Poker schmoker!

Poker's completely sucked lately. I don't know if I've completely forgotten how to play or I'm just in a really REALLY bad slump. I can't get nut flushes, top boats or even once a straight flush to hold up. Bah. Poker talk is pointless right now. Although I did start reading Sklansky's "The Theory of Poker" last night and look forward to a lot of reading in the near future.

Here's something interesting.

Now, here's what concerns me about this site, and truthfully, it's concerned me a lot lately because I'm faced with a similar situation in my life. Read:

"I don't get it. You guys can't be white, can you? I don't know if this is some racist shit or what. It'd kinda funny but from who's perspective. I'm not bigging up any racist shit so fuck you guys if your racist, and keep up the good work if your black (it's still confusing)."

So what this person is saying in their response letter to the site, essentially, is; If it was written by a black person, praise. If it was written by a white person, fuck you!

Isn't the entire point of the site to point out racism in BOTH directions? Why is it the world doesn't have ONE set of goddamn standards? Why couldn't a white person address rascism against someone not of their skin color? In order for it to be valid it has to be initiated by that race???? Now I'm confused. I thought I got it. I thought when I checked out this site it all made sense; a purely satirical middle finger to ALL people white or black who treat each other differently. But then reading the letters, how can people view this site and think it's in any way negative?

Food for thought...

Max... Tucker Max.

Here's a great way to kill a half hour!

FUNNY freaking story!

Check out all his stories. Good stuff!

This guy reminds me a lot of my old days. I wish I'da spent the time to document a lot of my life. It's painfully ironic that I've chosen to start now, after all the best stories have detiorated into simple summaries and I've found success and happiness in a life that most wouldn't view to be nearly as entertaining as my daily activity in my early-to-mid-twenties. Although, I think there are plenty more stories to be written and I wouldn't trade my life today for anything! =)

Double Bubble

Well, Wed night was somewhat of another disappointment. After basically NO cards all night fighting through the field of 145, I was RIIIIIGHT on the bubble (22 players left, 20 places paid). The blinds (700/1500) were taking me down fast and I picked up AKos on the button. Pushed in after no callers and the blinds folded. *WHEW!* This gave me about 5500 in chips. The very next hand...

KQ of hearts. UTG raises to 3k, one caller behind him to me. Now, there are 2 distinctly different ways to play this hand in my mind. A) FOLD FOLD FOLD and wait for a better spot! or B) Push in (knowing you're going to get 2 callers and cross your fingers as you're probably behind!) Of course, as I've been typically playing to win these days (and that's probably a really BAD justification), I chose B. Here was my train of thought:

The guy that bet out for 3k had been playing pretty loose, even from early position, and as it seemed he didn't know a whole lot about his plays, he'd gotten very VERY lucky on a few hands to have the chips he had. He really liked middle suited connectors for some reason and I kinda picked up a small tell that when he did have middle suited connectors or sometimes a small PP, he'd always announce his bet very strongly. This was the case here. The caller had been playing anything from A4 to J8, even with a raise in front of him, and REALLY didn't know what he was doing it seemed. So even with the 2 players, and mind you, these are probably the only 2 at the table I would have chosen this move with, I was really playing for the win, not just getting in the money. So I was staring at an opportunity to triple up, and if I did, I could go into coast mode, even probably pick up a couple blind steals along the way to the final table. Of course, if I was wrong, I was going home. Hand played out like this:

Flop comes K-7-10 rainbow.
First to act pushes in.
2nd player is covered and calls and we all roll em over.
Me (KQ) UTG (77) OTHER (A10)
Turn Q
River 5

Of course, my top 2 is defeated by the set of 7s and the A10 is completely out to lunch. Now I look at it like this; the action of the other two was inevitable. Neither of them would have played it any differently if I was in the hand or not. While I was behind from the jump, I liked my chances and felt I played it right. Sure, you could argue that had I folded, I would have gotten in the money because the other guy would have busted out and we would have been down to our final 20. However, like I said, I typically play more for the final table, and make adjustments that I think are most likely going to get me there, and win it, than just "get in the money" these days. I was completely correct in both hands and what I put them both on, it just so happens that the small PP flopped his set and I went packin!

