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Poker Trip Report

Poker Camp WPF 2002:
The Championship Event

Day Two of the Championship Event (10K NLHE):

Tough starting table, but I am lucky that Layne is moved within the first fifteen minutes, maybe even less. He has a ton of chips and they have to call in Ryder's. Layne states that there should be exceptions in moving players. He racks up some of the lower denomination chips and tells the floor to bring the rest. We muse if the other table has any idea what is about to arrive.

I can't give you my hands as some of the people I played with read may this and I don't want them to know if their reads were correct or incorrect. But I will say a couple of things. I happy with the way I played. Phil Hellmuth is supposedly a master at reading voices so if you don't have the goods remain silent. Phil raised a hand, John Rowan moved in. Phil tried to get him to talk, he wouldn't say a word. Phil said "buddy I played with you yesterday didn't I?" when there is no response Phil continues that the fella played pretty tight and he laid down his pocket jacks face up. John now responds that the reason Phil has chips and he doesn't is because he played too tight. Giving the impression that Phil did have him beat.

An orbit or two later. It is folded to Phil (two to my right) he raises and I reraise. He eyes my chips so I spread them out and give him a count. He tells me he is going to let me have it. An orbit later he again raises my blind and I again reraise and he inquires about my chips. I respond that I have what I had before *plus* what he gave me :-) He replies that in other words I am not as strong this time. "Exactly", is my reply. He folds. An orbit or two later he raises, Tony Ma reraises and Phil moves in, Tony calls. QQ for Phil, KK for Tony, perhaps he should of tried to get Tony to talk :-) Phil shakes his heads but is gracious about the loss. I don't recall off hand the hand that finished Phil shortly there after, but I do recall that he was replaced by Chris "Jesus" Ferguson. Exit one bracelet winner, enter another :-)

I raise preflop going back for chips. No one calls me on a technicality but after the hand is over (on the flop) Howard Lederer gently tells me that what I did was technically a string raise and I should either bring out all the chips at once or state the amount I intend to raise. It is obvious to the table that it was a "tell" in the heat of battle. A little while later I raise again and again I bring out only 1K, this time I stop, but the table realizes I meant to raise more. I am called by one of the blinds. The flop comes AKx with two hearts and I immediately move in. Steve Z. asks if I would mind if he acted first since he is the blind, ooops, I take back my stack. He bets. I move in. He debates and says she was too eager to play and isn't afraid of my bet and lays down AK. It is players like this that can make the big laydowns that get to the money. He of course wants me to show, I, of course don't.

We are down to three tables, only ten spots pay. My demise comes when I am moved to a new table. I don't have the rhythm of the table, Phil Ivey is raising nearly every hand, or so it seems (played three before the break started). I am short, but I should of just sat back, the structure allows for time and opportunity even though I only have about 2.5 orbits. I don't really factor in that once I get a hand I get a lot of money from the pot, even if no one calls. I wouldn't say I panicked, I thought I found a good spot to gamble. The first hand back from break I am the bb and Ivey raises from the sb. I think that this is a standard play on the short blind from the huge stack and look to see AhJh, hmm it started to look good and I decide to call, planning to move him off on the flop. The problem is he bet out 1.5K on a flop of TT9, the bigger problem is it hadn't initially registered that the 10 seat, Jay Columbo had limped preflop, it did register somewhat when he called Ivey's preflop raise. At this point (Ivey's flop bet) a disciplined player folds, realizing they can't take a headsup play against two players. Not me I move in the rest of my chips, which is a little more than double Phil's bet, Jay and Phil call. The turn is the 5d, Phil checks, Jay bets and Phil folds... turns out I am drawing dead..Jay limped on the button with AA. I gambled when it was not favorable.. I concentrated only on what Phil Ivey was doing and trapped myself broke. I have played with Jay, I know he likes to be tricky and trap but that was lost on me in the heat of battle concentrating only on Phil. Both of my huge mistakes revolved around not paying attention to the third guy in the pot. I had a real shot, I played some great poker.. I also made some huge mistakes. No real regrets, though as I write this I only now see what it has cost me, nah, no regrets I will file this in my memory bank and remember it the next time I get lucky and win myself a seat in a big one... or even, when I play in a small one.

