So I busted out about 45 minutes into today’s play. I was whittled down to 110K after folding for 2 orbits and then finally got the chance to open jam (from the button no less) and got called by the small blind. I had only peeked at my first card (to make sure that people didn’t know I was jamming any two there) and it was the 8s. My opponent flipped over AKo and I flipped over my second card which turned out to be the 5s. Not bad. The board ran out J8649 and I doubled up to about 260K. The very next hand I picked up 66 in the cutoff and the hijack open jammed for 177K or 11 big blinds. He’d been playing very tight for a shortstack but like me he hadn’t really gotten many open jam spots because the player two to my right had been very active. Since I knew he was an online player I re-jammed and he turned out to have 99 and I fell to 83K. The very next hand it was folded to me and I peeked down to see the Ah and jammed. Billy the Croc called on the button and he had 99 too. I turned over my second card and it was a disappointing 3c. The board bricked and I was out in 24th position out of 493, good for $6902 in prize money (buy-in was $2200 so $4.7K profit).
I asked a friend about the 66 re-jam afterwards and he said that the hijack was a notoriously tight player. If I had known that at the time then maybe I could’ve found a fold but even then I think it’s very close. 66/77 is usually my borderline in that spot and I’m re-jamming 77 every time. 66 is situation dependent and perhaps in this particular spot I chose the wrong action but it’s not something that I can beat myself up about. Even the biggest nit in the world (and an online nit is a relative term for sure) is open jamming a decent range from the hijack with 11 bb’s. The only thing that perhaps would have made folding a better play is that I had so much fold equity with any re-jam versus the live players. They’ll fold to a 3-bet shove with like KQ and AJ getting 2-1 or more all day long because they’re so used to the mantra that they’re probably now dominated. This meant that I could have chipped up with a lot less risk if I had ‘waited for a better spot’ rather than force an all-in showdown. However I thought this spot was +EV and so I took it. In addition, I don’t think waiting for a better spot is the way to go in any tournament, at least if you’re trying to win.
Anyway I thought I’d recap one hand from Day 1A which sent me into crazy tilt land. There were 3 limpers to my small blind at 100/200 and I completed with Q5 of spades. The big blind checked and the flop came 973 all spades. I led for 575 and got called by the big blind and the cutoff. The turn brought the Ad and I led for 1400. The big blind thought for a while before raising to 3000 and the cutoff flatted it cold. Ugh. Now the big blind had played and won the first three hands (showing down only one, QQ) but hadn’t played a hand in the hour since. The cutoff had doubled up by flatting a c/r with the nut flush in position and had let his opponent barrel his stack away on a four-flush board. So my reads were something like: big blind is solid, cutoff is a little weaker and has trapping tendencies in position. Now it was only 1600 more to me but it was one of those gross spots where no river card can improve me if my opponents have what they say they have and also I’m out of position and I’m folding to any decent river bet from either player. So instead of calling just to fold every river and donate away 1600 (or even more if I make a crying call versus a small river bet) I elected to fold. If this was the river instead of the turn I think I would’ve called. Anyway the river paired the 7 and the big blind led for 3000 and the cutoff jammed. So I’m sitting there patting myself on the back for avoiding this river spot while the big blind went into the tank. It seemed like he had the nut flush and was wondering whether the cutoff had filled up with like 99, 33, A7 or maybe even 97. Eventually he made the call with T2s and the cutoff showed As8x having turned his hand into a bluff. FML.
Now the cutoff obviously wouldn’t have pulled this move if I was still in the hand so I think the river action would’ve gone: I check, big blind bet 3000, cutoff fold, I (crying) call getting over 5-1 and then I ship the 85bb pot. Sigh.
Anyway the Sydney University Poker Society is running a $100 freeroll on Full Tilt in 90 minutes so hopefully I can go win that and make up some for my early bust-out this morning.
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