*** TJ's 2024 WSOP Trip! ...That Might Turn Into A Move?

yeah imagine he misread his hand and TJ lost the pot instead.

I mean, if I’m busting the player, I guess I can be graceful in victory, and obviously won’t need the information for the future.

But any all in/call IS a showdown for both players, it’s definitely part of the rules.

Anything that humiliates or exposes fun players is no good. I can imagine asking if you’re in a cash game situation where the player pool isn’t huge and you’re gonna come up against this guy a lot but in a wsop mtt situation it’s totally clueless and classless

Third break, still sitting very pretty at 146k. Also in a great spot at my particular table, only 1 other stack above 80k. The only other player whose game I mildly respect just got crippled, flopped top full loses to turned bigger top full, both hole cards playing (ouch).

One minor misstep, I open black deuces to 3.5k at 800/1.6k in the hijack, and a tight button shoves for 18k. I can afford to flip here, but it wasn’t a flip when he shows KK. Guess I should have gotten away from that one. Ah well.

At these stack depths and the 1k/2k blinds were coming back to, I predict major chip consolidation over the next three levels. Theyll be getting replaced by new, unknown players with bigger stacks.

I can afford to be patient, and pass up marginal spots. My focus is on only getting it in significantly ahead.

Let’s make it three more good levels, and a fantastic dinner at Battista’s!

On dinner, still the comfortable chipleader with 297k.

I gotta say, this whole “dominate your table with the chip lead from wire to wire” thing is pretty great, I highly recommend it. I should try to do that EVERY tournament.

I have one very interesting spot I’d like to write up, and solicit y’all’s thoughts.

First I need to eat, the VEAL!, and charge my phone.

I’ll be back.

Do we get a picture of what 297,000 chips looks like?

Battista’s was excellent, per usual. 5 open seats at the bar, and a 20 minute wait for a table when I walked in on a Friday night.

Had the Italian salad and the bread (not pictured), and the veal parmigiana with a side of creamed spinach.

…I promise there’s a large and tasty veal cutlet buried under all that marinara and cheese. Exquisite.

The meal was $46.

Anyway, this hand. First, two hands of relevant history.

Villain is in his 50’s, overweight, American white guy (oxymoron?) with a white mustache, playing about 150k, seated two to my right. I’m playing about 180k at the time.

Folds to him on the button, and he makes it 5.5k. I look down at jacks, and make it 17k, and he calls. Flop Ac-Tc-4h. Against a complete unknown, I think betting is better than not betting, because I can conceivably get value from draws or other light floats. If I had an overpair, I’d size up to 20k or so and prepare to stack off, but here, I sized down, to 14k, which is how I’d continue with my lighter 3bets here.

Villain thinks a moment, and cuts out a healthy raise, to 55k. I stall for time and appearances, then release.

Next hand, he goes 5.5k again from CO, and I flat this time with QsTs. Flop Kd-9s-9h, I check. He fires 5k… maybe I should raise here, but I flat. Turn is another spade for me, the 5s. I’m trying to decide between c/r or donk out, then he bets 10k out of turn. I say whoa I haven’t acted yet, so I check, then he bets the 10k.

That awkwardness messed up my flow, and for whatever reason, I abandon the plan and just call. River misses me, the 7c, and I c/f to a 25k third barrel.

Still stewing a bit about those two hands, an UTG shortstack shoves for 15.5k. My buddy flats from UTG+1, then I look down at 99 in MP2. Do I reraise to isolate? Call and potentially let others come along, and play multi-way, deep and in position?

I click call, everyone behind me folds, about 50k in the main, a dry side pot, and the flop comes A-9-8 rainbow. He checks. We’re about 170k effective.

Is he tricky enough to have AA in his range here? If I bet, how much? Large for protection/value, or smaller to put him on a payment plan? Is checking an option? This deep and this jutted, seems like not getting would be bad.

I decide on 20k, he calls fairly quickly, and checks the 7 turn, putting two clubs out.

Well he can’t possibly have called the all in first with JT or 67, and it seems unlikely he’d check top set twice, IF he didn’t already flat with it. I guess that means his most likely holdings are Ax, so I need to size up big, and be ready to take it down to the felt.

I go 65k, and it clearly puts him in a blender. As he’s thinking, I decide I really don’t want to see a ten river, maybe not a 6, or a club… and I guess I’m stacking everything else, including another ace. He ends up folding.

After he folds (not before), I say “you get to see it either way!” The 5c comes on the river, and I eliminate the shortstack’s 44 for the main.

He later said he had AQ, and that even though I put him in a super tough spot, he couldn’t see me betting that much with stacks this deep with anything he’s beating.

So yeah, comments on all streets, in all hands, appreciated.

Don’t ever say I don’t give y’all nothin!

Just remember, everything’s in flux and in play.

Like Yoda said, “Always in motion, the future is.”

