The next table on day one was much better. This game had a group of four 20-something guys who were all friends from some midwestern state and they were all playing pretty bad. One of them was raising every pot but then not doing anything when the flop hit, missing his steal opportunities. The other 3 played somewhat tight but you could tell after an hour or so they were getting impatient waiting for good hands. There were also a couple of drunks in the game who were friendly but playing every pot, willing to call raises with 45 offsuit just to take a peek at the flop. I got bluffed out of a $150 pot by one of the young kids when I couldnt get myself to call $70 with middle pair. I would of called because I was pretty sure I had him but there were 2 other players behind me who I was worried about. We all folded and he showed bottom pair while cheering for himself. I was a little steamed but I tried not to show it. If I think a guy is bluffing but know I cant call him anyway I fold somewhat quickly. I dont want to take a long time to make the decision because then the guy will absolutely know for sure that he bluffed me and be more inclined to rub it in. Things really turned around for me in one monster pot. I called an early position raise to $10 with 44 and it got called in 5 spots. The flop comes 7 7 4 rainbow (2 different suits). This is a monster hand but it is vulnerable if a card 8 or higher hits so I know I am going to fast-play the hand. The pre-flop raiser bets a novice $10 into this $50 pot. It gets called by the guy on my right and I make it $30 to go, hoping to get re-raised by a player holding a 7. I get smooth-called by the drunk on my left who I am pretty sure has a 7 in his hand, and the other players fold. The turn is a miracle 4, giving me quad 4's and a board of 7 7 4 4 . I check, he checks. Now I know he has a 7 because he would of tried a bluff on the turn if he didnt. The river is a 6. I bet out $50 hoping to get at least called and praying to get raised. I dont have to wait long as I watch the drunk put his fingers to the base of his chip stack and push in all of his $300 in chips. I have him covered, call right away and he shows 7 6 offsuit for the nut full-house. I jump out of my chair and scream "Yes"! The next words out of my mouth are an apology for celebrating but I dont feel bad about celebrating the biggest pot I have ever won in a live NL cash game. The pot was around $850 and I went from being down $300 to up $500. My heart was pounding and it was a major thrill. I swear I dont play poker for the action but this was action-overload. I tried to push the table around with my big stack for a couple of hours but I realized that I am an inexperienced big-stack player and I was losing a bunch of small bets and not really getting anywhere. Finally I picked up QQ up front, made it $10 to go, got re-raised to $40 by the button, a decent playing middle aged player. The $40 gets called by a tight player on my right whe really had a hard time deciding wether or not to call so when the action gets back to me I put the $40 in the pot and declare that I am all in. The guy on the button has $120 more and I figure if he has AA or KK, so be it, lets at least get the middle position player out of here. Older player folds but unfortunately for me the button has AA, the flop comes 333 7 8 and I figure I would of been all in on the flop anyway so I dont feel too bad about losing this hand. I cash out after 8 hours up around $360. I slept well that night:)
I spend the next day pretty much the same as the first. Slept till noon (the best part of playing poker professionally), spent a couple of hours floating around the jacuzzi, drinking coffee and checking out the girls. By 4PM I was back in action. Again I find myself stuck after a few hours, down around $200. Nothing really bad is happening but I'm not picking up any cards and I am missing the flop with the cards I do get. I am definitely opening up my game and if the game is passive I limp from middle position on with any hand as good as 78 offsuit. I'm in a good loose/passive game, limp a ton, but miss every flop. Finally I pick up AJ of spades under-the-gun (first position) and make it $10 to go. Not too long ago I would limp with AJ in early position but I decided that I am going to raise with even my semi-premium hands if the game is not too aggressive. Unfortunately for me I get called in 6 spots. I'm usually a fun guy to be at the table with and holler over to the other table, "Anybody over there want to call my raise too?". People laugh and we see the flop of A K 3, the King and 3 are spades so I have top-pair/good kicker and the nut flush draw. Problem with this hand is that I am way out of position on a large field but I know I have to bet. I bet $40 into this $55 pot, hoping to take it down on the flop but I get called in one spot, a decent player who is not too loose. I put him on either A10 or AQ. The turn is a 5, putting another flush draw on the board. To tell the truth I really didnt know what the fuck to do at this point. If I bet $80 and he raises me another $250 more (we both had about $350 in front of us to start) I would actually consider folding the hand. Since I am kind of lost-and-confused at this point I decide to check and see what he wants to do. He fires out a $75 bet without hesitation. Since he bet so fast I decide that he is reading me for weak, possibly thinking that I hold KK. I have to call this bet since my draw is so good but my problem is, what do I do on the river if he moves in on me for $250 more? Will I call this bet with just one pair if I miss my draw? The pot has $220 in it by now and I decide to end the decision making process and declare all-in and say, "It's about $250 more, let me know if you if you want an exact count." My opponent turns blue, green, purple, and then starts crying. Well, he didnt really cry and didnt turn any color other than a pale shade of green, but I know I made the right play. He shakes his head for making his bet and takes a long time to make his decision. If he calls I know I am drawing but since he is taking so much time I know he dosent have 2 pair or a set. He takes about a minute to decide but it felt like a week, my heart was pounding in my chest more than it ever has in this game. I've put this much money in the pot before but I usually have close to the nuts when I do it, this is the first time I am betting over $300 with just one pair. Finally he folds and I realize I just made one of the biggest plays of my short NL cash game life. He didnt show but I think he folded AQ or A10 with a heart draw.
By hour 5 of my 2nd day my friend Dan from LA shows up. Dan is a great guy, obsessed with poker like me, and a ton of fun to hang out with. He's kind of a typical looking jewish guy in his 40's but he has what they called on Seinfeld "The Kevorka" and has a way with the ladies. His cell phone camera is filled with pics of girls he's banged. We play together for a short while, I watch him nicely slow-play top set against a single opponent and extract $125 out of a player with a weak hand and am glad he won a nice pot. To tell the truth, I dont really like playing with my friends at the table because I get emotionally involved when they lose. The game is so-so an I leave Dan for a new table. Not much happens in this game and after 8 hours of play I find myself up $160 and decide to call it a night, locking up a $510 win for the trip. Normally I leave my vices at home when I got to Vegas (the opposite of what most do I think) but Dan had a funny cigarette so we went outside and smoked up. Walking around Vegas stoned was great. The men are such fucking losers, doing anything they can to find a piece of tail for the night and in my slightly altered state I really feel like I am in a large den of depravity. The girls are mostly blurry eyed and drunk but are fun to watch. I feel like I can clearly see all of the insecurities of our culture when I got to Vegas. Most of the men are highly muscled, definitely over-compensating for a small brain/penis and the girls are dressed as skimpily as possible. I fear for our future, but at least I know the games will always be good!
good flops friendsStatistics: Posted by Yogadude — Sun Jul 03, 2005 5:14 pm
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