$40K 1st place guarantee tourney.

Woke up this morning feeling pretty good. The drive to Lucky Chances is about 30 minutes from my apartment. Got on the road an hour early, made it there with plenty of time to buy-in (ouch, let go my arm $550 ) and eat breakfast


Started with around 135 players but slowly crept up to 189 players. This tourney allowed multiple reentries up until the first break so if you busted out, you could go to the cage and buy another ticket. ABout 30 of the 'players' were really reentries , Funny how a couple of people bought in 4 or 5 times I think overall it reached around 200ish people/reentries...

For this tourney, I resided myself to playing super boring ABC TAG poker and for the first 2 hours of the tourney I was more or less card dead. I was slightly below chip average but no worries, as long as you are about at chip average, you have a decent shot at winning the tourney so I didn't panic.
(I'm not in the pic, the empty seat is mine)

First key hand that came up, I was in the BB and noticed that the SB had been ruthless about stealing my blinds. He is a thinking player and plays internet tournies. I have a great read on him and I"m sure he reads me as being a nit since i've done nothing but fold-fold-fold for 2 hours. We both are around 25 BB at this point.

Action checks around, he raises 3 x BB, and I call. I decide to make a stand with Ts5s and cash in on my nit image. Plus, I have a great read on him and feel comfortable I can outplay him.

When I call, he immediately shifts in his seat and his body language is rigid sorta like "Holy shtt now what"

Flop (6BB) Js 6s 3h.
He checks, I bet 6BB. He tanks and calls

Turn(18BB): 4c
He checks, I push all-in for around 20BB. He tanks and then says, "You got an overpair huh? Maybe AJ?" and I think he's going to fold but after a minute he calls.

River(58BB): 9s
Villain shows 77, I win with the flush

Finally, got something going. Villain was stronger than I thought. He had been making a lot of moves but I was sure he would lay down. During his tank he kept telling himself that he was beat, that I was a nit and that he should fold.... but then he calls expecting that he was crushed (never understand why so many people do this)

So, now I have some chips, an hour goes by and we are down to 75 players. Re-entry period has been over for a couple of hours and I'm cruising right along, playing ABC poker. I'm staying just a 'hair' above chip average and then this key hand comes up.

I have 22BB and get AK UTG. I raise 3 x BB (which was standard at our table). Villain in CO goes all in for 12BB, I call.

Villain has AJ
Board: A J 9 2 J,  Villain wins

Yuck. So, now i'm down to around 10BB but no worries, i'm staying calm, cool and collected.

We get down to 60 players and i'm on life support and thankfully the gods give me QQ. I shove all-in for about 9BB and get called by JJ. My Ladies hold up (I Loves the Ladies )
Down to 46. I can't help but stare at the Payout structure every few minutes

First place would be so juicy. Even just making the final table would make my week.

Unfortunately, i start to get card dead, raise in a couple of spots but then get 3betted out. I fold in those spots and villains show down QQ+.

I get down to 6BB and activate my shovebot to stay alive. Luckily, i'm to the right of a nit and his blinds have been keeping me alive. I get Ah7h in SB, shove, and he snap calls me. YUCK!!!

He turns over QQ and i'm thankful I at least have one over and am suited. But no worries, I spike an Ace right off the bat and double up while he slams his fist into the table and curses the dealer. I'm up 14BB

An hour passes and I raise another pot with AJ but then two nits 3bet and 4bet each other and I fold. Again, it is clash of the Titans AK vs JJ but JJ holds up. Unfortunately, my raises have eaten into my stack and i'm down around 4BB with 30 people to go. Payout is at 20 people, so close, yet so far.

I get 7c5c in my BB, action checks around to a super wild player who has been raising 3-4 times per orbit and the table has been letting him get away with it. His range is huge so I figure I'll be 40/60 vs his two cards. Also, their are antes now and since 25% of my stack is in the blind its an easy call with ATC

I call. He turns over QQ

Board: As 4c 2h Jc 8c

BOOM!!!! I get the back door runner runner flush and triple up to 12BB (there was some dead money in the pot)

I steal a couple of more blinds and get up to 18BB when this key hand happens.
Super wild villain raises again, I'm on the BTN with AhKh. I shove all-in he calls.

We flip our cards over and he has KK

Board: 3c 5h Js 3h Jh

BOOM!!!! I runner runner back door flush this guy down the toilet two times in a row LOL. I'm not too proud to suckout. Given that my pocket aces ran into quads two times in five minutes a few days ago, I figured that i've built up some suckout currency with the poker gods and they were just returning the favor.

Now, I'm back in this TOURNEY. 25 people to go. I play solid ABC and make it into the money. Not only that, but i'm above the chip average and make it to the final two tables!!!! 20 people to go (ten handed)

There are 20 of us, and i'm about 8th in chips, so doing very well. I was surprised by the amount of donks and nits that made it this far. So many players just really don't understand tourney play. There was an all-in and this one nit actually folded JJ LOL. He busts out in 20th place eventually getting blinded out.

Another guy was way too wild and just shoving too much. He was 9th in chips which brings us to our next key hand.

We both have about 16BB and he shoves all-in.

I look down at KK and thank the poker gods and call him. Everyone else folds.

I show KcKs, he shows Jh8h. Unfortunately for me, not only are the poker gods fickle, but they have an incredible sense of humor. Not too long ago I sucked out on QQ and KK so, one good turn deserves another.

Board: 2h 9h 5c Kh 6s

BOOM!!!! I go from good to bad in one hand. I manage to hang around for a few more spots but ended up busting out between 14-16th place. I tried to steal the blinds with Qc5c (had 3BB) and both blinds woke up with AK and AJ.

The board flopped A K K and that was the end of my tourney.

So, made $1290. The tourney took forever, started at 9:30am and I busted out around 7pm.

I can't help but think what could have been. Had my Kings have held up no doubt I would have made it to the final table in GREAT SHAPE. Especially since there were only a couple of people at the table who understood tourney play. *sigh*

Woulda, coulda, shoulda. Uggggg... so close i could f-ing taste it.

here is my latest graph.

I'm back to cash games for a while. If I have a good week, then I might try to satellite into their $100K 1st place guarantee this Sunday ($1K buy-in which is definitely WAYYYY beyond my roll). In the mean time, i need to recouperate.