To do a quick recap from last time, I moved on to day 2 of the Golden Nuggets Grand Series of Poker Main Event. We had 235 starters with 51 people moving to day 2. I came in with a well above average stack of 206k. 27 of us would get paid with 55k going to 1st place. I was in seat 3 with poker star Faraz "thet0ilet0" Jaka in seat 10, and other good young players in seats 2 and 5.
Level 13: 1500-3000 300. I made it 6500 from UTG +1 with A7o, and the BB who was a tight older man moved all in for 36k total causing me to fold. Around this time, a new player who happened to be the defending champion of this event came and sat down in seat 4 on my left with a ton of chips. There was 1 limper and I completed the SB with T7o. We saw a flop of QT4, I checked, the BB (seat 4 the defending champion) bet 5500, the limp folded, and I called. The turn came another Q, I checked, he bet 7000, and I called. The river came a 5, I checked, and he checked behind showing 64 and I had the winner. The young player in seat 2 opened to 7000 from the hijack, I 3-bet to 16.6k from the cutoff with 75cc, he moved all in for his last ~90k or so, and I folded. It folded to me in the SB and I decided to just limp into the defending champions BB when I found ATo. He checked behind and we saw a flop of A92 2 hearts. I lead out for 4200 and he called. The turn came an offsuit J, I lead for 10000, and he called. The river came an offsuit 4, I lead for 16.5k, and he called but mucked when I showed my top pair giving me a nice pot. I made it 6500 from UTG +1 with 96cc, Faraz 3-bet me to 18k from the BB, and I folded. I made it 6500 from UTG with T9cc and the kid in seat 2 called from the BB. The flop came K86 2 clubs, he checked, I bet 8000, and he folded. I was up to 222000 and we went up to the next level.
Level 14: 2000-4000 500. I then picked a bad time to try to run a bluff. Faraz opened to 9000 from the cutoff and I called from the button with 77. The BB called as well and the flop came down JT4. They checked to me, I bet out 11.5k, and the BB called. The turn came a 3, he checked, and I checked behind. The river came a 9, he checked, I bet 40.5k, and he quickly called showing QJ for the winner. I figured this was a good card to get him off of a T or a hand like J9 or even Q9, T9. I kind of did the overbet bluff to make sure he would fold these marginal hands here, repping KQ for the straight. However, by checking top pair 3 times he is basically committing himself to never folding the river so I got caught. I was down to 160k or so after this. The players in seats 1 and 2 busted so when it folded to Farazs SB, I was in the BB. He made it 11k and I found A9o in the BB and called. The flop came down J32, he checked, and I checked behind. The turn came another J, he bet out 14k, and I called. The river came a T, he checked, and I checked behind but was no good when he showed T9 for the rivered 3-outer. I made it 9500 from the button with 22 and both of the blinds (seats 4 and 5) called. The flop came AAK and I folded to a lead. Around this time, another table broke and we were down to 30 players approaching the bubble. With this break, online wunderkind "assassinito" came and sat down on my right in seat 2 and another young good German kid sat down in seat 7. Faraz opened to 9000 in EP, a player in MP called, I called from MP also with 33, and the button and BB called. The flop came 976 and I folded to a bet. Faraz opened to 9500 from MP, I found TT on the button and made it 25k, and everyone folded. This was a bad level and I found myself down 100k in chips with my stack at 122000.
Level 15: 2500-5000 500. Very early on in this level, we got to 28 players and started hand for hand. This lasted about 30-40 minutes with us seeing very little action at our table. I found TT UTG +1, opened to 11.5k, and everyone folded. I found KK in the hijack, opened to 11.5k, and everyone folded. I found 66 UTG and opened to 11.5k resulting in, again, everyone folding. Eventually, the bubble bursted and we were all in the money!!! Soon after the bubble burst, I played a very interesting hand. Assassinito opened to 10.5k from UTG +2, I found QQ right behind him and 3-bet to 24k, and the defending champion right behind me cold 4-bet to 60k. Assassinito quickly folded and I agonized about my decision for a really long time before deciding to ultimately fold, leaving myself with about 115k behind. The player was quite good but even so, I really didnt think that he would cold 4-bet here without the effective nuts. QQ is a massive laydown and I dont know if I have ever laid it down in a spot like this before but I just got unusually strong vibes from him so I just decided to find a different spot. NOTE: I kept asking the guy what he had and he didnt tell me right away but when he busted out of the tournament, he told me he had AQ. . .baaaaahhh. . .bad fold. . .Im such a wuss. I was at 109000 and we went to the next level.
