Ok so ive had to catch up on a few entries after my flight home so im going to make this short and sweet.
Firstly me and jeff did an even chop so we were playing for pride. I came into this game with a totally different attitude, it felt like i didnt care but lets see what happens.
I have one hand to note from the whole game. Yes, 1.
The pots were all very small until i limped with J7.
The flop came KQ2 and we both checked
The turn brought the 10 of spades (a second spade). He checked so i thought this was an easy chance to take down the pot with a 500 bet, jeff checked raised me which didnt make sense at all, i then re-raise putting about 5000 into the middle, i was shocked when jeff called, i thought he had two pair or something. The river brought the 9, my straight woohoo! But Jeff then bets 4500 at me, now the river has brought a possible flush, i ran through my mind of the possibilities and realised jeff could have spiked a flush, but the bet was too small to pass, he could be value betting his straight so i call with the great pot odds.
He turns 72s and im now short stacked.
In the end i fire my last 4000 chips in with J10 and jeff calls with K8s and hits a flush, good game and congratulations to jeff, the world heads up champion of 2007.
I will be back next year, next stop is the midlands meltdown at walsall.
Wednesday, 30 May 2007
Semi-finals.
This is my big game. If i lose this i end up with either 20 or 30k. If i win, i will probably end up in the final with Jeff Kimber and do an even chop for 90k each.
After a slow start i win lots of small pots including this one:
Me: 22.
I limp, opponent raises and i call in position.
Flop K33. Check Check
Turn 4. Check Check
River 8. Check and i bet 500 for value hoping he calls me with A high and he raises to 1500 so i call and he shows Q5 :).
About 1h30 into the game this pot arose.
I limp with 310. Opponent checks.
Flop 234. Opponent bets and i call.
Turn 2. Opponent bets big and i call again.
River 9. Opponent bets 4500! I hesitate and then call.
He turns Q5 once again.
This player was quite crazy at times but i had a read on him for sure.
At this point i had around 24k in chips and my opponent had been making some unorthadox raises.
He limps and i look at As10s so i raise to about 2100. My opponent now makes a fuss, walks around the table and announces allin. Ok so i thought about this for a bit, i knew he was weak but i wasnt sure if As10s is the kinda of hand i want to see his hand with since it isnt a massive favourite over many hands. Anyhow i call and he flips 7s4s. Flop 7xx he wins.
Im down to a miserable 8k in chips and shortly go allin with A3 because the blinds are now 500/1000. He calls and turns KK! How bad do i run!?!?!
Flop 245. Lol. Maybe i run good eh?
After taking a few small pots its almost back to level again!
I find 1010 on the button and limp. My opponent announces all-in. I pretty much instantly call, i think i might have said call before he said all-in im not sure. He turns over A7 and the board doesnt help him, it was a pretty good game i must say, we were up and down with our chips stacks like nothing else. GG.
Just before i go back to the hotel i watch my friend Jeff Kimber in the other semi's. It was over very fast when jeff checked 93 in the BB to see a flop of 933. His opponent was very unfortunate to have J3 but hey, thats poker and that also means that i get an even chop for the Main prize.
After a slow start i win lots of small pots including this one:
Me: 22.
I limp, opponent raises and i call in position.
Flop K33. Check Check
Turn 4. Check Check
River 8. Check and i bet 500 for value hoping he calls me with A high and he raises to 1500 so i call and he shows Q5 :).
About 1h30 into the game this pot arose.
I limp with 310. Opponent checks.
Flop 234. Opponent bets and i call.
Turn 2. Opponent bets big and i call again.
River 9. Opponent bets 4500! I hesitate and then call.
He turns Q5 once again.
This player was quite crazy at times but i had a read on him for sure.
At this point i had around 24k in chips and my opponent had been making some unorthadox raises.
He limps and i look at As10s so i raise to about 2100. My opponent now makes a fuss, walks around the table and announces allin. Ok so i thought about this for a bit, i knew he was weak but i wasnt sure if As10s is the kinda of hand i want to see his hand with since it isnt a massive favourite over many hands. Anyhow i call and he flips 7s4s. Flop 7xx he wins.
Im down to a miserable 8k in chips and shortly go allin with A3 because the blinds are now 500/1000. He calls and turns KK! How bad do i run!?!?!
Flop 245. Lol. Maybe i run good eh?
After taking a few small pots its almost back to level again!
