So this blog will only be for a few days day for the Venom tournament. I'm just a career freeroller on ACR but they are really running a lot of freerolls and micro buy in's for Venom steps, so I thought it might be fun to document how far I can get. Right now I'm lol playing in a freeroll to get to step 1 ($.11 buy in) and sitting in 19th place (top 50 get a ticket). If I fail at this, I'm going to start at step1 and just buy in for $.11. There are also some freerolls later tonight where you can freeroll your way into I believe up to and including step 6 out of 9 steps, so playing in those as well.

Sitting right around 50th place got AA. EP calls I debate whether just shoving my entire stack but fortunately I just do a 4x raise. Button did the work went all in I have him covered by 450... EP and blinds fold. I make him sweat for 10 seconds before calling and I'm up against QQ. Board runs out clean I'm up to around 27k in chips. Right now sitting in 22nd place with about 100 left. Top 50 get a $.11 ticket. So I should be good but I've been known to do dumb things.

As I was writing this got QQ. EP goes all in for about 7k. I obviously call. Up against 99. Board runs out with a 9 on the river. I was pissed until I realized the board came X810J9 giving me the straight......just knocked someone else out so now I"m up to 40k in chips 14th w/83 left. Now just fold to hit the top 50 unless I can get it in vs a short stack.

So I basically folded to get into the top 50 comfortably and received my $.11 Step 1 ticket. There were some stupid crazy people though that didnt take the format into consideration. Here's an example that I wasnt involved with. Yeah sure it's a freeroll to win an $.11 ticket but why waste your time if you arent taking it seriously?

UTG calls pre folds around to BB who check. UTG has around 21k in chips, BB has 14k. We're 8 away from 50th place to get a ticket so probably both are ok to just fold out their hands. Not what happened. Flop comes JXX. BB leads out, UTG raises, BB goes all in and UTG calls. BB has JX for a pair, UTG only has KQ needing a K, Q, or 2 more cards for a straight. Turn a brick, river UTG binks a Q to knock out BB.

There was also a crazy Ukrainian player at the table just doing stupid stuff for no reason. I dont think they'll be a Russian-Ukrainian war because they are all sitting on ACR freeroll tables right now.

Ok gotta grab some lunch then I'll hit the step 1 table. Looks like step 1 needs 15 players to start with 10 players advancing to step 2.

So I'm sitting around waiting forever to get 15 people to start the 1st step and I just jump into one of the "cyclone" qualifiers where you have to get to 5,000 chips from a starting stack of like 1,100. Once you hit 5,000 chips, you get a ticket to the next step and you are still playing with any chips that you have left over 5,000. Pretty cool format. So I build up my stack to 4100 just need a little more then I get KK. I 4x raise, get called then a smaller stack goes all in, i shove, other player folds. Of course I'm up against AA. But even if I lose I'm still above starting stack. But wouldnt you know it the magical K comes on the river so I'm on to Step 2.

Well so much for that....my starting stack of 1450 got dwindled down to around 900. Folds around to me in SB i have K8s I shove. BB has me covered he calls with J9 1 diamond. Great until the flop comes all diamonds. Turn the J of diamonds gg me.

I'm just going to keep jumping in the $.11 cyclone qualifiers and I'll update if I make it past step 2.

Doesnt look like a good outcome here. Busted 3 more of the $.11 cyclone blitz step 1's. Now I've got enough in my account for 2 cyclone blitz step 2's, one of which I'm in now. Only problem is I've been sitting here for over 10 minutes and I never get seated to a table to play a hand, which really sucks. I think the software is stuck or something. Either that or there arent enough players to play.

It's my birthday tomorrow but I think after playing these cyclone blitz qualifiers, I'm not gonna be able to wait until tomorrow to start drinking.

OK things finally got back on track. Guess there just werent enough players for the Blitz contests. Ended up winning a step 3 seat and a step 2 seat after multiple attempts.

Will update if I win a step 4 seat otherwise this blog will be finished.

Not quitting just yet. In 2 freerolls one to get to step 5 which i'm currently 20th with 109 remaining and the other is for step 6 currently 18th with 147 remaining. need to get into top 10 for step 6 and top 15 for step 5. Lets get both!

Finished 17th out of 935 in the step 6 Blitz freeroll. Needed top 10. Last hand UTG called BB with biggest stack. UTG+1 min raised w 2nd biggest stack. UTG+2 calls w 3rd biggest stack. I look down at 88. I thought about folding but I only had like 6 blinds so i shoved. I assume everyone shoved I didnt even look. UTG had QQ lol. UTG+1 had KK and UTG+2 had A10s. Flop hits w a king game over. Hindsight I should have gone w/ my gut and folded, but whatever. I mean in that situation unless someone folds from somebody else 4 betting I'm going 4 ways with 88 that is not good so I think 88 in that spot should have been a fold even with only 6 blinds. Interesting spot to be in though.

Step 5 Blitz freeroll as I write this I folded my way to the top 15 out of 821 so I have that ticket for tomorrow. At least I got something out of it.

I guess tomorrow morning or early afternoon I'll try to see if anyone is around to play in a Blitz step 5. I'd rather it just be a regular tournament, but I dont have a choice I have to play in a Blitz game. Hopefully my limited experience today with those will help me out.

Had to wait about an hour to get the minimum 8 players to start the qualifier to step 6. The good news is I didnt have to use my ticket for a Blitz contest, and just played in a sit and go which awards 5 tickets to level 6 with $16 going to 6th place. With usually about 30 people entering these contests, those are pretty decent odds.

Nothing really happening I had chipped up to 2nd in chips to 3856 from starting stack of 2500 in first 15 minutes then this hand happened playing 7 handed.

Blinds are 20/40 and I am in BB and look down at AKs.

Folds to cutoff who raises to 100. Button calls. SB folds.

I raise to 500. Cutoff min clicks to 1060 like an idiot, which caused what happened next. Button calls.

I shove my remaining stack so I'm all in for 3856. Cutoff goes all in for 2475 total. Button who started with the largest stack with about 4350 calls my all in.

Cutoff has AK unsuited and Button has QJ unsuited (one is a club which I have 2 of).

Flop comes QJ2 one club. Turn 9 clubs. River a brick. And I'm out just like that.

Four hours of work to win this seat last night down the tubes in a matter of minutes. The only reason I see for Cutoff to min click 4 bet is to I guess induce me and the other guy to go all in? When he min clicked 4 bet 1060, he only had an additional 1415 behind. If he would have just shoved instead the Button might have possibly folded at that point since he only covered me by around 500 but who knows some people play pretty crazy in these things. I dunno maybe it's just me but if I'm going all in early in a tournament, I want it to be against as few as people as possible. Guess that guy thought otherwise. I guess it really doesnt matter at this point. Saturday ACR is running some more level 6 and level 5 qualifiers etc I might play in those