The Fish on the Right

And so The Lord Smite them all bar one

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Watching the final table yesterday I discovered that the Lord had taken an interest in poker and being a being of particular taste it was the World Series of Poker Main Event he decided to monitor. Jerry Yang unbeknownst to us all had become his intrument in this mighty event and is now our new World Champion. I don't want to mock too much because he seems like a nice guy who has had some tough times and his faith has helped in through it. He also wants to help others with his new found wealth. The thing that irks me though is this belief that God would pay particular attention to him. I'm not just picking on faith in God here. Overtly religious people tend to worry me sometimes. John Travolta crediting Scientology for getting his career back on track when I thought Quentin Tarantino had more to do with it is a non-christian example. I don't want to harp on about it too much but lets just say Jerry Yang was probably not the only player out of 6500 who prayed to God over the last 2 weeks.

Things Starting to Quiten

Sun, 15 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Well things are getting quieter around here now. All of the Irish are out of the Main Event and many of them have returned home. I'm here until the 19th and I'm happy to make the most of the rest of my week left. I haven't had a winning session at the poker tables in ages but I'm determined to correct that. I've been careful not to lose too much. Having a new appartment and paying a mortgage makes you a bit more careful.

Things to do in Vegas when you're Card Dead

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Go to an Outlet

The Main Non-Event

Mon, 09 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Well attempt number 3 is over and is another failure. Determination, desire, confidence is all pretty much a load of bullshit now. It might sound like I'm mad or upset but I'm not really. I've done this before. Walked around the RIO and watched all these players. The famous, the infamous, the anonymous. While playing the satelite in the tent out back with the air conditioning down my eyes drifted to the TV in between atrocious play that was rewarded all too often. They were showing last years final table on ESPN. I don't know what kind of a person Jamie Gold is. Maybe hes the nicest guy you might ever meet at a card table. Regardless of that I couldn't help but smile at how he seemed to hit everything. Absolutely everything. Surely a monkey (no offence Jamie) could have won the WSOP with that kind of magical effect around you. Maybe not. Maybe ESPN are guilty of crazy editing. Who knows.

One More Go

Sun, 08 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

I'm about to play one last sat for the main event this evening. I have failed in 2 and have decided that I will give it one more go. Wish me luck

1 Day Left...

Thu, 05 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Yesterday (Tuesday) I finally played a $550 mega-sat for the big one. At the very least I can say I played in the WSOP and carefully leave out the detail that it wasn't anything significant. You start with a stack of 3k in chips and the levels are 30 minutes which seems fine until after the 4th level of 100/200 and 25 ante you are suddenly playing 200/400 and a 50 ante which is just ridiculous. In any case I started well ending level 3 and going into the break with 6k in chips after some guy thought his 9T was good enough to go all the way with my KK. Once we reached the painful 5th level I was down to 3.5k mainly because of the blinds and one hand I raised pre-flop with AJ but had to fold to a strong bet on the flop. I was then moved to another table and had barely taken in the scene when on my BB the UTG raises to 1200, a MP player pushes for 3.5k and it comes to me and I see AK. I'm certain the guy that has pushed is on tilt after losing half his stack on the previous hand and it's an easy push. The UTG calls after some thought and turns over QQ, the MP AT. Not a disaster really for the opportunity to triple up which is basically vital at this point. Out come the cards. A K on the turn gives me hope but a Q on the river sends me packing. I don't mind going out so much here only for the way it played out. The poker Gods just had to toy with me.

Pokered Out

Tue, 03 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Today I was changing rooms. I'm sharing with Dom from boards for the next 2 weeks but I had to leave my room and wait several hours before he arrived so the only option was...you guessed it. Sit at a poker table for the day.

Quick Update

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT

I'm starting to feel a bit like a hermit. I'm going from my room to the Ballys poker room and back again every day with only stops for food here and there. I haven't met up with anyone else here yet but theres plenty of time for that I suppose.

