Passive in the moh-nayh

Played a live tournament, the second one in our recently started poker club.

Twenty participants in a freezeout, quite high buy-in (for me at least). Three tables, seven max, and when down to ten players it will be one table. Five paid and extra bonus from our sponsor to the winner: travel, accomodation and buy-in to a tournament in Estonia.

Quite passive (I read some comments about me in a poker blog written by a regular that I "say eight words in six hours" and "solid player") but I double up quite early. How? By hitting the 99% nuts, raising, getting reraised and getting my all-in called.

I had AA... Flop is A, 4, something. The above betting takes place and opponent turns over A4 = two pair whereas I have three of a kind, Aces. Another four would only give me a better full house against his full house. A bit hazy on the details, the all-in could be on the turn.

To add insult to injury, it was the same player I knocked out with AA vs JJ last time.

Patience, Grasshopper. My stack gives me opportunity to just wait and wait, and since it's a freezeout (no rebuys), if you're out you're out and can't make a comeback and I have to massacre you once more. Suits me well.

Before you know it (actually, quite a while), it's the final table, and I'm on it. I really should start taking notes to give better recounts. It's my rock-style, machine-like play that does it. As usual, some good laydowns, working semi-bluffs and taking advantage of player curiosity or getting them pot committed or low stacks keeps me in the game (QQ vs 66 for example, he even said "I shouldn't, I know you have a pocket pair").

Finally down to five players, In The Money. I'm to the left of a player similar to me (not wild, no bully, quiet rock), and we're both shortstacked, but he's shorter than me and we get to a three-way all-in situation pre-flop where I simply had to do so because if I don't do it, I'll barely have the big blind which comes to me next deal. 8T suited... Flop comes up and I have a gutshot straight draw but no help to either of us two, we're out. But since he had less than me he's out at fifth place, getting the buy-in back and I'm out at fourth, getting buy-in times two.

And since we're a club now and well organized, they'll have a longer term ranking list for 2006 and a prize place in the first tournament this year ain't bad.

In other news, I got an email from yet another poker site that had some sort of "evaluation promotion" going. Register, download and try out our poker client, no deposit necessary, and we'll give you 100 SEK = $12 to play for and you are also eligible for the $100 Raked Hands bonus.

I quintupled (fancy word, eh?) the $12 in two short weekday evenings at the $0.05/0.10 NL THE tables and two second places in $3 Sit'n'Gos, up to $60 and then getting the first payoff from the Raked Hands Bonus. Blew some at Multitable tournaments but I'm still up and rising. One could almost say that there's no fish there... It's a barrel full of caviar and you've got your own spoon.