Anonymous says

Nice going. It's great to be on a roll like that and will so many races -- and some with 3 way action. It does appear like you were the favorite more than not, but you still need to be fortunate which you were. Also looks like you had a very good understanding of who you could and couldn't pull moves on and a good sense of ranges of your opponents under various circumstances. On the AJ/88, looks like your thoughtful analysis was moot given that all the money was going in no matter what -- but it's still nice to hear what you were thinking.

When the aggressive player raises UTG you mentioned that you often will just call against standard/unknown players because a 4-bet crushes you and you won't get action on many flops. But isn't this the point? Don't you want to know PF if you are good? Also, with a hand like TT, you most likely want them to fold on the flop because if they do give you action on the flop it often means that you're behind unless there is a very obvious draw out there and even then you don't want a call unless you hit trips. So can you elaborate a bit on your thinking here?

Thanks

05/21/07

Podiman says

I'm really looking forward to reading about the final table, but I am curious about your dryspell. It seems that you had been mixing it up a lot with very medium strength hands in the hands throughout. What about during the period you say that you had no cards? I'm assuming you weren't just folding every orbit. What was different? Were you just meeting resistance to raises and folding? Did you really get blinded down so much or were there hands that you lost that you can explain and maybe we can learn something from.

05/21/07

nath says

"When the aggressive player raises UTG you mentioned that you often will just call against standard/unknown players because a 4-bet crushes you and you won't get action on many flops. But isn't this the point? Don't you want to know PF if you are good? Also, with a hand like TT, you most likely want them to fold on the flop because if they do give you action on the flop it often means that you're behind unless there is a very obvious draw out there and even then you don't want a call unless you hit trips. So can you elaborate a bit on your thinking here?"

The problem in this case is with stack sizes. Any sort of reraise preflop commits me to call an all-in (UTG has opened to 750 with only about another 4000 behind; I can't make any kind of reraise and then fold). A normal player in these tournaments is probably not putting in his chips without a bigger pair or AK-- I'm not getting 88 to stack off here, ever. And a normal raiser is probably opening a tighter range UTG-- at least, if I get it in on a low flop, I have a better chance of catching an underpair, or getting more money from an AK/AQ hand that missed the flop, whereas if I raise, I narrow my opponent's range to hands that crush me. I don't mind using my position in this spot and the subsequent action to determine whether or not my hand is good; I really hate to raise-fold hands, especially hands as strong as two tens.

In Clayton's case, his hand range is going to be much wider than that, and so if we get to a flop, I have no idea where I stand. It's too easy for me to fold the best hand on a bad flop or to pay him off if he raised something speculative, like a suited connector, and flopped a monster. All I really know is that my tens figure to be the best hand here, so I need to raise here, and push that advantage. If he shows me jacks or better, well, that sucks, but I definitely can't play the hand like I'm afraid of that. I'm happy to take down a decent pot preflop, and if he wants to stick his chips in, I still have a decent chance.

05/21/07

EdmondDantes says

Nice post. Can you elaborate on the changes you make given that ante structure? It seems a little heavier than others I've played recently (150/300/25 is more common, yes), but it's also the same jump they used in last year's WSOP ME, albeit with 3x the starting chips. They changed the WSOP structure this year, and in a fit of OCD, I compared the two here...

WSOP 06 v 07

The 150/300/50 level was one of the ones changed.

In any event, I'd be curious about the adjustment you made when the blinds went up by roughly 70%

(100+200+(25*9)) = 525/orbit to (150+300+(50*9)) = 900/orbit.

Edmond

05/21/07

Anonymous says

good analysis of why you don't normally raise the UTG raiser with TT in that spot. Interesting!

05/22/07

Anonymous says

Test

05/23/07

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The tournament started with something like ~190 runners. We all received 3000 chips; blinds start at 25/50 and go up every 30 minutes. I like Turning Stone's structure; it moves relatively slowly, and stacks, while not very deep, are deep enough for a player like me to exploit my edges. The antes are pretty significant later on, too. They also pay a decent percentage to first, somewhere around 30% I think, which I like. All in all, their tournament series can have a lot of positive expectation for a good player.

