RipleyBP Won the Amazing Race

This was one of the most amazing final tables I have ever seen in a Holdem Affair. Forty-two sat down and we had ten of the finest at the final table. The best of the best tonight was RipleyBP. His heads up foil was Glenso. The story of how they got there was amazing to watch. RipleyBP went into the final table in 8th place with only 3210 chips. At the second hour break we were down to nine players and RipleyBP trailed the pack with only 1660 chips. Glenso was the bookend of the list leading the way with 11255. But don’t make the mistake of thinking this story is only about Ripley. Glenso fell on hard times in the third hour and at one point was UTG with the antes 100 and the blinds 400/800 – he was down to 1775 chips. It was all-in with any two cards time. He pushed what amounted to a min-raise and all folded to him. That was the beginning of his rise back to power.

We paid five tonight. Doorie took the third place money. Jewelcard entered the final table dead last and climbed the ladder to finish in fourth place. He was short stacked most of the way but played masterfully to cash out tonight. Good to have you back Jewelcard. Annieboom completed the money table.

We had a strong field this week. Forty-two strong and we were still dealing to thirty-one when we got to the first hour break. Kryptic was leading the way and showing us how it was done. Here is your first hour leaderboard.
Kryptic = 6115
Verbalkint = 4355
Glenso = 3445
Doorie = 3415
Sunbob = 3365
Fatscotsman = 2940
Jewelcard = 2895
Guar64 = 2780
Jayzion = 2635
slotcrazy45 = 2525

As usual the second hour is when the tournament gets dicey. This week we battled hard for almost the whole hour before we set the final table. I took out Jennifear on the bubble when she pushed her pocket sixes into my pocket kings. That vaulted me to the top of the leaderboard and the final table was set one hour and 57 minutes into the match.
Sunbob = 11350
AAs up = 10960
Glenso = 10180
Doorie = 9200
annieboom = 5185
fatscotsman = 4250
the Tiburon = 3460
RipleyBP = 3210
slotcrazy45 = 2820
Jewelcard = 2385

I was on a roll going into the final table and feeling good about my chances. Little did I know that I had hit my peak for this evening and would never really be a contender at this table. This was another’s night to shine, not mine.

The very first hand of the final table, the Tiburon made a play to get a quick start. With just one limper showing any interest in the hand our favorite shark pushed from the big blind holding Ac 3h. Not a bad play at all but fatscotsman was the limper and he called the push holding Ad 9s. The board missed the dominated Tiburon and he left us in tenth place.

Just about ten minutes into the final table and we took our second hour break. I note this because the positions are significant. Glenso had climbed into first place with 11255 and RipleyBP was in 9th place with 1660. Watch these two it is getting interesting.

It was hand 30. I was back in the chip lead, Glenso had fallen back to second place and slotcrazy was the short stack. Four folds to Doorie and she raised to 1850 with her pocket sevens. Two more folds to slotcrazy holding As Qc so she made her play and pushed her last 1345 into the middle. Doorie made the call. The board fell low, nothing higher than an eight, and Slotcrazy45 was our ninth place finisher.

By hand 52 the antes were 100 and the blinds 400/800. Annieboom was now in the lead with Doorie close on her heels. Glenso and I were sliding. Two folds and AAs up limped to fatscotsman who was short with only 820 to push into the pot. Doorie, annieboom and AAs up made the call. They checked it down to see a final board show 9s 6h 9h Js Th. Doorie bet 800 and annieboom called. Annieboom showed 7d 8c for the low straight and Doorie held Kd Qh for the high straight. Fatscotsman held big slick and was gone in 8th place.

Just a couple of hands later Glenso took a big hit and found himself UTG with just 1750 left in his barrel. He pushed and said goodbye to everyone. It was folded around to me in the big blind and I looked down to see 52 off suit. The absolute worst hand possible heads up. I only needed to call 750 after posting the blind and I thought about it until my time was almost up. But I laid it down and gave Glenso the free ride. That may have been a mistake because this proved to be a significant hand for Glenso. He told me later he had pushed with 43 suited. If that is accurate then I was a 46:34 dog with a 20% chance of a split. I still don’t know if that was a good decision or not but it ended up being fatal for the whole table.

