Gray-haired poker TRs: Living the WSOP dream

Post #1, welcome to 2+2.

From a few posts back….i actually fold AJo UTG and UTG +1. Really dislike it as a hand as you can’t call a 3 bet and it’s very difficult to win a big pot with it.

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Interesting. My A-Jo and K-Qo UTG kept getting 3-bet all throughout the WSOP. Prior to your post I had been considering whether I should just be folding those hands from the opening gun. I was wondering if that was too nitty, but I think there might be something to simply avoiding the spot in the first place.

I think it depends on the table and whether there are many people capable of 3-betting, but I agree that AJo can be folded from UTG quite often.

I’d much rather open all the suited Aces and the better suited Kings. Far more post flop playability

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WSOP 2026: (June 12) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1C (Part 7 of 9)
A disagreement over what constitutes an over bet gets a bit contentious ... “That’s all right, I’ll keep winning the small pots versus you, you’ll keep winning the big ones.”

Level 8
600/1,200/1,200

Aqua gets Raiders all-in pre flop in a clash between similar stacks. Aqua has J-J. Raiders has K-K. There is a Jack on the flop, and Raiders is history. The deck loves Aqua whenever it is for significant chips.

Tony Robbins keeps betting 1.2 times pot. After this has taken place numerous times, Full House refers to it as an “over bet,” which of course it is. Tony Robbins insists it is not an over bet. Full House folds to the jumbo-sized bet in this particular hand..

Tony Robbins shows a Jack on a J-7-2 board, and he says, “Why wouldn’t I bet my Jack?

Full House replies, “You can, but it is an over bet.”

Tony Robbins grows agitated, and he extremely sarcastically rages, “Thanks, Coach.”

While I agree with Full House’s point, I am also thinking to myself, “Please don’t tap the fish tank.” I have no doubt that Tony Robbins is going to implode at some point. Calling him out on his -EV plays will only make him play better.

Another annoying thing about Tony Robbins is he never posts his blinds. Never! The dealer always has to remind him to do so, Tony Robbins ignores this, and the dealer always has to tell him to do so a second time before this buffoon finally complies.

Fiji, who lost a big pot earlier to Full House, now wins a small one from him. Fiji good-naturedly jokes, “That’s all right, I’ll keep winning the small pots versus you, you’ll keep winning the big ones.”

A new player arrives in Seat 7 and says he just came from the Normandy room. I dub him Escape From The Normandy given that room’s small-time feel.

Escape From The Normandy opens the betting from UTG. I have A-J. I keep getting A-J in uncomfortable spots. I have been folding A-J to UTG opens, and I do so here.

Tony Robbins continues with his strange, massive over bets. Someone opens and Tony Robbins goes all-in for in excess of 10 times the opening bet. His opponent folds. Everyone at the table is surely thinking the same thing, which is we all hope we wake up with a big hand when Tony Robbins blows up.

End of level 8: 55,600 chips.

You can call him Ishmael.

/Moby Dick

WSOP 2026: (June 12) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1C (Part 8 of 9)
The table irritant is getting on everyone’s nerves ... The table irritant gets mocked ... The table irritant finally busts

Level 9
1,000/1,500/1,500

I am dealt As-Qd. From UTG, I bet 4,000. Full House calls. The flop is Jd-9d-7d. I have not made a hand, but I am drawing to the flush. I bet, Full House calls. The turn is 2h. I strongly feel that Full House thinks I do not have a multi-barrel bluff in me, so I bet again. Full House folds. I have 67,600 chips.

Two players limp (including Full House). Tony Robbins announces he is going to raise, but then he mockingly says to Full House, “But I don’t want to raise too much. How much is OK? I don’t want to get yelled at.” Whatever he raises (I didn’t write it down), Fiji makes the call. The flop is 7-5-3 with two hearts. Tony Robbins goes all-in. Fiji tanks. He desperately wants to call, but he can’t bring himself to do it. He tanks some more. Finally he folds, putting his cards toward the middle of the felt, and he says to the dealer, “Take it before I change my mind.” Fiji says he folded A-K.

I am in the small blind, and it folds to me. I have A-3. I just complete my blind, hoping to induce a bet from Fiji in which case I intend to raise light. Instead, he just checks. The flop is 10-J-Q. We both check. The turn is a 4. Check-check. The river is a 7. I bet, and Fiji folds. I have 70,600.

Tony Robbins is getting on everyone’s nerves. Besides the absurdly massive over bets, he talks a lot of nonsense. He claims he finished in something like 83rd in a WSOP event last night. Upon hearing this, Fiji needles, “How many entrants, 88?”