I find 1010 on the button and limp. My opponent announces all-in. I pretty much instantly call, i think i might have said call before he said all-in im not sure. He turns over A7 and the board doesnt help him, it was a pretty good game i must say, we were up and down with our chips stacks like nothing else. GG.
Just before i go back to the hotel i watch my friend Jeff Kimber in the other semi's. It was over very fast when jeff checked 93 in the BB to see a flop of 933. His opponent was very unfortunate to have J3 but hey, thats poker and that also means that i get an even chop for the Main prize.
Sunday, 27 May 2007
The BIG game.
Quarter final match-up.
Dan carter vs Dave "The devilfish" Ulliot.
The match was scheduled to start at 3:30pm, well that was never going to happen so i ended up having something to eat, talking to micky werning at the bar, having a few interviews and then finally watch devilfish on the piano for about 30 minutes.
Finally things got started and i was going to take a slow and steady approach to see how the devil wanted to do things. I very quickly dropped to 16k or so because i couldnt pick up a hand.
One hand to note was when i picked up K9 in the BB, i called 400 more with the blinds at 100/200.
The flop came Kd8c3c. I checked, the devil bet 800 and i made it 2400 to go. He pondered and called, after this call my intentions were to slow down since i was out of position with a mediocre hand, the turn paired the 3 and the river paired the 8, both streets were checked down and devil turned 1010. He was not happy at all i had hit a 3 outter! But a decent amount of money went in after the flop.
Very shortly i picked up 1010 on the button, i limped for 300 and the devil made it 1100. I didnt think long and put in 3500. He seemed really frustrated and it took him a long time to call, i can say...i really didnt want him to call, i was just showing him who was boss since he was playing very aggressive preflop.
All of a sudden the chips were even for quite a while, i picked up KK on the button and limped again and ended up seeing a flop. The board came Q high and the devil came out with a bet that i strongly re-raised, he showed bottom pair and passed so that was a nice little booster.
The VERY next hand i pick up AA, the devil limps for 300 and i make it 1200 in total, he calls quite quickly.
Flop: 6c6d3c
BEAUTIFUL!!!!
Well im going to stick to my original game plan and letting devil take the lead, i check but he also checks. That didnt work!
Turn was a 2c. I had to bet now, there is now a club and straight draw on the board, i make a bet of 1500 which gets raised to 4500, well i slow down again for 2 good reasons. One is, if he has a 6 i am paying him off as least as possible and two, if i slow down i look weak and if the devil is bluffing i can entice him to bluff, so i just call.
The river is a Jd. I check and the devil bets 7000! WOW! I think for a few moments and call, the devil says "If you call you must have me" and he holds his cards over the muck whilst i flip my bullets. Now is the break, he wals away very frustrated whilst mumbling "Hes so lucky...aces....blah blah" lol.
After the break i now have a 32k-8k lead and can take a new approach with the increased blinds (200-400) I can steal a lot of small pots to put him under pressure, the devil dwindled to about 6k when i decided to raise to 850 with Q8. The devil calls and the flop comes 8d 7s 2s. The devil comes out firing 4.2k allin!! I think for a moment to see if its worth calling this overbet and think that he cannot be ahead so i call. He turns over 510 of spades for a flush draw.
The turn and river are complete blanks and i have taken the devilfish down!
I dont feel ecstatic after beating him, it just feels kinda weird. That was the shortest match i have played at just over an hour...all others lasted a good 2-3 hours. Im not saying it was an easy win because it wasnt, i guess the timing for my big hands was great.
Please comment on my blog entrys, i enjoy reading them, thanks
-Dan
Friday, 25 May 2007
In the Quarters
Well i arrive in the casino ready for my 3rd game and i am playing the guy who beat the previous world champion. I quickly drop down to about 11k (like i do in every match!).
I had to make a stand quite early on, i was getting no hands at all! I get A7 in the BB and re-raise his button to about 3.6k leaving about 4.5k behind, the flop came 9102 and i pushed it allin, he INSTANTLY called and fipped QJ which is a bit of a monster i guess. Mickey wernick was behind me calling the cards for the turn and river.
He shouted Three!!! Turn was a 3
He shouted Five of clubs!!! River was a six of clubs. Haha love you long time mickey.
This player from sweden was very aggressive and i was finding him tough, so i just waited around for a hand. On one particular hand i have A6 in the BB and call a raise (he raised every button!).
The flop came 245 and i check-called, i then announced that i will check blind on the turn! He checks when the 5 pairs up.
