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Some lovley scottish weather, and even a game of poker.
In what was typical Scottish weather (rain), Edinburgh hosted the UKIPT as a late qualifier I went up not 100% sure if I was even playing today or tomorrow. They said I was scheduled for tomorrow but agreed that I could change so I got to play.
As I got my table draw I never knew any faces, this didn’t exactly mean much after the Newcastle experience told me. I hardly knew any of the British pros faces. Not ideal when your playing in a British tournament. I seen the guy who was to my direct left talking in detail with Jamie Burland for a while before play got under way.
I set myself a target of 30K for ending day 1 with, although I’d have accepted lesser, as long as I was playable with my stack. The table started off very nitty at 8 handed and the first 3-bet didn’t come until I raised in the HJ with K9o due to a dead blind. The 3-bet was for 14BB more than enough for me to fold after a pittyful 3BB attempt. The first flop came the following hand although I wasn’t involved and can’t really remember it now.
The second flop however I was involved in. Folded to the button who raised to 150, I’m in BB and look at AK and 3-bet to 475. Button calls and flop comes 773 I c-bet he folds. Easy game. After this was a 10-15 minute spell of mostly raises taking blinds or a 3-bet taking the pot down. Till the late player arrived, then came out with a statement “good luck guys, you’ll need it, I run like god!” To be honest I found this rather arrogant. Secretly in my head I wanted to bust him just for saying it. This did lead to some crazy hands.
He took control of the table. Something I had previously been working on. Eventually confrontation was going to happen. And it did in style. The guy raised UTG to 150, 2 callers and I’m on the button, before I even looked I decided I was going to squeeze. The amount depended on the hand. KQo, good enough and I 3-bet to 500. UTG 4 bets to 1100, the other 2 fold. I consider and then my guy feeling just tells me to go for it. Considering the pot size I think it’s a fair call looking back, but guy feeling really had a huge part in it.
Flop: A, K, 3 rainbow.
At this point I hated life. I was pretty sure he was on a medium to decent ace from the way he’d played previous hands. However he checks. 2 options enter my mind here. Raise. Or Check and assess the turn. I go for the latter and the turn comes a 10. He bets 1100, adding my gutshot and what appears may already be the best hand I decided to flat to assess the river. River is another 10. To be honest I had him on not a lot by this stage and was pretty confident I was ahead, unless he has pocket 10s in which case I look like a right donk. However he bets 1800. I quickly count the pot and I think I’m about getting the right odds for if my read is correct. I think raising is pointless because only better is ever going to call me. He insta mucks saying your “ace is good” I go to muck and collect the pot under the impression I don’t have to show since hes thrown his cards. Dealer informs me I have to show to win and I show. He looked rattled and had a dig at me later claiming to have jacks.
About 5-10 mins later I raise the CO with 1 limper with A9dd. The guy who was clearly rattled called as did another. Flop comes Jd, 2d, Jc. Checked to me and I make my c-bet and the guy who’s rattled snap calls. Turn 3c. I check back here hoping for a free miracle diamond. The river is the 3 of diamonds. Horrible card. The opponent doesn’t ponder for long before betting the pot. I know theres recent history and hes still clearly rattled at the KQ hand as hes still trying to get what I was thinking out of me. In fact as I reach for the 575 to call he says something about it again. I ignore and trust my gut again and flat. He instant mucks again I show the flush. Again he gets defensive. I quietly ignore the digs and stack up my chips.
This was my biggest talking points for a while. In fact I’m not going to bore you with a lot of hands as it was pretty standard, 3-betting or raising and c-betting. Anyways I peaked at 25K just before the 2nd break lost a pot and went down o 20k. Afterwards I had 77 v JJ checked down after my raise pre was just flatted on Q22Ax board. Then similar when I raised and got check raised on flop. I had about 19K going into this following hand.
At this point the guy to my left was the one who’d previously been speaking to Jamie Burland. He claimed they knew each other from games in Brighton. Not that mattered to me, but I was just trying to get what level of player I was competing against. Anyways hes barley played a hand, a couple of 3-bets and raising and not much more. I have QQ and for about 45 mins I’ve been very quiet myself. The table had got serious aggro and mixed with being card dead and 2 or 3 lost pots in a row I wasn’t really in the light 3-betting mood.
Blinds are 100/200 and I raise 525, my standard raise for this level. The guy asks how much I have back. He’d done this previously with another opponent then jammed huge in. So I knew instantly he was considering it. Pre I’m folding for what its worth. Then he ops to flat after I show him my 19-20k stack.
Everyone else folds. Flop comes Kc Ks 10c. I c-bet 1150 and he re-pops to 4500. Now I’m pretty sure he doesn’t do this with a K or pocket tens purley based on his image. I think for sometime always thinking my hand is good. Im debating calling or raising. In the end I decide he can only call a raise on the flop with better and flat. Turn comes 6h, I check but on this occasion knowing I’m checking to shove. He checks back. I’m now 100% sure my hand is good and this was all that it took. The river comes 7c. I check as the Flush has completed but with the intention of calling. He bets 9k. I think and I hate it but I call. He shows 77 for the rivered house. I was left crippled.