Level 16: 3000-6000 500. Early on in the level, I was rewarded for (what I thought at the time) making a great fold with a double up. Faraz opened from the cutoff to 12.5k (which he was doing very wide), the guy on the button reshoved for his last ~150k (which I knew he was doing wide on Farazs opens as he had done this 4-5 times in the last hour), I found AQo in the BB and called off my last 100k or so, and Faraz folded. He showed KJhh and I faded his cards on 999T5 to double to 220k or so. This was the only pot I played this level and I took 207000 to the next level.
Level 17: 4000-8000 1000. Faraz opened to 18k from UTG +2 and I 3-bet him to 41k from MP with KTdd and everyone folded. I opened to 17k from the hijack with T9o and the SB was the only caller. The flop came down J87 flopping me the nuts, he lead out for 22k, and I just called. The turn came a 3, he moved all in for his last 100k or so, and I snapcalled. He showed JT and his chop didnt come when the river came a 4 and I was up to over 400k just like that (easy when you can flop the nuts vs top pair). It folded to Faraz in the SB (seats 1 and 2 were busted again) and he opened into my BB for 22k. I found A5o and called and we checked down Q93J9 with him showing A3 for the winner. Around this time we went down to the final 18 players, giving everyone a pay jump in money for the final 2 tables. I opened to 18k from MP with 74cc and everyone folded. I was at 351000 and we went up another level.
Level 18: 5000-10000 1000. I opened to 23k from UTG +1 with J7o and Faraz called out of the BB. The flop came T97 2 spades, he donk lead for 24k, I made it 61k, and he called. The turn nice for me in the form of a 7, he checked, I went all in for my last ~260k or so, and he folded. Interesting hand here. The reason I went all in on the turn is because I didnt want to bet 100k or something like that and have another spade or straight card come on the river and have to puke call his bet. I probably didnt get max value if he had a 10 or something but whatever. Actually, a better way to have played the hand would have been to check behind on the turn with the intention of calling his probable bluff or possible value bet on the river (it seems like a likely spot for him to bet the river if I check behind the turn). Therefore, I dont have to call an all in which is what would happen if I bet like 100k, he called, and bet the river but I would still be able to call an amount that would impact my stack but not to the degree of losing it all. Additionally, this turn jam helped set up a massive hand that took place later on in the tournament. Faraz opened to 21k from MP, the button called, and I called from the BB with 98o. We checked to the turn on ATTQ where I folded to a bet. Around this time we were down to 14 players or so. The player in the cutoff moved all in for 81k and I found A8o on the button and, even though he was a tight player, I figured I was ahead of his 6-handed jamming range alot here so I called. He showed down 66 and I lost the flip on A62Qx and was back down to 300k or so. Faraz opened to 20k from UTG, I 3-bet to 51k from the button with A8o, and he put me all in for my last ~300k or so. I called and he showed A7hh and the board ran out Jh4x4xKhQh and he made a flush to bust me out. . .or did he. I slid my chips over to him and started to walk away from the table dejected and disappointed when everyone started calling back to me telling me it was a chop. I asked them how it could be a chop when he made a flush and they said "what are you talking about??? he didnt make a flush!" I rechecked Farazs cards and they were a red A7 but one was a heart and one was a diamond so while I didnt double up to 600k after getting in with the best hand, I wasnt actually eliminated from the tournament when we chopped the pot! I opened to 23k from MP with JTo, Faraz 3-bet from the BB to 63k and I folded. At this time, we went to dinner break. There were 11 players left (1 more to bust before getting to the final table) and I was back down to 245000.
