High On Poker

With minimal scratch on FullTilt, and a continued stretch of less than optimal luck, I figure that the only way I’ll play in tonight’s MATH is if I win myself a seat via an $8.70 two-table SNG. I’ve discussed my tight strategy with these token SNGs before, so, in order to keep myself focused and hopefully turn my luck around, I’ve decided to simul-blog my token tourney here.

We kick off with 18 players. Garthmeister is the only person I know at my table. Without a doubt, he, too, is hoping to parlay this into a MATH win.

I’m in the SB with J4d. Garth limps, everyone else folds. I complete the SB (15 more) and then we see a flop of J75, with two clubs. I check, the BB min bets, and Garth bets 120. I fold. Garth takes down the pot, and then notices its me. We share greetings. In a separate IM window, he admits that he had JJ in that last hand.

I fold a bunch of crap hands, including A9d from UTG+1. Garth wins the hand when he flops 2-pair with AKo against ATo.

I’m back in the BB, and blinds are already up to 25/50. I’m dealt 56o and fold to a 4x BB raise from the CO.

I pay the 30 to see the flop along with 4 limpers with Q3o in the SB (blinds up to 30/60). I flop top pair, check, the first limper bets 60, another limper calls, and another raises. I fold. There is a re-raise and two see the turn, a 3. One guy pushes and the other folds.

AKo in the Hijack, so I raise pot, 210. It fold to Garth’s BB, and he folds as well. Back up to 1450.

I see a flop with Q9o in the BB along with the SB and a loose player. I check the KJ7 flop and it checks around. Turn is a Ten. SB bets 200, and I pot it. He pushes all-in and I call. He shows AA. He did it to himself. The river is a 7 and I am up to 2930.

Garth’s commentary:
Garthmeister: I’m playing two of these, just mowed through a batch of pierogies, and am double fisting a glass of wine and a beer.
Garthmeister: You should probablylive blog that last hand, and my SnG prep.

An all-in push comes from a player with 1135 in the Hijack. I fold my TT on the button, mostly because I am writing this while I decide what to do. A fold won’t kill me, so I don’t sweat it. I don’t even want to face JQ there, although since blinds are at 50/100, he may be pushing light. Oh well. (BTW, I’m in 1st place, not that this means much other than the fact that I have room to fold).

I pot it from UTG+1 with 99 and take down the pot. We are 8-handed at the table.

I happily fold 45s from the BB when the SB pushes for 1k+. He’s the same jabroni that pushed into my Tens. Gotta keep an eye on him. I then fold 34o from the SB. No need to steal or spend the 60 (blinds are moving up quickly).

I’m in 3rd/14 with about 2900. Garth is the only guy with more than me at our table. We are 7-handed. But he just busted in his other SNG, so I guess it isn’t all Australian gravy.

I fold 75d from a loose monkey who min-raises. The push monkey to my right pushes in the next hand, so I fold my K6o. Dance for me, my monkeys!

I get JJ in MP and bet pot, 700. The guy to my immediate left calls. The flop is all unders with two spades. I bet all-in. I have him covered by about 800. He calls and shows A3c. The river is a club and I’m down to 810. In the next hand, I get KJh and push. I take down the pot for 1110 total.

I then fold my BB and SB to raises, down to 790. The pushmonkey is called when he pushes and shows Ace-little. The caller, the dick on my left, had K9 when he called. Sheesh! Pushmonkey wins, and Dick is still in it.

I push with A8c in MP and take down the pot. 1150. 11th of 11.

In the 240 BB, I get Q7o. It’s the mathematically middle hand in poker. Just as Garth, who, unprompted, types:

Garthmeister: The computer hand!

Final table and I’m 6th/9. Garth is in 7th.

I fold the bloody hammer (72h) UTG. I frown.

Two shortstacks double up, including one off of Garth, who is on my immediate right. I didn’t even realize it was him until 8 hands in.

I fold 83o to a raise when I’m in the BB, now 300. I fold 73o in the SB, which just moved up to 200/400. I’m down to 1550, 7th of 9. Fold hammer on the button. Why do you mock me, Lord?

A guy with slightly more chips than me decided he had to go to war with Ace little from MP. He runs into a high pocket pair and is busted.

As usual, the pushmonkey in the SB pushes, and I call, knowing that he does this with little Aces. He has A8 and I flop a Q and 7 to double up over 2200.

Another hero makes a stand, this time from the button with J9o and runs into a calling SB with A6o. We are down to 7.

Garth is forced all-in the next hand in a blind v. blind confrontation, but wins in dominating fashion, K7 v T7.

I see a flop with Jd4x after a limper in EP and a fold from Garth in the SB. Blinds are high at 250/500. The flop has three diamonds K32 and I push for 1k into the 1200 pot. He folds. I fold my T7 SB.

Garth pushes in MP and takes down the pot. I push in the same position with A9o in the next hand…and take down the pot.

300/600 blinds. In the BB, I get Q6o and fold to an early pusher. I have 2350 left. 6th/7 with Garth in 7th.

I fold my SB from a button bet by Garth. A middle stack doubles through the big stack, who is still healthy. Tilt must’ve set in though (the big stack lost on a suckout), so he pushes the next hand with J7o. The BB calls with KQ, but the flop has a Jack and the big stack actually got lucky, placing Garth and I in the money. Says Garth:

Garthmeister: Good outcome

I concur.

We now are playing for a token, since 6th gets some money, $14. I fold my BB and SB, left with 850 and blinds of 400/800. With AQc, I push in MP. I end up against AKo. I win $14 and Garth gets the token. The truth was, I should’ve folded, because Garth was going to be BB before me, and he would’ve been essentially all-in with 1350 or so.

So, gg to Garth. It just goes to show that these things can come down to one slip-up. I’m just lucky I held onto my strategy for as long as I did.

It’s about two hours later. I decided I was not going to play the MATH since I did not win my token. Then I remembered the $14. I played a HU SNG for a token ($13.75) and came out victorious, with 4 minutes to spare before the Hoy. Ka ching!

So, what have we learned today?

1. A momentary slip up can undo a lot of hard work.

2. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

3. The winning formula for Token SNGs: (i) batch of pierogies, (ii) fist of wine, (iii) fist of beer.

Until next time, make mine poker!