Cold Cards and Warm Flushes

I got the opportunity to actually *play* in the three blind structure 20-in game in the Fitz last night. Considering how awkward and weird it is to deal I was keen to experience it from the players point of view. The fact that it was introduced to alleviate the gamble-fest that final table had regularly become meant that I would have to get to there to see what effect it had. Purely for journalistic research you understand.

My first observation is that it’s needlessly messy early on. A better structure would be to start on 10/25/25 and jump directly to 25/50/50. Lengthen the blinds to allow for the quicker increase to 25/50/50 and be done with all that icky messing around with blue chips.

Last night I got a table on which I felt very comfortable with the exception of one particular bluffer (Gavin) who I've run into before. Now, we've built up a grudging, mutual respect but only because we've taken lumps out of each other previously. I determined that there were easier chips on the table then his. It seems he felt the same and we both went to work hoovering up chips from some fairly poor play.

Joe O'Neill and I had stuck 20 quid on a side bet of who'd last longest. Two more differing styles you couldn’t find. Joe is a bluffer, a gambler, a joker and a plumber. Unfortunately all of that is wrapped up in a deceptively good, happy-go-lucky poker player. I'm steady-eddie, I grind out the hands, make the percentage plays, get-em-n-bet-em is order of the day. I always take the side bet with Joe because he's very very successful at tourneys and I find I sharpen my game to compete and I've noticed I do better in the overall tourney when I'm trying to beat him!

I ground my way up to 8500 at the break without ever being all in and without a rebuy. I didn’t get great cards and mostly stayed out of the way of the monster cards that were hitting the table. I noticed one thing about my table nemesis's play, he wasn't bluffing half as often as he used to. In fact he's showed down huge cards and stayed out of the gamblefests. Joe on the other hand has been at it with a passion, bullying, bluffing, out drawing and out playing his table to the point where he has amassed a big stack of at least 10-12K just after the break. I knuckle down further, determined to stick to the game plan without getting distracted.

Soon after the break Joe takes a few hits and then his Jacks find Queens and he walks. So now I'm chipped up but I hit a long long stretch of cold cards. I also found hands like AT when it had been raised and called before me. Those are my bogey hands. I go tilty when I see a hand I would raise with after a long dry spell, that I should really throw away in the given situation. Too often I cant let go of the hand but last night I put down AT to AJ and AJ to AQ. I got lucky when my AQ found AK but also a Q high flop!
Add to that long looong sequences of 85o and a freaky sequence of alternating 72o and 73o hands. I mentally slap myself for noting that one of the 73 hands is suited.

Final two tables got interesting because my table had bugger all chips and the play was of good calibre, but I built my stack from 7K to about 23K before we formed final table and my run of poor cards faltered so I was happy enough.

On final table there was immediate action and first hand we lose a player when an aggressively played AQ found Gavin with QQ and a full double through. I was still trying to duck and weave and pick my moments because despite leaving my second last table as second chip leader we discover that nearly everyone on the other table has more chips then us.

I have this theory, well, more of an observation really. There are about 3-5 hands in the night that make or break you. You have to identify those hands and realise that your tournament basically rides on you making the right decision. Sometimes that means seizing the day, choking down that fear and reraising the guy, sometimes that means realizing you are beat and walking away. Whatever, most of any tourney is simply waiting for these hands and the successful players are the ones who recognise them for what they are and play them accordingly.

Last night I had a glaring example of that. I was BB with K3s. Not a hand I'm in love with but I'm BB ya know, so whaddya gonna do? Flop comes down Q-high with two spades and there’s a small bet and call from SB and MB (three blind structure remember) so I call too. Our limper goes huge on the hand, 19K all in bet. I put him on something like QJ or better. Either way I know my flush outs are live and my king might be. I ask for a pot count and I've just about got the odds to call when the early players fold. I will be left with about 5K but this is it, this is the hand that will put me over 50K and a shot at the title. I hate it when a night boils down to a single call but its also one of the addictions of poker, that on-the-flip-of-a-card feeling.
I hit he loses.

I went out third in an unremarkable hand but my observation of the triple blind structure was that it was superior to the gamble-fests of yore and there seemed to be a lot more play in the final table and certainly a lot more showdowns on the river. Its been a good while since I've had the time and the money to play my favourite tourney. It’s been very kind to me last year so I was happy to take 400 from third.... next port of call: Mayo.