1 round later and a blind level up (150/300) I open shoved ATs from the CO, my stack was around 15BB so wasn’t a good shove at all and I realised as soon as I done it. Everyone folded and the next hand I get 7s. I opted to go for the 750 approch and the small blind jammed. I looked and thought hes similar stacked to me this could be wide. I don’t like it but I call and he shows KQ. Flop AJx to add some outs but I hold and I’m back over 10k. I then lost 2k before dinner break after a raise/fold and blinds going through me. I decided to re-group completely and focus on a double up.
On returning one guy who I know was a serial limp caller blows up. I’m card dead for this time. He gets JJ in v KK, then AK v 66 then shoving A2 UTG called by AQ which held. 3 hands 20k to busto, doubling 2 shortys and changing the table dynamics completely. The rest of the table started having a 3-bet frenzy and although I knew I needed my double soon I just wasn’t getting +EV spots or even a spot with FE. In the end I dwindled back to 7k. Then AK v AK AIP with 2 tigher players on the table. One guy had 3-bet folded in this hand. Although these two opponents where both deeper than me. The very next hand a lass who hasn’t been at the table long raises 2.6x to 1100 and the 3-bet folder from the AK v AK hand flats. I know this is directly one hand after and I haven’t looked yet I decided that no matter what 2 cards I look at i-m 3-bet shoving. The lass isn’t much better of than me so I know she has to have a hand to call. I look and see KK. Oh god perfect, it even looks like a squeeze to. I shove. The girl snap ships over the top and the other guy folds with a groan. She shows AA.
That was the end of me in the tournament. But in honesty I don’t feel like I done a whole lot wrong. I stuck to my reads and played my own game, and if anything that’s the most important thing. I would apprechaite comments on some of the above hands but as this isn’t the clinic I don’t expect replies in that manner.
Again Dad has made day 2, although hes stated he just wants to survive although with 36K I don’t get what the monkey hes talking about survival for. Best of luck to all other sky players in this event.
Comments
I have to agree with GoldenDog though, If the hand has been mucked you do not have to show..
Onwards and upwards dear!!!
xx
Great read Don!
Lovely post though Don. One thing though, if someone is giving it the big one, don't get emotional about wanting to be the one who will bust him. Most of the time their chips will be on offer anyway so just wait for the spot.
Would also like to say thats to both all who supported me. Really was great.
Regarding what you where saying tommy i think the issue with the opponent who said that wasnt what he said. I play best in mtts when table captian and usually end up in big battles with others who want that role. I was happy to wait against someione who said that, infact i was delighted because as you said chips on offer.
Brownndog ty for that peice of info will keep that in mind for the next time. i hated having to show.
Also i read the blog on the UKIPT website and i got the info wrong on the QQ hand (was 150/300 with 25 ante - events happened that where on the blog at the time that happened so got correct info from there) as i felt i could have got away on the river ive posted it correctly in the clinic.
nice post Don
Dont like the squeeze with KQ ( doesnt seem like a great hand to do it with imo, I would prefer it with air) and hate flatting the 4bet , not sure if you want to discuss hands though.
pre antes in a deep stack tournament his UTG range should be super tight.
3bet size waaaay too small. UTG has to call 350 into 1025 he's literally not folding anything here since his opening range is probably only ~66+/AQ+.
i kind of like the fact that we have KQ since we have blockers to kk/qq/ak but theres no need to be squeezing here in the first level of a deep/slow tournament.
IF we take the pot down preflop (which i think we do < 5%) we add 475 to our starting stack of 15k. that is a ~3% increase.
i think the river with QQ is also a fold. i think you should be checking with the intention of folding to most bets unless he bets very small here. when he raises flop and checks back turn his hand looks alot like some kind of draw (or 'raise for info' type of hand which is raising then shutting down trying to get to showdown)
and since having QQ we reduce the combinations of QJ by half i think you will see a completed FD quite alot of the time
The QQ hand details i gotwrong due to tiredness here ive updated correctly in the clinic as LOL_RAISE says the 7 of clubs smacks his range huge on the river it really bugged me.
The KQ hand as i said to Grantorino it was mostly that annoying voice in my head. i feel most comfortable as table captian. i think this has shown at both SPTs and impartiuclar in 90% of my online results. The opponent was also trying to do that and i guess i was trying to find an answer to that.
FPS took the better of me.
Will be re-assessing alot of things over the next few days in regards to my game.
The exit was pretty standard more than glad to exit that way rather than overplaying a hand or blinding out tbh. IN fairness i was pleased with how i played all day on Thuirsday bar the 2 hands we've discussed. A whole new experiance level again gained. Maybe next time ill get over all this.