Hand 61 and now Doorie was the chip leader and Glenso had climbed back into 6th place. Jewelcard was tailing the pack with only 3470. I was in fifth place with 7000 chips posting the small blind. Told you I was sliding. Three folds to Doorie who raised to 2300. I was staring at pocket threes and decided to make my stand. I pushed my remaining 6900 hoping that Doorie would go away. She didn’t and made the call with her pocket jacks. I had gone into the final table on a roll and had managed to blow it with a seventh place finish. Yech.

Hand 73 and Doorie has a dominant chips stack of 23965. Glenso had climbed back into second with 13230. RipleyBP had 7770, AAs up 6975, Jewelcard 6740 and annieboom was down to 4320. Those are all short stacks folks and this is bubble time. We were paying five tonight. AAs up was UTG and pushed 6875 into the middle. Jewelcard had 6640 left and made the call. AAs up turned over Kc Jc and Jewelcard pocket tens. The race was on. The board fell low, 7d 5d 4c 2s 6h and the tens held up. Jewelcard had survived again. That left AAs up on life support and annieboom put him out of his misery on the next hand. Just out of the money but a very good showing for this newcomer.

Well, Jewelcard had managed to make the money. He had gone into the final table in a short position but this guy plays the short stack as well as anyone in the field and he showed it this night. He had actually climbed into second place by hand 85. In fact, lets set the scene because it is telling. Doorie held the lead with 23765. Jewelcard was second as I said. Glenso was third with 12030. RipleyBP was short with 9395 and annieboom was trailing with 5255. The antes were now 125 and the blinds 600/1200. Jewelcard raised UTG to 4000, and annieboom pushed her last 5130 into the middle. An easy call for Jewelcard, especially since he was holding As Kh. Annie turned over Ad 9h and knew she was in trouble. Two jacks on the flop and a second six on the turn gave Annie some hope for the split. But the Ks on the river sent her packing. What a tough way to go. This was the cruel hand of the night.

Those four battled for the next 30 hands. By hand 115 the blinds had increased to 800/1600 and RipleyBP had swapped places with Jewelcard. Two folds to Jewelcard in the small blind and he raised to 4100. Doorie re-raised to 12900. Hey, a battle of the blinds had broken out. Jewelcard held pocket sixes and decided that he needed to push back for all of his chips. Doorie made the call holding Kd Jc. Another classic race, two overs versus a mid-level pair. But it was over quickly when the flop brought the Ks. Jewelcard had to settle for fourth place and Doorie was increasing her chip lead.

Over the next 25 hands, Glenso kicked it into gear. By hand 137, Doorie was still in the chip lead with 27975 but Glenso had built his stack to 21810. RipleyBP was trailing with only 13215. On this hand Doorie called from the small blind and Glenso saw the flop with her. That flop came 4h 4s Td. Doorie bet 1600 and Glenso called. The turn added the Ad, Doorie bet another 1600 and Glenso pushed back for 7000. The river was the 6d. Doorie checked and Glenso bet 6000. Doorie called but mucked when Glenso turned over Jc 4d – he had flopped trip fours and had value bet himself into the chip lead.

Hand 145 and Glenso is on top with Doorie barely covering RipleyBP. Glenso folded and Ripley raised to 3200. Doorie held pocket tens and pushed for 13875. Remember now, Doorie has him covered. Do you make the call holding just Kc 8c? Well, RipleyBP made the call and he was paid off big when the Kh fell on the flop. RipleyBP doubled up and Doorie was in big trouble.

With only 510 chips left Doorie was all-in posting the small blind. Both called and checked down the board to reveal 7s 6c 9c 9h 4h. Doorie showed Jc 9d and doubled up. She wasn’t dead yet but she was not healthy either. All-in again on the next hand but this time Doorie held only 7c 3c. Both called and Glenso took the hand when his jack paired. Doorie was done in 3rd place.

