It's back again

Yes it's that other special time of year, it's the beginning of the NFL season.  I've been looking forward to this for awhile.  So far I have 4 fantasy teams going this year and I like the looks of 3 of them.  We won't talk about the 4th one, at least not today.  In about 40 minutes it's kickoff time and I plan to be comfortably ensconced in my recliner with a Magic Hat #9 in my hand. 

I really haven't been doing too much since celebrating my birthday a month and half ago.  We celebrated our daughter's 22nd birthday last month.  Yes my baby is 22, now I feel old.  What am I saying, I've been feeling old for a good while.  Tomorrow is my middle child's birthday.  He'll be 28 this year.  Holy cow.  Now I know I'm over the hill.  As one of my teachers used to say, I've got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.  But enough of this maudlin bullshit. 

Outside of all these birthdays, the PQ and I have been planning our next Vegas trip in November.  Its supposed to be in celebration of our 30th anniversary but c'mon now, do we really need a special reason to go to Vegas?  We've got 5 nights comped at the Flamingo but it looks like we'll have to actually spend a little money for 1 more night's lodging.

To prepare for Vegas I've started getting back into the poker swing.  I took a bit of a break as I was running pretty bad for a while.  I decided to play a tourney a few weeks ago and though I was a bit rusty, I played ok.  Ended up going out 13th when they paid top 7.  I was short most of the time and felt good about my play all in all. 

Last weekend I decided to get in some more practice.  Saturday I was over at the Hard Rock.  While the PQ was mashing the sweet VP machines very successfully, I was getting my ass handed to me playing 1/2 NL.  I started ok.  Not great hands but stayed patient and made one guy with trips pay to see my straight.  Then the wheels fell off.  Good flops getting crushed by bad rivers.  Twice I flopped two pair only to lose to river flushes.  And I wasn't giving them bargain odds to draw to them either.  On the other hand, none of my draws were hitting.  Which was costing me money too. 

After a few hours I was down $150 and contemplating calling it a day.  Some days you got it and some days you ain't got it.  But I decided to try and grind a bit more and see if I could change my luck.  And luckily I did.  I'm not saying I made money but I ended up down about $50.  Which is a victory from where I was at.  I didn't think I played badly but I was unlucky a few times.  I do have to pay a little more attention to bet sizing sometimes.  That cost me on one hand and prevented me from winning more on another.

Labor Day I thought would be a nice day to play another tourney.  So I headed over to Derby Lane for their 1 pm tourney.  Spent a couple of hours folding cards.  it was garbage hand after garbage hand and yet as soon as I try to steal a pot, I get called then reraised.  Oops.  So much for that.  I did manage to win a pot with a 9-2 when a 2 hit the turn and at the first break my 12K starting stack was down to about 10.  At that time I had been dealt exactly one pocket pair - 3's that of course did not improve on the flop. 

But I held tight to my chips and just stayed out of trouble.  Channeled my inner Mojo and waited out the cards.  As the blinds climbed I got down to around 12 big blinds when I woke up with pocket 9s.  Loose guy to my right had already put in a raise so I pushed all in over him.  Everyone else folds and the loose guy thinks a second and dumps it too.  Then I start to make something happen.  I bust a short stack and take some chips off a large one when I flop 2 pair.  Then I get a walk when I raise with AJ which gets me up to an average stack.  That lasted all of 1 hand.  The very next hand I get QQ.  This is the last hand before the 2nd break.  Raise again.  5 callers.  Yuck.  Flop has a king and I give it up to a bet by one of the callers.  So I'm a bit below average at the 2nd break. 

Come back from the break and they move this really big stack in a few seats on my right.  He has no qualms calling raises with at the very least speculative hands.   This costs him a chunk of chips when the guy sitting just to my right raises all in and he calls with J8.  Guy to my right has QQ and takes a big chunk off the guy.  He's still the table big stack but he's not huge and you would think he'd be a little leery of this guy now since he has enough chips to really take a piece out of him.  And you'd be wrong. 

First the guy across the table puts in a raise to 4K in early position which big stack calls.  I wake up with KK and push all in for about 18K.  Folds back to the original raiser who calls for a large part of his stack.  Surprisingly the big stack folded.  He only had about 90K so I was a bit surprised he folded but he must have had something like 7-2 off based on the rest of his play.  I flip over my cards and the other guy flips AQ.  He doesn't improve and I'm off the mat though still a little below average. 

Then the big hand happens.  We're down to around 22 people and a guy across the table pushes all in for around 12K.  The big stack calls but then the guy to my right who is sitting on about 60K pushes all in.  Now this is about two thirds of his stack but the guy isn't fazed and calls anyway.  He's already busted a couple of other guys while holding some pretty marginal cards.  Guy to my right flips over AK, guy across the table has AQ, and the big stack flips over 10-7 suited.  Flop is A J 8 and the guy to my right is happy as he's looking at a huge double up.  Turn is a 2.  River is a 9 and the guy to my right starts to celebrate till he sees he just got sucked out on.  The big stack is now the ginormous stack as he wipes these guys out. 

Our table gets broken and I'm moved to a new table.  Mr Enormous stack is moved to the same table.  I don't mind because I think I can get a chunk off him if I get a chance.  But blinds keep moving up and I'm short, maybe 18th out of 19.  I'm in late position and push all in with 77 but the lady in the small blind calls me with JJ.  Amazingly I suck out a river 7 and I'm still in.  Even though I doubled up I'm not even an average stack.  Mr big stack keeps calling bets with some weak holdings but now he isn't catching cards and is giving away chips.  Just not to me. 

I get AA in late position and make a raise but am called by the JJ lady in the big blind.  I noticed she is also playing some pretty ragged hands.  Flop is J 4 2 and she checks to me.  I push all in for about 25K and she thinks a minute and calls.  She has 4-8 suited and seems surprised to see me with aces.  She does not improve and now I am almost comfortable.  I at least have an average stack around 75K.

Lady across from me gets all in with another guy and Mr not so big stack.  She wins knocking out the one guy and taking another chunk from the big stack.  She's up to about 100K and he probably now has 150K.  I'm looking for a chance to hit him up.  But instead she tangles with the guy again pushing bets at him on the flop and turn only to fold on the river when he pushes all in on her.  Now she's down to about 60K.  She's in the small blind when I get AA again.  Blinds are 2500/5000 so my 75K isn't an amount I can sit on.  Mr Big stack has already bet so I raise him up to 30K.  I'm really hoping he tries to push back.  Instead I get called by the gal in the small stack and he folds.  I'm ok with that.  Flop is queen high with 2 clubs.  I decide to not fool around here and push all in which puts her all in if she calls.  She does with 89 of clubs.  Really?  You call half your stack away with those 2 cards when I have not shown down one bad hand?  Then you call the rest of your stack away?  Of course she rivers a club and there goes most of my chips.  I'm soon out in 14th.  Not sure if I should have played that differently or not but I didn't feel I played poorly in the tourney.  I got really lucky one time and really unlucky another but all in all I was satisfied with my play if not my results.

So that's what I've been doing.  I'd like to play in the Senior tournament at Derby Lane this Saturday but we'll be celebrating my son's birthday so that's out.  That's ok as a couple of weeks from now they're all going to Disney World but I won't be going so I'll have some more chances to pitch some cards.  I see the Packers had no answer for Seattle tonite.  I'm not overly surprised.  Hope y'all are doing well and I hope some of you will be in Vegas in November.