So then yesterday, Michelle proclaims that she got a really nice bonus for all her hard efforts at work and that we're going to the casino after work. I've been playing 3/6 Omaha H/L8 when not in tournaments. I seem to do better than the 3/6, 4/8 or even 6/12 hold em games at our casino. Too many calling stations sucking you out on the river, even at 6/12. So I get into the Omaha game and pick up 150-160 bucks pretty quick on a couple nice scoopers. The rest of the next few hours basically went like this...

AQJ3 double suited - NOTHING (similar several times)
AKT2 double suited - Flopped straight beaten by rivered full house (similar to this one probably happened 5 times, and I'm not exaggerating!)
AA23 3 suit - Ace flops, no low comes, beaten by gutshot rivered straight
... I could go on forever, it was utterly brutal!

Finally I conceded to my misery and headed home. Of course, I couldn't go to bed at this point. Defeated both Tues and Wed nights in the tourneys, killed on the Omaha table earlier that evening... It's time to get online of course!!!

Well, to make a long story short, $10+2 on Pokerstars - 525 entrants - bubble is 54, I go out 56th after having a NICE chip stack (top 20) pretty much the whole time. I think I was just tired more than anything as it was 2:30am when I finally shut my computer off.

Zzzzzz...

Have a good weekend planned! Yankees game at some sports bar tonight with Todd & Elisa, ASU/USC game at some sports bar tomorrow with Ryan, Cowboy Ciao for dinner and wine tomorrow night in celebration of Todd's birthday and then who knows, and of course, NFL Sunday baby!!!!

Too funny!

You're NOT Rick James, BITCH!

And the guy who wrote that has been doing satire for years.

Check him out here.

Not for the easily offended!

Spiderman in Vegas

Spiderman is at the final table!

Scroll down to the current chip counts...

Tues Tournament woes continue...

Well, last night was another kick in butt at the casino in the weekly tournaments. I think I played the hand correctly that I went out on, but I still went out which I never like...

I'd been playing pretty well for the most part. Hadn't gotten in too many hands, but enough to maintain an above average chip stack. One hand that could have sent me packing but made me healthy comes to mind. It was right after a table change; I'd folded 3-4 hands and watched the same guy making 4x BB raises and stealing the blinds every hand. My BB comes and does it again from late position. I had Q9h and had some kind of good feeling. I thought at worst I had 2 overs as I read him to have a small PP or possibly even smaller connectors. I pushed in.

After maybe 10 seconds of consideration he said "Ok, let's do it." I was right and he turned up 8's. I was behind, but still happy with my move. Everyone at the table gasped and looked at me like I had fire coming out of my eyes and horns on the top of my head. Understand that most players in these tournaments have either read some basics online and apply EVERY bit of EVERY letter in "only start with premium hands!" to their game, or have watched WPT and WSOP on TV and think they're going to win it all ala Gus Hansen style. Very opposite opposition. This guy seemed to be more of the latter.

Flop comes the nuts for me. 8-J-10 I still have to keep the hope the board doesn't pair, and as it doesn't I send the 8's home.

After this hand, I was pretty quiet for a while again, and the field thinned to 35ish players. 20 is the money, so I was playing pretty tight as the blinds started to get unfriendly. I pick up KK 2nd to act and raise the 1k blind to 3k. All fold except the BB who flat calls.

Flop comes 6-2-J rainbow and I push in quickly. The BB doesn't think too long and calls to turn up AJ. Of course... *drumroll* Turn blank, river Jack. Now, he had me covered and as I rehashed the hand, I was going home any way I play it. I only had about 5500, so an all in preflop would have been the only other way it could have gone. And this guy wasn't good enough to laydown AJ with 1k already in, even for 3/4 of his chips (which was the case). I was toast. Damn kings! =)

The good news from the night was that I played an hour of Omaha before the tournament and a few hours after, and won enough to better than cover my entry in the tournament. So, the night being a wash, I wasn't displeased.