The river was an 8 and i checked expecting to win it there, but he put in a bet of about 4000 into 4500. I was really puzzled and thought for a long time, i pick up a tell on him as i am about to call(i was going to fold hehe) and decided i better call. He flipped 10 high WOOT!
Very shortly after i called a raise with K5 to see a flop of K55, i check called the flop and then check in the dark again! (Last time i did that i had ace high, i am a genius!) He bet, i hesitated and called, i then checked the river again and put all my chips in when he bet, he thought and folded.
That hand crushed him and gave me a chip lead, i managed to limp raise preflop with QQ and he chucked all his chips in, i instantly call and he only has A10. My hand holds.
Round 4 and i have a player from spain, i learn quickly that he plays very tricky.
I get bluffed off a big pot when i call with A9 in the BB. It comes out JJ9 and i check raise from 500 to 1500. He calls. The turn is a 5, i bet out big and get re-raised a substantial amount, i had no idea what to do and eventually passed, he showed me K10.
I was being bullied and out-played and my chips were running short, just like the previous player so i made a move. I called a raise with 33 and saw a flop of 224, i let him bet, which he did and i raised about 3/4 of my stack. I mean if he has a higher pp when raising every button then gl to him, he folded after about 5 minutes.
The big hand arose when i had about 17.5k in chips.
I was in the BB with QJ, he limped so i raised it up to around 1800 with 200/400 blinds, he thought for a while and called.
The flop brought J32 and i bet out 1800 which got raised to 5000. It took me a good 10 minutes to decide to call, i was unsure what to do. The turn was a 10d and he announced allin once i had checked. I thought for a long time again and called, he turned over 66 and obviously, i was delighted. He was then crippled down to 5k in chips and it took about 40 minutes to knock him out after that.
Im so ecstatic now, devilfish is my likely opponent in the next round which will be on tv and i am guaranteed €11,250 and some lovely european ranking points!
I had a chat with devilfish after-
(Its funny because ever since round 1 we were saying "see you in the quarters") and i said, its great that a 2 brits are in the quarters, but its a shame that you are going out and he said "Im shakin in my boots"
The quarters are played on sunday and i shall update then!
-Dan
http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/6929/img0794jq3.jpg
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w238/polar1H/21799_IMG_0795_122_596lo.jpg
I had to make a stand quite early on, i was getting no hands at all! I get A7 in the BB and re-raise his button to about 3.6k leaving about 4.5k behind, the flop came 9102 and i pushed it allin, he INSTANTLY called and fipped QJ which is a bit of a monster i guess. Mickey wernick was behind me calling the cards for the turn and river.
He shouted Three!!! Turn was a 3
He shouted Five of clubs!!! River was a six of clubs. Haha love you long time mickey.
This player from sweden was very aggressive and i was finding him tough, so i just waited around for a hand. On one particular hand i have A6 in the BB and call a raise (he raised every button!).
The flop came 245 and i check-called, i then announced that i will check blind on the turn! He checks when the 5 pairs up.
The river was an 8 and i checked expecting to win it there, but he put in a bet of about 4000 into 4500. I was really puzzled and thought for a long time, i pick up a tell on him as i am about to call(i was going to fold hehe) and decided i better call. He flipped 10 high WOOT!
Very shortly after i called a raise with K5 to see a flop of K55, i check called the flop and then check in the dark again! (Last time i did that i had ace high, i am a genius!) He bet, i hesitated and called, i then checked the river again and put all my chips in when he bet, he thought and folded.
That hand crushed him and gave me a chip lead, i managed to limp raise preflop with QQ and he chucked all his chips in, i instantly call and he only has A10. My hand holds.
Round 4 and i have a player from spain, i learn quickly that he plays very tricky.
I get bluffed off a big pot when i call with A9 in the BB. It comes out JJ9 and i check raise from 500 to 1500. He calls. The turn is a 5, i bet out big and get re-raised a substantial amount, i had no idea what to do and eventually passed, he showed me K10.
I was being bullied and out-played and my chips were running short, just like the previous player so i made a move. I called a raise with 33 and saw a flop of 224, i let him bet, which he did and i raised about 3/4 of my stack. I mean if he has a higher pp when raising every button then gl to him, he folded after about 5 minutes.
The big hand arose when i had about 17.5k in chips.
I was in the BB with QJ, he limped so i raised it up to around 1800 with 200/400 blinds, he thought for a while and called.
