**** TJ's Summer 2025 Quest for Poker Glory ****

Second break, on a little over 39k.

Played a fun O/8 hand. I open AQ55 with nut clubs, three calls and it comes Kc-J-3c. A bet, one call, and I raise my nut flush draw and broadway gutshot, call, call. Turn is the Qs, so no low coming. Checked to me, I bet, and get one call.

River is the Tc, so I make the nut flush. Guy leads, I raise, then he 3bets?!? I double check my cards. Yep, still the nuts, I 4bet. He had two pair and king high clubs.

Won a couple hands in stud games. I started with a 9 upcard in razz, but two wheel cards in the hole. Ran down a shortstack who was all in, ended up making a 7-5. He bemoans his luck, saying “the 9 got there” (even though I wasn’t playing it by the end).

I also made a pretty sweet full house on 7th in stud/8, and got a bet and a raise in three ways. I really wish the guy with the low had three-towned it, so I could have 4bet, as the guy with the straight-7 was getting scooped.

Still having fun. Registration closing after the break, so we should get some numbers soon.

Made a wheel for the first hand back in stud/8, to scoop a pretty nice pot.

TonySoprano9 is sitting on a healthy stack one table over, let’s goooooooo!

Busted the tournament in level 12, just before the dinner break. My key hand was in razz.

A 6 completes, and I 3bet, with three wheel cards, (5-2)-4. He calls, catches a 4, and I catch (5-2)-4-8. He checks to me, I bet, then he checkraises, and we end up stacking it down. He also had a 5 and a 2 in the hole, so I started slightly better, but he caught better, to double through me.

That got me short, then the antes and bring ins in stud games ate me alive. I took my stand in stud/8, starting with (Ad-3d)-2c, but didn’t catch anything. Would have quadrupled up, but I didn’t even make a low, for half.

Ah well. It was still a lot of fun. And TonySoprano9 is on dinner, with a good stack! I hope he takes it down.

For me, I’m over at the Wynn, trying a WATERMELON Julius, and sitting in a PLO game.

PLO didn’t go great, through a mix of running bad and (definitely on multiple occasions) playing bad, I started losing right from the start.

I was in for my entire 2k stoploss, then I lost another medium sized pot, and went another 600 deeper. I was down to about $450 left, when I caught a nice double up picking off a bluff. Then I made a set in a huge multiway 3bet pot, to be sitting on about 1700, or “only” -900.

But that would prove to be the high water mark. Lost some more, ran cold, wasn’t feeling focused, and it wasn’t a great game, so I picked up my last 1075, to book the session at -1525.

Also, the strawberry Julius is MUCH better than the watermelon Julius.

I was getting hungry, and I’d been seeing all the amazing pictures of the chicken parmigiana at Allegro, so I thought I HAD to try it.

It was really good, for $42.

Now bed, because I want to be showered, shaved, caffeinated, and fed for Flight C of the Gladiators tomorrow!

good choice on the chicken parm sir! good luck tomorrow in the gladiators

Silly question, but do your posted food prices include tips? Seems like a lot of money to spend on food, but I love food and Vegas is expensive, so that's what you get.

Good luck in the Gladiators!

All restaurant prices are before tip.

Slept a little later than I meant to, but I still had a good morning.

For brunch I walked to a Thai place right near my Airbnb, DE Thai.

Got the Pad Khee Mao (drunken noodles) with beef, level 2 spicy out of 10.

It was good, and good value, at $17.

Made it over to the Horseshoe, and got regged for the Gladiators in time to fold one hand before the first break.

Let’s do this.

And bust.

The spot was UTG+1 with 44, and just over 6bb.

Got called by AQs and KTo, and AQs flopped a flush.

Ah well. Guess I should have folded those jacks… these things happen.

Now in a brand new PLO game, let’s see if we can turn the mood around.

days late to the party offering all my wishing of run good
if you are not intent to play every tourney like the wsop main, suggest you do not enter
lazy habits have a way of sticking like stripper glitter

look forward to reading future profitable stories

Re: JJ hand

When you 3! UTG and UTG+1 (especially early on) you’re supposed to have a strong hand.

So you declare strength!
He counters by declaring More strength!

I think he flats AK at enough of a frequency that makes JJ a fold.

- McMuffin’s 2 cents

The PLO session started fine. Busted a few of the shorter stacks, to be about +1100.

Then a guy buys in for 500 and loses it, twice (not to me), and reloads 3k. It’s a 1k cap game, but after seeing him play, I was fine with him adding 3k, and I didn’t say anything.
Then I have AAJ2 with nut spades in my UTG straddle for 10. Six limps to me, I pot it to 65, 5 calls.

Flop comes Q-5-4 with one spade, and since I’m not ready to stack off yet, I check. The deepstacked player bets 200, I’m the only caller.

