The Summer Wind - A WSOP Trip Report …… and beyond!
Don’t ask me why I chose the title of an old Sinatra song to be the title for this year’s trip report, i have no idea, i
I also think you have to rip cards in half and throw them in a dealers face in order to have success there.One of my most vivid poker memories is from Commerce. The guy who never tipped. He just wrote the dealers name down every time he won a pot and told them if he ever won the lotto they would get a cut. I was thinking about him the other day as there's a guy in Dallas who gi
Don't forget to ask for a new setup every half-hour, or whatever their limit is. Yes, they have to have a limit as to how often you can ask for a new setup.
PGT Mixed Games Series
Days 5 & 6
Thurs 5th & Fri 6th February
We might be done in the PGT studio for the time being, but there’s still plenty of work to be done.
Cash game day and looks like they’ll be plenty of action with two full tables of $80 Mix at the B. In the draw for seats I get the main table which looks a little better than the must move.
Awesome marathon session! Maybe I missed this because I've been too busy with work to closely follow the thread recently, but how is the table draw decided? Based on the fact that JLot is texting it to you, it sounds like it might be the inmates running the asylum, but I could also see he might just be communicating the board to everyone.
Awesome marathon session! Maybe I missed this because I've been too busy with work to closely follow the thread recently, but how is the table draw decided? Based on the fact that JLot is texting it to you, it sounds like it might be the inmates running the asylum, but I could also see he might just be communicating the board to everyone.
Yes we organize the game ourselves through a whatsapp group.
If the game is over subscribed JLot or whoever is in charge that day will do a random draw in the morning then people know if they have a seat or not and can plan their day. If there are two tables we will usually draw for the main or must move in person in the casino just before we start.
PGT Mixed Games Series
Day Eleven - Wednesday February 11th
Driving conditions are a little hairy coming out of LA. I don’t know how people live here and deal with this traffic every day. I couldn’t do it.
After a stop for breakfast roughly midway in Barstow we see the welcome sight of the Vegas strip after just over 4 hours on the road.
Le Paris is our home for the next 3 nights and we have a standard twin in the Bordeaux tower.
After checking in we head over to the B where we have two full tables to start today. We get last up on the must move. The main game looks super good, the must move is not unfortunately and it doesn’t help that we run bad.
The highlight of the day was this pasta from Spago that I ate at the table. Delicious. Not sure why I’ve never tried it before.
I do eventually make it onto the main table but just tread water. I wave the white flag at 2am after 14 hours and book a -$4,000 loss.
PGT Mixed Games Series
Day Twelve - Thursday February 12th
We wake up to find the $80 Mix has run through the night and is still going so shower and get dressed and head straight over.
There’s a mix of stuck players that have been there all night and fresh faces just starting their day like we are as we claim the last open seat.
We battle hard all day and stay in front for most of it. We finally manage to win a decent NL 2-7 pot for the first time this trip.
The blinds are 2 and 4 chips with a dead 4 chip ante from the button.
We open for 11 chips.
Villain makes it 22 chips, we call.
We draw 1 to 2348, he pats.
We catch a lovely 6.
Villain’s min-raise feels strong. Maybe 8-7 or a good 9 so we’re going to charge him full price here.
I bet out 50 chips. Only slightly below the cap.
Villain calls and we’re good of course as his cards fly into the muck.
At that point I was up about $3k but then take some bad beats. The last of which I have a full house at Ari and Villian is drawing for the low. He not only makes the low, but makes a steel wheel on the last draw. The one outer to scoop is the last straw for me and I immediately rack up and call it a day.
We played 12 hours for a +$1,000 profit although I feel short changed today. Should have won at least a couple of racks.
Hopefully got the bad beats out of the way today before we go back into the PokerGo studio looking for a big finish to the trip.
On Deck Tomorrow: $5k Eight Game
PGT Mixed Games Series
Day Eleven - Wednesday February 11th
Driving conditions are a little hairy coming out of LA. I don’t know how people live here and deal with this traffic every day. I couldn’t do it.
Imagine it without being able to use the carpool lane. It's very stressful too because so many there drive like maniacs and are very discourteous.
PGT Mixed Games Series
Day Thirteen - Friday February 13th
The Eight-Game tournament in the Studio doesn’t start until 2pm so I report to the office to play 2 hours of $80 Mix first.
I get half of a 3-way Badacey pot and beat Eli in a Drawmaha hand which ensures it’s a profitable 2 hours to the tune of +$1,000
With the appetizer done with it’s into the Studio for the main course. It’s also day two of the $100k.
