Saturday, January 27, 2007

HurQueRock Goes All The Way

It was a quick Holdem Affair tonight.  Thirty-three of our finest sat down tonight and just two and a half hours later it was HurQueRock with all the chips.  Last week’s winner, Spideytwo, was the first to exit our final table.  He went up against Glenso in a battle of the blinds and found out Glenso wasn’t bluffing.

Skippy2 was our second casualty from the final table when flopped a flush and drew skippy2 into the middle.

Slick63 was the next to fall.  Jennifear’s aggressive style set her up to bust slick when he pushed over the top of what had to look like a re-steal.  Slick63 held pocket queens and I would have pushed also.  But this time Jennifear held pocket kings.  Slick63 was dead in 8th place.

Marti bit the dust a couple hands later.  Pocket sevens and all-in against bugman22j showing us big slick.  An ace on the flop and our hostess was relegated to cheering from the rail.

The very next hand our money table was set when Glenso took on rshocker.  Ac 8c looks pretty good when the table is on the bubble. But who would have guessed that another slick would be dealt the very next hand?  Rshocker was the happy soul holding Ad Kh.  An ace on the flop and a king on the river was all it took.  Glenso was bubble boy tonight and our money was set.

Jennifear was our leader with 14275.  HurQueRock was second with 13170, rshocker was right behind with 12095.  bugman22j was fourth with 6670 and sajules was fifth behind just 3290 in chips.

Jennifear nailed bugman22j on hand 38.  Pocket aces have tendency to do that against pocket sevens.

Hand 43 and sajules ran into HurQueRock with pocket sixes.  Sajules saw a free flop from the big blind fall 5d 4d 4c.  She only held 8d 5h but that was top pair on a low board.  Jules pushed but HurQueRock made a good call to put her out.

We were down to three and now HurQueRock dominated.  In fact, I could argue that the tournament was now over.  Just three hands later pushed her pocket tens into the middle but HurQueRock held two jacks.

Before anyone really knew it, we were heads up and HurQueRock was a big leader 34K to 15K in chips.  Rshocker put up a good fight but never really could overcome that difference.  Hand 60 and the flop comes Jh Jc 9d.  Rshocker held 9c 4h and bet into the pot to be met by a very smooth call.  When the turn brought a harmless 2d, rshocker pushed the action.  That was when HurQueRock sprung the trap.  Jd 4c and flopped trips gave HurQueRock the hand and a first Holdem Affair victory.

Congratulations to all.  It was another great night.

With all that is going on in Iran this week, I wish you all  PEACE.

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Spideytwo

Our favorite superhero broke through and posted his second Holdem Affair victory this week.  Spideytwo is a regular feature at the final tables in our little event and this week the cards fell his way.  I want to get this story right because the first time he won I was out of town and didn’t get to write the story.

It was a good field this week.  Forty-seven of our favorite sharks sat down to play this week.  Holland13 was our chip leader as the final two tables were battling toward the bubble.  Poor Hazy Cat was denied another final table run when his pocket rockets were busted by Smurfette turning her AK into a straight.  Here is your final table.
  1. Holland13 = 15755

  2. Smurfette = 10470

  3. Spideytwo = 9090

  4. DaleT = 8570

  5. Rankdizzle = 8390

  6. big lar8 = 5555

  7. ThePokerWolf = 5195

  8. VictorDave = 3335

  9. Takechances = 2935

  10. Corn Grinder = 1205

With the blinds already 200/400 on the first hand, Corn Grinder was very short stacked.  He pushed his Ah 4h but ran into DaleT with big slick.  One hand and one gone.

Hand 3 and ThePokerWolf sees two queens staring back at him.  He raised to 1000 and when Holland13 re-raised him he was happy to get it all into the middle.  Oops, Holland13 turned over As Kh.  The very first card to hit the felt was the Ah and ThePokerWolf was gone for the night.  Three hands and two gone.

It settled down to the normal war until hand 14.  Antes 75 and blinds 300/600 – all fold to VictorDave in the small blind.  Dave pushed all 2360 chips in on the steal.  But Takechances plays up to his name and made the call holding just Kd Tc.  But it was a good call because Dave turned over a very modest 2h 3d.  The flop came Jc 3h 9h and it looked like Dave would survive getting caught but the Qs on the turn gave Takechances his straight and we were down to seven.

Hand 25 and Rankdizzle is down to 5215 – just 9BB to fire with so when he saw As 3s in his hand he fired all of his bullets.  Takechances came over the top for 5140 driving the rest of the field to the muck.  TC had called with Ac Js.  The Jc on the flop was all he needed to send Rankdizzle to the lounge in 7th place.

We were paying five tonight so it was bubble time.  This is where spideytwo made his move.  He started to push and won three of the next ten hands.  Then on hand 37 he took on DaleT from his position in the big blind.  They were to the felt before the flop with DaleT showing Ah Jd but Spideytwo turning over Ac Qd.  The Qs showed up on the flop and Spideytwo was now in second place.

