Grab a beer, I'm bored.

Live action, final table of a satellite tournament. 80 players started, down to 7. The top 3 players all get the same satellite prize package. I'm dealing the final table.

Two shorter stacks at the table, none of which are in the pot, blinds 2000/4000, average stack is maybe 55000.

All folds to the small blind (mid stack) who limps, big blind (mid/smaller stack) checks. Flop AQ7, check check, Turn K, check check, River 8, SB checks... big blind says... You gotta have me... and mucks his hand (to a Check).

As the dealer, I actually hesitated to muck his hand, but it was thrown forward and into the center of the table... I had this look of shock on my face as I looked over to seat #8 (not in the hand, but I knew he was probably the best player at the table) and he had the same look that I did. Small blind shows 56 suited... plays the board, and takes down the 6000 chips.

I moved the pot over to the Small Blind as he was the only one left with cards... the Big Blind sighs deep and says... "ugh... I'm an idiot."

He said he had 5,3 and just assumed that by limping in, the SB had better than 7 high.

You are at the final table of a tournament and you just gave up 3000 chips for being absent minded at the time. Is there a punishment for this? Or, is the feeling of complete idiopidity (thats my word, idiotic/stupidity, it should be in m-w.com soon) enough punishment of it's own?

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So, I'm pretty sure that my NL days for the near future are over. I haven't sat at a NL cash game in just under a year (except a few months ago at The Borgata when there were no seats at my 5-10 or 3-6 limit tables and I had to sit somewhere... so I sat for an hour, folded all but one hand, made my blinds back and broke even). I have stuck to my strong points and it has been paying off. Limit Hold'em. I was playing stud when I was 18 at Turning Stone, NY, and I was playing Stud at the Taj when I turned 21. When Yahoo!Games started their free games section long before my days at Turning Stone, I played Hearts and 2/4 Limit Hold'em online. Talk about being confused. Took me a while to learn the basic strategies of Hold'em, but I learned them the best way you can... by seeing every hand to the river until I was out of free play money on Yahoo and had to reload. The best part was my friends and I had Dealer-Calls change games once a month and I actually realized that my free Yahoo limit hold'em play gave me an edge over my friends. Yay free lessons.

The Borgata opened up, I concentrated on Limit Hold'em. Realizing that 2-4 was a great way to get my feet wet, I sat for about 6 months... just learning, sometimes up, sometimes down. Moved up to 3-6, more ups than downs. Went to Foxwoods just after Moneymaker won the WSOP and saw him getting sloshed playing with bricks of cash at the NL table 2 tables away from my 6-12 Kill Pot.

I didn't know what a Kill Pot was until Foxwoods... MAN what a great game. I still can't understand why they can't do it at The Borgata.

So NL hold'em became the cat's meow and we all started playing it with reckless abandon. Our home games turned from $5 buy ins to $40 buy ins. I didn't have to go to the ATM for beer money for over a year because there was 2 of us (out of about 10) that were constantly winning while the other 8 traded off who would be the other big winner of the night. Over time, as the buyins and pots grew, friendships started to get in the way. It took a good friend of mine from out of town to say that if we were playing for more that $10, he was out.

This was a lawyer in NYC. Money wasn't an object. His outfit cost more than my laptop. And HE was the one saying he didn't want to play for more than $10. He knew that friendships would be put in the middle if the money kept escalating, and he was right. We maxed the buy in at $10, and had some of the best nights of cards we have had since we all brought $4 in silver to the tables in glass jars.

So, my constant source of boozemoney was cut off. But that was Ok. It was, after all, my friends money. So, if their money was off limits... let's go back to AC. I hit the NL tables for the next few years and I really wasn't seeing a constant win. I wasn't losing every time, but more often that I'd like... I was shaking my head walking away from the 3 outter that just took my stack.

So, last year, I decided to start protecting my bankroll by going back to Limit hold'em. Yes, I was made fun of by those who have never played Limit Hold'em before, but it's not about the laughs, it's about the money.

It has paid off. Over the last year, I have seen a steady increase in my "walking away satisfied" column. Just recently, I have made about 6 trips to The Borgata for work and was able to play 4 of those times. I'm paying for my new tires and alignment for my truck, my -lucktruck-, off of my AC winnings this past month. Off topic... Fuck those tires are expensive... $125 each... I used to wrap my Ford Escort with new tires for $125 installed... back to topic.

Now, this is much different that my online play. I was playing a lot of single table sit and go's online, and when I was keeping track of my stats, and taking the time to play when I should be playing, I turned 100 into about 1200 playing $10 and $20 single tables. I sold off 1000 of it and then went cold. Cashed in 1 out of 20 tournaments and went broke... well... not broke.. but online broke...

