Game Journal

June 2007

June 29
Added a report on the $2000 Omaha Hi-Lo event.

June 24
I got home from Vegas late Friday night. I made it day two in the $5000 Omaha tournament, but was eliminated before I made the money. (Click the $2000 Omaha link above for a report on the $5000 event also.)

I haven't been home very much this month and enjoyed my day yesterday just doing the "normal" things. Later in the evening, I played in two NL tournaments and placed in one of them. I might pencil in one more NL event into my WSOP schedule.

I am actually home for a couple days this trip. I am returning to Vegas on Tuesday and plan on being there to at least Saturday.

June 19
I am home from my second trip to the WSOP. My breaks between events are very short, but totally worth the trip home. I never seem to sleep well in Vegas and coming home for one or two nights is usually something I really need. I ended up sleeping for 14 hours last night and woke up today feeling great. I will be heading back out there tomorrow night.

On my last trip, I played in the $5000 HORSE and $1,500 Razz events. In both of them, I almost made it to day 2, but got eliminated late in the evening.

Trisha made the trip with me again, so she kept me entertained between the events. We made it over to the Wynn one night to play some Omaha and I had a great session in the $20-40 w/ a half kill. During the month, I have played over there five times and had an extremely profitable session four times. On one trip, I lost $40. I wish L.A. spread a regular Omaha game because it is the most profitable game for me. I joked with Steve that I was going to fly to Vegas every weekend to play at the Wynn.

My next trip will be a short one. Steve and I are taking the trip together. His patience for poker and poker players is very thin. He can usually only handle one event before he is ready to go back home. So our plan is to play in the Omaha event and then come back immediately. I will make one more trip next week.

June 14
I got my first World Series of Poker cash, but I didn't fair as well as I hoped in the No Limit Holdem Shootout. I got a horrible table draw including Barry Greenstein and Daniel Negreanu. I ended up getting eliminated in 38th place. Here is a report on the Shootout, plus the $2500 HORSE event where I finished nine out of the money.

I am home for one day to catch up on work, sleep and laundry. To date, the WSOP experience has been a great one. I have played extremely well and have had such a good time catching up with old friends and making new ones.

One of my girlfriends that made the trip had me in stitches during our entire first stay. She is one of those quick witted people and comes up with shit that makes everybody around her laugh. One time we were in the elevator with a bunch of older couples and when she was asked "who are you talking to?", she replied "usually myself". Another time we got in the elevator and there was an advertisement for one of their restaurants. The picture showed a man in a business suit sitting at the table and a hot chick up on the table grabbing his tie. It was sex advertising at it's finest. She remarked, "last night, they threw me out of the restaurant for climbing on the table." Playing with her on the poker table is an adventure too because she makes constant remarks about playing with a "full rack" and the men at the table usually lighten up when she is around.

I am heading back out tonight to play in two more events and then will come home for another turn around trip on Monday or Tuesday. Will keep you posted on my progress in the next couple of events.

June 12
I won my first table in the $1500 No Limit Holdem shootout today, earning $6700 and my first World Series of Poker cash. In the second round I ended up going out about 40th.

I finished nine out of the money Sunday in the $2500 HORSE. I'll write about both tournaments when I get home.

June 8
This Vegas trip has been a mix of things for me. I haven't had much time or energy over the course of the year to actually go out and have fun. I haven't had much time, energy, or brain power to go out and play tournaments either. This trip has been a great combination of both.

I have had so much fun hanging out with my girlfriends. On my days off from the tournaments, we have played a lot of ring game poker at the Wynn Casino. We have also made trips to the gym, sauna, and jacuzzi. There has been plenty of laughter and a lot of girl talk and I definitely need both.

On the days that I am playing, I have been focused on the task at hand - winning a gold bracelet. So far, I have played in two events (the Omaha and the 6-handed) and in both of them I have felt like I have played my best. I did not make it to day two on either of them, but I have walked away smiling.

I will report on my next event (HORSE) within the next couple of days.

June 6
Report from my first 2007 World Series of Poker event.

June 2
I have had a hard time winning in the Omaha games over the past two days.  Steve and I have been making jokes about how I am becoming the best "break even player" in the world.  My two favorite donkeys have been doing alright though, so they will have plenty of money to donate when I free myself from my "break even" spell.  I guess  I don't have too much to complain about since I haven't lost any money either.

My trip is only two days away and it has been a task trying to get things in order before I leave. Tomorrow, I will be doing all my laundry, house cleaning, taking care of any paperwork, and packing before my drive on Monday.

I am extremely focused and ready to play. A lot of the ex-props from the Bike (Bart, David, Tricia, and Jennifer) have been doing well for themselves over the course of the year and most of us are playing in many events. I would love to see at least one of us pull off something spectacular.

June 1
I played in a $33 w/ rebuy qualifier for the WSOP for the first time and managed to do quite well even though I didn't win the seat. For some reason, the main event doesn't interest me as much this year. I am more interested in playing the mixed game events such as the $5000 HORSE. If I do manage to win the seat, I will most likely use the money for some of the other events I plan on playing in. Who know? I might actually get a wild hair when the big date starts approaching and actually want to play in it.

I have also played in the $55 w/ 1+1 this week. On Wednesday night I placed in the top 18, but never really felt great about my chip stack. I was hanging at below average for most of the night. I finally got all my chips in with AQ and was called by AK.

The most exciting hand of the evening is when I won a nice size pot with only ace high. The way the hand went down, I didn't think I could win, so it was nice when the chips were pushed in my direction. I was dealt AQ. The person in first position raised the $200 BB to $600. I called from middle position with AQ, the player in the cutoff also called as well as the small blind. The flop was 764 and it was checked around. The turn was an eight. The person in the blind bets out $600, the original raiser folded and I raised to $2000 because I was sure he didn't have anything. Unfortunately, I was called by the guy in the cutoff and the small blind ended up calling as well. The river was a king and we all checked around. Somehow, my AQ was good. The person in the small blind had Q9 (don't understand that one) and the other guy had AT.

The next few days should be busy because I have a lot of things to take care of before heading to Vegas.