Start: 150,000
Our opening table includes Matt Vengrin, Dzmitry Urbanovich, Nick Guagenti, Mike Lang and an Asian guy who I’ve played with before but can’t remember his name. Nick G gets high-carded off to open a new table after a short while.
It’s a one-day tournament today so the already fast structure is even faster with the levels only 25 minutes. Did someone say Turbo $5k?
So no time to waste and we play accordingly. Slow and steady won’t get it done today.
End Level 4: 220,000
Jesse Lonis just busted the $100k and bought right in. Could get some on tilt high rollers in the field today!
I knock out the Asian guy who was short in 2-7. Nick Milgrom moved to the table to replace him.
A short stacked David Baker came and went.
Now we have Eli Elezra on the table.
Got high-carded off to open a new table
Lose two coolers in limit holdem to Calvin Anderson.
End of Level 8: 250,000 (did have 400k)
Seems like they only have one clock in the Studio which they’re using for the $100k so all our pertinent information is on a white board!
The first $5k 8-Game got 100 players last week. I expected a smaller field but maybe not quite so small. Only 26 entries, and 26 very high quality entries at that, but it is what it is, doesn’t matter to us, it’s still a tournament to win.
Our table now contains Jesse Lonis
Level 9: 10,000 - 20,000 limits
Win a nice pot off Dzmitry in limit holdem with KK
Lose sick stud 8 pot against Calvin.
I have QQ burried. He’s going low but makes 9933 to scoop me. I’m 0-3 now in sick spots against him.
I knock Matt Vengrin out who was short in 2-7
Our table breaks. Down to two tables now and back to our original table.
Justin Saliba is chip leader on the table
I love it when a plan comes together
Blinds 4,000 - 8,000 / 8,000
Playing No Limit Hold’em
Justin opens UTG for 16k
Justin has 300k, we have 400k.
There are some short stacks to act behind me.
We have J-J
I know Justin is opening wide, but I choose to flat which could be perceived as weak and see if we can invite a short stack shove behind me.
Mike Lang calls on the button.
Dzmitry does indeed shove in the SB.
Which causes Justin to shove to isolate.
Everything is proceeding as I have forseen
We cover everyone and call.
Mike folds on the button.
A-K for the short-stacked Dzmitry, but more importantly we dominate Justin’s A-3s
Flop: 9-J-4 all hearts
Turn: 5 hearts
No-one has a heart. At this point we can’t lose but I’d be pretty sick if another heart came on the river for a 3-way chop. Black! I scream.
River: K (black)
Huge pot to put us around the 800k mark. We’re chip leader on the table for all of about a minute until Max Pisarenko gets moved to balance and arrives with a milly+ stack!
End of Level 12: 750,000
Players remaining 10 / 26
Average chips: 390,000
Going back to 25,000 - 50,000 limits
Lose a couple of limit holdem pots vs Ben Minor.
Final table of 7
Max Pisarenko, Ryan Hoenig and Ben Minor are the chip leaders. We’re 4th. Other players are Jesse Lonis, Nick Milgrom and someone I don’t know.
Level 14: 30,000 - 60,000 limits
We have 500,000
I knock out the shortest stack (the guy I didn’t know) in PLO. Six players remaining.
I knock Jesse Lonis who was short out in 5th. 6-6 vs A-J in limit holdem with a clean runout. 5 players left and on the bubble now.
Level 15: 40,000 - 80,000 limits
Max eliminates Nick and we’re in the money
End of Level 15: 700,000
4 players left
Average is 975,000
Level 16: 50,000 - 100,000 limits
Lose a big Stud pot to Ryan. Brick a straight and flush draw.
End of Level 16: 750,000
Level 17: 60,000 - 120,000 limits
Ryan eliminates Ben in 4th place.
Win a nice O8 pot from Ryan. Called down with Aces on a paired board with no low and was good.
End of Level 17: 800,000
3 players left. We are 2nd in chips. Ryan 400k, Max 2.7 milly!
Level 18: 80,000 - 160,000 limits
Lose PLO pot to Max. Have to fold KKxx on a T-8-7 flop
We eliminate Ryan in limit holdem.
He raises button.
We 3-bet in SB with A-7, he calls.
Flop: A-3-7
We continue. He goes into the tank and comes to the conclusion that he doesn’t have enough chips to fold and calls for his last chips.