Michelle also had a fun evening playing 4/8. She was up pretty much all night AND the Yankees won, so she had a smile on her face even though I didn't fare so well in the tournament. =)

The other news for me is that yesterday I finally made the plunge and ordered 3 of the top poker books. With the subtitles "How a good player becomes great!" I'm hoping to elevate my game. I've been holding off buying books simply because I hadn't gotten into tournament play and didn't have the opportunity to play NL cash games other than online. Now that those are both things of the past, I see it as time to step up to the plate and learn all I can to continue in my quest to become a proficient player.

The books I ordered are:

Tournament Poker for Advanced Players (Advance Player) By: David Sklansky
The Theory of Poker By: David Sklansky
Doyle Brunson's Super System By: Doyle Brunson

These three were recommended in an interview Poker Lizard did with Daniel Negreanu and are pretty much talked about with the people "in the know" as the bibles of NL and tournament poker.

I'll be outlining some of the theories and principles as I start reading here on my journal. Not really to explain them to anyone that may be reading, but I think it helps to rethink/rehash and type/write things you're learning. Makes you think a little more about them.

Off for now...

Online Playthings

Here's a little list that I thought would be fun. These are things online that I find very worth my time. Be it games, services, good reading, etc. Check them out! =)

PokerStars - This is the only place I play poker online.
Playsite -This is a fun site to play various other card/board games. I play a bit of spades here and there!
NFL.com Fantasy Football - I'm in 2 leagues!
Blogger - This is the Google owned resting place for my online journal.
Picasa - This is an application for the storage of your photo collection. Outstanding and FREE!
eVite - Now you can send invitations, and track your guest list for you next party. GREAT FREE service!!
Homestar Runner - Home of Strongbad. Witty, clean fun.
Spam Arrest - My choice for keeping the "Watch my webcam!" and Viagra ads out of my mailbox.
Omnis - My choice for domain purchases and hosting.
2+2 Forums - As I've found, the most intelligent poker forum on the web.
Hoerr Family Website - In development - To be a place for my family to keep up to date!
Paul Phillips Journal - One of my favorite poker pros online journal.
Poker Pages - Very diverse offering of up-to-date poker news and archives.
Full Contact Poker - Online home of another favorite poker pro, Daniel Negreanu
Fantasy Poker Challenge - Fun fantasy game kinda like fantasy football, etc.
Ofoto - Where I share my photo albums.

I'm sure I could continue to add more and more, but this should keep you busy for a while! =)

Hope you enjoy!

The gang at dinner on Sunday night - Rum Jungle

Last day in Vegas...

So after finally getting some good sleep on Saturday night, I popped up pretty well rested on Sunday morning ready to head to the sports book to bet on some FOOTBALL! Michelle slept in and I showered up and headed across the street to Bally's. The sports books was packed! I couldn't find a seat anywhere except on the outer rail, which was frustrating because I couldn't see the games I was betting on!

Early games, I was pretty confident in a couple games; Detroit and Atlanta - Detroit's been looking pretty good and I feel like Atlanta has just been hanging on to go undefeated until this week by the skin of their teeth. Any team that only scores 7 points against the Cardinals must have some weaknesses in their offense! I also feel like Vick just hasn't gotten going the way he's capable of. Detroit has really shown some heart, so I thought the 7 point spread would be covered. The other one I was really sure of was Minnesota, although they gave me a little heart palpatation with the OT. A field goal in sudden death wouldn't have covered. I put some cash on Oakland, but I'm not sure why...

Afternoon games were a mess. I had money on the Jets, Seattle and Carolina. Carolina came through but the Jets and Seattle blew some big money parlays for me and also lost some straight up bets on them both. Aw well...