DaleT battled back and was actually back into 4th place by hand 47.  But he pushed just once too often when he pushed with As 7s and ran into big lar8 holding Ad Js.  Not a single spade came out to play and the board missed them both.  The jack kicker was the difference.  DaleT was gone in 6th place just two hands later.

Money table time and big lar8 holds the lead with 20910.  Holland13 was a close second with 17210.  Smurfette and TC were close on his heels with 11625 and 11285.  Spideytwo was bringing up the rear with 9470.

Hand 56 and spideytwo was down to just 6070 with the blinds 400/800.  He raised to 4400 and Holland13 re-raised him.  PUSH was the response from the spider and we were racing.  Spideytwo showed Ac 9d, good enough to push when you are short.  Holland13 held As Qd, good enough to push back against the short stack.  It was classic tournament action.  And true to tournament form, it was a race to the turn.  Then the 9s smiled on spideytwo to double him up and get him back in the game.

This table of five battled for the next twenty hands.  The on hand 78, the two short stacks went to war.  With the antes 600/1200 Holland13 was down to his last 8315 and Smurfette her last 6525.  All the chips were in the middle before the flop with Holland13 staking his life on Td 8d and Smurfette on pocket fours.  No help for either on the flop and the turn just paired the board to the nine.  Smurfette was looking good on this one.  But the darn river card was the Ts and Smurfette was our 5th place winner.

These four danced for the next 16 hands as Holland13 and big lar8 consolidated their strangle hold on the final table.  Then on hand 95 TC pushed with Qd Tc in an attempt to steal the blinds from spideytwo.  But spidey didn’t want to lay down his Kh Js and made the right call.  The board missed them both and Takechances was done for the night.

Spideytwo was now in the lead but there was only 6000 chips separating first from third.  It was a virtual dead heat.  Spideytwo then took command of the table taking 8 of the next 12 hands.  Hand 109 Holland13 doubled up through big lar8 and Larry was now in deep trouble.  Larry got some traction on hand 113 and a bit more life a couple of hands later.  Then hand 121, Holland13 raised to 5250 and big lar8 re-raised all-in for 8645.  Holland13 made the call with just Ks 9s.  Good enough as big lar8 held a dominated Kc 6c.  The six on the flop gave Larry hope but the 9d on the river gave him his exit.  Big Lar8 finished in 3rd place.

The heads up match lasted just four hands.  These two play fast and hard.  With spideytwo holding a very slight chip lead Holland13 pushed against a re-raise from spidey.  Holland13 held Ac 9d and spideytwo was counting on his pocket nines to rule.  The nines held up and won the day for Spideytwo.

Great game all.

Peace.

Sunday, January 14, 2007

Sunbob Wins & the gods Laughed

Well, I did it again. I won the Holdem Affair. This story should probably be about Red Barchetta. Red was in third place at the end of the first hour, I was in fifth. When we got to the final table Red Barchetta was in first place, I was in second. But when the final river card hit the felt and all the chips slid to one seat, that seat read Sunbob. I had won my sixth Holdem Affair.

Thirty-seven sat down in a scrambling start to our regular Saturday night event. Apparently there was some confusion as to whether or not there would even be a Holdem Affair this week. As close as 40 minutes before the posted start time, there were zero names on the entry list. But Marti came through for us again – setting up another great night of poker action. Thank you Marti.

I have often said that poker is a cruel, cruel game – and tonight the poker gods were laughing. This was a hard fought final table. But I guess I should have predicted that just by looking at the list of names seated in that circle.
  1. Red Barchetta = 10640

  2. Sunbob = 9070

  3. DaleT = 8095

  4. Msrinny02 = 7260

  5. Sengar = 7240

  6. Sajules = 3185

  7. Bugman22j = 3105

  8. Corn Grinder = 2750

  9. Slotcrazy45 = 2320

  10. Luckie in lov = 1835
That is an impressive list of Holdem Affair names. The final table lasted 182 hands - one hour and 15 minutes. Not the longest in Holdem Affair memory but up there with the marathon events. That is a testament to the skill that this event attracts.

Luckie in Lov was the first to fall when she ran into my pocket aces. Just two hands later Corn Grinder was all-in with pocket kings against msrinny02 holding Ac Qc. The Ah on the flop sent CG packing. That one had to have Felicitas and Fortuna rolling on the floor.

It was nearly 30 minutes into the final table and we were still at eight players. DaleT had been hit hard the previous orbit and was now very short stacked. In the small blind with only 500 chips left he pushed into the slotcrazy in the big blind. She held big slick and he was gone.

After this hand the top five were bunched up pretty good. Sengar led with 10370 chips followed by Red Barchetta, Sunbob, msrinny02 and slotcrazy with 8210 chips. Then I went on a rush and won seven of the next thirteen hands to accumulate 20595 chips and the lead.

Hand 69 and Bugmn22j was all-in posting the big blind holding 9h Jh and I was on the button with Ad 5c. I was the only caller to see the Ah come on the flop. Bugman was gone in 7th place.