Still Cash Gaming

Sat, 30 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Yesterday after hitting the Las Vegas Outlet Center for some good value clothes (check it out) I sat into a 1/2 NL game in Ballys again. The play is so bad it's impossible to resist. I turned my original $200 into $635 in a 6 hour session. I have to admit some luck was involved but in general a good solid game will win here almost every time. No jackpot hands this time just jackpot opponents. One hand sticks out because I'm still not sure if I played it right. I raised to $12 on the button with TT and got 4 callers which is typical really (I'm wondering what I should be raising to if any). Flop came 678o and they all checked to me. I bet $50, the SB pushes for $100, the next guy calls and the last guy folds after some agonising. I'm not to worried about the guy who pushed because hes the worst player at the table and my guess from his play so far is he has a 9. The second caller is a calling station who is likely to check it down which is what I want at this stage. So I call and we check it down and I turn over my TT. The all-in guy has A9 and has missed and the other guy has the other TT. So we split a nice pot. The player who had agonised threw away 2 pair on the flop so I was pretty lucky there.

Still a bit jet lagged

Fri, 29 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT

I was awake at 6 yesterday. 8 today. Both because I was so tired the previous night I just couldn't stay awake but things should be back to normal today hopefully.

Second Time Around

Thu, 28 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Flying makes me nervous. I don't lose control or anything I just feel uneasy with turbulence, the thoughts of something going wrong etc. Regardless of this it will never stop me getting on a plane to go where I want to go. At the same time anything that makes things easier helps so this year I got the overnight boat and train to London where Virgin Atlantic fly direct to Vegas. One of the first trips I went on was to London on the boat and train with my Mother and Sister and I have loved it ever since. This worked quite well because when we took off on our 10 hour flight I was pretty tired and so was able to sleep and in a way shorten the trip and the time spent feeling nervous. Yes flying makes me nervous but when that plane landed and I saw the strip on the skyline you should have seen the smile on my face.

Kilarney Winter Festival

Fri, 01 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT

After such a great weekend last time I couldn't resist a return to Kilarney for their Winter Festival on the 11th of this month. I decided to travel down on the 10th and play the €50 satelite. 4 of us came from Dublin to take part and we all played this rebuy qualifier. The mood was relaxed and the drink flowed nicely. I rarely drink when playing poker but knowing I would be playing stone cold on the Saturday I was happy to take it easy in the satelite and see how things went. In the end only one of us managed to win a ticket. I came close but just near the bubble overplayed AQ and ran into KK. That was all she wrote and I now had to put up the €400 buy-in myself.

Kilarney Team Event in the Cue Club

Fri, 20 Oct 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Last weekend we (large bunch of disreputable Dublins dwellers) travelled down to Kilarney for the Cue Club's Team Event. This was a NLH tournament with teams of 3 and a €150+€20 buy-in and was a great excuse to get out of the big smoke for a day or two.

Inter-County Poker Championships

Tue, 05 Sep 2006 00:00:00 GMT

A few months before I was due to head for Vegas I signed up to play in the IPC event. I am from Kildare but was reliably informed it was a closed shop so I offered to play for Laois, the home County of my Mother. I was duly accepted and added it to my sparse poker calendar. It was only afterwards that I learned it would cost me the princely sum of €560 to play the event. I've never paid anything like this to play in an event because I am basically still small fry when it comes to poker but I decided what the hell and 2 weeks after Vegas I went along to Citywest to take part.

Winding down

Wed, 09 Aug 2006 00:00:00 GMT

I have 2 full days left before leaving Vegas and things are already feeling quieter. All of the Irish are gone from the main event now so we have nobody to shout for. We had a good night out to celebrate the various successes as well as Ken Powells birthday and now the journey home becomes foremost in minds. I'm still playing poker though.

