Happy Birthday to me. I turned 21 today. Winston and a few other guys came over and we played beer pong. The idea was to go out to bars and maybe play drunken poker but that never happened. We're all going to Vegas for Winston's 21st in a week anyways, so we can do that there.
Thanks to everyone who came and everyone who wished me a happy birthday.
Since I'm now 21, I don't really have much of a reason to go to Morongo anymore. I'll probably be heading to Hollywood Park and Commerce and the Bike instead.
So it's time to recap August.
August was good to me. Good thing too, since July sucked hardcore.
I didn't play a lot of online poker, but I went to Morongo practically non-stop. I had some huge days there.
I came up nearly everytime I went. I ran pretty good. There were running a promotion for full houses. If you got 5 full houses in the month you were entered in a triple shootout freeroll.
I had 3 stamps by the time I played the tourney.
I went on Friday and played a $160 buyin. I got 3rd and cashed for $3,000.
Wow just wow. Live tournaments are so soft. They didn't have the slightest understanding of M, or how stack sizes effect your play. They didn't understand blind stealing or isolation. I couldn't even resteal! They weren't stealing in the first place! I'm gonna play more live tourneys. There is just so much equity in them. Then again I hear Morongo is much softer than other live games, so I dunno.
I had an interesting experience in the tournament.
Only the final table cashed and when I made the final table there was talk about a chop. I was 8th or 9th in chips, so an even chop sounded great to me. $2,000 each was basically 4th place prize money for everyone. The chip leader didn't want to chop so we began play. To be expected. But this is where it got interesting. In the first 5 hands he goes from chip leader to shortest stack. The blinds are absolutely huge. Even the chip leader has less than 20bb. Most shortstacks have 5 or less. Yet almost no one has opened their hand range and shoved lighter.
When I'm utg, the blind level is almost up, and the once chip leader asks how long he can just sit there to run the clock. It's quite the asshole move, although to be fair it's perfectly legal. The floorman gives him 1 minute, and with 45 seconds before the blinds go up that's all he needs. The blinds go up on me reducing me to a 3bb stack. And I get a walk. I keep shoving to pick up the huge blinds and eventually get up to 3rd in chips. I keep my stack and and recover as the previous chip leader goes on a tear and doubles up then busts 4 people to regain the lead. I bust two guys myself when I iso a guy with 0.5bb with K5o and win the dead money on the side and then spike a King to suck out on his TT. I take out another shorty on a legit coinflip with AQ vs 88.
Eventually we go 3 handed, and the chip leader only has 7bb at this point. I just keep shoving it in but I run K9s into AJd and he holds up. GG.
I play a little live poker and mostly break even. I get a stamp though.
I went back again on Saturday with John. I was talking to him and our conversation went something like this.
"Want to go to Morongo tomorrow?"
"I just got back from Morongo."
"So?"
"Ok you talked me into it."
John came up like $300 or something. We were both playing 2-5 all night.
We played $1/$3 and dropped a quick 100 each. That game is so stupid.
I moved to $2/$5 and immediately flopped a set, stacked a shortstack KQs vs AJo preflop. Is there any wonder why I like $2/$5 so much?
Oh and I banged a straight flush on the turn vs a set for my 5th stamp. The quest for stamps was ended. I was entered in the freeroll for the following Monday.
Nothing happens for a long time. I try to run a bluff vs John, he instacalls me with a straight. Hm. Ok that's like the top of his range. Still I learned something about board texture when we talked about it.
I was up like $500-600 for like the entire night and finally at 4AM, I picked up JJ.
Terrible Lady limps in.
Old(er) guy, who seems half decent limps in.
Kid limps in.
John limps in.
I make it $50 with JJ in the SB. I figure I'm kinda turning my hand faceup vs John, but the rest of them are bad enough at hand reading that I think it's ok. I like to raise more with my more vulnerable hands like QQ-88, AK, AQ. It's tough playing these hands OOP a lot of the time, so I'd like to force my opponents to pay more in order to play against me there.
I'd probably raise less with AKs, KQs, KK, AA, and other drawy type hands since I don't mind going multiway as much.
Anyways, the lady calls, the old guy calls, kid calls and John folds.
Flop is 8d 8c 4d.
Pot is $205.
I check.
It was a pretty weird play. I usually bet in this spot close to 100% of the time, but for some reason I decided to get tricky not really sure why. My plan was to c/shove over lady and kid, but I wasn't sure what to do vs old guy since he had me covered. I had about $1150 behind still after my preflop raise, so we were pretty deepstacked.