5 more levels tonight, then bag.

Gonna stick to the plan, of being patient, steadily accumulating, and affording to pass up marginal spots.

I’m in the driver’s seat, no need to try and force anything.

Vroom Vroom Party Starter!

"Do or Do Not, there is No Try."

- Yoda

Oooh, look at all the green chips.

Fifth and final break, before two more levels, and bag. I backslid after dinner, at 228k now, coming back to 4/8.

No longer the dominating chip leader, with several stacks at my table that I have to treat thoughtfully.

I missed a spot where I could have bluffed the river in position in a 3bet pot, but chickened out, and checked back with the loser.

Then I made a huuuuge fold in a huge spot that was basically for my tournament life. He showed, and I was right. That was encouraging.

After playing all day without practically any existential concerns, this has suddenly become very real to me.

I’m trying not to think about pots I’ve lost, to put me back in just an average-to-above average spot. I’m still fine. More than 70% of the remaining field would be happy to switch places with me.

About 100 more or so need to bust for the bubble to pop. I, of course, have my eye only on that bag. We’re still playing all 17 levels today, though, to be consistent with the later flights.

Gonna keep battling.

Hand for hand now!

…Down to 106k at 5/10.

Let’s pop this bubble, and see if I can find a good spot to get some more ammo for Monday.

Awesome work! The nice thing about being short is that it's very easy to get action if you're actually dealt something. One or two double ups and anything is possible.

Nice to get a cash and a bag! Well done

Congrats on another cash TJ!

Funny to see the pictures from Battista’s. As many times as I’ve stayed at Ballys/Horseshoe over the years, I’ve never gone there.

I liked he Glengarry Glen Ross reference on Battista's.

Congratulations on the bag and cash. Now run it up, so the flight change fee becomes insignificant. GL, looking forward to updates in a couple days.

A bag is always a pretty sight. Great accomplishment.

Other two hands seem good to me but I’ll jump in on this one - based upon the prior hand I guess now we are both around 160k, and with him going 5.5k I’m assuming BB is 2k? So 80BB effective, you call in SB vs CO open and BB folds.

On that flop he should have most of the offsuit x9, and SB shouldn’t have any - so he has both the range and nut advantage here. That said, with an inside straight draw and a backdoor flush draw here this deep I think a checkraise is much better for us than a flat - to maybe 12-12.5k. If he comes over the top it’s an easy fold. If he calls we now have a great spot to lead on the spade turn.

When i am at a computer I will put this into GTO Wizard and follow up.

Good luck with day 2! Enjoy the days off!

GTO Wizard strongly in favor of a check raise (70% of the time) vs call (30%) on flop:

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Then prefers a fold (61%) over calling (32%) and jamming (7%) if he re-raises:

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If he flats our checkraise, it likes a big lead from us on the 5s:

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Then a fold if he jams:

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This is ICM; 1,000 people; 50% left; CO w 92BB vs SB with 84BB

Congrats on the BAG TJ - KEEP IT GOING WOOOO!

Thanks everyone!

And thanks, Brian, that’s very illuminating. I haven’t incorporated solver study into my game, as they weren’t really a thing when I was coming up, playing lots online, and studying lots away from the table.

I guess to be playing poker in 2024, I need to get with the times, and utilize all the resources available to me.

Side track, but since it seems you have done some solver work - how much of it do you feel that you get to utilize at the tables? And how much have you altered your play after studying solvers?

My general feeling from playing a lot of (live) poker the last 12 months is that solver input would be useful in some spots, but is probably not necessary to do well in today's games. But I could certainly be wrong.

I’m over at Aria today. I feel a bit like Buckner walking back into Shea, as almost every poker experience I’ve had at Aria has been bad. Both run bad, and play bad. Still, if you’re looking for PLO, there’s no consistently better room in town… and it’s a very nice place.

On that note, I thought I’d try the food hall again. Parm was fine last time, but I just had the veal parmigiana at Battista’s last night, so that was out.

I decided on Seoul Bird: Korean Street Food, that specializes in fried chicken sandwiches. I got that, the curly fries, and a side of kimchi, which came to $37.

The sauce was good, tasted close, not quite, to a sweet and salty teriyaki sauce.

Now I’m on the list for 1/2 PLO. I played (and ran) bad at the start of my trip… but I’m playing (and running) better on the back half.

Let’s sit in, and turn this thing back around!

Stilllllll waiting.

I got on the list at 25th, then went upstairs to eat. Came back downstairs, got my chips, and 2.5 hours later, I’m now 6th on the list. It’s up to 47 names now.

They only have 3 tables of 1/2 PLO open, but hopefully they’ll open more as the tourney trudges on past the 2nd break.

My remaining time in Vegas is drawing short, I really don’t want to spend it waiting around for games.

Definitely playing PLO at the WSOP tomorrow. They’re not limited by open tables and dealers.