Tony Robbins seems oblivious to the fact that he is being mocked, and he says, “I made a big mistake or I could have been somebody.”

Normandy goes all-in with Q-5. I know I just wrote that Q-5 has been a really lucky hand for me, but voluntarily going all-in with Q-5? Tommy Bahama calls kind of lightish (maybe it’s OK) with K-Q. Tony Robbins calls pretty light with K-Q given there has already been an all-in and a call. I fold A-3. Fiji is pained, but he folds. Samoa is pained, but he also folds with what he will later say was 7-7. The board runs out Ah-9j-4s-3s-4d. I would have turned two pair, although my second pair would have been counterfeited on the river. Tommy Bahama and Tony Robbins chop the pot with their unmade, King high hands. Fiji is clearly annoyed by what he is seeing.

Tony Robbins keeps betting pot + before running into Aqua who has a huge hand. Tony Robbins loses a big chunk of his chips. Aqua, for her part has played like 4-5 hands of note all day so far. She seems to have a talent for having huge hands when her opponents choose that particular time to implode. She has a ton of chips.

Tony Robbins goes all-in with K-10 from UTG. It folds around to Full House who calls very light with Q-J, but I think it has become personal for him, and he wants to bust the annoying Tony Robbins. There is a Q on the flop. Tony Robbins does not improve and the player who has thoroughly annoyed everyone at the table busts out of the tournament. I am tempted to jokingly suggest that the rest of the table take a moment for a group hug. No one says anything about the demise of Tony Robbins. We are just relieved he is gone.

A few players bust and are replaced by strong late-reg players. The table has become very, very difficult and very, very aggressive.

End of level 9: 66,500 chips.

We go on break. TJ is not at our traditional break area, so I text him. He has busted, and he’s now playing cash.

AJ/AT/KQ/KJ don't mesh well with the big bet aspect of NLHE. We still have to play them from the mid-late seats and they are very powerful short-handed and short-stacked, but I agree that we must tread lightly. However, ranges shouldn't be static and should change not only depending on our seat, but also the quality of players around us. I will often open these holdings from as early as UTG if the table is weak pre-flop (not 3-betting enough) and post-flop (folding too much, not floating, no light calldowns). At a tough table, I would strongly consider tossing a hand like ATo in the first seat. Any suited Broadway is always an open though.

Something to consider is having no limping range when you are not in the SB, as in some of these HHs you are still limping pairs when first into the pot, which gives away a lot of information about the strength of your hand and makes it easier to play against. Think of it like a baseball pitcher where ideally the curveball and fastball look the same coming out of your hand. The good players are going to notice these things and adjust accordingly. I would advocate always coming in for a raise if you are the first one into the pot, with the exception of some SB spots where the dead money and wide ranges change the dynamics.

In the early levels when we are very deep, there is no real risk in bloating the pot with something like 55 or 77. Playing them for set mining alone is missing a lot of their value. We should also sometimes be opening hands like suited Ax and suited connectors for the opposite reason of why hands like KJ and AT are trap hands in NLHE. In big bet, high card value drops while coordination becomes more important. With no betting limit, the potential to make a durable hand is especially important. In LHE, the opposite often applies.

WSOP 2026: June 12 $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1C (Part 9 of 9)
I have enough big blinds to show patience ... I do not show patience ... I play 9-9 very, very badly ... The concept of uncomfortability

Level 10
1,000/2,000/2,000

While we are waiting to be allowed to go to our tables, the lights in more than half of the room go dark. The problem is quickly fixed, and full lighting is restored.

A new late reg player has joined the table in Seat 7. For some reason I check my WSOP app (which I rarely do since I’d rather size up a player’s style by how I see him play rather than what his history shows), and see that new guy has 60 career WSOP cashes in excess of $1,200,000. I dub him 60Cashes in my notes.

I write in my notes, “33 BBs. Plenty of play.” Unfortunately, I do follow this directive. What happens is a hand I am not proud of, but I have always been honest in this thread, even when it makes me look bad. Let’s see if I can play the hand poorly. I play the hand poorly.

Samoa opens the betting from early position. It folds to me. I have 9-9. I am at a loss for what to do. Clearly I can’t fold. Do I just call? It seems highly unlikely I will like the flop.

Do I raise? If I do and Samoa re-raises I suppose I can fold. But bleeding chips when the blinds are starting to be troublesome (not really but that’s what I was thinking) is not desirable.