After football, we met up with the gang and went to the Aladdin where they wanted to find some $5 blackjack. Linda and Felix wanted to give it a try, so I let them be and found a $25 table that looked pretty tasty. After picking up a few hundred I let Michelle loose on the roulette table. She added a couple hundred to our bankroll as her numbers came in a couple times back to back! Once the others lost what they wanted to gamble, we all left to head out to Mandalay Bay.

Before we came out to Vegas, I'd talked to Michelle about seeing if the gang would want to do the Rum Jungle VIP bottle service thing on Fri or Sat night. They declined, but were interested in checking the place out, so we headed that way for dinner. I've never eaten there, only drank - ALOT - but it was a nice meal. Their menu is very carribean influenced, almost even Brazilian. I went for the gusto with the Fire Pit (a 13 course meal) and I wasn't disappointed! Also downed a couple Strokanoes (Volcano with a stroke!) which had 3 kinds of 151 proof rum. YUMMY!

After dinner we wandered around the Mandalay Bay for a bit checking out their restaurants, etc. As we started heading out, low and behold, there, right in front of me was the poker room! We only had about an hour to kill, so I decided the gang could continue their exploration of the hotels while I sat in another game. 2/4 NL - $200 buy in.

The game was pretty easy to dissect right away. You can read about my first big hand here on the 2+2 forums. Basically, I cleaned house at this table. Got some strong respect early and probably played the best NL cash game I'd ever gotten into. The casinos here in AZ only allow us to play limit games, so having the opportunity to play no limit is always nice! =) Although, given that I'm such a newbie to no limit games (especially ring games), I still get the overactive heartbeat going when I make a big play! It's quite a rush.

I think I left the table with just over $750 which was very good just before we were to get on a plane! Always helps offset a trip to Vegas if you can cover some of the costs!

We hopped a cab to the airport, got on a plane, fell asleep and before we knew it were tucked tight in bed at the Phoenix Airport Marriott where Michelle works. This morning I got up and headed to work, whereas Michelle just had to get ready and head down to her office! =)

Another wonderful trip to our third "home away from home" comes to a close.

Now we have:

Oct 28-31 - Charletson, SC/Charlotte, NC for my good friend Ryan's wedding and to see my family.
Oct 31-Nov 1 - Vegas to meet up with my good friend Brandon.
Nov 22-23 - Kansas City for CHIEFS on Monday Night Football!
Nov 24-28 - Edmonton Canada for Thanksgiving with Michelle's family.
Dec 3-5 - Oakland and Napa for some vino and the Raiders/CHIEFS game!
Dec 31-Jan 2 - BACK to Vegas for NYE!

WHEW!!

Happy Birthday Eddie! =)

Day two...

Saturday started with a visit to the GM of the Westin where we always stay in Vegas. He's a friend of Michelles, so we get very reasonable rooms and it's a great property. He's a wonderfully nice guy, but I don't think he understood that both Michelle and I were still drunk from Friday night. We sat in his office for the better part of an hour chatting about his kids, the hotel business and other intelligent conversations that neither Michelle nor I had any business trying to be involved in. By the time we left him, Michelle needed more sleep so we headed back to the room after only being up for about an hour and a half and she took a little nap.

Next was the trip to the mall to pick up my replacement AMEX. Of course we didn't get out of the mall without spending a bit of money. I got some kickass D&G sunglasses, and a nice band to replace my wallet (those of you that may have known me for a while - rememeber the broccoli rubber bands? This is similar but nicer.) =) Michelle got a nice swimsuit and also some very cool sunglasses. Had I had my way, I think she would have also gotten an engagement ring! As I said, I think I was still drunk.

Leaving the mall, I really wanted to head to the Bellagio and do a bit of poker star gazing and get in some games myself. Saturday was the $1000+60 event I talked about earlier, so I knew it would start bringing out the tournament pros. We contacted our friends and they were being lazy by the pool at their hotel, the Aladdin. This actually sounded better to me than poker, as at this stage I was getting a nasty hangover. We went and met up with the gang at the Aladdin and hung out by the pool for the late afternoon and evening.

