More FTOPS attempts

I've still got it in me. Made more attempts at by way of satellites getting into the satellite to the FTOPS Main Event at Full Tilt.

Out of 54 starting players and only one (1) winner I placed 11th, 21st, 46th, 4th, 15th and...

The 46th place was AK and hit an A on the flop which had two diamonds and I went all in for him not to try to draw, but he did, and he did have diamonds, and he did hit the flush. And another fourth place for the statistics.

The and... maybe the last one for today. Shall I stop trying, or shall I make a push all night? I made some miracle recoveries in that one. AJ vs AK and hitting J on the river for example. It's only a bad beat if it happens to you, not someone else. :-)

At last we are TWO left, heads up. Could this be it? I hit QUADS Jacks and I don't scare him off, I want him to bet into me so I don't waste the monster hand but he doesn't so I have to make a move on the river but no call. I show it and tell him to "BET!" and he says he almost did, he hit the 7 on the flop.

I lost fair and square, what else can you do? K something and I hit a K on the flop K55 and then a 5 on the turn and he plays carefully. Not many hands can beat me and heads up you have to play a made hand.

One of the hands is AA and that is what he had. 2nd place and no consolation prize. Couldn't it be so that you could get a second chance when you've placed so well often as I have. X final tables and you get to play a shorthanded table, for example six players and two qualifiers?

OK, at least one more. Gotta play, gotta play!

Edit, footnote: Man, oh, man. Once again, I get dealt AA in the very first hand. And YES, someone to the right of me goes all in. Instant call! But... one player after me also calls. That worsens the odds. Oh well, let's see what they have. The one who went all in first has 44, hah haw. I have AA and third player has QQ. OK, not to shabby and the flop and turn show no danger. River is a Queen and we're out at a split 53rd place. Out early in another one, turning a Jack-high flush with a straight draw out there which was what I was hoping someone had hit. Nopers, winner of that pot and knocking me out had a Queen-high flush.

Now I'm calling it a night.

I see that a DrPauly is already registered for the FTOPS Main Event. Is it, and I think it is so, the Dr. Pauly? Yes, it is.

Funny, he writes in his blog that "I'll have a quiet weekend to myself where I can finally get some sleep, work out, read, write, and mentally prepare for seven weeks of WSOP insanity.". Pffft, huhmmph, lying through his teeth *mumble* *grumble*.

Bubble Boy returns with his brother

I've written earlier about not giving up in a poker tournament just because conditions look bleak at the moment.

This weekend I played in two multitable tournaments where this was proven once (or twice) again.

First one, 500 participants and 50 paid. When we were 51 left, I was at 51st place stackwise, but in a good position to wait a few hands more and to hope that someone else was knocked out on the bubble, there was no ante. But no, and finally I'm the Big Blind and I just about have enough to cover it and get some change, so I go all in no matter what the others do. And whaddya know, my JT hold up against J9 and I survive.

The very next hand I get KA and all in again. And they hold up against JJ when I flop another A. In the end, I finished 17th.

Second one, 233 participants and 30 paid. One of the very short-stacked ones with 31 left (and the two tournament chip leaders at my table).

But just wait and someone is knocked out at another table so I'm in the money. Finished 27th.

It didn't pay much, just about three times and twice the buy-in respectively. But if you've played for 2-3 hours, why not hang in there by the teeth and nails so you've at least not wasted the buy-in. In another MTT this weekend, I finished 89th of 533 participants with 60 paid, that's just how it is.