Do I go all-in? This would be a way too big, Tony Robbins style over bet. On the one hand, going all-in so big certainly does not look like A-A or K-K. But if I do go all-in, my table image is that I would only do so with a huge hand. Samoa has been at the table for long enough to know this. Plus, I have not played a lot of hands in a while, so he will have to give a shove credit.

I decide the only thing I am comfortable with is a shove. Force him to make the difficult decision. Put him to the test.

I also consider what he could have. There are a lot more combinations of A-K, A-Q, A-J, A-10, K-Q, 8-8 that could have opened than there are over pairs to my 9-9.

I also factor in the fact that other than Aqua (who has been smashed by the deck in 4-5 enormous hands when her opponent either lost their mind bluffing or was coolered), the table has become extremely reg heavy. And the reg players all seem really good. I mean, I’ve been dealing with a former WPT champion to my immediate left all day, and now most of the rest of the table seems to be of similar caliber. I need to accumulate chips if I am going to be able to survive the onslaught of aggression that has taken over this table.

If Samoa has A-K that would be great. A coin flip. If I win the coin flip, I will have a strong chip stack which will give me a fighting chance against what has become a really strong table.

I decide that I am targeting A-K or A-Q in which case I am embracing the variance of a fair fight pre flop for the simple reason that this table seems so tough. Flip for it all because of the caliber of the table.

I am thinking of my tight table image, and then I remember something I typed in to the very bottom of my trip schedule before I head to Las Vegas, which was, “Shove light, call tight.”

I go all-in. I’m not arguing now that this was the right move. I am simply describing why I did what I did.

Samoa does not seem excited by this turn of events. He tanks a bit. He asks the dealer for a count. Tanks some more. Is it possible this insanity actually might work?

It is not possible.

Samoa calls and turns over J-J.

I can see out of the corner of my eye that Fiji does not approve of the move I just made. I’m way behind. For a change I have gotten it in bad. Well, I’ve been getting run over when I start ahead in these situations. Maybe it’s my time to get lucky. It’s not my time to get lucky. There is no 9 to save me from this mess I’ve made, which looked something like this when I made my overly aggressive mistake ...

I’m out, and I have no one to blame but myself. I got it in bad and paid the price. On the other hand, I didn’t go out playing scared. I went for it. I went for it in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and for way too many chips. But I went for it boldly. Stupidly, perhaps. But I’m not waiting to have the nuts, which must count for something. Is it growth? Maybe a little bit, but mostly I think I need to write this one off as an ill-conceived bluff. Still, if it had worked ...

As I think about it, yes, I did not play scared. I went all-in and put the decision to my opponent. Nothing scared about my play. I fearlessly let it rip. Or, am I missing the big picture? Maybe scared or not scared is not the right way of looking at it. Maybe the issue is comfort or discomfort. In the currently running Inside The Mind Of A Pro series that is following Leo Margets run to last year’s WSOP Main Event final table, there is an episode in which she is strategizing with Adrian Mateos on the eve of the final table.

Mateos says, “You need to be comfortable in uncomfortable spots. You need to put yourself in spots where you don’t feel so secure, because it’s going to happen. You cannot avoid every tough decision.”

Easier said than done I think to myself.

They are discussing a hand leading up to the final table in which Margets opened 9-9, and she folded way too quickly to aggression by Michael Mizrachi.”

Margets says, “I just don’t like that I didn’t take the time. It was an uncomfortable moment. I folded too fast.”

They discuss her fold, and Margets says, “For the comfortability thing, I would rather bust in a bluff than having to call.”

Bingo! That’s exactly what I just did bluffing with 9-9 to avoid having to make a decision of whether to call with 9-9.

Mateos says, “You need to be confident about busting in every possible way. But you need to have these weapons in your arsenal. I mean, if you are only looking for a big Queens against Ace-King flip, okay it’s fine, but you will miss a lot of money. So, the thing is, why do you fold nines so fast there? Is it more technical thing because you think it’s a fold and you decide quick, or is it more like, I’m afraid of busting that way?”

The team Winamax coach Stephane Matheu interjects, “Or third option, you just didn’t like to be uncomfortable and you just said, ‘Okay, I get rid of the uncomfort.”

Margets says, “In retrospect, I thought about it and I think I would have folded (even if she took more time to decide). But I decided to get rid of the uncomfortability too early.”

OK, so I’m not alone in having difficulty with the uncomfortability of 9-9. I desperately did not want to be faced with a later decision to call a big bet with 9-9. So instead, I jammed too fast to take the uncomfortable decision out of my hands. I recognize this. I’m just not sure what the right play was with 9-9. And that leads to my even bigger problem, which is a lack of volume dealing with this type of hand.

