Well I am out of the tournament. The whole two days was a struggle, just a struggle. Think I played good, solid poker just had trouble getting any traction. Having said that I am glad I played, played well and am glad for the experience. None of it is wasted on me, that much I know.

Won my seat yesterday in a cliff hanger of an event. When we got down to 22 or so discussions were started about a chop. As usual, a few didn’t want to as there were some short stacks. Two hours laters all the short stacks had doubled up and we were all pretty even in chips. Better restart those chop discussions Queen said and lo and behold the earlier holdouts were much more ameanable at ths stage. Saved a few hours that way too.

Survived Day 1 of the L A Poker Classic, 745 started and 477 finished. Just had one of those days you have to endure .. second best, lost 5k or so with JJ on a low board to run into QQ. Super aggressive table and little to work with. Finally call a pre flop raise with A K of spades, loose player reraises, I move all in, he insta calls with Jacks and I catch a king to double up to 24k. Almost the next hand he moves all in pre flop and I get KK for the first time in the entire tournament. Call, of course, and he has A Q offsuit and catches an ace to cost me $7,650. Had the hands happened in a different order, the kings first I would have been out so am grateful for that. Ended the day with $15k in chips, not great but a testament to surviving. Return tomorrow at noon.

Showed up today for the $1,050 mega for seats in the $10k Main Event. 169 players so 17 seats to be awarded (the last 17 players standing). Won my seat and play tomorrow at noon in Main Event. Table 17. Seat 7. This is going to be good.

As I am wont to do … I am rethinking hands, doing my post mortem and going through the entire tournament. I played for over 20 hours and never saw aces once, not one time. I had KK three times, twice under the gun where you have to raise to keep limpers out, everyone folded and the third time I reraised pre flop and took it down there. Never saw a pair of Queens but had Jacks and 10’s. One time on Day 2 I had 10-10 under the gun, I raise it, everyone folds except the big blind. Flop is 5 6 7, I fire, he calls me, a 9 hits the turn, I check and he checks and the miracle 8 hits the river, putting a straight on the board. I fire big time and he calls me only to see a higher straight. He got pissed, which seemed rather ridiculous, then goes into a lecture about how many people he has busted from his big blind. I smile. That didn’t seem to placate him so he tells the table he had Q 8, I’m thinking that didn’t make him look too good because he would have hit the straight on the turn and he checked and let me get there on the river. Guy says “you got lucky” and I say “it’s a key part of the game.” That didn’t seem to satisfy him either so he says “your over-bet on the river looked like a steal,” and I tell him the truth “it was supposed to.” Goofball.

So even though I would have liked to have taken it down I am really all right with my play. It was a rough session where I had to be quite creative with chip accumulation. Although this game is much easier when you have premium cards which also match the board I’m getting damn good at make believe. Ha.

We started the day with 26 players and I was 5th in chips. My friend Chris Bigler was 3rd. It was an up and down day .. up when I turn a straight and big time down when my 10 10 runs into aces. I lost 2/3 of my stack. Was getting ground down and call a raise with A 9 of hearts, flop A 10 4. Player to my left bets and I reraise him. He had A 10 and had flopped a monster. Could I have played it differently or not at all .. perhaps but I believed my ace was good and he would have made the same move with the 10. So I finished 9th and I’m really okay with how it all played out. Mega tomorrow for seats.

Yesterday’s tournament was just a total waste of time and money, no hands, only $3k in chips to start, have high cards and the board is low, have low cards and the board was high. Didn’t last long so headed to cash. Things finally broke around midnight and I knew that being stuck in neutral was gone. Woke up this morning excited about playing in the $1k event today.

It was a great poker day. No great hands, just great reads and great play. That really matters. This poker gig, I’ve decided, is mostly trying to minimize your mistakes and capitalize on your opponents. A case in point. My big blind and I’m already in for $1,200. There’s already $4,500 in the pot, my opponent bets $3k, I look down at 9 7 of hearts and am getting a great price for my money. Flop is A 9 5, two hearts, I check, he bets small again, $4,000, so I call. Turn is the Jack of hearts, I’ve hit the flush., I fire, he calls, river is another heart and we both check. He turns over a set of aces, THREE ACES, why did he let me in so cheap and why did he make it so cheap to get my hand … great for me.

There are 25 left out of the 220, money started at 27, and we return tomorrow at 1 p.m. Avg. chips is 60k and I’m double that, gotta get some sleep …