Originally Posted by TopGun in VA
19 January - Deep Run at Wynn/Encore Tourney; Cash Play woes continue
After registering for the Noon tournament at the new Wynn/Encore poker room, I walk back to Venetian for breakfast at the Grand Lux Café, and then return to Encore. I get off to a great start, with JT in the big blind, as five players take a Q98hhx flop. I check, there’s a bet of 150 and a raise to 300. Figuring one of them has the heart draw, I raise to 800, and the raiser calls. Brick turn, I bet 1500, and he calls. Brick river, I bet 2500, and he open-folds T5hh. Not only do I immediately have almost 14K, but I also know this player is willing to limp with suited rags. It becomes obvious as well over the next several hands that he will be an active player. He plays some strong hands trickily, but also doesn’t seem to get away from some clearly vulnerable holdings. He couldn’t get away from A6 despite heavy betting on an AQQ93 board, and he couldn’t find a fold when he raises KT, calls a 3-bet, and calls a T33 flop shove (other player had AA). I use this information to call his raise preflop and call him down every street with 99 on a 742Q2, including his river shove. He meekly turns over A8 for air, and I have over 22K. He rebuys, and after I raise with AK from early position and a woman from Washington state re-raises, he calls from a blind, and I call. Flop is QT4r, and it checks through. He leads on a blank turn, and I call. He checks on the J river, I bet near the pot, and he calls. My Broadway rivered his AQ, and it actually surprised me he was that strong. I’m now at 33K. A short time later I bust a short stack with AJ v A2, and end level 2 at 37K. Nothing of note in level 3, and as the end of level 4 approaches, with three or four limpers in front, I limp T9 on the button. We take a flop of T98 rainbow, and the big blind bets about half the pot. The woman from Washington State calls, and I call. Turn is a 9, and the big blind goes all in, Washington state calls, having more behind. I go all-in and she calls. BB has T7, Washington state has J9, the river bricks, and go to the first break with 63,700 of the roughly 444K in play.
Unfortunately, that will be the high point of my stack. I end level 5 with about 58K, level 6 with about 45K, and go to the second break with 38K. Shortly after, we reach the final table, and my stack of 33K is below the 48K average. With eight players remaining and the blinds at 800/1600 and a 300 ante, it folds to the big stack in the small blind, who raises to 4,500. I look down at AT of spades, and commit my nearly 30K stack. He tank-calls, showing A8 of hearts. Flop is J86, turn is an ace, giving me three additional outs (jacks), but I can’t catch, and am eliminated in 8th place.
The new Wynn/Encore poker room is a gorgeous room. Tables are well-spaced, and the room seemed very well run. It was also nice to meet and play with the wife of a well-known retired baseball player, who was playing on another table. She was a rather solid player (not that my opinion matters), and was a delight to play with, as were all the other players.
After this, I decide to stop at the Venetian on the way back, and play some $1-2, but my bad run continues, and I dust off $261 in about three hours of play, with no real highlights, or lowlights, to detail.
I head to Yard House, and have a delicious Cuban sandwich and a couple of Anchor Steams. I then play a bit of the Texas Hold ‘em table game, dropping about $125 in about two hours, and getting a much needed 20-minute neck, back, and shoulder massage.
Plan for today…play the 10AM freeroll, and then probably go to Caesars for a final $1-2 session.
Thursday Results: Tournament -$140; Cash -$261 in 3 hours
Overall results: Tournament +$750; Cash -$1218 in 29.75 hours.
great read, thank you!