I forgot to mention in my last blog that on Thursday I knocked out a guy who was a quadriplegic. Jack Effel had called him onto the stage and wished him luck earlier in the tournament, but he got all of his chips in with Q-Q against K-K and I put out a dry board to knock him out of the tournament. If anyone is wondering how he played the tournament, he had a friend that flashed his cards at him and then the player would verbally state his intention to me. His friend would then physically carry out the play.
On Thursday night I picked AJ up from the airport and we drove the strip before heading back to the apartment. The next day we headed to the Rio to catch some day four action. We sat at the feature table for a while to watch Phil Hellmuth and then left the UFO to see some other players. We saw Eli Elezra, Dennis Phillips, Joseph Cheong, Darus Suharto, David Diaz, Richard Lee, David Chiu, and finally Daniel Negreanu.
We found a spot on the rail next to Negreanu's table and stood there for a couple of hours. The players went hand-for-hand just after we started watching Daniel. The tournament paid 693 players and there were 694 players remaining, so each table dealt one hand simultaneously and when the hand was completed, the dealer stood up and waited until the hand was complete on every remaining table in the tournament before dealing another hand. This went on for around 45 minutes or so, until they finally eliminated the last player to miss the money. Negreanu was all-in and called once during this period and so many cameras came running over that AJ and I couldn't see the table at all. Daniel won the hand to double his chips and stay alive in the tournament, so he avoided being the bubble boy.
Once they finally made the money, we watched Daniel call an all-in w/ A-K against K-J and the cameras came swarming again. It was obvious from Daniel's reaction when a jack hit the board, and he was crippled to only 30,000 or so chips remaining. With the blinds at 3,000/6,000/1,000 he was painfully shortstacked. His table was broken shortly afterwards, he went to another area of the room, and AJ and I decided to head to the Orleans to play in their $125 Friday night tournament. Negreanu actually ended the day at 619,000, so he must have gone on a major heater after we left.
The tournament at the Orleans turned out to be a test of patience for me and I eventually ran out. I looked at a ton of 8-3, 9-4, and J-2 type hands. I played only one hand at the 50/100 level, which was 6♣ 4♠ from the big blind after a middle position player and the small blind had limped. The flop came a beautiful 5♥ 3♠ 2♦ to give me a straight! The small blind bet 100, I raised to 300, the other player folded, and the small blind called. In retrospect, I think I should have smooth called. The turn was the A♦, the small blind checked, and I bet 600, hoping that he hit the ace. But he folded and I had to settle for a small pot.
At the 75/150 level I only played one hand as well. I looked down at 8♥ 8♣ in early position and raised to 400. Three players called and the big blind checked dark before the flop came out. The flop came 9♠ 7♠ 2♣ and I bet 700, thinking that there is an excellent chance that all three opponents missed the flop. Two players folded, but the big blind called. The turn was the 5♣ and we both checked. I could have bet, but I felt the chance to drive out a possible flush draw was trumped by the need to keep the pot small with my weakish hand. The river came the J♠ and the big blind bet 1,100. It could have been a bluff, but I think he made his flush. Or he bet his monster that he was slowplaying earlier in the hand. Either way, I'm pretty sure that I was beat, and I had no problem folding.
At the 100/200 level I, again, played only one hand. I had A♦ K♠ in the big blind. An early position player and the small blind limped in and I decided to check. I don't like my check in retrospect, but at the time I figured both that I had a well disguised hand if I hit it, and that the pot was still pretty small when compared to our stacks, so there was a lot to gain through deception. But I would prefer a raise to 1,000 or so to at least knock out the small blind. As it happened though, I was glad that I checked. The flop came Q♥ 10♣ 4♠, I checked after the small blind, and the other limper bet 600. I decided to just fold and he flashed A♥ Q♦, which certainly would have called me preflop. But again, there is the purpose of raising - I would have gotten more money in the pot when I held a dominating hand.
At the 150/300/25 level, I raised to 825 from middle position with A♦ K♦ and everyone folded. Later I limped from the small blind with Q♠ 9♥ after two other players had called. But the big blind raised to 1,200 and I folded before the flop. At the 200/400/50 level, I raised from the small blind holding A♠ 6♠ and the big blind folded.
I again played only one hand at the 300/600/75 level. Is this getting repetitive yet? Two players, including the small blind, limped in and I looked down at the Williams sisters, Q♠ Q♣, and I raised to 2,200. Both opponents called and we saw a flop of 10♥ 9♣ 4♦. The small blind checked and I bet 5,000, intending to stake my tournament on the hand. Both opponents folded and despite my inactivity, I was up to 13,600 at the break, higher than the starting stack of 12,500.
The blinds were up to 400/800/100 after the break. I was in the big blind holding A♣ Q♦ and only the small blind, an older gentleman, had called. I raised 4,000 more and he called. The flop came Q♥ 4♥ 3♦ and he checked. I was unsure if I should make a small bet to try to get some chips, or if I should shove all-in hoping to look scared. I decided to shove all-in and he grumbled that every time he had black, the dealer put out red. He folded and I moved up to 18,200 chips. Two hands later I was dealt 3♠ 3♣ on the button and everyone else had folded. I raised to 2,000, hoping to steal the blinds, but the big blind called. The flop came an amazing 8♥ 3♥ 3♦ to flop me quad threes! The big blind checked and I checked, hoping a card would come to help him. The turn was the K♥ and we both checked again. The river was the 4♦ and he checked a third time. Bummer. I bet 4,000, but he folded and I showed the table my big hand that made me almost nothing. But that is the paradox. The bigger the hand in poker, the less money you tend to make because you hit the board so hard that there isn't much your opponent can realistically have.
I folded for a long time after this hand and I was moved to the same table as AJ. There was a young player to his left that was having himself a great time making outrageous bets and calls, and, like many people playing that way, hitting everything. I watched him call a large all-in with J-5, though he did lose that hand. I was dealt Q♣ 10♣ on his big blind and I felt that there were many worse hands that he was likely to call, or even reraise, with. He did call, the flop came J♦ 6♣ 4♣ and he bet 6,000. I thought that he might do that with any two cards, so I shoved all-in with my flush draw. He called and showed one of the worst hands I could see, J♣ 2♣, which diminished my chances of hitting my flush. I was down to a Q or club to stay alive, but the board came 8♠ 3♥ and I was out. The same player eliminated AJ about an hour later.
I went in to work early on Saturday to see if I could get into the Main Event, but Amy was going to have to send around 75 dealers home without work as it was, so I really couldn't try to get in. I came back at 1:00 and I was assigned to deal the last 2PM of the WSOP. I dealt six downs and right at the end of my last down I dealt out an awesome hand. A player moved all-in with K♥ Q♣ and he was called by A♠ J♠. The flop came K♠ Q♠ 8♦, giving the all-in player top two pair and the caller flush and straight draws. The turn card was the 10♠, giving the caller a royal flush! It was only the second straight flush I dealt out the entire WSOP and the only royal flush that I've ever seen in person!
After finishing my shift, AJ and I watched Daniel Negreanu bust out of the Main Event before leaving for the day to go walk the strip. I showed him the Caesar's Palace, Bellagio, Mirage, Venetian, and Paris Casinos, and we had a great time, though we were exhausted. Despite staying up until 2AM cleaning the apartment and packing the car, we got up and left around 8AM Sunday morning to drive back home to Sacramento. All in all the trip was absolutely incredible, but it sure is great to be back home!