More than anything, I think my inexperience showed. I think my inexperience with how to play 9-9 made me go bat-sh*t crazy for everything when my hand called for me to play a small pot, not a massive pot. When you don’t know which option to take, perhaps the riskiest option is not the best option. Still, if villain had A-K and I were to win a coin flip ...

To salvage something of the day, when I later get hungry I decide I should eat somewhere on my list of must visits for the trip. The choice is obvious. Not fancy. Obvious.

I go to Earl of Sandwich and eat my traditional The Original 1762 (roast beef, cheddar and horseradish sauce) plus a piece of strawberry cheesecake.

I get a text ...

TJ: Still in?

Me: No, I picked a bad spot to get overly aggressive and ran 9-9 into J-J.

T.J: It happens

T.J. Firing again tomorrow?

Me: Yes

Me: Are you?

T.J.: Yep

Enough said. Time to turn the page. Next.

oof, yukky way to go out, but I am not sure it's some huge mistake. It's an interesting spot for sure

at 33bb I think a flat is probably best & then if there's a raise behind you & original raiser shoves you can fold, if he calls you're probably getting setmining odds and if there's a 3 bet & original raiser folds you can choose to flat, fold or back shove (which would be hella strong)

I think I prefer a shove to a 3bet/fold because a shove is folding out a ton of hands you're flipping against (A10, AJ, KQ, KJ K10 etc) with & perhaps some you're behind eg 1010. Whereas if you 3 bet and get shoved on you really have to fold.

& as you rightly say, if you win a flip then you are setting yourself up very nicely with a big stack.

also to echo what you wrote in your journal...way better to make an aggressive mistake than a calling one.

I think you are probably overly harsh on yourself here, since you know the result.

My personal feeling is that 33 BB is way too much to jam in this spot, as you still have a lot of playability. I also think 99 are a strong enough hand to where you don't always need to hit a set to win. I would probably have either called, or made a 3-bet to play the hand in position and force out opponents behind.

That said, I know that many studied tournament players have started to jam 20-25 bb pre over raises now with medium pairs (and I guess 99 still falls into that category). So, if you had 23 bb instead of 33 bb for example, I think it would have been a very sound theoretical play as long as the opener is not a gigantic nit.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 1 of 14)
The guy in the hotel room next to mine is also playing in the WSOP ... I finally get to play in the Paris Ballroom ... My J-J looks puny on an A-K-4 flop ... Betting with 6-7 on an A-J-3 flop

As I exit my hotel room to start my day, I notice a man exiting his next door suite. He sees my backpack and asks, “WSOP?”

I say yes. He is here for the WSOP as well. He owns his mini suite. Given that he owns his unit, I ask if he is a professional. He says he is more than an amateur but not a pro. He says he played cash until 3:00 a.m. last night/this morning. He is going to the swimming pool, and then he’ll late reg the Colossus. We wish each other luck.

I baby late reg again, arriving 15 minutes into level 1. I am assigned to a table in the Paris Ballroom. Nice. This will be the first time I play in the Paris Ballroom since the 2024 WSOP. I like the Paris Ballroom way more than the Horseshoe Ballroom. The Paris Ballroom feels like the big leagues to me. Elegant. Bigger than life. The Horseshoe Ballroom has all of the charm of an oversized, low ceiling basement in your local Loyal Order of Moose Lodge.

I sit down at my table next to the hot dog cart. OK, so the Paris Ballroom is not completely elegant. And we start again from scratch.

The starting lineup:

Seat 1: “Smiley” because his hat has a smiley face on it.

Seat 2: “Tex” because his shirt says Texaholic. He teaches life skills to high school students.

Seat 3: “Prague” because he is wearing a sweatshirt from a past poker tournament that was held in Prague. He is wearing weird sunglasses. He has 50 WSOP cashes on his resume.

Seat 4: Mr. Golf because his hat and shirt are golf related.

Seat 5: “Sleepy” because he is the last player to show up to the table, and he is very, very tired.

Seat 6: “France” because he is from Geneva, France. He is wearing a shirt with a Labrador Retriever on it. He speaks no English.

Seat 7: Me.

Seat 8: “California” because he is from the large West Coast state. He is in town for just a few days, solely to play in this tournament.

Seat 9: “Brit” because he is from West London. He is a big personality from the moment he arrives and gets progressively more boisterous as he absolutely pounds the alcohol all day long.

