My first live person tournament

Jack and Jill ~ October 28, 2006. Casino Nova Scotia.

Well, Big bro and I signed up for this, our first live tournament action this weekend and we actually got there. No ER trips, military calls, or transportation problems (although there was some nice decor on bro's car - vandals!) - and we signed up early enough. Turns out, of the 80 teams available to play only 50 registered so we were ok to go. $100 buy in so $50 each was spent to see if we could hold our own in the 'real world'.

And I think we did a-ok. Learning the limits and play is part of the deal for sure so I went in actually hoping not to be last, sort of thing, and we were successful at that at least.

Round one saw Rico play first against a pretty good overall group of guys - one whom singled him/us out as the "mark" Nemo!!! However, Rico pulled off two good hands after a loss and creeped up our count from 2500 to 3000. Then Kodiak went in with the girls and maintained the chip count , played a few hands, girls were pretty tight.

Round two we were still going strong but Rico saw no cards for his 30 mins and had some blinds eaten up but we were still over the 2500. Blinds were at 50/100 so 3-4 rounds you lose a bit. No cards, that's poker. Kodiak steps in and in about 10 minutes pulls off a good hand with KK that holds and about 1000 in chips. However, getting pocket rockets about 10 minutes later that lost against trip nines, plus other blinds eaten, put Rico in round three to only about 1100 in chips. Blinds were at 200&100 so you had to play the best you got. Rico pulls off his pre-flop all-in with A4s and takes the flush so he leaves Kodiak with also about 1000 in chips but blinds were at 300&150 and her 88 did not hold up in her pre-flop all-in as called by AJoffsuit when the A hit the river. So good play and we ended up 26th. Not bad for a first showing and looking forward to another go.

Oddly, Chaos Doug and Heather were playing as well, and were knocked out just after us in either 24th or 25th. NP they say.

On a side note, I have played today 30 minutes on a cash table and bumped up my earnings $10 on a .25/.50 - had the nuts one hand (A high straight) and only called a river raise, duh! He had trips and no doubt would have called me!! Must pay more attention too these things....

Until next time!

arf!

ps - The pic is from the house evening game of the same day (see kodiak speaks her mind blog).

The poker stars gods R crazy

Or, what an ironic world.

For anyone enjoying the blogsphere tales of this poker girl with her buds on fridays night (see Kodiak speaks her mind) you will notice a major hand takedown this past week. I held a Kings over deuces on the flop (KK in the hole) only to be beat on the turn with another 2 to hit giving my worthy opponent quad deuces. I thought this stuff only happens on pokerstars....

Guess not.

However, it does happen on pokerstars and seemingly more often than in any home game I have been involved in.

Today, with about 10 minutes to myself after slogging away at my home buisness, I popped up my pokerstars site to see how their 1 million sunday tourney had shaped up (one of these weeks I am gonna aim to play with a satellite). After seeing it was the 500$ buy-in I ventured off into the cash game world of 25/50c limit blinds and took $10 to have a bit of fun. First hand I held AJ offsuit and checked. Everyone (all 5) stayed in. Flop hit 5JJ. Gold!

I, after careful observation of my opponent of 2 nights back, checked and so it was checked all round. I was first to act being out of position. The turn hit a Q. Check by keara98 (me) and a bet of 50c. Fold, call call and a flat call by me. River hits a ... JACK. Quads. for me! I check, he bets, I raise (damn not bring on the NL table!), and so it goes until we have the pot to about $9 to which I showdown the best hand without fear.

Played a few more hands until I was about to hit blinds and then left with my $5.05 win money and 2 FPPS.

Crazy.

If only my pokerstars opponents knew.

And back I will return this week I think for a tourney. Placed a lucky third last week and heard of a big win by big bro on a $4 byu in to take over $200 in first place. Congrats dude! (oh and he won our home game too...my own personal Yoda master....Bluff I think he does though from time to time.....)



arf arf

Back again back again jiggidy jig

So, Kodiak tried her hand again online tonight after 2 weeks hiatus. Bro Rico has been making up for my absence (this is what work ventures do for ya).

