Shooting Stars

I cant believe it has been 10 months since I have posted on this blog.  Life happened and my money I had set aside for this challenge I set myself has been used up.  I have been playing some poker in the last 10 months, but not sure at this point what the focus will be for the blog.  I really did enjoy starting with a bankroll and trying to play to win, I think at the time the blog helped me track how I was doing and remind me of what I was doing wrong.  Re-reading these posts helped remind me of my personal pitfalls that I need to watch out for when playing.  So I think as the return to blogging I am going to recount my experience this March when I went to the WPT Shooting Stars Tournement at Bay 101 in San Jose. 

I was still working but I had made an arrangement with my work that if I got into the big game that I would take time off during the week for as long as I stayed in the tournement. I have the luxary right now of working completly remote half to 3 quarters of the time, so all I need is a phone and internet connection.  I flew in the weekend before it started and I had one chance to get into the big game cheaply.  They had a $1000 satellite that weekend for the 10,000 buy in.  I played a sit-n-go early that morning before the satellite to try to get in cheap.  The sit-n-go was 250 and the top 2 got a 1000 voucher for the satellite.  It was a rough sit-n-go, but I managed to get to the top 2 and get my voucher.  Even though my Dad was already in the big game, he also played in a different sit and go and also got to the top two so we where both in the satellite.

There where 171 players in the satellite so they where giving away 17 $10,000 dollar seats.  And boy did I come close.  I played really well.  Had the pleasure of having Dwight Pilgrim at my table for the majority of the tournement.  It was funny actually he got knocked down a little early and then got moved from our table.  Then a couple hours later he got moved back to our table with a pretty big chip stack.  i would have loved to see those hands that he won to get all those chips.  I played well and got down to the point where I had to win a race.  I choose to call an all in with 99.  I was up against AK off.  A in the window ended my chance to get in the big game.  I cant remember exactly what place I went out it was either 34th, 35th, or 36th.  So close.

It was still a really fun and profitable week.  I still worked most of the week from my Dad's house in Los Altos, he was in the big game.  I hope this link works there is a great shot of him on the Day 2 action.  He was sitting next to Scott Siever when he got knocked out.  he also got knocked out in Day 2.  he is the gentleman sitting next to Scott in the long sleeve white T-shirt
http://www.worldpokertour.com/Live_Updates/Post.aspx?c=all&d=c1c89483-eb04-466c-8c53-a5a5f315ce22&q={B7CE5A05-C067-4540-9F58-0325D0A5A37C}

I squeezed three live game sessions in, two winners and one loser.  The first winning session was awesome.  I think it was Sunday, and my dad and I got there around 8pmish and got in the game around 9.  My Dad left about midnight, and I played all through the night and was there when he got back to the casino before the 2000 buy in event that he also played in.  My game had just broken and I knew he was getting there soon so i waited for him and then got to join him for the players WPT breakfast before I went home to get some sleep.  This was my biggest winning session roughtly 12 hours and I won ~1600.  I started the night with 200 in the 1-1-2 no limit game.  Bay 101 does a three blind structure.  The first blind is on the button.  After a few hours I had accumulated my stack to about 500 and then I got a game change to the next level up which is the 2-3-5 no limit.

The next session was shorter, It was Monday night and I was still pretty beat up from playing all night Sunday.  I started again in the 1-1-2 game and ended up losing my 200, but the entertainment and experience was worth the 200.  After a few hours of play a visibly "tipsy" Gavin Smith came to the table with fill in WPT host Marianella Pereyra and Noah Schwartz.  Man did they let Gavin get away with whatever he wanted it was pretty funny.  I actually busted Gavin on an insane hand.  he was playing loose in the beginning then he tightened up then got real loose again.  Anyway, I was in first or second position, and as the had was being dealt Gavin stated he was going all in this hand no matter what.  I looked down and saw 88.  I figured he wold actually do what he said with any two cards, so I decided just to call to not scare him away from his pre-deal declared all in.  And I was right when the action got to him he went all in.  Neither of us had too much, I had under 100 and I barely covered him, he may have around 75-80.  So I was the only caller, and Gavin announces he already had a flush before the flop was dealt, he showed J something of clubs I think then asked if I had a pair.  I said yes.  Well wouldn't you know three clubs come on the flop.  Boy did his crowd start cheering, can you believe it he called flopping the flush.  Well unfortunatly for him there was an 8 on the flop and then it came runner runner 55 to give me the suck out full house!

The last session was not too long either 5-7 hours or so.  Since I was still up about 1400 and since I lost in the 1-2-2 game I decided to go straigt into the 2-3-5 no limit buying in for the max of 500.  I ended up making another 500 at the end of that session.  So grand total over three sessions I won 1900.