Level 1
100/200/200
50,000 starting chips

In my third hand at the table, I am dealt J-J. I open the betting, and three players call. The flop is A-K-4. Not my flop. As the pre-flop aggressor I suppose I could bet, but four-handed there is almost no way I am good. It checks all around. The turn brings another King. A betting war breaks out, and I get out of the way. The thought runs through my mind that you can’t win a tournament in level 1, but you can certainly lose it in level 1. No reason to donk off a ton of chips here.

Seat 8 registered ahead of time and has not arrived to the table, so he is losing his blinds a tiny bit at a time.

I have 6-7 on the BTN and limp. The big blind checks. The flop is A-J-3. He checks, I bet, he folds.

I have Ac-7c. I call an open since I have the potential to make the nuts. We go three to the flop. The flop is 6-7-8. Check-check-check. The turn is a Queen, and when it checks to me, I bet and win the small pot. Hey, if no one is interested in the chips I’ll take them with third pair.

End of level 1: 48,700 chips.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 2 of 14)
The player to my immediate right does not speak English ... My A-K loves the A-7-3 flop ... I have 5-5 UTG and I finally flop a set

Level 2
200/300/300

We are only 5-handed. There are three players on the other side of the table, chatting amongst themselves. On my side of the table, I am seated only by France, who does not speak English. Peace and quiet.

I am dealt A-K. Mr. Golf opens, France calls, and I pop it to 2,300. Mr. Golf folds. France calls. Despite speaking virtually no English, France checks in the dark. The flop is A-7-3. I bet. France raises. I re-raise. France folds. I have 57,400 chips.

Prague arrives, and now we are 6-handed. Prague is immediately aggro with a very high VPIP.

I have 5-5 UTG, and I limp. Three players call. Let’s flop a set. I flop a set. Set mining works! It didn’t work yesterday, but it does right now. The flop is a glorious 6-J-5 rainbow.

I check. Prague bets. I just call. I know he will do the betting for me. The turn is a 6, and I have a full house. I check. Prague bets. I just call. Maybe I should have raised. The river is a 4. I check certain Prague will bet again. Prague surprises me and just checks. Damn, his play up until now would have predicted he would blast on the river. Prague shows 4-10. Yes, my full house is good. I have 63,100 chips.

California finally shows up and sees his stack has less than 50,000 chips since his stack was in play.

End of level 2: 63,100 chips.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 3 of 14)
California, the player to my immediate left, seems quite inexperienced ... California is building a big stack ... The World Cup and the WSOP collide for a player from Switzerland

Level 3
200/400/400

I am in the big blind with 7-10. It folds to France in the small blind, and he completes. I check. The flop is 10-9-3. France checks. I bet. France folds. Viva la top paire!

I am in the small blind with Q-4. It folds to me. I bet. California calls. This is the first hand he has played since arriving. The flop is K-Q-8. I continuation bet, California calls. The turn is a 7. I check, California bets, and I fold. At a later break, California tells me he had Q-Q.

From UTG, I open with A-10o. I contemplated folding, but we are only 6-handed, so I opened. If we were 9-handed, I think I fold A-10 off suit from UTG. Smiley calls. The flop is Q-J-4. I bet. Smiley calls. The turn is a rag. Check-check. The river is another rag. Check-check. I am outkicked by Smiley’s A-K.

Prague loses a big pot to California. On a Jack high board, Prague has K-Q, while California has Q-Q. Prague is definitely a build a big stack or implode type of player.

California makes a straight and wins a big pot against Tex, who is the second most active player at the table.

California seems very inexperienced. He didn’t know that his chips would be put in play when he bought in ahead of time and showed up late. He has made a string bet once. Some of his bet sizings are strange. But he is getting hit by the deck and gets paid off each time.

Tex and Prague are seated next to each, and as the two most aggressive players at the table they are battling against one another frequently. Tex flops a set and wins a big pot versus Prague, who is bleeding chips. Prague is down to 20,000 chips.

I am dealt Q-Q on the BTN. I open and Smiley calls from the big blind. The flop is K-7-3. Check-check. The turn is a Jack. Smiley checks. I bet. Smiley folds.

Brit arrives and sits down in Seat 9.

End of level 3: 57,700 chips.