So, no more online play...except the occasional blogger or RPT tourney when I'm at home and free of distractions. So I'm concentrating on my strengths and dodging my weaknesses (terrible luck in NL). Let's see how the 2nd half of 2008 treats my "walking away satisfied" column.

Cheers.

Beepbeep.

30th Bday and Event#1 at the Borgata Summer Poker Open

535 players, including myself. 45 min levels, 8k starting stack, breaks every 2 levels.

For the first 3 hours at my table, it was pretty much small pot poker. Nobody getting monsters vs eachother, and nobody very aggressive. Played perfect into my style. After the first break I was up to around 11K. Very few showdowns, but when I was involved, I knew I had the best of it and was getting paid off. No monsters, but two pairs, low flushes with multiple players in the hand, etc.

In the 3rd level, before the second break, I was around 18+k when I was involved with this hand. Blinds 100/200, no ante. 2 limpers in early position and a raise up to 1600 from the 10 seat (my nemesis). I look down at JJ and reraise to 4000. All folds back to the 10 seat, a quick look at her chips and she counts out the call, states "All-in", pushes in the call, and then moves all her chips in. At this point, her and I were 1 and 2 in chip count, respectively, at the table. The hand prior to this, she had KK and won a decent pot. I ran thru her possible hands. The 1600 raise from her could have easily been a steal. She had the chip lead and was definitely capable of the move. I tanked and every possible situation showed me either dominated by overpair or racing for my tourney life with her facecards. I decided to let it go, showed the JJ. She smiles and said nice laydown, and turns over KK again.

I steal a few more blinds during the 4th level and get back to 17k before the 2nd break.

We finally started getting some chip movements as the low stacks started to make their pushes. I think only one of the short stack pushes actually doubled up. We opened up some seats and they were getting filled immediately as other tables were breaking. A quick look at the board showed that of the 54 tables that started, there were about 35 left. Long way to go.

With the new players, came new styles. Gone was the standard 3x raise, now it was 5x and 6x, and open shoves with the newest shortstacks. A lot of chip ping-pong at this point for all of us. Another costly hand comes too. The same position 10 limps in early, I raise with my AK, get the little blind to call (his first hand at the table), and get the 10 seat to call. Flop comes Q 65 rainbow. Little blind checks, position 10 leads out 5000 into the 7500 pot, and give her the once over and let my AK go. If it was heads up, I may make my stand here and hope she also has AK or a lower PP that didn't set-up on the flop and she can get away from both of them, but with the unknown behind me, I lick my wound and fold away. Little blind folds, she turns over JJ and states that she had me on AK or a lower pp and was calling my reraise. Good read for her, missed flop for me, another 2500 loss for me, but cheap considering the alternative. (Of course, I have the 6 outs twice if I shove and she calls... but... don't like 3:1 dogs)

Not too long later, I have AJ of clubs early on. I 4x raise, all folds to the little blind who is getting shorter stacked as well. He flat calls. Flop K rag rag. Check, Check. Turn Q, Check Check. River J, Check, Check. No way I bet here knowing that he had paint. Any PP and he would have shoved preflop. I was right. He shows AQ, but I get off cheap again.

I'm down to about 12k getting through the end of round 5 and into round 6, the last round before the dinner break. Blinds are up to 600/1200 with 200 ante. I watch as others make moves around me, and I neither have the position or the cards to make my stand. I get down to 10k and I am second to act. It was now or never. As obvious, I wasn't going to let myself be blinded out until I finally found a premium hand. I get J8 of diamonds and after the UTG folds, I take about 8 seconds to count my chips, look at the pot, and move all-in. All folds around to the cutoff and he states "Call". Man am I hoping for AK there. But no luck, he turns over KK and I am pretty set on my diamond draw to be my savior. .... and then the heartpounder starts...

Flop was... 8 (YES!)..... 8 (YESSSSSSSSS!)..... K (NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO).

I mean, come on. That's just not right. The player in the 1 seat says to me... sorry boss, I tossed the case 8. I glance at the turn and river but can't recall them, as I knew I was drawing dead. I say my goodgames and walk off. I glance again at the board and they were down to 20 tables... so 200 players, give or take.

I played my game, ran into some big cards and got away cheap. But I couldn't string together any big hands my way to give me comfort in my chip stack. Maybe I shove my AK and I get lucky. Maybe I play that JT into the raise when I would have flopped broadway and got paid off. Maybe I play that 66 into an 3000 UTG raise with an 6500 all in behind me.. .flop was 622... only 2 big hands that I missed, but I still fold those given the circumstances.

Alas... I decided to play some ring games before I left. I was waiting for my 5-10 limit game to start, but not enough interest. So I sat at 3-6 for a spell, made some money and walked away. I'll be back down there this Saturday for work related reasons, but I should be able to sit for a little bit at the 5-10 or 3-6...whatever is open.

Happy 30th to me and better luck next time... just have to stay out of the cooler.