So I try to go up there every time they have one.

I missed the preliminary events on this week's schedule, but I was there in time for the last two events, a $500+40 and a $1000+60. (The $1000 has 5000 chips and 60-minute levels).

My table was mostly the older regulars, with two or three younger kids who played online there as well. One in particular, Clayton, I have played and discussed poker with plenty enough in the past that I anticipated some aggression and creativity from him. I would have to prepare and adjust accordingly.

Nothing major really happened in the early going. I missed a chance to get more chips out of a player when I opened two tens in early position and he called next to act; I checked the eight-high flop intending to check-raise, but he checked through; I checked a Q on the river hoping to pick off a bluff, but he checked behind and showed two nines. Yikes.

I gave up a small pot when a middle-aged man who had been playing a lot of pots opened to 125, and next to act called; I thought I would pick up the pot the vast majority of the time so I raised to 525. All folded to the opener who raised all in. I mucked my 52s.

Then I doubled someone up. I opened KJo in the 3rd seat to 200 at 50/75. Folded to the button, who had been loose limping and calling raises, and he called 200, which was about 1/6 of his stack. This would set off alarm bells to me in some players, but he had been so loose so far that I didn't take this to mean anything special. The flop came jack-high; I bet, called his all-in, and lost to AA.

(Note: opening KJo in third position certainly isn't always standard, but at a table of players who were playing this passively, I thought I could play it profitably-- yes, sometimes I get paid by worse hands. What happened was a disaster, but not unrecoverable.)

Not long after I won the first of many races: Blinds were, I think, 50-100; the loose player from earlier opened to 300, and I looked at A7o in the small blind, which wasn't much, but with 1500 chips and some folding equity, I thought it was a hand worth taking a shot at the pot with-- and he might even call me with worse. He thought for a while and called with 66. I got a JT8 flop, and a T turn, and with so many outs for the win, I couldn't miss-- A river to double me up.

Now I had some chips to play with, again, but I was nowhere near a big stack. I floated along for a couple of levels, and then at 100/200, with a nearly starting stack, I made another pretty loose play-- I opened K8s UTG to 525 or so. Clayton called in late position, and we went to the flop.

Ding. J88 two hearts.

Now, my concern is getting him to put his whole stack in the middle. He's got more chips than me, enough to where he probably makes a move with any part of the board if he thinks he can make me fold. I have about 2500 left in my stack and the pot is 1150 or so. If I bet too much, he'll know I'm tied to the pot and he might not make a move with some of his draws or what have you. If I check, he may put me all in, but he may make a tester bet that he can fold to a check-raise. I think my best course of action is to lead small and hope he raises. I bet out 600 and he moves me all in; I call; he shows AJ; I double up.

(PF is extremely loose, but I was at a stack size where I thought I could still dump it if the flop didn't nail me, and where I'd take more chances with marginal hands and situations. I happened to get a perfect one, which really helps on the road to tournament victory.

The antes started the next level, and I got through the 100/200/25 without major incident. The next level was 150/300/50; one of my favorite levels at the Turning Stone tournaments because the ante is so high compared to the blinds, and most people adjust improperly. Anyway, with about 6500 chips, this hand happened: Clayton was UTG and opened to 750. It folded to me and I looked at two tens. Now, against a lot of UTG raisers, I'll flat call, because 3-betting means I usually narrow their range to hands that crush me if they're willing to 4-bet. Plus, they probably won't play at me much if the flop misses them. That's most people in this tournament; that's not Clayton. Clayton's range here is wide enough that I have to raise the tens to get value out of my hand and lower the chances of an incorrect decision later. It's too easy for me to fold the best hand on certain flops, and I'd just as soon take down a pot that would add a solid 25% to my stack. So I reach for raising chips. I initially start to make it 2000 more, but then I go back to count Clayton's stack and I realize he only has 4000 or so behind. In this case, I may as well move all in. So I restack my chips and push them forward.