More cash lost

Sun, 06 Aug 2006 00:00:00 GMT

On friday I watched Rob Taylor make the money in the WSOP. It was a great moment for Rob and the other Irish that made it. I got some nice pics too. I found out afterwards that Joe O'Neill had suffered a brutal beat at the end, losing with a set of Aces to quads but still made the money. After the buzz from cashing in the main event died down I played a sit and go for Saturdays WSOP event for a $175 buy-in. The standard was pretty poor but it quickly became a crapshoot when pushing and getting called by the fish at the table who had routinely called almost all the all-ins from anyone and hit every time. This time he had a hand though, TT, and I had zip.

Beer and moaning in Las Vegas

Thu, 03 Aug 2006 00:00:00 GMT

You've heard that one about not knowing what time it is in Vegas. It's true and especially apparent at 8.30 a.m. as the desert sun burns your bleary eyes. I spent Tuesday in bed after a couple of nights drinking and yesterday (wednesday) finally felt human again.

Wire(less) in the Trop

Sat, 29 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

On friday I moved down to the Trop. It's a better hotel then the Imperial Palace with on glaring weakness. No wirelesss in my room. I arrived early and had to wait 3 hours to get my room. To fill the time you guessed it I sat into a 1-2 NLH game in their card room. By the time I went to collect my room key had more then doubled my money to $440.

Very Quick Update

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Grand Canyon on Wednesday was amazing. Really something to behold but this being a poker blog I won't bore you with any more details. Just pay it a visit if you ever get here. Thursday I headed straight to the Rio to register for the Media/Celeb charity tourney and then sought out a satelite. I ended up sitting at $175 sit and go. Winning it would be enough to pay into the $1000 mega sat. A fairly uneventful game saw me out in 4th and off to get my seat for the Media event. I joined Mike and Tom for the Press Conference which we were obliged to sit through before getting our seat assignments. A bit of corporate guff and then TJ Cloutier and Billy Baxter were indcuted into the Hall of Fame. Then Joe Hachem came up and all 3 players did a short Q & A. Doyle Brunson came to watch as did Jennifer Harman so my star spotting continued.

Finally a small profit

Tue, 25 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Not much to report for today. I went down to the Rio to play a satelite only to discover that the $225 tourney was a rebuy so I decided to skip it and head to the MGM for some more cash gaming. Before I left I did a little star spotting yet again. I watched Phil Helmuth strutting around as the final table of the $1000 rebuy began, spotted Steve Danenman (or however you spell it), Willie Tann, Tony Bloom amongst others playing in the $1500 NLH. Then on the way out the best of all, the lovely Shannon Elizabeth.

Ceasers Tourney

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

It's Tuesday morning and I thought I'd report on yesterdays activities. I headed over to Ceasers at noon to try their tourney which is one of the most recommended in Vegas. It's got a great structure with 1500 chips for your $80 buy-in and another 3000 chips for a $50 rebuy. Needless to say everyone rebuys immediately and it plays like a freezout with 4500 chips. With 40 minute blinds it's got plenty of room for some play.

Exploring Vegas and a little 1-2NL

Sun, 23 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

My second full day here is coming to an end and I've managed to pack in alot. On the night I arrived myself and Conor headed over to the RIO to check out the World Series Arena. On the way in we ran into Tom (Devore) who led us the rest of the way. All I can say is wow. 100 tables in an absolutely huge room. Amazing. We headed out back to the Miller tent, had a few beers and called it a night.

Touchdown in the Desert

Fri, 21 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

I'm sitting in my room in the Imperial Palace finally after a days travelling. I met Tom briefly this morning before we went our seperate ways and flights. Once I got passed the security (which seems worse every time) and the inevitable delays I was in the air. I went via Chicago with American Airlines and all I will say is I recommend AA but not the staff of Chicago O'Hare.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Thu, 20 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

As I write Padraig Parkinson is in the last 4 of the $1500 NLH event at the wsop. If he can win it he will be the first Irishman in years to win a bracelet. Whatever happens less than 24 hours later I will be there myself to play, drink, cheer and whatever else is on the menu. I can't wait.