The flop brought J32 and i bet out 1800 which got raised to 5000. It took me a good 10 minutes to decide to call, i was unsure what to do. The turn was a 10d and he announced allin once i had checked. I thought for a long time again and called, he turned over 66 and obviously, i was delighted. He was then crippled down to 5k in chips and it took about 40 minutes to knock him out after that.
Im so ecstatic now, devilfish is my likely opponent in the next round which will be on tv and i am guaranteed €11,250 and some lovely european ranking points!
I had a chat with devilfish after-
(Its funny because ever since round 1 we were saying "see you in the quarters") and i said, its great that a 2 brits are in the quarters, but its a shame that you are going out and he said "Im shakin in my boots"
The quarters are played on sunday and i shall update then!
-Dan
http://img231.imageshack.us/img231/6929/img0794jq3.jpg
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w238/polar1H/21799_IMG_0795_122_596lo.jpg
Round 2, Fight!
Round 2 is about to commence, nothing much to say but i have met the chap who i am playing and the game starts on time!
I got off to a terrible start, terrible. Infact after the first blind level i was down to something like 10,000 in chips (20k starting stack). Ive had to let a big pot go when i play a mediocre hand aggressively out of position.
Basically on the river i had top pair on a somewhat scary board of AQJ76 with three hearts, he bet most of my chips and i had to pass taking note of his body language and perhaps a "tell". I think he is very strong here.
Well a few big pots arose here and there such as me playing very aggressively in position on a 952 flop and a Q turn, putting most of my chips in. James atkin and Paul jackson commented at the time that they were sure i had a set, i had king high :D
After the first blind level i did battle very well from 10k in chips to about 31k, just through stealing pots, i realised a few of this guys mistakes and capitalised.
Just when i thought i had this game wrapped up an interesting pot occured.
I limped with AsQd (Blinds 150/300) Now my opponent raised 600 more out of the big blind and i made a mistake by just calling (I think).
Flop: Qc8c3c
He bet out about half the pot(900) and i came over the top for about 2100 more. He then declared that he was all-in and i put my big chips into the pot instantly.
He turned over the nuts and i had to start all over again!
Well i did begin to lose it, and i must say, this game has been up and down like a yoyo. I won a crucial pot when i limped with 94o and got to see a flop of 445, all the chips went flying and he turned over A5. Beautiful.
Very shortly after when i have a chip lead of about 28k-12k i limped with Ac2c and saw a flop of 224. My opponent led out and i smooth called, the turn brought a 9 and my opponent bet strong again. The river, an ace! I have made a boat. My opponent bets about 6k leaving 3k back or so and i think...for about half a second and announce allin, i know he has to call and he does. He turned over J2 for trips and i take the second round down!
This match was a lot harder for me, my opponent was quite aggressive but i got through in the end.
Now it wasnt long until james had to play his match, after 10 minutes i think that he will take it down. Well i was wrong, there were no hands to note because i have never watched a player take so long to make a decision, i mean, he put me on tilt watching. I think the headsup lasted around 4 hours and i know that this guy james was playing was an absoloute card rack towards the end and james had gone card dead! Soul-destroying!!!
Oh well better luck next year james, i have 2 games ahead of me, i win the first i make the money, i win the second im through to the tv stages, woopie!
-Dan
I got off to a terrible start, terrible. Infact after the first blind level i was down to something like 10,000 in chips (20k starting stack). Ive had to let a big pot go when i play a mediocre hand aggressively out of position.
Basically on the river i had top pair on a somewhat scary board of AQJ76 with three hearts, he bet most of my chips and i had to pass taking note of his body language and perhaps a "tell". I think he is very strong here.
Well a few big pots arose here and there such as me playing very aggressively in position on a 952 flop and a Q turn, putting most of my chips in. James atkin and Paul jackson commented at the time that they were sure i had a set, i had king high :D
After the first blind level i did battle very well from 10k in chips to about 31k, just through stealing pots, i realised a few of this guys mistakes and capitalised.
Just when i thought i had this game wrapped up an interesting pot occured.
I limped with AsQd (Blinds 150/300) Now my opponent raised 600 more out of the big blind and i made a mistake by just calling (I think).
Flop: Qc8c3c
He bet out about half the pot(900) and i came over the top for about 2100 more. He then declared that he was all-in and i put my big chips into the pot instantly.
He turned over the nuts and i had to start all over again!
Well i did begin to lose it, and i must say, this game has been up and down like a yoyo. I won a crucial pot when i limped with 94o and got to see a flop of 445, all the chips went flying and he turned over A5. Beautiful.