Lady checks and the old guy bets $220 or $230. I can't remember exactly. The kid folds, and it's on me.
I remember thinking, "Man, that's a weird bet. It's more than the pot but not much more. Why overbet here?"
Protection seemed most obvious. I thought he had a vulnerable hand here. I thought an 8 was unlikely and that combo draws might make sense. I didn't think he would overbet with 44 or an 8. I thought A4 or 55+ made the most sense to me. I think he raises QQ+ preflop, or would've limp reraised it. Furthermore some live players overbet with their strong one pair hands in order to price out draws and to try and take it down there. I don't get their logic, but if they do it, I'll have to take it into account.
Still to be honest, my thought process isn't really that clear when I play. I go more with a hmm, this seems right and do it. I want to believe that my instincts are really just my subconscious running and saying based on past experiences this is right.
Eventually I decide to c/r to $500. This is definitely a weird play and John says he hates it cause I'm overrepping my hands. That is definitely true, since this play looks like AA or maybe Ad Kd. I dunno, I just thought I had the best hand and my play looked so unusual he might pay me off with worse.
The lady folds and the guy instantly says all in.
A few curses tumble out of my mouth, and then I gather some composure and start to count the pot.
I announce to the table, I'm priced in to call, so I do.
The board runs out a diamond on the turn and a blank on the river.
I'm about to muck my hand when he tables 99.
I am shocked. So is John.
I scoop the $2,400 pot tip $15, and then get ready to go. Jiar busted his buyin a while ago and has been waiting for us. I hate to hit and run, but gotta do what ya gotta do.
I decided to open a deposit box while I was there. I should've thought of that ages ago.
I come back yet again on Monday.
I quickly bust in my triple shootout. I run AQ into AK in a low blind situation in a tourney. W/E standard. I move to the cash games.
This time there are a bunch of regs there. I notice Cowboy is sitting in his usual seat, but it isn't a $2/$5 game being spread there. I ask the board what's up. Apparently table 2 is a $10/$20 game today because table 2 hit a jackpot.
Wow. I've never seen that before. I ask to be put on the waitlist for $10/$20 and $2/$5 while I run to the cage and get the $1,500 I stored there from last time.
I call John and ask his opinion on what I should play. He thinks I should play $2/$5 until I hit like $2000 - $2500 and then move. I thank him for his advice and sit at $2/$5 when my name is called. I get up to $1800 pretty fast. Then my name is called for $10/$20. Decision time.
I pick up my chips and sit down with a bunch of guys I know.
Most of the stacks are $5,000 deep or more.
Sounds good to me. Game on.
I steal a few pots early and run up to about $2,300. I lose one medium smallish pot and am down to $2,000. All standard stuff. Cowboy leaves, and I'm feeling pretty good about my table now. Only Brandon (a chip runner for Morongo) is really a threat, and he's pretty tight so I don't have to worry about it to much. Craig is whining about me as usual, and he does some really bad etiquette stuff, like berating the dealers for giving him bad cards, and digging my mucked cards out and looking at them. That last one is really bad, and I probably could've gotten him kicked out if I felt like it. Still he was dead money, so I just let him do whatever.
Eventually the big hand of my night comes up. I get 66 and limp in behind 2 other guys. Brandon limps on the button behind me and both blinds complete/check.
Flop is 6 handed (lol), and its Ad 6s 3s.
Don't you know how to win at poker? Flop more sets.
It's checked to be and I bet $60. Brandon makes it $220.
Folds around to one lady who check/flatcalls the raise lol.
I think for a bit. Brandon is probably only raising two pair+ and big draws. I don't really have any reason to slowplay, and any raise is commiting me anyways.
So I shove for $1,785 more.
Brandon thinks for a second and looks taken aback. He double checks his hand and says "I call." as he moves a stack of blacks across the line.
Music to my ears. His lack of hesitation means I have him drawing to 1-4 outs.
He asks if I have a flush draw. I tell him I have a set. He just shakes his head as the dealer runs out two more spades. (good thing he didn't have As3x or As6x)
He shows 33 I show 66 and scoop a $4,100 pot.
I stick around for a while more and stack some donkey who calls my 3barrel with middle pair. I show him two pair.
Brandon leaves, and another guys quits so the table breaks. I walk out with $3,500.
Sick night
I come back one more time on labor day to get the $2,000 I have on deposit and lose $600.
I also play 10 HU matches wtih Jeff for $100 each. I lose 9.
It's been quite an adventure out in Cabazon. I'm never gonna forget it.
Goodbye Morongo.
And next week?
Hello Las Vegas~
I'll see you across the felt.
Bryce
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