Heads up and Glenso is dominant with 37140 against 25860 for RipleyBP. By hand 169, Glenso had a 51500 to 11400 lead and he looked like he was going to end this night on a quick note. But someone forgot to tell RipleyBP that he was done. A blind steal on 169 led into a big hand on 170. Ripley was all-in with Qd 8c and Glenso was happy to call with pocket kings. But the flop came 8d 4h 8s and RipleyBP doubled up.

Hand 170, and we are at it again. They saw the cheap flop come 6s 4d Td and Glenso called Ripley’s minimum 2000 bet. This was repeated on the turn when another ten fell and then the river brought another 6. Ripley slowed down and checked to Glenso who bet 8500. 17000 was the response from Ripley and Glenso laid it down. Ripley was now in the chip lead.

They battled to hand 176 when Glenso regained the chip lead. But two hands later Ripley took it back. They continued the battle but Ripley had the momentum now and gradually put some distance between them. Hand 191 of the final table and Ripley had 50140 chips to Glenso with 12860. The cheap flop fell all spades Js 9s 8s. Ripley fired 2400 and Glenso pushed all 10260 into the middle with Qs 2d. A flush draw and a gut-shot straight draw. Not a bad play heads up. But RipleyBP held 9c 7s. He had a made top pair with two shots at the straight. The pair of nines was enough and we had our winner.

RipleyBP had languished in the cellar for much of the final table and Glenso had been all over the board. I still have to wonder if I should have made the call back there when Glenso was down to his final bet but we will never know. What a wild final table. This was one for the archives.

Peace.

Sunbob Makes It Five

It was a small group tonight. Only 24 players sat down to do battle. And guess who came out on top? Yes, kind readers, it was me. The old Sunbob had some pocket pairs hold up at just the right times and I took down my fifth Holdem Affair title. Papoorboy was my victim in the heads up match. Mellow Yellow was the third place finisher to complete the money table tonight.

We were down to 18 by the first hour break. Our hostess, Marti, was leading the pack. I was languishing in card dead purgatory and was mired in 14th place. Here are your first hour leaders.
Marti = 3550
MeAnisa = 2875
johnfitz52 = 2740
Houn = 2695
Papoorboy = 2450
VegasSno = 2300
rshocker = 3190
Agro = 2170
Mellow Yellow = 2160
Lil Mem = 2120

Over the next half hour my fortunes changed. My cards started to change and I won a couple of races. Three times my pocket pairs held up to challenges from over cards. That will go a long way in building your chip stack. Here was our final table.
Sunbob = 9990
Marti = 4635
ThreesRWild = 4430
slotcrazy45 = 4310
johnfitz52 = 3605
MeAnisa = 2865
Mellow Yellow = 2835
Papoorboy = 1595
rshocker = 1440
Agro = 295

Agro was the first to fall. I’m sorry Agro, I didn’t get the hand history saved. UB has blocked hand grabber programs now and I was still figuring out how to take my notes.

Marti got hit hard on just the tenth hand. All-in pre-flop with Ad Qc against rshocker holding Ac Jd. But the flop brought three clubs for rshocker and matched his Jack as well. The river 3c only sealed the deal giving rshocker the ace high flush and the huge pot. Marti was now down to just 1300 chips. But then she doubled up off me twice in a row on hands 21 and 22. She was getting back into the match.

Hand 23 saw johnfitz52 min-raise to 600 only to have ThreesRWild come over the top for all 2100. This took johnfitz all-in with his call. John turned over Kd Js and TRW was glad to reveal his pocket aces. But poker can be very cruel and this was our first example tonight as the flop came Kc Jd 4h, totally clobbering johnfitz with two pair. No miracle ace on the turn or the river and poor ThreesRWild was in trouble. Hand 34 and ThreesRWild is back again. This time he pushed from late position with Kc Ks and was called by Papoorboy in the big blind. Pa held Ad Td. The flop was death for TRW - Ah Qh As. A king would have been good for TRW but it didn’t come. ThreesRWild was gone in 9th place.

This led us into the second hour break. Papoorboy now had the chip lead with 11215 and I was in second with 8735. Our lovely hostess, Marti, took the break nursing just 450 chips.

After we came back from the break Marti survived until hand 45. With the blinds 200/400 Marti was down to her last bet when she pushed her Kd 4h. Johnfitz was the only caller from the big blind but he held Ad 5d. The board totally missed them both and the ace for johnfitz was good. Marti was out in 8th place.

