the starting 1500 to 1820 chips.

10:43pm: Very next hand, I limp from the small blind with 73o and three callers behind me. Flop comes A54 rainbow. It is checked all the way around, ending with me since the big blind is out of this hand. Turn is a Jack, and again it's checked all around. On the river my inside straight fills as a 3 of clubs appears. Unfortunately, it is checked to me again, I bet about 2/3 the size of the pot, trying my damnedest to appear on a steal attempt. But alas no one falls for my e-acting abilities, and I pick up a small pot. Right now with 1900 chips, I'm in 32nd out of 166 players remaining.

10:49pm: Dealt 88 in the SB. Just the cutoff has limped. I raise it to 5x preflop. The BB quick folds, and the cutoff calls. Flop comes A-10-6 rainbow. I check, he bets almost the whole pot, representing some kind of Ace (or at least a ten), and I have to fold. Damn how I hate when the unwanted Ace comes on the flop, don't you?

10:59pm: I raise from late position when it's checked around to me preflop. I bump it to 4x the BB with QJo. Only the BB calls. Flop comes 9-10-4 with two diamonds and a club. The BB checks, I bet the pot with my OESD, and he quick calls. To me it seemed almost too quick, in that he either had a monster hand and was slow playing me, or he didn't really have much of anything. Then the turn brought the Ace of clubs, making two flush draws on the board. When he checked me again on the turn, I knew in my head he couldn't be playing anyting huge, unless he's an abject moron, allowing those two flush draws plus any overs the chance to crush him on the river. So I bet fairly lage, and he quick folds. I'm up to 2280 chips.

11:03pm: Forced to fold AJs when the flop misses me entirely, and one of the four callers in the pot bets out more than the size of the pot. Right now I'm at 2055 chips, good enough for 55th out of 136 current players, and enough for just about 100 chips above the current average stack of the remaining players in the tourney.

11:10pm: I opt to slow-limp with AKo in early position preflop. 3 players call. When the flop comes 246 with two hearts, and my opponent bets more than the size of the pot, I opt to fold. I'm making a concerted effort not to push too hard with AK when I don't hit something with it.

11:11pm: My first doubleup comes courtesy of a big fish. I raise to 3.5x preflop in first position with A-10o. One guy in late position quick calls me. Flop comes 10-high. I bet small, he calls. Turn is another rag. I bet big this time, figuring for fairly sure my TPTK is the best hand. He quick calls again. When the river pairs the lowest of the rags from the flop -- ostensibly the card I should have been hoping for in this case -- I moved allin quickly, and was called by...AK, with no hit on the board. My TPTK holds up and I double up to 3505 chips, good for 20th place out of 116 players remaining.

11:20pm: Four players are knocked out in one hand at my table, as out of 5 players allin preflop, only ONE of them had any kind of pocket pair (and that one was 9s at that). Can you imagine the uproar if this happened at a *real* table, one not populated by players with gills and fins? Sheesh! Down to 104 players remaining.

11:27pm: I steal the blinds from middle position with 22. Next hand, I have AJo, I raise it 4x, and am forced to fold when the cutoff moves in on me. The very next hand I have A-10o from middle position, and I make the same 4x raise preflop, and successfully steal. The VERY next hand, I raise the same amount from early position with KQs, and steal the blinds again. A nice stretch there. My table is broken up one hand later, so I'm starting all over with all new faces again.

11:34pm: I steal the blinds and one limper bet from first position with a 5x raise with pockets 6s.

11:37pm: The first break is here. I have 3165 chips (thank you big blind AGAIN!), placing me squarely in the middle of the pack of the remaining players, in 35th place out of 75 remaining. Average stack size is 3648, so I'm still a bit under. I will need to play somewhat more aggressive in this round if I am to make a move before the real chip leaders are out of reach.

11:50pm: I haven't played a hand or seen a flop since the break. As annoying as these stretches are, I like them even less when I know I'm live blogging and don't have anything good to say.

11:58pm: I end up with half the blinds when in middle position I am dealt AQo. I raise, he reraises allin, and I call. He shows me...AQo as well. I love when that happens.

12:03am: Won a nice pot with a standard continuation bet after laying the seeds with my preflop raise in position. Next hand, I double up for the second time when my preflop raise with 66 in my usual steal position ends up holding up against my opponent's AK, after we got our chips in on the turn. Now up to 7250 chips, against an average stack size of under 6300, and currently in 14th place out of 43 remaining players. Not bad so far.

12:09am: Dealt AA for my first premium hand of the entire tournament, but it's folded around to me in the SB, and my raise of 2.5x is not enough to induce a call.