As we were hanging round the pool and in the hot tub, everyone started asking me questions about poker. They really didn't grasp the concept of professional players and the tournaments at first. Then again, who would really think that someone could be so well off as the big pros from what most think is a simple game of pairs and straights. I mean, everyone's played 5 card draw for nickels and pennies, right? Poker, a living? Like a career? They were intrigued. So, after the hangover started fading and the sun started setting, I said "why don't we all walk over to the Bellagio. You can see what it's really like, and actually probably see some of the best in the game!"

We wandered over in our trunks and tshirts and strolled around the tournament being played. I pointed out a few players; Men "the Master", Carlos Mortensen... They liked watching it seemed, but I was itching to get into a game. The tournament director was talking every couple minutes about the satellites starting, and after explaining to the gang what a satellite was, they said "Why don't you get in one!" Exactly what I wanted to hear. So I bought in to a $180 satellite for the $1500+70 event on Sunday.

After sitting down and the table started filling up, I glanced up to see a fellow Phoenix player, Pete! For some reason I run into Pete every now and then. Casino AZ, home tournaments, and now, Vegas! Pete's a great player and it was nice to chat with him a bit as we played. I went out 4th I think after only picking up a few playable hands. It was winner take all for the seat and the balance of the cash, so I walked back to the hotel to get ready for dinner a defeated man.

We had reservations at Canaletto at the Venetian. Off to dinner! Good, good food. A little Happy Birthday serenade to Eddie from all of us, and it was off again to check out Tangerine in Treasure Island. Michelle and I had plans the last time we were in Vegas to go there, but never made it, so we were determined to check it out this time. Our "hook up" in Vegas put us on the list and told us which door guy to grease when we got there. Only stipulation was "Get there before 10:30!

So we roll up to TI about midnight, and after a $40 handshake with the bouncer, he informed us, yes, you'll be let right in (sans a line of probably 150-200 waiting clubbers), however, no, you'll not get in without paying the $20/ea cover. Doh! Shoulda listened to the "Get there before 10:30" part! =)

Tangerine is a cool place. I liked to decor, and, on any other night (and had we gone the bottle service route, you know my opinion on this one) we probably would have had a great time. Inside was top 40 club music. Outside was a DJ way up in the pirate ship spinning pretty good house. However, neither Michelle or I was really feeling like full on drinking and clubbing. After being there about an hour we excused ourselves and headed back to the Westin for bed. I wanted to be up early to hit the sports book on Sunday for some NFL wagers.

ZZZZzzzzzzzzz... We needed it!

First night blurry recap...

So we got into town, and Michelle and I checked into the Westin and immediately headed to the Bellagio where our friends were going to the 'O' show. We planned on meeting them when they were through. Of course, to kill some time, we headed to the poker tables. =)

Walking in to the Bellagio poker room is somewhat of a surreal experience. With all the poker on TV these days and some of the top players becoming household names/faces, it's like walking into a breakroom on a Hollywood movie set for a big silver screen buff.

On this occasion, sitting directly in front of me was Scotty Nguyen with 4-5 others (probably big time players whom I just didn't know). Each had anywhere from $10-100k in front of them and were discussing what game they wanted to play. It seemed as though someone wanted to play Scotty heads up, most likely your typical story of someone wanting to beat a pro, but as it turned out, the whole table was in on a 150/300 Triple Draw Lowball game within minutes.

Not being completely familiar with this game, I watched a bit, but moved along putting my name on the list for a 2/5 NL seat. I got a couple chuckles as I waited. The first came from the guy whose name was on the list to sit just before I. He was a tall lanky guy, probably early 40s, scruffy beard, very sloppily dressed and a dirty old farm equipment hat. The conversation went something like this...

Redneck: "So, where ya from?"
Me: "Phoenix, how about yourself?"
Redneck: "Oh I'm from California but I travel all over the country to play poker."
Me: "Ah nice! There are a lot of places I'd like to play!"
Redneck: "Yeah, I've been everywhere. Wish I would have gotten up here earlier tonight. I wanted to play up there at the table I was at last night." (Pointing to the high stakes deck)
Me: "Oh yeah? Pretty busy tonight, eh?"
Redneck: "Yep but that's ok, I'll just take all the money off the low limit tables."