Hand 58 and johnfitz52 raised UTG to 800. Two folds and rshocker pushed back for all 1880 holding Ah Ks. Johnfitz52 made the call holding Kh Qh. The Qc on the flop was the deciding card. John went into the hand dominated but the Qc on the flop was the exact card he needed to send rshocker to the rail in 7th place.

We battled with 6 for the next ten hands. Then, on hand 69, johnfitz opened for 1200 and MeAnisa called from the big blind. The flop came 7c 8s 2d, MeAnisa bet 3150. johnfitz made the fatal push holding Ks Qh - two over cards. MeAnisa turned over 8h 9c for top pair. The eight held up and johnfitz was done for the night. Sixth place was his reward.

The action was coming fast now. Hand 75, with the antes 75 and the blinds 300/600, I was UTG holding big slick – Ah Kh. I opened for 2000 and MeAnisa had me covered when she pushed 9285 holding pocket eights. I had to call and I was glad I did when the flop came Ac As 5s. MeAnisa was now down to her last 805 chips and now I was back in the chip lead. Hand 81 and Papoorboy raised to 1800 taking MeAnisa all-in with her call. MeAnisa held Ks Td but Papoorboy had her dominated with Kd Qd. The Qd was the deciding card as the board missed them both. MeAnisa was off to the lounge in 5th place. No money table yet as we were only paying three tonight with the small field.

The very next hand found slotcrazy down to her last 160 after she posted the 75 ante. All-in from the button for slotcrazy, I called from the small blind and Mellow Yellow checked his option from the big blind. The flop came 4d 5h 6d and I checked along with Mellow Yellow. I held 4h Td and when the turn brought the Ts, I minimum bet 600 to tell Mellow Yellow that I thought I had this one covered. He got out of the way to see the river Qc hit slotcrazy45 with the Qs Jd but top pair wasn’t enough. Slotcrazy was gone in 4th place. Now we were down to the money table. Papoorboy was in the chip lead with 17215, I was second with 16970 and Mellow Yellow was a distant third with 1815.

The very next hand Mellow Yellow chose to make his stand. With only 3 BB left and he knew he was getting paid, he pushed with Kh 4s. Unfortunately Papoorboy held a big hand – big slick in fact. That was all it took to send us to the heads up match and Mellow Yellow collected the third place money.

We went into the heads up match with Papoorboy packing 19105 in chips and I had 16895. Pa and I battled for 22 hands. It was a good match but the momentum was mine. I eventually caught Papoorboy and took the lead from him. Finally on hand 105, I was dealt pocket fives and min-raised to 1600. paperboy came back for 5000 and I pushed those fives to the max. Papoorboy held Ah Ks and was happy to put his tournament life on the line with big slick. But tonight was my night for the mid pairs to hold up and this hand followed the trend. The flop came low and missed us both. The turn Jc showed some paint but not the right design for pa. The 9h on the river was no help and my fives held up. I was amazed but I had taken on Papoorboy heads up and had won the tournament. We all know how good Pa is so I felt especially blessed.

Thank you all for a great night. See you all soon.

Peace.

Birthday Bash Prizes

Marti has sent out an email with the prizes from the Birthday Bash but just for the record here is how everything got distributed.

From Marti:
Here is a complete list of who won prizes and what everyone won. If you are one of the people whose name is underlined, please let me know your mailing address, your jacket size if you won a jacket, and the name (or names) you would like on the back of your bracelets. I was going to put your User name, but if you would prefer your real name, I guess that's OK.