Turn is the 8s, so I pick up a nut spade draw, and maybe my gutshot for the wheel is live, too. I check, he goes 600 now. I think a moment and call.

River is the 9h. I check, and he checks back and wins, with 7754. I had nine spades, three 3’s, three queens, three 8’s, and of course the two aces, but missed them all. Back to about even.

I think I played worse after that. Got it in light to double up a few short stacks. That’s when I decided I wasn’t playing well, and picked up -700.

I’m pleased to report that I think I’m making better quits. It sucks to pick up while down, but I correctly identified that I wasn’t playing focused, or very well, and when I feel that way, it’s best to stop playing. I wasn’t doing that as much earlier in the trip, and I have some poor results to show for it.

Then I went downstairs to the food court for dinner at Wing Zone. Got the tenders, fries, and a drink, for $31. I topped it off with some Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, which was $15.

Now, bed reasonably early, and I’m gonna give it everything I’ve got for the last flight of the Gladiators tomorrow.

Good luck in the Gladiators today.

Thanks!

I late reg’ed the tournament into level 2, and now I’m on the first break, with just below a starting stack, about 25k.

One interesting hand: UTG+1 opens to 1200, button 3bets to 3400, and I have JJ in the small blind. The table had been playing pretty tight, without people egregiously getting out of line. I cold-flat the 3bet, UTG+1 ships without much thought, and button SNAPS.

I heard the voice of McMuffin in the back of my head, and folded. It was UTG’s AA vs button’s KK, so I had the third place hand. The aces flopped a boat, and held.

So yeah. Not the spewiest table, which isn’t ideal. But I’m comfortable playing a tight game.

Breakfast today was a roast beef and cheddar sandwich from the WSOP Express, for $15.

If I bust before the next break, I’ll fire one last bullet into this thing. Hopefully that won’t be necessary.

Let’s make it 4 more good levels!

Wishing you a bunch of run good!

Gogogogogo! Good to get that 3b cold call out of the system early!

You are due for a rush of cards. Sending good vibes your way.

Second break, it was a swingy 4 levels for us.

Surely thanks to all the well wishers in this thread for rungood, I picked up AA twice in the same orbit. I 3bet them both times, and didn’t go to showdown, so that established an aggro image for me.

Then I lost a bit, when I made a 2nd place boat in a blind defense vs button situation.

Got a big double to 48k when AKo held against AQs. Nice to hold in a 70/30… I came into it clearly expecting the worst.

Then I lost a bit, doubling up a shortstack when I opened 99 from UTG. Shorty moved in, then a big stack called. We triple checked the K-2-5-3-4 runout, and I lost to A5o and AJo. Guess I should have reshoved preflop… but I still would have lost.

Then I owned myself in a 3bet pot. Tight, aggro guy opens to 2.5k, I 3bet QQ to 8k, he calls. Flop is a curious A-A-A, he checks, I check back. Turn 9, he bets 12k, I… call? Then I get the worst river in the deck, a K, and he moves in. I hate life and I fold.

After thinking about it more, I really wish I had just cbet the flop, conceivably for value, but if nothing else, to dissuade him from starting a bluff, if I didn’t have the heart to make a big call for my tournament life.

So I’m coming back to 17k, at 1k/1.5k.

Registration is open for 3 more levels. We’ll re-evaluate if we bust and want to fire a last bullet today.

Gonna keep looking for good spots.

the probability of tournament hands with win or lose it all potential are heavily skewed toward the latter
rung by rung you will slowly climb to the place of your ultimate destiny
but to rush is an impossible venture
when you truly open your mind to see the table
other participants will willingly push their chips toward you

And bust, this time I DID lose the 70/30. AJo < QJo.

Can’t end it like that.

Bullet number 4, let’s GO.

Spin
It
Up

You never know when the downswing ends and the victory of a lifetime begins.

At the WSOP Commerce Circuit Main Event in 2024, the winner was Jessica Vierling who during the victory interview said, "I was in a downswing for five months. This is incredible."

Hoping the same is in your immediate future. Stay positive.

Mad the third break. No spin yet, but definitely caught some rungood.

With 20k at 1k/2.5k, it folds to me on the button with QJs. I shove, and the BB snaps with AA.

Flop K-9-3, I’ll take a ten, please.

Turn A, I’ll still take a ten,

River T.

Other than that, I’ve been folding. Looks like I’m not the only one with the idea to late reg and try to spin something up. At our table AND the table next to us, the floor had to reload the wells with new chip late reg stacks.

Late reg is now closed, so come what may. I’m basically right back where I started, with 31k.

Let’s hope I run good in the inevitable multiple all ins that are sure to come, as soon as we get back.

Why not you!?!

LFG!