We go on break. With about seven minutes left on break, I am waiting to be allowed back to my table. Standing by the rail, I look up and see that the Switzerland-Qatar World Cup soccer game is on the Paris Ballroom big screen TV. Coincidentally, I am standing next to a guy from Switzerland who is decked out in a Switzerland soccer jersey. He says just before the break he was in this room with a great view of the TV when he busted A-A versus K-K. I don’t know if he was on the K-K side of a cooler or the A-A end of a bad beat. He has bought back in our tourney, but his new table is in a different room with a terrible view of the soccer game. He is more upset about the bad view of the soccer game at his new table than he is from busting on a cooler/bad beat. One minute before the end of break, Switzerland scores and the Switzerland fan goes crazy and then rushes out of the Paris Ballroom to head wherever his new table is.

Did you request her services afterwards? 😀

Nope. I am busy enough playing my cards, assessing my opponents, and taking my notes. Getting a massage would be one multitask too many.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 5 of 14)
Brit thinks his masseuse is bringing him luck ... Sleepy and I go to war in A-A versus K-K carnage ... Dueling massages ... On break I make the long, difficult trek to see LVL’s Big Whale in the Horseshoe Event Center

Level 6
400/800/800

Brit, still receiving his massage, gets dealt A-K two hands in a row. “It’s the lucky masseuse,” he says. He is quite the multitasker and orders another screwdriver.

I am dealt A-A UTG. I open the betting. It folds to Sleepy. He 3-bets. I 4-bet. He 5-bets all-in. Decisions, decisions. I call. To no one’s surprise, Sleepy has K-K. I am way ahead. I have not been very good at holding when I am way ahead. The flop and turn are harmless. I just have to fade a king. The river has paint, which scares me for a second, but it is a Queen. Phew. I have 98,000 chips.

Prague is now about to get a massage at the same time Brit’s massage is ongoing. Prague says to his masseuse, “I like it hard.” The masseuse (female) says, “That’s what she said.”

On a King high board, Tex (K-10) busts Sleepy (Q-Q).

A new player arrives in Seat 1. He is wearing a Durham U Poker Society sweat shirt. He’s a Brit, but we already have “Brit” at the table, so new Brit will be called “Durham U.”

End of level 6: 91,800 chips.

We go on break. Big Whale has previously asked me to stop by and say hi to where he is playing in a Daily Deepstack tournament in the Horseshoe Event Center. This is as far away from my table in the Paris Ballroom as is possible, but I’m game. The problem is I initially get caught up in the slow moving scrum of players leaving the Paris Ballroom on break. Then when I get to the area where the Horseshoe casino ends and the hallway to the Horseshoe Ballroom and Event Center begins, I run smack into the players going on break from the Horseshoe Ballroom, which also has a ton of Colossus tables. These players are coming my way from one side of the hallway all the way to the other side of the hallway. No lane is allowed for people walking in the other direction. I am swimming upstream. I battle my way through a fight scene out of the movie Braveheart and finally get to the Event Center. I go to Big Whale’s table. His table is right next to the rail, so we can converse without him having to leave his seat. But the conversation has to be brief because I don’t have a ton of time to get back to my tournament.

Nice meeting you (twice), albeit brief! Hopefully more time next year if I make it back for WSOP.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 6 of 14)
Newcomers and buddies Hippie and Two Chips are in seats 4 and 5, are deep in conversation, and are barely paying attention to the action ... Two players act out of order in a chaotic hand ... In two consecutive hands I play, I have K-Q, the flop is King high, and in both instances I eventually push Tex off his hand

Level 7
500/1,000/1,000
Level 8 as well
(I don't have it in my notes where the level changed)

A new late reg guy arrives in seat 5. He only has two green 25,000 chips. He says, “Call me Two Chips.” OK, that makes my job as a writer easier. Two Chips is what we will call him.

A new late reg guy arrives in seat 4. He has a real hippie look. Long, long hair and a psychedelic shirt. He will be “Hippie.”

Tex takes out a pack of gum. He sees me looking at him (because he is seated directly in front of me) and he thinks I must want a piece. He asks if I’d like a piece of gum, and I say, “No thanks. I chew gum like a cow and it gives me a headache.”

Prague opens 2,000. A Prague open is not to be taken seriously given the high volume of hands he plays. I have A-Q and raise 6,000. He calls. The flop is 10-9-4. He checks. I bet. He folds. I have 101,300 chips.

I am dealt A-K. I open. California and Prague call. The flop is Q-J-4. Check-check-check. The flop is harmless. It checks to California who bets. I have not seen California try anything that I think is remotely bluffy up to now. Both Prague and I fold.

Hippie and Two Chips are deep, deep, deep in conversation. They are very good friends from the poker circuit. They are barely, barely, barely paying attention to the hands that are being played. They are playing autopilot poker. While this is taking place, the two Brits at the table (in seats 1 and 9) are engaged in a long running conversation with one another, which is tricky with the dealer seated between them. Tex and Prague are getting massages. It’s kind of chaotic and none of them seem overly focused. The only calm at the table is on each side of me where California is working hard to play ABC poker and France does not speak English.