I just smiled and held it in... =) Not that he couldn't have taken "all the money off the low limit tables," I just found it quite humorous he felt the need to declare this to me, and as I would probably bet, were he actually a high stakes player, I doubt he'd forego the bigger games, even with a wait, for a 2/5 NL game!

My suspicions rang true later when were at the same table. I had pocket 10s with a 4-6-10 rainbow flop. I was out of position but came out for $30 into a $15 pot which had not been raised preflop. He raised me all in (about $150 more). Recognizing he'd earlier made a similar move with a small pocket pair, I called. His 5's didn't stand up. He immediately got up and gruffled something about having to use the restroom. One of the guys at the table said "Be sure to hit an ATM on the way back!" Ouch! =)

The other comedy was listening to some guy on the phone rambling to a friend something like this...

"Yeah man, I'm at the Bellagio. Dude, I played a satellite for this World Poker Tour tournament tomorrow. Check this shit out man, right after I sat down, fucking MONEYMAKER sits down right across from me. Dude you're not going to believe me, but I fucking knocked him out! Yeah man, I swear and I won the whole thing. Yep and I get a seat in the World Poker Tour, man, that's worth 10 Gs bro!"

Umm...
They were indeed running satellites.
Moneymaker was indeed there and playing in the satellites.
The only satellites going were for the $1000+60 event on Saturday not the $10k main event later in the month... This guy would have fit in well at Axis/Radius. Nuff said.

After only playing for about an hour, Michelle came in from losing a chunk on roulette and said our friends called and were meeting us at Caramel Lounge there in the Bellagio. I cashed in about $400 off of my $200 buy in, so I was pleased.

Caramel was interesting. Despite our friends objection to getting a bottle table, I've learned it's really the only way to go in Vegas. 6 people @ $10/drink is $75 a round (if you tip nicely). A bottle of Grey Goose at Caramel was $295. That's only 4 drinks a person at regular prices and with bottle service you can; A. Avoid the lines at the bar B. Pour a drink whenever you'd like C. Have a nice cozy place to sit if you don't want to be elbowed by all the people packed in the club and lastly D. Avoid the $25/head cover (saving another $150 for the 6 of us). Just makes sense to me, but then again, I like to act like a big ballah sometimes, so maybe that's it? =)

First bottle was Captain Morgan's. Second bottle was Bacardi 'O' Orange rum... Umm... I think I drank the second one myself. I don't remember most of the last part of the night. I know that we had a cool waitress who kept making us shots. I know I gave the busboy $100 for being so prompt and always having our mixers, glasses and ice stocked up. I know I was dancing with the girls here and there. I know I had a great time.

Next morning - I don't know where all my money is. I don't know where my AMEX is. I don't know why my left shin is completely scrapped up. I don't know why my right ankle feels like it's sprained.

Kids - Don't try this at home! =)

I'm sure I left the money on a blackjack table or something and luckily, after calling AMEX, they have a travel office at the mall and had a replacement card waiting for me!

All in all, it was a good first night in Vegas filled with all that Vegas has to offer.

More to come...

Vegas, baby!

So off we go tonight to Las Vegas. Flying out at 7:45. No big poker playing plans, although it's always nice to get on a no limit table after being stuck with the limit games here in AZ. I've read a little about the upcoming tournaments at Bellagio called 2004 Festa al Lago III and hope to get in a couple satellites maybe tonight or tomorrow. They have $1,000 and $1,500 buy in events on both Saturday and Sunday.

Meeting up with some of Michelle's friends from New York - Eddie & Linda and Bea and Felix. Should be a wonderful time as we celebrate Eddie's birthday! :-)

Poker update

Well, it's time for a tournament poker update. Unfortunately I didn't start this Blog until I'd already made some good progress, so I'll have to compile some results in one update with not much insight. As I go, my updates will be more realtime.