I head back to my room to fire off email to those that I know care about where I stand (or in this case no longer stand) Last year I would of been depressed, this year I know that I played some great poker *but* have to work on some things. I decide the appropriate thing is to "mope", it was after all my first Championship event and though I played most of it well, I am out. But, the best part of my game is dissecting what is was I did that was right, wrong and neutral. I try to improve and I don't think I can by justifying. Poker does not define me and poker is not my life. So, I will learn from this mistake (OK two, but basically the same mistake) and it will live large for a long time, but I will not "dwell on it", I will remember the lessons I learned. So how can I mope? Not finding great success in "moping" I was happy to hear Russell Rosenblum's voice on the other end of my cell phone calling to inquire if I was still in and did I want him to hold their table at Cedars? Since I am out we (Russell, his wife Anne and myself) decide to go to the tournament area and collect Andy Bloch for the dinner break. As we are gathering Young Phan who has been playing at the same table as Andy most of the day says "c'mon, I got a key to the 8th floor" (private dining room where everything is comped but the tip) and off we go. How can I possibly mope, when life is full of opportunities like discussing poker at dinner with the likes of these minds? (Ah, camp dinner you never know where it will be *dining hall/camp fire* or who you will be seated with. Camp can be so diverse and exciting!) When we return to the tournament area someone asks me how "I" can watch this. I don't understand the question and obviously a blank look is on my face so they continue to say, when they are knocked out of an event like this they can't stand to watch it. Ah, I get the question now... how, can I not watch it, I paid my tuition I want the lessons even if they are from the rail.

We watch Andy play until 6 AM, making the cut for day three. The World Poker Tour (WPT) will be filming day three and airing it sometime in 2003 (along with 12 other events). Russell and I may be out but Andy is in, and we are very very happy for him. When play continues (two day later) we are there to cheer our boy on. He starts as the second lowest in chips, picks his spots and gambles brilliantly when he has too. His downfall is moving in with JT of spades (three handed and now short again) and being called by Howard Lederer who has pocket 9's. Though there are two spades on the flop, Andy fails to catch another spade, a J or a T. We later joke with him that he needs to work on his skills of catching cards. We watch as Howard Lederer wins and Howard takes all of us to dinner.

As we are waiting/gathering outside the restaurant I am skimming in The Washingtonian (magazine) article about Russell and the WSOP. I read out loud the sentence about Russell being the best player in Washington. Andy's mom claims that has all changed (with Andy taking 3rd today to Russell's 6th at the WSOP). Russell and Andy start adding up money won in their tourney's (in a friendly, not a cocky way) and Andy's mom takes note of the the author of the article. Andy's parents had come in to see Bill Cosby the previous night at the Fox Theater and stuck around to see Andy play on Sunday. It's easy to see from where Andy gets his integrity and easy going ways. It is also refreshing to see the mutual respect between parents and son. I imagine they must be a tad concerned that their MIT/Harvard Law son is playing poker for a living, but they seem proud of him and he seems genuinely happy to have them present. Ah, it's always nice when camp comes to an end to be reunited with family (smile) and to share the adventure. Oh wait, Andy isn't a camper he plays for a living... well, all camps have special guests, he is an honorary camper, as without him and the rest of the gang, camp just wouldn't have been so much fun. Now, where are the toasted marshmallows, s'mores anyone?


Read: Introduction to Camp , Opening Day , Arts & Crafts... er, $340 NLHE Tourney , Leaving Camp and Returning , The Championship Event Day One , The Championship Event Day Two

Joan Hadley


Poker Camp WPF 2002

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6

 

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