Very shortly after when i have a chip lead of about 28k-12k i limped with Ac2c and saw a flop of 224. My opponent led out and i smooth called, the turn brought a 9 and my opponent bet strong again. The river, an ace! I have made a boat. My opponent bets about 6k leaving 3k back or so and i think...for about half a second and announce allin, i know he has to call and he does. He turned over J2 for trips and i take the second round down!
This match was a lot harder for me, my opponent was quite aggressive but i got through in the end.
Now it wasnt long until james had to play his match, after 10 minutes i think that he will take it down. Well i was wrong, there were no hands to note because i have never watched a player take so long to make a decision, i mean, he put me on tilt watching. I think the headsup lasted around 4 hours and i know that this guy james was playing was an absoloute card rack towards the end and james had gone card dead! Soul-destroying!!!
Oh well better luck next year james, i have 2 games ahead of me, i win the first i make the money, i win the second im through to the tv stages, woopie!
-Dan
Thursday, 24 May 2007
Day 3 in spain.
Day 3, i have nothing to do today except watch a few of my friends such as james atkin, flushy (James dempsy), micky wernick etc.
Well lets get started on mr atkin, although i attempted to watch his game i was far more interested in a drink and conversation with the legend mr wernick, what a fine sir he is! Anyhow i knew james would win his game easily, he managed to get allin with AK on an A45 board against A10, well played sir!
I played a little bit of cash, decided omaha 5/10pl was a good idea where i donated 300 or so until moved to 2/5nlholdem for a few hands and got a bit back. I think i am not going to play the cash games anymore, im not running good live and the rake is soooo steep (€15 rake on one hand i played in!).
My day has finished in me walking down a few bars and meeting a few of the poker legends such as dave colclough, micky wernick, paul jackson etc and finish getting very drunk.
Tonight has been a very quiet night and i hope tomorrow will be more interesting with my round 2 of my heads up!
Will keep you posted!
Dan
Well lets get started on mr atkin, although i attempted to watch his game i was far more interested in a drink and conversation with the legend mr wernick, what a fine sir he is! Anyhow i knew james would win his game easily, he managed to get allin with AK on an A45 board against A10, well played sir!
I played a little bit of cash, decided omaha 5/10pl was a good idea where i donated 300 or so until moved to 2/5nlholdem for a few hands and got a bit back. I think i am not going to play the cash games anymore, im not running good live and the rake is soooo steep (€15 rake on one hand i played in!).
My day has finished in me walking down a few bars and meeting a few of the poker legends such as dave colclough, micky wernick, paul jackson etc and finish getting very drunk.
Tonight has been a very quiet night and i hope tomorrow will be more interesting with my round 2 of my heads up!
Will keep you posted!
Dan
Wednesday, 23 May 2007
The rain in spain...
Falls mainly on my table.
Well firstly im going to start with the good news, i made it to the second round of the world heads up championship, yeehaw!
So heres my report on it.
Firstly i arrived early expecting an interview on camera with pete singleton, but we had problems getting into the casino which is a different story...
Anyhow we get in about 30 minutes before my match and i must say, for the first time in a very long time, i felt nervous about poker; maybe more excited than scared. So the seats are tables are drawn and i meet my opponent. First thing i do is shake his hand (which is also the start of picking up tells/body language/what type of person he is), his hand was very cold and sweaty...certainly a lot more than mine, i guess i thought this was a good sign.
When signing the release form i realise he has qualified online which is also good! His chips were stacked in a weird way and he didnt post the blinds properly.
Now lest get onto some poker hands, first hand of note was when i rivered my straight on a A645 flop. Turn was a 9 and river was an 8 to give my 67 the nuts! i bet, he raised and i re-raised for about 3k, i guess this wasnt a huge raise but i still wasnt sure what type of player he was. He had 85 for two pair but i shortly found out he would have probably paid me off for a lot more! This player would chase hard and also bet really aggressive at times that wouldnt make sense, apart from this hand.
Blinds 100/200
Me: 4d6d i limp
Opponent: Check
Flop: Kh Qd Jd
He bets 350 or so and i call.
Turn gives the 9d for my flush.
He now bets 500, so i make it 2100 which i believe is a good sized bet because i think he will call with a 10. He does call.
River Qh.
Board: Kh Qd Jd 9d Qh
As soon as the river hits he shrugs his shoulders, cringes his face and says "EUUUUCHHH!!!" I thought...is this guy serious!!! He now looks at me, smiles, glances at his chips and grabs 5 red chips (5000) and fires it in, i instantly flip over my flush and put it in the muck...he shows 10d2d. WOW!!!! I could have lost a lot of chips on the turn.
