Just getting in at 6:00AM now. Sat at $10/20 tonight. Posted my BB and SB, then folded 4 or 5 hands, then had this hand.......
Hand of the Day
Villian in this hand is Grant. Grant is a semi-regular. I think he plays at a few other card rooms in town as well. Not sure if he is a pro or not. He buys in for a little over $10K usually. I've heard some people say that they respect his game a lot, but to be completely honest I don't think hes that good. I think hes far too loose and over-values his hands. He can be tricky though, which is always cause for concern. My favorite opponents to play against are the loose but straight forward ones and Grant is definitely not that. The one hand that I had played against him that I had mentioned in the past was this one:
Hand of the Day #1
Villian seems average to me. He claims to have played very high stakes in the past. Not overly aggressive, but a normal TAG I guess. We're 4 handed and I have QQ in the SB. Villian limps on button(strange move), I raise to $100, SB calls, villian calls on button. Flop comes 962 rainbow. I bet $240, SB folds, Villian calls. Turn is a 3, I think theres a flush draw out now. I bet $600. Villian thinks for about 30 seconds and calls. River is an 8, not completing any flush draws. Your move.
What I did
I checked, he checked, I showed QQ, he mucked.
What I think I should've done
Obviously when I saw him muck I was wishing that I had bet. He either put me on a big pocket pair of two high cards probably, so I'm thinking that a bet of $1500 may have looked like a bluff and perhaps he would've called. But the 8 on the river did make hands like 89 or 68 two pair. And with his hesitation I thought that he was either slowplaying a huge hand or really did have a very tough time calling my $600. I hate firing out a small bet like another $600 because I think its not going to get a worse hand to call(looks like I want a call) and it looks weak so it invites a bluff raise. Not really sure how I feel here.
Anyway, I pick up 33 in EP and limp with it. Several other limpers including Grant in LP. Flop comes 369 with 2 hearts. Checked to me, I bet $100, folded to Grant, Grant raises to $300, folded back to me. Your move.
What I did
I reraised to $900
What I think I should've done
This is an interesting spot. On one hand, he could most definitely have a draw and be trying to get a free card on the next street. He could even have a straight and flush draw, which is a favorite over most non-set hands. But he could obviously also have a higher set(although I think that sometimes he will raise with 99 preflop if theres many limpers). Flat calling and then leading out on a non-heart turn or checking a heart turn is an option, but I don't mind my play here especially since we're deepstacked and its essential that I define my hand somewhat.
He called. The turn is the ace of hearts. I checked, he bet $1400. Whats your move and whats your plan for the river?
What I did
I called after thinking for a while. The river was a ten non-hearts. I checked, he checked. He had A9 and I took it down.
What I think I should've done
His bet really wasn't that huge considering the pot size. Moreover, this was a very read dependant play. Against an opponent who will most likely have the flush there and who won't pay me off if the board pairs, I can consider a fold here especially if he had bet more than $1400. I was very concerned about him having a higher set though and me drawing to one out. I do think its a tough spot, but as I said it came down to playing the player here imo. I think it was the right play, but its tough to not be results oriented here so I'm hopeful that I am looking at this completely objectively. If the river was another heart that would've been another issue. I was prepared to call any reasonable bet he made on the river I think, although to be honest I was pretty glad to see him check so I can't say that for sure.
Boy poker is great when you win $2500 within 10 minutes of sitting at the table. I won a bit more throughout the night, then switched to a shorthanded $10/10 PLO game before I left.....ended up running great in it and winning $1000 or so more. Won over $4200 overall on the night....what a fabulous start to the Wynn Classic. May take tomorrow off to go see some mixed martial arts(IFC) at the Orleans Arena and then go out and party afterwards.
One slight downside to tonight....I flopped quads(had 22 and flop came 229) in one hand and for the first time in a long long while I got extremely nervous while playing. I think that if an opponent was watching me it may have been evident....heart started beating really fast and I got that "holding your breath" type of feeling......I don't like that at all....yes quads is exciting, but I should be used to things like that by now. I don't think anyone picked up on it as I did get paid off $300(by Grant btw) on the river, but still I don't like the fact that I was a bit rattled and excited. But whatever.....obviously very happy to have won $10K+ in the first two days of the Wynn Classic.
That's about 6-7 weeks of work for me right here. I'm seriously doing the wrong thing with my life.
taxes