Brewton - the first out prize of a bottle of wine ( I need to know which kind you prefer.
Thunder3 - 3rd out prize of $5.00
LaeshaLady - Guar64 birthday prize
Maronie47 - the 13th out prize of $20.00
DaleT - 19th out prize of $5.00
Airmj91 - 23rd out prize of $5.00
SusieQue - 38th out prize of $5.00
goodtime chas - 42nd out prize of $5.00
marti - 45th out prize of $5.00
Holland13 - 47th out prize of $5.00 AND a jacket
sissy123 - 64th out prize of $5.00
coachstove - 69th out prize of $5.00
Bunaboy_1 - 71st out prize of $5.00 (I need your 1st name)
DebiMac - bubble prize of $10.00
Uncle Milty - a UB jacket (for putting up with me)

The final table winners were as follows:
slotcrazy45 - $36.63 plus $20 TD's
Jennifear - $51.28 plus $20 TD's
houn - $65.93 plus $20 TD's
papoorboy - $80.58 plus $20 TD's
Birdsindirt - $95.23 plus $20 TD's
SuperrSam - $117.20, $20 TD's, and a bracelet
sorry4urloss - $146.50, $20 TD's, and a bracelet
jillymae - $197.78, $20 TD's, and a bracelet
Angel_1221 - $256.38, $20 TD's, and a bracelet
the tiburon - $417.53, $20 TD's, a jacket, and a bracelet

Congratulations to everyone.

Tiburon Wins the Bash

It was the Second Annual Birthday Bash for the Holdem Affair this week. For two years of Saturdays we have gone into battle at the poker tables of UB. The longest running private tournament at Ultimate Bet. Our hostess Marti does a great job each week and we all love her for it. This week was something special. Eighty-six friends sat down in a rare re-buy format to celebrate two years of fun. This is really a social event for most of us but make no mistake about it – there is also some very good poker going on around these tables. Tonight was no exception. It was a war from the very first hand. Papoorboy was in top form and Jennifear was showing why she has become such a popular poker coach. Shootist was back to defend his title and there were former winners seated at every table. At my opening table alone there were at least 13 Holdem Affair trophy’s represented in those ten players.

Yes, folks, these tables were full of sharks. How fitting then, that the top shark himself went home with the honors this week.. The Tiburon, our favorite Spanish shark, swam through these waters and gorged himself on the final table. Angel 1221 was the heads up victim. Jillymae, Sorry4urloos and SuperrSam rounded out the top five. The rest of your final table consisted of BirdsinDirt, Papoorboy, Houn, Jennifear and Slotcrazy45.

It was a rebuy tournament this week. The first time we have used this format in the Holdem Affair. As a result we still had 83 of our 86 starters still in action at the first hour break. Here are your early leaders.
Stevob19 = 13430
Papoorboy = 13315
Guar64 = 11955
coachstove = 10430
ThePokerWolf = 10330
VictorDave = 9610
Red Hot Poker = 9240
SuperrSam = 9105
KOR = 8940
Dissident11 = 8915

The real knock out action started in the second hour. The stacks were large for the leaders and the action was fierce. We were down to 49 now. Here are your survivors as we went to the second hour break.
Slotcrazy45 = 27365
xgames4me = 24235
SdBe = 23085
KennyJ37 = 21275
coachstove = 20295
the Tiburon = 19440
Uncle Milty = 18980
BunaBoy1 = 18945
Jillymae = 18570
sorry4urloss = 17440

The blinds are catching up now in the third hour and the field is getting smaller. This is where the solid play started to pay off. We were down to just 15 by the third hour break. Jennifear had come out of the middle of the pack to take the lead. Sorry4urloss had climbed from 10th place to 2nd. The Tiburon was sitting comfortably in 6th place. By the time we eliminated the final 5, the Tiburon was in control. Here is your final table.

the Tiburon = 138915
Papoorboy = 119080
Jennifear = 75510
Jillymae = 56070
sorry4urloss = 44910
slotcrazy45 = 42790
Houn = 22190
Angel 1221 = 19130
SuperrSam = 16450
BirdsinDirt = 13955

From the very first hand of the final table the antes were 300 and the blinds 1500/3000. That meant that the blinds had caught up with our bottom three or four players. But it was Slotcrazy45 that made a play the very first hand. Pocket tens look very good in this situation and when all four fold ahead of you, a push is the play that comes to mind. It folded to Tiburon in the small blind who looked her up with As Jc. The board to the turn was low - 7h 3d 8c 3c – and it was looking good for slotcrazy. But Tiburon spiked the Ah on the river and our first casualty headed for the lounge. Slotcrazy45 finished in tenth place.