One thing led to another when i called a big river bet in a certain pot with bottom pair on a scary board and his chip stack is down to 8k. He then announces to his friend that he needs to go allin soon (which is not true...the blinds are 200 400 and there is plenty of play)
Here is the magic hand:
Me: Limp for 200 on the button with AJo
Opponent: Check
Flop: J85 rainbow.
When i am playing poker i am in a kind of haze...not paying 100% to everything i guess...im really relaxed. Anyhow my opponent says the magic words "ALLIN" My eyes just lit up...i thought "Is this guy serious?!?!" I insta call and put my big chips in and the cameras come over. He turns over J2.
Thats pretty crazy i think, hes bet 8000 into 800 with a hand that can only get called by something hes losing to but meh, whatever, its his chips, maybe he had to catch a flight on thursday who knows?
Turn and river are blanks and i have made it into round 2!
I hope i have kept you entertained so far, if so, read on and listen to how bad the rest of the day went.
Firstly, since i had won the first round so fast i had enough time to enter the €1100 freezeout which by the way is the first big tourney i have bought myself into for a long time! I sit down at a table and out of the first 5/6 hands i raise preflop and take it down either preflop or post flop. So have already built up some chips. Then an interesting hand arose, about 5 limpers and i am on the button. I make a huge raise with my AKo (Which obv looks a huge steal.) and the guy who limped UTG now makes a raise for 2000 (5k starting stack). He threw it in with an angry manner and i know that he is just fed up of me bullying already, i instantly put my chips in with AK and he calls with his 88...i turn a straight and take the pot down when i river a flush too!
Very shortly the one and only Dave "devilfish" Ulliot joins my table...two to my left. Bloody brilliant! One of the most aggressive successful tourney players in the uk is to my left! I soon realise he really is a faboulous player too...taking some of my chips in the process. Well in spain nearly everyone at the table speaks...well spanish! So it was delightful for someone to speak english, infact he spoke to me quite a bit, well, we talked to each other non stop for about 4 hours hehe.
My chip stack lingered whilst dave was around, he made a re-re-raise against me with K2 (I had 24 but he doesnt know that ;)) which also cost him a lot of chips because another player was trapping with AK. He said "you realise you cost me a lot of chips there". He shortly went out after and i didnt play a hand for about an hour. I was at around 15k in chips which was slightly above the average when a really really nice hand arose:
4-5 limpers all in a row and i look down at bullets. Wow i love this...when you raise here people think you are at it! I shove a 3200 bet with 200/400 blinds. It gets round to the big blind who announces allin (He has 14k in chips!). Everyone gives me a smirk since they all think im at it. He flips over KQ and my aces hold up for a massive pot.
Now there is a swedish guy who has been semi-tight and aggressive with a few chips, he has started to make a few raises at me and ive really been putting him to the tests with re-raises.
I then make possibly one of the stupidest moves in a long time, and am really pissed off with myself.
Top 9 paid, 26 left. Average chips 16k, i have 29k.
Swedish guy limps, i limp with 4c7c on the button, sb folds.
Flop 2c5cJh. Swedish guy bets 1200 i call.
Turn Kh. Swedish guy bets quite big, maybe 5k.
I think shortly and get a massive pile of chips and push them in, swedish chap does the same thing and has only 700 chips left...so we get to see a river and i totally miss, he throws his last few chips in and i have to pass my 7 high for the 60k pot...one guy bursts out laughing and i feel really embarressed!!! I have no chips left and end up going out next hand. Hero to zero eh?!?!
Finally i then donk another 600 at 20/40 limit after losing 800 or so last night...ive yet to win a hand at the cash tables!!! What a disaster
If you have read this far, then i am proud!!! I shall most definitly update tomorrow to see how my buddy james atkin does in his first round, good luck to him!
Dan.
Well firstly im going to start with the good news, i made it to the second round of the world heads up championship, yeehaw!
So heres my report on it.
Firstly i arrived early expecting an interview on camera with pete singleton, but we had problems getting into the casino which is a different story...
Anyhow we get in about 30 minutes before my match and i must say, for the first time in a very long time, i felt nervous about poker; maybe more excited than scared. So the seats are tables are drawn and i meet my opponent. First thing i do is shake his hand (which is also the start of picking up tells/body language/what type of person he is), his hand was very cold and sweaty...certainly a lot more than mine, i guess i thought this was a good sign.