Heads up with Max 1 million vs 2.9 million
We quickly look at the ICM numbers. Prizes as is are $58k and $36k. ICM would have been $52k and $46k.
Neither of us are sure and we ultimately decide to play. If I really wanted the chop I could probably have made it happen as by this point we were friendly. Max being Russian likes to drink vodka while he plays and encourages everyone on the table to do the same. I was the only one to take him up on it, mixing mine with red-bull, and as the other players get knocked out we are fist pumping and drinking toasts to vodka power!
Lose huge Stud 8 pot. I had a pair, straight draw, low draw and flush draw and ended up missing all of those but making two small pair. Max had been betting aggressively all the way with a Queen door card. I tanked and decided I had to pay him off on the end in case he only had one pair. I was quickly shown the bad news. He had Queens-up and I was crippled.
End of level 18: 600,000 to 3,300,000
Level 19: 100,000 - 200,000 limits
I battle for a while with my 3 big bets before eventually being ground down to half that.
I raise with KKA9 in O8 which Max calls.
I’m committed no matter what the flop is.
Flop: 8-9-Q
My last 100k goes in.
Max had QJT4 for a flopped straight and I’m dead.
Very well played to Max. He’s a nice guy and a worthy champion. This is his 3rd PGT title and for sure not the last vodka of the night!
As for me. Not too disappointed. Happy with the 2nd place finish and satisfied that I played with some of the best players in the game at the very top level these past two weeks and more than held my own.
Correction
The big hold’en pot was against Justin Liberto, not Saliba
Nice score 😀
Let's go! Congrats!
Well played, and well written. Thank you again for the excellent write-up.
Congratulations on the nice score!
Congrats, well done!!
PGT Mixed Games Series
Day Fourteen - Saturday February 14th
Last day today. I actually changed hotel rooms yesterday, going from one Paris room to another as I couldn’t get a good rate but someone hooked me up with a comp. First time I’ve had a view here:
Will also have to change hotels today.
I almost decided to take the day off as I’ve gone at it pretty hard these last two weeks (by design) but I see the game has been running overnight and couldn’t resist.
I didn’t rush to get there though and arrived at 11am to get the last open seat. Three players still there from last night and the game is good.
It’s not good for us however. Have some really good starting hands in the draw games but never make anything. Meanwhile there’s a Finnish guy called Kim who’s been playing with us lately and he’s running god-like hitting everything. I go against him a few times always starting better but he gets there every time.
One example in 2-7 triple draw he 5-bet caps it pre. We both have a one card draw, fair enough. My draw was 2348. We both take one on the last draw, I catch a 9 and call down as a bluff catcher. He shows 34568 so he’s capping it pre without a deuce in his hand which is the absolute key card at this game. It ain’t no fun when the rabbit’s got the gun. He racks up about $16k!
I call it quits not long after. No point flogging a dead horse on the last day when it’s clearly not going to be my day. I book a -$2,000 loss in a 6 hour session.
Not had that many sit down restaurant meals this trip so decided to treat myself at Caramella tonight.
I went for the Branzino with penne pasta washed down with a couple of glasses of Sauvignon Blanc and it was really delicious. 10/10
Despite it being served upside down lol.
It’s Saturday night in Vegas but I just want to relax in the room and watch the final day Poker Go stream of the $100k.
Jimmy - badugiwrap on here, who has a blog called Mixed Game Journey in the blogs and goals section fixed me up with a comped room at Bellagio tonight. He’s a good guy, super smart and someone who I discuss hands and spots with.
A bought a (very) small piece of Benny for the event on pokerstake so I have a sweat but he finishes 3rd as Yuri dominates and goes on to win. Still, a 5x return on investment is not too bad.
So that will do it for this trip. Flying back to Medellin in the morning with United via Houston. Will add up the final numbers and do a wrap-up when I get home.
Why is the deuce the key card in 2-7? It’s the 5th tiebreaker.
Is it because starting with 7-2 or 8-2 means you can’t accidentally make a straight?
PGT Mixed Games Series
Day Thirteen - Friday February 13th
The Eight-Game tournament in the Studio doesn’t start until 2pm so I report to the office to play 2 hours of $80 Mix first.
I get half of a 3-way Badacey pot and beat Eli in a Drawmaha hand which ensures it’s a profitable 2 hours to the tune of +$1,000
A friend of mine (a 2p2'er) won a t-shirt signed by Eli when he knocked Eli out of the WPT Shooting Star, plus his bounty, some 20ish years ago.