California (9-9) busts Prague (As-8s).

Brit, despite the fact that his first drink had too much vodka, now orders his third screwdriver of the day.

Tex opens 2,500. I am in the BB with K-Q and call. The flop is 3-6-5. I check, and to my surprise the aggressive Tex checks back. The turn is a 7. This board should be all me given the pre-flop dynamic. I bet. Tex folds.

I open from UTG with K-Q. Two players call. Tex raises huge. I fold. It seems like every time I open with bottom of range from UTG, I get raised and often the raise is big. It would be nice to have top of range when this happens.

It comes up in conversation that California, who is only here for a few days for this tournament, has been joined on the trip by his father who will play in a seniors event.

I open Ac-10c from middle position and three people call. The flop is Kh-9d-3h. Everyone checks. The turn is a 10h. A raising war breaks breaks out between the small blind and big blind. I get out of the way. It turns out one player had a set and lost to Hippie’s flush.

In one hand Durham U flops trips, while Brit has flopped top two pairs. I’m not sure if a bet has already been made yet, but the action is on Tex who has top pair top kicker, but France folds out of order, leading to Brit going all-in out of order. Tex just sits there quietly waiting for the dealer to restore order. It’s anarchy. Chaotic anarchy. Finally, the dealer straightens things out, and Tex now gets to make his decision. My guess is he was going to bet, but seeing the fact that Brit went all-in out of order, Tex decides to fold and says, “Actually, I’m glad it played out that way.”

I have K-Q and open the betting. Tex calls. Tex loves to play a lot of hands, and he hates folding. I don’t put him on a big hand. He’s not someone you try to bluff. He is someone you get value from. The flop is K-10-4. I bet. Tex calls. The turn is a 2. I bet. Tex calls. The river is another 2. I bet. Tex folds. I have 107,100 chips.

Shortly thereafter, there is a limp fest. We go 6-way. I think I may have been the BTN. I have K-Q. The flop is K-8-4 rainbow. It checks to me. I bet. Only Tex calls. The turn is a 2. Nothing got there. I bet again. Tex folds. I do something I have not done my entire trip, and I show my King face up. I have been betting into Tex a bunch, and I’ve now done so in two very recent hands. I want him to believe that when I do so I have it (which for the most part I have). The point is I show to possibly set up a bluffing opportunity against the doesn’t-like-to-fold, aggressive Tex somewhere down the road. I have 119,300 chips.

Hippie opens from early position. I have A-J suited. I could raise, but Hippie is a late-reg player who has shown he wants to play big pots all the way to the river. I don’t want to play a huge hand with A-J against an early position open. The fact that my A-J is suited leads me to call, knowing it has the potential to make the nuts. Let’s see if we can flop a flush or a flush draw. We do not flop a flush or a flush draw. Don’t flop an Ace or a Jack either. Hippie bets. I fold.

End of level 8: 114,400 chips.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 7 of 14)
Brit keeps pounding the vodka and orange juice ... On break, Tex walks over to me and delivers a message

Level 9
1,000/1,500/1,500

Brit orders his fourth screwdriver. I hope they have plenty of vodka because he is showing no signs of slowing down.

I have A-K UTG+2. I bet. Everyone folds.

When I am UTG I am dealt 3-3. This is a hand I’d play in the early levels to set mine. But I think we are deep enough that I should not be set-mining from UTG. I fold.

End of level 9: 110,400 chips.

We go on break. Tex walks over to me and says, “I laid down a King to you earlier. Just so you know.” I just smile and say nothing, figuring any discussion of the hand works in Tex’s favor, not mine. It feels like Tex is sending me a warning. If intimidation was what Tex had in mind, I’m not the least bit bothered.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 8 of 14)
First hand after break I have Q-Q ... Brit keeps drinking and now he wants to get an NBA bet down with his bookie back in England ... I bust Two Chips

Level 10
1,000/2,000/2,000

First hand back from break, I am dealt Q-Q. Hippie opens. I raise. Hippie folds 8-8. I have 120,000 chips.