Everyone folds to him and he thinks for several minutes. I know he has a hand that's really borderline here-- he would have called already with JJ+ or AK; he might think about AQ but I'm not sure what he'd do with it. This led me to believe he was thinking about 88 or 99, and if this was the case, I wanted a call. He did finally call, but he turned over KQs, not the hand I wanted to see. Fortunately, my 52-48 edge held when the board bricked out.

I have around 11,000 chips after busting Clayton. Soon our table breaks.

I float along for an orbit or two at the new table until one of the biggest pots of the tournament takes place. 200/400/50 level. UTG who's been playing pretty tightly on the short stacks moves in for 5k. Next to act I look at two black queens. This is a no-brainer; I move in my 10k stack. The next guy to act has 16k and goes into the tank. He's obviously got a big hand; since he hasn't called it must be JJ or AK or thereabouts. I hope he calls JJ and folds AK. He finally says "I call". Everyone else folds and the BB shows ATs as he folds.

UTG turns over JJ and the 3 seat shows AKs.

The queens hold up and I launch to 28k.

From there...

A looooong stretch of nothing.

This was the point where I would have to be patient. I went card-dead and just waited for spots to move at pots, occasionally picking up one preflop. But still, I won no major pots, and dwindled all the way down to 16k-- all the way into the 1000-2000 level (!)

So with 8 big blinds and a high ante (300), I would have to make a move soon.

The guy two on my right, a young, good player who had been working a short stack for several hours, moved in preflop UTG. It folded to me and I looked at ATs. He'd just taken down a pot a couple hands ago to make it through this orbit and I knew he wouldn't be moving here without a hand. I reluctantly mucked.

Next hand, UTG moves all-in. I look at 77. He has 24k or so, which means that while he's better off than me, he is in no way waiting for a monster here. Even if he's moving a lot of overcards, he may be moving a lot of underpairs, or hands like A5s. It's been a while since I've seen a hand and I think this is as good as spot as any.

After all fold he turns over AcQc. I show 7h7s. The flop is T52 all spades. The turn is a jack. The river is a king... of spades. I stare in defeat then count again: flush! I scoop the pot and climb to 35k or so.

The very next hand I pick up 77 again. I make it 5k to go, and he moves in from the BB with A9o. My hand holds. I'm somewhere over 40k now.

Now, something interesting happens. UTG raises to 6k and a short stack two off the button flat calls, leaving 13k behind. In my experience this is nearly always a monster. Even if it isn't, people hadn't been raising light UTG all tournament (besides me, obviously). So when it folds to me in the BB and I put these two together, I dump my ace-jack offsuit.

Now, UTG moves all in on a 542 flop and the short stack folds. Maybe it wasn't a monster after all.

The VERY NEXT HAND the short stack moves in for 13k. Next to act, a middle aged man who's been fairly tight/solid flat calls. It folds to me in the small blind and I look at 88. Now, he has about 20k behind, which isn't much, but there's always a chance he folds anyway. And I get the feeling I really have the best hand here. So I move in. He calls with AKo (the short stack has AJs). I flop 853 and scoop the whole pot. I'm over 100k now.

I should mention that those two knockouts dropped us to 12, and we are well within the money. The tournament was originally scheduled to pay out 15, but once it got to 20, people started discussing a deal to take some of the money from the top two spots and pay out buyins from 20-16. Ordinarily I reject deals like this, but since I had 10 big blinds I didn't think it really affected me much. Sure, spread the wealth. Whatever. If I had the chip lead I would say "no" and raise everyone's blind repeatedly, but I don't.

The very next hand I open to 5000 with QT on the button. The SB, second in chips at the table, calls. The flop is J9x and he leads for 6000. I move in and he folds claiming KJ, which is the whole point: He can't really profitably call there because I can easily have AJ or better, or a situation where he's not a very big favorite. So he folds. Now I suddenly have 128k. I get to the final table not long afterward with 140k.

OK, next time, I'll bring up some hands from the final table. I suppose I had some interesting decisions, but for the most part, I just stayed aggressive at picking up small pots when I had the means to do so, and I was patient and waited for a big hand before playing a big pot.