12:14am: Dealt 66 in the BB, but it's folded around to me. I'll take the 300 chips from the blinds.

12:16am: More blind stealing, this time with 9-10s. I do love to raise with that hand. 9-10 and 10-J, suited or otherwise, all great raising hands.

12:22am: I lose 600 chips attempting a steal from the SB when it's checked to me. Turns out the BB, who had been allowing me -- practically begging me -- to steal his blind all night long actually woke up with a hand this time (I had just J4o). Next hand I stole the blinds from late position with A3o.

12:25am: Won 800 chips when I reraised a guy who was clearly just trying to steal my blind with nothing. Ahhh the bluff reraise. The territory of only the boldest of poker players. 7506 chips, 12th place out of 37 remaining, but still just barely above the average stack.

12:26am: Lost 800 chips when I raised to 800 in the cutoff with 55 after it was folded to me, but then the guy to my left kicked it up to 2000. I know from watching him play for the last hour that he has something good, so I fold. The very next hand, I stole the blinds with A4s.

12:30am: Won 1600 chips when I attempted a steal with KQs in the SB, the BB called as he seems to be of the opinion that now I'm stealing EVERY time I raise in the steal position, a thought that I will make cost him if he keeps acting on it. In the meantime, I'm at my tournament high in chips, 8056, and in 12th place out of 35 remaining players.

12:33am: With 22 in first position, I raise it 3.5x and complete the steal to bring me to 8356 chips, my new tournament high.

12:34am: Next hand I am dealt JJ. I raise it 2000, and one opponent reraises me allin for another 1600 chips. I obviously call, and he flips KQs. All is good until the FUCKING river is the King of clubs, and I get smushed for a 4000 chip loss. DISGUSTING. Next hand I steal the blinds with J7o. I should start showing all of these hands I'm betting. GodDAM it that last hand pisses me off. I was ONE card away from the top 5 players in the tournament. Cheesus H. Christ that fucking sucks.

12:39am: I steal the blinds with big slick. Back up to 5890 chips even after the extreme fuckage of a few hands ago, good for 18th place out of 31 remaining.

12:41am: I steal again with K5o. Back over 6000 chips.

12:42am: Dealt 10-10 in middle position, and it's folded to me. I raise to 2400, and all fold to me, bringing me back over 6700 chips at this point. Here as the second break begins, I'm in 16th out of 28 players remaining, with the top 18 getting the cash. Basically, I'm going to need probably to double one more time between when Round 3 begins and when the cash hits if I expect to still be there for the payouts.

12:50am: I lose 2000 chips when this happens:



Idiot picks up two fucking pairs with a lousy Q2o against my superior hand. Did I mention how DISGUSTING pokerstars can be? Next hand I steal the blinds and am back up to 6931 chips. Next hand I steal again from the cutoff with KQs, and am up to 8100 chips, and then the very next hand I steal again with K-10s. Up to 9381 chips, in 12th place out of 28 players remaining still.

12:54am: I lose ANOTHER 3200 chip pot when this happens:



I mean come on, just when we're nearing the money and these plays are taking on extreme importance, suddenly I'm losing every one in stoopid fashion, including this domination when my A-10o fails to hold up against the short stack's Q5o. This is the same zobo who just took a pot off me with his Q2o against my K-10o. What the FRUCK is pokerstars trying to do to me here? And yet SOMEHOW I am still in this thing with over 8000 chips. Has Anyone ever stolen as many pots as I have tonight? Seriously.

12:55am: OK this is FUCKING ABSURD Now my JJ just lost for a huge pot of about 5000 chips to the same zobo's AKo:



WHAT THE FLYING FUCK?!!! If they were going to refuse to give me a chance in this thing all along, then why string me along for 2 1/2 hours just to do it? I don't get it.

12:56am: And I am out mercifully in 27th place. In what I think of as extreme irony, this time:



MY K-10o failed to hold up against the SAME FUCKING ZOBO in perfect steal position, who happened to have AJo.

I'm glad I have the screen shots to show of all this. The manner in which I just went from heading for a money finish to completely out of the tournament is Just. Not. Right. One or two beats is one thing. But 4 or 5 beats in the span of 6 minutes when I was the Fucking Favorite in every one of them, that is just plain looptid. Especially given that the beneficiary of Every Single One of these places was this same mule named HTrain. I'm feeling mighty bitter right now. If I find out that HTrain works for pokerstars or is dating someone who works there, honestly I wouldn't be the least bit surprised. Would you?! Better log off before I go tilting off 3 or 4 buyins in a quest to make myself feel better. F this.