Brit points to a tattoo on Two Chips arm that is partially obscured by the sleeve of his shirt. Brit asks, “Is that Superman?” Two Chips pulls up the sleeve and says, “Nah, it’s a birthmark.” (It’s a Superman tattoo)

Brit orders another screwdriver. I’ve lost count of how many he’s up to. Brit gets in conversation with Two Chips about tonight’s NBA Finals game between the Knicks and Spurs. Two Chips fancies himself a sharp. He tells Brit the sharp money is the under and the Spurs. Brit wants action, so he says he will text these bets to his bookie back home. Two Chips gives betting odds to request that is ever so slightly better than Brit will get from a United States bookie. Two Chips says the British bookie will probably go along because he won’t be booking many/any bets on an American game. Brit texts the bet request. The British bookie must realize Brit is getting advice from a bettor in America, and the British bookie texts back, “F**k you, America is corrupt.” The bookie refuses the bet. Brit thinks this is hilarious.

Tex (J-J) busts France (6-6). There is a Jack on the flop to punctuate the bust out.

A new player joins the table in seat 1 wearing a P.E. t-shirt. He will be “P.E.”

I bust Two Chips when my Q-Q holds up against his A-8. The way the hand plays out is interesting. Two Chips goes all-in. I have him covered. I go all-in. California has his chips in hand and halfway into the pot when he pulls the chips (still in his hand) back after seeing my aggressive action. He folds what he will say after the hand was J-J. I river a Queen for good measure. Note to self: Save making a set for when I get it in bad, not when I get it in good and it is going to hold. I have 159,000 chips. It's a lot of chips at the moment.

A new late-reg player joins the table in seat 5. He is wearing a neon pink shirt. He will be Neon. I note that the table has become pretty reg heavy.

End of level 10: 159,000 chips.

Not sure if it's intentional (or even real), but I'm liking these shorter posts. Makes it feel more like I'm sweating you, even though everything happened a while back.

WSOP 2026: (June 13) $500 Colossus NLHE, Day 1D (Part 9 of 14)
Brit and I do battle, and it turns out we are both bluffing with the same hand ... Brit is now pounding the drinks ... With 9-9, I 3-bet against a new late-reg player ... Brit’s set busts a player who has two pairs (maybe the Vodka is his good luck charm)

Level 11
1,000/2,500/2,500

I get into a big hand with Brit who continues to order screwdrivers. I have A-Q. I open and Brit calls. The flop is 10-J-2. I bet. Brit calls. The turn is a 4. I bet, and Brit raises huge. What am I beating? I’m losing to almost all of his Aces. I’m beat by A-K, A-J and A-10. I block A-Q. I’m ahead of K-Q which is an open-ended straight draw, but I block him having K-Q. I’m behind any pair.

I fold.

Brit, who loves to show when he is bluffing, as well as when he has the nuts, shows ...

... A-Q. We had the same hand. You know the saying, bluffing with the best hand? Well, we were each bluffing with the same hand. He just committed to one more bet of the bluff than I did.

Brit is desperate to know what I had. I say nothing. He asks, “Was I good?” I say, “You got all of the chips.” Brit is dying to know. “Did you have A-K?” he asks. “I was targeting A-K.” He keeps asking what I had. I’m starting to find it annoying. Still, I say nothing.

I’m not really upset with myself. The saying is “If you’re never bluffing, you are not bluffing enough.” I think I picked a good spot. My opponent had nothing. Unfortunately, he chose to go drunken YOLO with his nothing. To quote the movie Cool Hand Luke, “Sometimes nothing can be a real cool hand.” We had the same nothing. He just liked his nothing more than I liked my nothing.

Brit orders another screwdriver. He is a vodka drinking machine. Poker Under the Influence. I hope he’s not driving. His drink orders are increasing in speed. At least he’s getting his Vitamin D from all of the orange juice. I’ve got to believe he implodes at some point.

A new late reg player shows up in the seat to my immediate right. First hand he is on the button and opens 5,000. I have 9-9 and make it 15,000. He folds. Look at me being a bully with 9-9. What do you know, it is possible to win with 9-9. I have 130,000 chips.

P.E. busts California, the player to my immediate left. California is quickly replaced by a late-reg lady wearing a mask, who I see is from California (which I deduced by looking at her driver’s license when she checked in with the dealer). A California for California trade. We’ll call her Lady California.

Brit makes a set and busts P.E. who has top pair.

Brit orders another screwdriver. The more he drinks, the more he sun runs, and the more unpredictable he gets.

Lady California has 3c-4c and rivers a flush to beat Tex’s set of 10s for heaps.

The table is now entirely late-regs, except for Tex, Brit and me.

The late regs to my right are discussing the fact that they don’t understand how anyone can play a tournament like this from level 1. One of them refers to playing from level 1 on as “death.”

End of level 11: 124,000 chips.