The bubble lasted for 14 hands when msrinny pushed her h 6h and ran into sajules with a pair of queens. We had our money table. I was in charge with 23575. Sajules was 2nd with 16005, followed by Sengar – 7435, Red Barchetta = 5065, and slotcrazy = 3420.

Hand 98 I made the mistake of doubling up Red Barchetta. That got Red healthy gain and I was knocked down to second place behind Sajules. That play almost came back to haunt me. Just ten hands later slotcrazy doubled up through Red and he was back to a short stack and now slot was back in the game. By hand 120 we had ourselves a real dog fight. Sengar led with 14655 but I was right behind with 14480. Then came Sajules with 10305, slotcrazy with 9120 and Red Barchetta with 6940. With the blinds 400/800, Red was the only short stack in the group. But then Sengar lost his lead and was actually in 5th place by hand 125. This table was getting wild.

We battled hard. Swapping blinds and stealing whatever wasn’t nailed down until hand 144. With the blinds 600/1200, Sengar pushed his last 6900 into the middle. I was in the big blinds and made the call with Ks 9s. Sengar turned over 3s 3d. I caught the spade flush and Fortuna split a gut.

That put me back in the lead - - for two whole hands. Then Slotcrazy doubled up through me to bring me back to the pack. By hand 150, Sajules was sitting pretty with about 40% more chips than number two (me).

Hand 158 ended up being an important hand. I raised from the button to 3200 and Sajules called from the small blind. The flop came Qh 8d 2d and Sajules let me know she had part of that pot with a bet of 1600. she had me covered by just 200 chips so I pushed all 13070 that I had left hoping she would go away. But I guess I had bluffed her out of just too many pots this evening because she didn’t believe me this time. She made the call showing Ac 8c. Shehad a pair of eights. Fortunately mine was a semi-bluff as I held pocket tens. My tens held up. Sajules lasted two more hands and then I took her out when my Qd Th dominated her Qh 3d. Great game Sajules.

That gave me a large chip lead and on the very next hand I took out Slotcrazy02 when my Jc 9d caught a 9s on the flop to beat her 6h 5h. Red Barchetta and I were now heads up. I had 42380 and he had 13120.

I almost took Red out on the very first hand but he slipped through my trap and battled back. Five hands into the match he pushed all-in pre-flop and I was happy to make the call holding 8d 8s. Oops, he had Ts Th. Those tens held up and gave Red the lead. We swapped a couple of blinds and then he took a big pot on a re-steal to put me down almost 2 to 1. The very next hand I pushed on a re-steal holding Qd 7d. Red was happy to make the call holding Ac Qc. I sucked out flopping a 7c and doubled up. Felicitas was seen in the corner unsuccessfully stifling her chuckle.

The final hand saw all the chips in the middle before the flop. Red Barchetta held Kh Js and I turned over As Kc. The board missed us both and I took home my sixth Holdem Affair victory. And the not so faint sound of Felicitas and Fortuna laughing was heard in the rafters.

Peace.

Saturday, January 06, 2007

Mister SGB Wins His First

The name may not be familiar to many of the Holdem Affair regulars but after tonight we will know Mister SGB – and I think we should call him sir.  He put on a masterful showing tonight to take down his first Holdem Affair. Mister SGB was in sixth place at the first hour break with rshocker leading the way and Guran64 in a close second place.   Mister SGB was close on the heels of Guran64 when we went to the final table.  It was those same two names when Mister SGB put out SusieQue to lead us all into the money table.  Mister SGB held a slight lead at this time over Guran64.

Those two continued their dominant play as we finished out the night.  Guran64 handed Papoorboy fifth place honors when his AQ spiked a queen on the flop to bust Papoorboy holding big slick.

Then our favorite Swede dealt with HolyDuces in a similar manner when his Ah 3d went up against HolyDuces showing Ad Qc.  This time it was the 3s on the river that did the trick.

The very next hand Guran was at it again.  This time it was xtjbird13x that discovered that even pocket kings wasn’t good enough to go up against Guran when he had an ace in his hand.  This time Ac 6s turned into a spade flush and TJ was done for the night in third place.

So heads up we go.  Guran64 had been doing all the work getting the two of them to the finish and his chip stack showed the benefit.  Guran64 – 43575 and Mister SGB – 23925.  But the Swedish magic didn’t work on Mister SGB.  Hand 72 and Mister SGB pushes all 17425 into the middle with Kh Kc.  Guran, didn’t you know that 9h 9c wasn’t your hand?  It didn’t have an ace with a shitty kicker to bust that big hand.  Mister SGB took the lead with that hand, won a small pot on the next hand and ended it the following hand when they were all-in before the flop.  Guran held Kc 9c and Mister SGB pocket nines.  No miracle river this time for my Swedish cousin and Mister SGB was our winner.

See you all next week.  I hope you all have a safe and healthy 2007.  And let’s all pray we find,

PEACE.

Sunbob