Only hit a few cash tables tonight rounding up with 12 FPPs and about 2$ up. Played mostly 1/2 tables and went up and went down but evened out in the end when I called a few jokers who were agressively pushing others off. My middle pair held on.

Funny that, the middle pairs. I hate them as I always think someone who is betting MUST have me beat but you know what, 7 times out of ten, I am figuring out they don't, so I call and BAM!! we either split or I get a pot. Sometimes, sure, I lose, but a few months ago I would have never called and thus whittled money away while waiting for the "nuts". Well, NUTS NO MORE I say....

Big game coming this week and looks like Rico and I will be challening real people we don't know in a mixed tourney...team style at the NS casino. OMG! My cockroaching may play well but then again, I also may get called and who knows about my live tells. I can curse and flip about in front of the computer screen but in front of real people (well, call me Mike the Mouth). Heck, I am cocky enough to pull it off. (I'd be scared not to or Rico would spin me around until I get dizzy and fall down....)

So game on !

Arf!

ps Keara is "off" tonight so standing in is RJ from over the hedge - finally caught but looking crazed....

Back to a tourney life....

Well, on again to the life of tourney play on pokerstars. Played four last night, topping off 3rd in my fourth for a $27 take witha $15 buy-in. Played 3 other $6 buy ins as well so donw $8 for the night. Not bad entertainment value for 3 1/2 hours of home time.

Came close to placing in another as well but a bad beat with 2 pr and called by a draw that hit on the river (riverrat!!) but that's "joker stars" or so many will comment.

But played well in the $15 and so it showed. Only 9 person table, turbo of course so every 5 minutes we had blind increases. Pulled off a few bluffs, but the table was tight and I found a completely different crowd with the higher buy in. More my type. No one was calling any serious raise on a draw. No limit play as well.

So overall, things went well and since it's been over a month since playing a tourney, was a nice change of pace. Maybe in another month....

arf~

another $6

Only a few minutes devoted to my online fun this week. Pulled out ahead by another $6 - in about 10 minutes at the 25/50 level. Fun times.

Have a friend now as well, Rico is on. His first sit and go and wham! he gets second. Good stuff. I will aim for a tourney again in the next week or two and I may just go for a big one. I hit once in a 1800 person tourney to come in 60th. Won about $35. So who knows. I finally captured a home game title this week. It's all for fun indeed.

And if one can imagine, I learned how to play elevator, octagonal and 5 card stud. Go figure. Thanks to Rico and Salloum wherever you may be....

Arf!!

The comfort zone

Don't get me wrong, I am by no means a fab player. I like to take chances online (something i should aim to do more in regular play a bit more consistently) and sometimes get bombed out, but lately, it seems I am winning much more than losing on the cash games. I have graduated from super micro tables (2/4c and 5/10c). Now, though, many of the 25c/50c tables I find I am walking away up in $. Definetly on the 10/20c. There I play 2-3 tables a round.
Take yesterday. I only played for 10 minutes on 1 - 9 player table. Went in with $10 and left with $15.
One hand of fun was an out of position for me with no preflop raises so I called 25c with 7/10 off suit. I had just one 2 hands unchallenged so I had some extra quarters. Flop hits -7-7-10-. haha! I bet, most fold but for one. He reraises me. I of course reraise back and so it goes until we hit the limit. Turn card is a 3. Makes for a flush draw (but not for me). I checked. He bets, I flat call.
Last card hits - it's a blank. I check (check trap!) - sure enough, he bets and I reraise. He folds.
Say what? It's a quarter. for this I would see what I had had. But he folded. I don't know what he was on, I can assume a the flush. Maybe he had the 10. But still. for a quarter.....worth the information. Fold for $1, not a 25c piece.
Oh well, he left the table and I took the pot - about $4. Played a few more hands and walked away.
Maybe I'll try my hands at a tourney again, No limit though.
Arf.

Keara welcomes you

Welcome to my online poker story section. From 'bad beats' to four table play to tournaments of mention, I will be recapping my latest goofs and blunders and occasional wins on pokerstars.com. Looking for me? Find playa Keara98.
Arf.