When signing the release form i realise he has qualified online which is also good! His chips were stacked in a weird way and he didnt post the blinds properly.
Now lest get onto some poker hands, first hand of note was when i rivered my straight on a A645 flop. Turn was a 9 and river was an 8 to give my 67 the nuts! i bet, he raised and i re-raised for about 3k, i guess this wasnt a huge raise but i still wasnt sure what type of player he was. He had 85 for two pair but i shortly found out he would have probably paid me off for a lot more! This player would chase hard and also bet really aggressive at times that wouldnt make sense, apart from this hand.
Blinds 100/200
Me: 4d6d i limp
Opponent: Check
Flop: Kh Qd Jd
He bets 350 or so and i call.
Turn gives the 9d for my flush.
He now bets 500, so i make it 2100 which i believe is a good sized bet because i think he will call with a 10. He does call.
River Qh.
Board: Kh Qd Jd 9d Qh
As soon as the river hits he shrugs his shoulders, cringes his face and says "EUUUUCHHH!!!" I thought...is this guy serious!!! He now looks at me, smiles, glances at his chips and grabs 5 red chips (5000) and fires it in, i instantly flip over my flush and put it in the muck...he shows 10d2d. WOW!!!! I could have lost a lot of chips on the turn.
One thing led to another when i called a big river bet in a certain pot with bottom pair on a scary board and his chip stack is down to 8k. He then announces to his friend that he needs to go allin soon (which is not true...the blinds are 200 400 and there is plenty of play)
Here is the magic hand:
Me: Limp for 200 on the button with AJo
Opponent: Check
Flop: J85 rainbow.
When i am playing poker i am in a kind of haze...not paying 100% to everything i guess...im really relaxed. Anyhow my opponent says the magic words "ALLIN" My eyes just lit up...i thought "Is this guy serious?!?!" I insta call and put my big chips in and the cameras come over. He turns over J2.
Thats pretty crazy i think, hes bet 8000 into 800 with a hand that can only get called by something hes losing to but meh, whatever, its his chips, maybe he had to catch a flight on thursday who knows?
Turn and river are blanks and i have made it into round 2!
I hope i have kept you entertained so far, if so, read on and listen to how bad the rest of the day went.
Firstly, since i had won the first round so fast i had enough time to enter the €1100 freezeout which by the way is the first big tourney i have bought myself into for a long time! I sit down at a table and out of the first 5/6 hands i raise preflop and take it down either preflop or post flop. So have already built up some chips. Then an interesting hand arose, about 5 limpers and i am on the button. I make a huge raise with my AKo (Which obv looks a huge steal.) and the guy who limped UTG now makes a raise for 2000 (5k starting stack). He threw it in with an angry manner and i know that he is just fed up of me bullying already, i instantly put my chips in with AK and he calls with his 88...i turn a straight and take the pot down when i river a flush too!
Very shortly the one and only Dave "devilfish" Ulliot joins my table...two to my left. Bloody brilliant! One of the most aggressive successful tourney players in the uk is to my left! I soon realise he really is a faboulous player too...taking some of my chips in the process. Well in spain nearly everyone at the table speaks...well spanish! So it was delightful for someone to speak english, infact he spoke to me quite a bit, well, we talked to each other non stop for about 4 hours hehe.
My chip stack lingered whilst dave was around, he made a re-re-raise against me with K2 (I had 24 but he doesnt know that ;)) which also cost him a lot of chips because another player was trapping with AK. He said "you realise you cost me a lot of chips there". He shortly went out after and i didnt play a hand for about an hour. I was at around 15k in chips which was slightly above the average when a really really nice hand arose:
4-5 limpers all in a row and i look down at bullets. Wow i love this...when you raise here people think you are at it! I shove a 3200 bet with 200/400 blinds. It gets round to the big blind who announces allin (He has 14k in chips!). Everyone gives me a smirk since they all think im at it. He flips over KQ and my aces hold up for a massive pot.
Now there is a swedish guy who has been semi-tight and aggressive with a few chips, he has started to make a few raises at me and ive really been putting him to the tests with re-raises.
I then make possibly one of the stupidest moves in a long time, and am really pissed off with myself.
Top 9 paid, 26 left. Average chips 16k, i have 29k.
Swedish guy limps, i limp with 4c7c on the button, sb folds.
Flop 2c5cJh. Swedish guy bets 1200 i call.
