Misfortune

Played twice in as many weeks. Lost a buy in each time. The first time was nothing special. Just a whole lot of second best and busted draw hands. Today was a bit different. I am up and down. Mostly down. Hovering around $90 or so. I get Qd9d in the big blind. I get a pass with five other players. The flop is Tc8c6h. I checks around to the button who makes is $5. I call with with double gutter as does a middle position player. The turn is the oh so lovely Jack of hearts. I check and the middle position player makes it $15. The button flats and I move in for around $70 more. The middle player tanks and finally calls. He was on a little heater and had over $500 in front. The button folds and the river bricks with a 5 of spades. The middle guy had Jc3c. I am over $200 now and feeling good. Very next hand I get KK. My first real playing hand in three hours. Folds to the button who makes it $5. This is a 1/2 game. I pop it to $15. The big blind folds and the button calls. T86 rainbow. I put him all in for $52 more. He thinks and says if he calls he is gambling. He finally gives the oh well call and the turn is another ten. The river bricks and he tables JT. I loved the call. Hated the outcome. Just when I though I was getting on a little heater. Six hands later I am under the gun with 55. I limp for $2. The guy next to me limps. Old dude one off the button makes it $10. Button call. I call. Set mining. The guy next to me wakes up and raises to $35 total. Uh oh. This is only one of two hands. AA or KK. I think. He may be trying to isolate the old guy who was giving away money. Old guy call. Button Calls. I make the crying $25 call with presto. The flop reveals the door card as the five of diamonds. Woot whoooooo. The other two cards were the ten of clubs and a fucking ace of diamonds. I check it to the raiser and he bets $50. Fold fold to me. I only have $100 left in front. What to do? What to do? My read was I was toast. He had AA for the set over set situation. I am not good enough. Or I do not play enough to have the discipline to fold here. I announce all in and push my stack in. He flashes me the bad news and asks me "Do you think I should call?" Damn no miracle AK here. I knew I was beat. In my bones I knew it, but was not good enough to throw away a set. No bad beat for me. Igh. Dejected. I either have to play this game a whole lot more or not at all. I think If I was a grinder I could easily fold that hand. I just only get to play twice a month at best and I can not stop myself.

Ameristar

I decided last night before bed that I was going to get up with the kids. Get them off to school and go and play poker. I live about an hour away form the nearest poker playing casino. I was getting up there once a week, but I had only been up there a handfull of times in the last six months. The construction of a new casino at Kansas Speedway is almost complete. It is only twenty five minutes away. My trips should increase February one when the Hollywood Casino is slated to open. But I digress.


Harrahs is about five minutes closer than the Ameristar. The Ameristar's bad beat is about a million dollars better than Harrahs. Based on the miniscule chance that I may win my share of $350,000, I chose the Ameristar. Its main and secondary jackpot both sit at $350,000. The tertiary jackpot is $240,000.

I show up and there is a 4/8 and a 3/6 limit game going. I put my name on the list for both and a 1/2 nl game. I get sat at the 1/2 game by 10 a.m. I went there today with the idea in mind that I would just be happy seeing flops. There is a Zen aspect to the game for me in that regard. I can look at flops all day sometimes and not be so result oriented. The upshot of this approach on this occasion was an extremely tight table image. I got crap for cards. I played some hands in the blinds and with suited connectors in late position. Nothing ever hit. I did not see a pair of AK in the first two hours. I had AQ once but had to lay it down pre flop to a raise and reraise. I finally get my first pair after two hours of basically folding and watching my $200 buy in fall to $140 or so. I look down to AA under the gun. Normally I would raise here, but I had not raised a hand or played past a flop in two hours. They all think I am a monster rock. They are all regulars. They know each other. I decide to limp raise. Only one caller and the button come along. The big blind had folded out of turn and went to smoke. Not horrible for AA. Also, I must tell you they have five Aces cracked every day. There were still three left, so I had that for back up. The flop was ten high. I bet at it small. $5. I do not know why. I think the obvious play here is to check call it down and hop someone catches up. I won the small pot. I do not like playing AA in no limit when there is an aces cracked promotion. It messes with my head.

A couple rounds later I get AK utg. I just limp with the idea of check raising the right raiser. Once again it is limped in but this time we are six handed. The flop is gin. AK7 rainbow. I check. A middle position player bets $10. One caller and it is back to me. I bump it to $45. This bet would basically commit the initial bettor. He only had $71 behind. He thinks a second and moves in. The other caller folds and I call. My AK beats his A7 and I am up $80 for the day.

I slug around up and down for a while and get AA again. Under the gun, again. I limp, again. Three of us see the flop. Q72. The big blind bets out. I just call the $5 and the other guy calls as well. The turn is a J rainbow board. Big blind checks as do I. The button makes it $15. Call and call. The river is a ten. It gets checked around. The big blind is upset, he had rivered a set and wanted to check raise. I flip over my cards and the dealer pushes the pot to the set and starts to muck the card. I speak up about the aces cracked. He did not even know there was one left. It was close to gone, but I got my $100 for my $78 profit. I ended the session soon thereafter up $120 for the day. Not bad for the four hours work. It was nice to get back out there.