CJ and the Full Tilt $1500 WSOP Satellite

About a month ago, as Party and then Pokerstars and now Full Tilt started to host the very first of the WSOP satellite tournaments, I came to the sad realization that I cannot possibly play the main event of the World Series of Poker this year. Even if I win my way in with a $3 satellite buyin, I simply don't have the ability to take the two weeks off from work that this tournament would require. Yes I know some of you live in Vegas or even L.A. where it might be feasible to just go out on the two days during the first week when your particular group is playing. But for a New Yorker like me that just isn't possible. So because they can't figure out a way to find enough space in the largest gambling mecca in the universe, I'm forced to sit out of the WSOP Main Event this year, as well as any satellites to the main event. It sucks. All that said though, I am still very interested in playing in the WSOP, which is what has me all interested in winning my way into a $1000, $1500 or $2000 event at this year's Series.

With that in mind, this is a reminder that tonight, the esteemed Iggy will be hosting a WSOP satellite event on pokerstars. And if I don't say so myself, if you can't come up with $30 to cheer yourself or another of our blogger brethren on to World Series domination, then I don't ever want to see you at another WWdN or DADI tournament again. I mean, WWdN and DADI are the best thing about the blogger community in my opinion, but a WSOP satellite thrown by the blogfather Himself, for a measly $30....Let's just say you're an unbelievable puss if you're choosing not to play in this thing tonight and leave it at that:

What: WPBT WSOP Satellite #2
When: Monday, April 3rd @ 9PM EST
Where: Poker Stars
Tournament #: 21868191 (see private tourney tab)
Buy-in: $30 +3
Format: NL freezeout
Password: socoshot
Restrictions: Bloggers only

In other related news, last night I took part in the first of the nightly satellites on Full Tilt for a $1500 seat at this year's WSOP. As the tournament begins (there were 193 entrants for a $26 token, with 2 $1500 WSOP seats guaranteed), it was a few rounds before I look to see if I have any notes on any of the players seated at my table, and there across the felt from me is the name "Up4Poker". Now, I'm thinking this could be CJ, but it's hard to know, and of course anyone could have taken that name after reading his blog, or, less likely, come up with that same handle randomly without ever having heard of G-Vegas. But I want to know. Yet at the same time I don't want to totally compromise CJ's anonymity in case he wants to lay low. So, I type in an innocuous "That wouldn't be See-Jay would it?" into the chat bar on full tilt. No response. But I'm still curious, as the guy is playing like CJ, betting aggressively into checked flops when he led the raising preflop, etc. I think it's him, but I'm not really sure. Meanwhile, I'm slowly building up a decent stack. Winning a few pots, mostly on steals or semibluffs as I didn't see any pocket pair above 22 or any A-x with a kicker above an 8 offsuit through the first two hours of the tournament. Then
I was dealt pocket 2s, first pocket pair I'd seen the entire tournament (this was probably about 80 or 90 minutes in), and I ended up moving in on a late-position limper, figuring him for a medium Ace or something like that, and willing to take the coin flip after the total card death I had been suffering so far since the cards were dealt in this thing. He calls, and flips up Queens, and I'm standing up at my pc, knowing my 2s are a large underdog to the overpair. The rest is the stuff of legends:



That's right. I played as a 20% dog with pocket deuces, and then the perfect Hammer Flop hit, giving me quad 2s, and vaulting me up to the top 10 of the tournament at that time.

And my favorite part of all was that I didn't have to wonder if it was CJ or not anymore after this chat happened 2 seconds later:



So CJ and I played at the same table for a while longer. CJ eventually busted out when his pocket Kings lost on a flop of Q-9-6 to trip 6s, but he played a solid game and it was fun getting to sit at the table with such a large figure in the world of poker blogdom.

Anyways, long story short, I continued to play very well in the WSOP satellite after CJ was gone. After the second break, I finally started to get my first cards of the tournament, hitting 99, AQ and AK twice all within the span of maybe 20 minutes. My biggest hand was right here, when I called not one but two allins from short stacks with pocket Jacks, when both opponents had exactly what I thought they had:



Five minutes later, in 10th place out of 21 remaining players in the tournament, I limped in from the SB with K9o, with just one limper from middle position in the pot preflop, and the flop came 9-high. At this point I have to figure I have the best hand, so I bet the size of the pot. My opponent thinks for a while and then raises me about 3x the pot. To call would take up most my remaining chips, so my decision is just to fold (and be down near the bottom of 21 remaining players), or play what I believe to be the best hand at the time for all my chips. I end up doing the latter, simply not able to put him on A9 or trips/two pairs at this point in the hand. I move-in, he quick-calls the small additional raise, and shows me:



Pocket Effing Aces. IGH in 21st place out of 193 entrants.

So my quest for a $1000 - $2000 WSOP seat will have to wait until another day. Maybe tonight during Iggy's tournament. And remember, if you don't play in that thing, you're a superpuss and you probably shouldn't be reading my blog anymore either.