Second tournament entry (Sept 15th, 2004) - 4th Place - $1,483 in winnings (172 players)

Second time out. As I'm heading to the casino, I'm thinking "Ok, goal is, getting in the money!" After I'd succeeded in this goal, I really didn't re-challenge myself and up the ante. Instead I just concentrated on my play, made the moves when I felt good, and was very VERY happy walking out that night with not only a money finish, but a final table (first time) and a good chunk of change!

Third tournament entry (Sept 21st, 2004) - 16th Place - $158 in winnings (179 players)

I'd gone into this thing expecting a learning curve. Expecting to have some luck here and there, but not to even consider what it would be like to do well on any kind of a consistent basis let alone 2 money finishes in my first 3 outings. I start wondering what it takes to be a consistent top notch player. I start to wonder if I have what it takes and wonder how I'll know when I can be comfortable with my playing. The funny thing was, this tournament, I felt like I played BETTER than the one the week before. I *KNOW* I had a couple of lucky suckouts in my 4th place finish. In fact, once with a two outter that would have sent me home out of the money. *WHEW!* So now I'm left pondering "When will I really know?"

Sept 22nd, 2004 - Out fast
Sept 28th, 2004 - 3rd Place - $1,662 in winnings (148 players)
Sept 29th, 2004 - 40-50th somewhere

Fun Reading!

Recently I've come (late) into the world of RGP (rec.gambling.poker newsgroup) and the 2+2 Forums.

I've really enjoyed learning more about some faces I've seen on TV, some of the background of the poker world, and just the general voyeuristic quality these online discussion groups can have. Lots of digging through trash to find any treasure, but it can be done.

Take for example Russ' Posts relating to his "GCA" organization (search RGP for author "newgca"). Whacky zaney stuff, most of which I don't buy, but entertaining reads, none-the-less.

And then of course it's always fun to follow the writing of Paul Phillips; a young .com-millionaire-turned-poker-pro-and-well-spoken-intelligent-guy... It's amazing how defensive, jealous and generally rude the haters can be. You can get some entertainment out of it though reading Paul's posts on the 2+2 Forums.

You'll also find words on both RGP and the 2+2 Forums written by a lot of the other TV pros whom invade our living rooms every Wed night on the WPT and the all-knowing authors of the poker books which have taught us this great game. Good stuff.

My first tournament...

This is a recount of my first tournament I'd entered. Had to have been 3 months back or more on a Saturday morning. I recall playing rather well, building a bit of an above average sized stack, getting to the final 50 players or so out of 220ish... And then this hand (which now may have been played very differently on another day).

Dealt pocket 10s in middle position, folds to me.
Raise the 200 blind to 600.
Folds to the small blind who pushes in (and has me covered).
BB folds.
I call without much thought.
He shows AQ.
Blank flop, Q turn, blank river.
Out.
Bah...

And so goes my first venture into the world of tournament poker!

Poker preface...

After years and years of playing the low limit games, studying the game and learning daily, I've decided to give a try to becoming a top notch tournament hold em player. I know, I know, there's a whole mess of "me"s out there that think they're going to "take over the poker world" (comical Crew reference)... I don't want to take anything over, I just love the mental thrill of the game. I have become a winning cash game player and hopefully, my venture in to the world of NL tournament play will be no different.

I also play on PokerStars rather regularly. I can be located there under the name 'Docccccc'. Usually playing $25 sit n gos, any level of the multi table tournaments, the occasional cash game, and the most recent delving in all levels of PL Omaha hi/lo (tournament, sit n go and cash games).I don't claim to be anything more than a good student. I've started developing more of my own game recently in tournament play, as before, I was a pretty "by the book" player and could be read rather easily in NL play.

Perhaps you'll enjoy following my trials and tribulations, perhaps no one will ever read this, either way, it's a good way for me to rehash my own activity on a daily basis, both at and away from the poker table.

Cheers,
Daniel