On hand 3, SuperrSam doubled up off Papoorboy and on hand 5 Angel 1221 doubled up off Jennifear. That was the beginning of the end for Jennifear. Just two hands later Papoorboy pushed from the small blind and Jennifear defended the big blind holding Ac Jd. Papoorboy turned over 8s 9d and Jennifear had made the right call. The flop came Qc 3h Td and the turn the 3d. Jennifear was looking good. Then the hammer fell on the river in the 8h. Papoorboy had knocked out Jennifear and was now threatening Tiburon for the chip lead.

It was hand 15 when SuperrSam raised and Houn pushed holding Ac Td. SuperrSam made the call, though, and turned over Ah Qh. No miracle ten for Houn and he had to settle for 8th place.

The very next hand we saw BirdsinDirt double up off Papoorboy when she trapped him with pocket aces. Then on hand 19, Papoorboy came over the top of a Jillymae raise holding pocket fives only to have her show pocket sevens. An unsuccessful steal from the cut-off on hand 26 and now Papoorboy was short stacked with only 36615 and the antes 400 and blinds 2000/4000. That set up hand 27. Papoorboy pushed his short stack holding pocket fours. The Tiburon called with pocket fives. That was the end for one of the most feared players at the table. Papoorboy had to settle for 7th place.

Hand 30 saw sorry4urloss double up off the Tiburon and then he turned around and did it again the very next hand. Those two hands put sorry4urloss in first place but amazingly only dropped the Tiburon into second place. Jillymae was in a solid third place and the three were pulling away from the pack.

Hand 34 saw two of the shorter stacks go to war when BirdsinDirt pushed UTG and was called by Angel 1221 in the big blind. BirdsinDirt held As 5s and Angel Ah Th. The board filled Angel’s flush and BirdsinDirt was our 6th place finisher.

Hand 40 and SuperrSam was our short stack. He pushed his 15090 into the middle holding As 2c. Jillymae reraised to isolate and went to the flop holding pocket sixes. The board ended up Jc 8h Kd 8s 5s and the sixes held up. SuperrSam was gone in fifth place.

No short stacks now, at least not until the next blind escalation. The Tiburon had regained the lead with Jillymae right behind. But the sparing would only last for 5 hands. Hand 46 and we have the Tiburon pushing from MP on a blind steal holding Kh 6c. Sorry4urloss made the call from the small blind, even though he was covered, showing his Ac 5h. The flop came 4c 7d 6d. The Tiburon had caught a pair but sorry had a very promising straight draw. The Tc on the turn didn’t help and the river Kc was even worse for sorry4urloss. Sorry was gone in 4th place. The Tiburon now had doubled the other two chip stacks.

Hand 50 and the Tiburon was pushing again. This time with Ah 5c. But Jillymae was happy to call when she looked down to see pocket kings. But the flop was decisive - Qh As 4s. Jillymae was gone in 3rd place.

Heads up and Angel 1221 had her work cut out for her. Only 65930 to go up against a mountain of chips (483070) in front of the Tiburon. Angel doubled up on hand 54 when her 4c 2s caught the wheel straight. They swapped blind to hand 61 when Angel doubled up again. This hand evened up the stacks. The Tiburon was still in the lead but only by about 46000 chips.

Sixty-five hands into the final table we had our decision. Angel raised to 16000 and the Tiburon pushed. Angel made the call holding Ac Tc. She had tried to warn that shark but he didn’t listen. The Tiburon turned over Kc Jh. The flop came Ts Qh 9s. At first glance this sleepy brain of mine only saw the pair of tens for Angel but then it registered that the Tiburon had flopped a straight. We had out winner. The Tiburon had won the Second Annual Birthday Bash. Congratulations Tiburon.

And to all of the final table – way to go. You all played excellently. It was a great night. Let’s hope we are all around to see the third year anniversary.

PEACE

Shootist to Defend His Birthday Bash Title

Come join Shootist as he tries to defend his Birthday Bash title. The game is on for Saturday night, 11/4/06, at 11 PM UB time. Marti has a full bag of prizes and a few tricks up her sleeve. This will be a great time.