Turn Kh. Swedish guy bets quite big, maybe 5k.
I think shortly and get a massive pile of chips and push them in, swedish chap does the same thing and has only 700 chips left...so we get to see a river and i totally miss, he throws his last few chips in and i have to pass my 7 high for the 60k pot...one guy bursts out laughing and i feel really embarressed!!! I have no chips left and end up going out next hand. Hero to zero eh?!?!
Finally i then donk another 600 at 20/40 limit after losing 800 or so last night...ive yet to win a hand at the cash tables!!! What a disaster
If you have read this far, then i am proud!!! I shall most definitly update tomorrow to see how my buddy james atkin does in his first round, good luck to him!
Dan.
Tuesday, 22 May 2007
Arriveth in barcelona!
Alright so i make it to the airport in one piece and meet up with my friend james who i am travelling with, shortly we board the plane and who do we bump into? Micky "the legend" wernick, Dave "El blondie" Colclough and Paul "Action" Jackson. After a short 2 hour flight we arrive in spain.
It wasnt long until we made our way to the casino where we got charged €4.50 to get in (WTF!).
After a few drinks i met up with pete singleton, also a sponsered player by poker.co.uk. Me and james went over to the cash games, they definitly looked juicy and there was plenty to choose from.
2/5PL Omaha
5/10PL Omaha
2/5NL holdem
20/40FL holdem
After a few moments we both thought we could easily crush the limit game, well infact we both played for about 2 hours tops...james took a profit of about 1BB and i was down a miserable 18BB (€680). I didnt win one pot which is kinda depressing, i lost 100 on the first hand with top pair and from there i was just losing blinds...i hardly saw any flops! Jeeze, i hope i can crush these idiots tomorrow!
Well the main event starts tomorrow and i am playing an online qualifier in the first round so i have high expectations. Wish me luck
Dan.
It wasnt long until we made our way to the casino where we got charged €4.50 to get in (WTF!).
After a few drinks i met up with pete singleton, also a sponsered player by poker.co.uk. Me and james went over to the cash games, they definitly looked juicy and there was plenty to choose from.
2/5PL Omaha
5/10PL Omaha
2/5NL holdem
20/40FL holdem
After a few moments we both thought we could easily crush the limit game, well infact we both played for about 2 hours tops...james took a profit of about 1BB and i was down a miserable 18BB (€680). I didnt win one pot which is kinda depressing, i lost 100 on the first hand with top pair and from there i was just losing blinds...i hardly saw any flops! Jeeze, i hope i can crush these idiots tomorrow!
Well the main event starts tomorrow and i am playing an online qualifier in the first round so i have high expectations. Wish me luck
Dan.
Sunday, 20 May 2007
Barcelona around the corner!
Well i have just got done with the 5th leg of the GPUKT (in which i did miserable) and am now looking forward to the World heads up at Barcelona.
The main event starts on Tuesday and i am flying out this monday coming up.
Heads-up is probably the strongest part of my game since i play it online so much, but have only ever played it live twice!
I must say i can't wait...i wont be playing much poker but it will be nice to get on the beach and enjoy some spanish sun!
The main event starts on Tuesday and i am flying out this monday coming up.
Heads-up is probably the strongest part of my game since i play it online so much, but have only ever played it live twice!
I must say i can't wait...i wont be playing much poker but it will be nice to get on the beach and enjoy some spanish sun!
Welcome to my blog! (A little about me)
Well ive always wanted to start a blog, so here i am.
Here i will be posting about live and online, although online stuff is pretty boring so i will concentrate on happenings at live poker festivals.
I started playing poker for fun at the age of 16, i used to enjoy watching my step dad play. I was making money at the game when i was 17 and decided that i would make a living out of it by the time i was 18.
I am sponsored to play live events every month by poker.co.uk which is great. I mainly play in the GPUKT (Grosevenor poker UK tour) but occasionly do other fun stuff.
My blog won't be entirely about poker since i will want to keep my readers interested!
Here i will be posting about live and online, although online stuff is pretty boring so i will concentrate on happenings at live poker festivals.
I started playing poker for fun at the age of 16, i used to enjoy watching my step dad play. I was making money at the game when i was 17 and decided that i would make a living out of it by the time i was 18.
I am sponsored to play live events every month by poker.co.uk which is great. I mainly play in the GPUKT (Grosevenor poker UK tour) but occasionly do other fun stuff.
My blog won't be entirely about poker since i will want to keep my readers interested!
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