Level 19: 6000-12000 2000. I opened to 26k from the button with K9hh and the SB, the young good German kid I talked about before, moved all in from the SB forcing me to fold. The cutoff opeend to 28k and I moved all in from the BB with K8dd and everyone folded. Soon after this hand happened, someone busted and we were down to the final table of 10! The final table complexion looked as follows:
Seat 1: Extremely nitty lady ~200k
Seat 2: Faraz Jaka ~1.2 million
Seat 3: Good young German kid who had been at my table for a while but I never really tangled with him ~400k
Seat 4: Poker pro/semi-poker celebrity Kenna James ~900K
Seat 5: My roommate and good friend David ~1 million
Seat 6: Pretty solid middle aged man ~500k
Seat 7: Young competent player who was playing tigher due to his shortstack ~250k
Seat 8: German middle aged man who played better than you would think by looking at him ~1 million
Seat 9: Me ~240k
Seat 10: Older man who looked alot like Jon Voight and played pretty standard old man poker but his game was a tad more creative than most old me ~300k.
On the very 2nd hand of the final table, it folded to the kid in seat 7 and he opened to 30k from the button. I found 87dd in the BB and decided to ship it on him and he quickly called showing AKo. The board ran AT9J5 and I sucked out to get a double up in the most crucial pot of the summer so far!! So exciting. I was up to 450k or so and the kid was crippled to 20k or so and busted the next hand and we were down to the final 9. A couple of hands later, the nitty woman in seat 1 busted to the older man in seat 10 with JJ losing to KK and we were down to 8. I made it 26k from the hijack with KQo and everyone folded. I had 459000 and we went up to the next level.
Level 20: 8000-16000 2000. I opened to 35k from the hijack with A3ss and everyone folded. Around this time the player in seat 6 busted in a race vs the German man in seat 7 (QQ beating AK) and we were down to 7 players. The older man in seat 10 opened to 32k UTG (he meant to raise more but thought we were still on the previous level) and I called from the BB with KJss. The flop came down KQT all hearts, I checked, and he checked behind. The turn came the 8d, I lead for 36k, he raised it to 72k, and I called. The river came 4h putting a 4th heart on board, I checked, he fired 80k, I called, and he showed AQ no heart and I won a nice pot to push my stack up to over 600k. This call was all about physical tells. Alot of times I will just fold when I get raised on the turn but his betting size was weak and did not dictate how he had been playing stronger hands in previous situations so I figured I would call and reevalute on the river. When the river came the 4th heart and he bet, everything about him said that he was weak. From the way he put his chips in the middle to the way he was sitting, it was nearly transparent to me that he was bluffing so I called and it worked out well to get my stack to peak as high as it had been all tournament. I made it 35k from UTG with K2ss, Faraz called from MP, and the German man called in the BB. The flop came QJT, and everyone checked. The turn came an 8, the German guy lead out for 55k, and we both folded. Kind of weak to flop a draw and just go check/fold but I know I can find better spots. The German guy opened to 39k from UTG and I found 88 UTG +1 and 3-bet to 85k. He put me all in for my last ~550k total and I elected to fold even though I had a strong incling that his hand was AK. Faraz opened to 41k from UTG and I found 99 in the SB and 3-bet to 110k eliciting a fold from everyone. I had 608000 and we went up to the next level.
Level 21: 10000-20000 3000. I opened to 45k from UTG with 97o and everyone foled. The German guy opened to 46k from UTG +1 and I 3-bet him to 110k right behind with J9o causing everyone to fold. I then played a pretty ridiculously fun hand that ended up being a massive pot. I found JTss in the cutoff and opened to 45k, Faraz 3-bet from the SB to 101k, and I called. The flop came T55, he checked, I bet 115k, and he called. The turn came a K, he checked, I jammed all in for my last 360k, and after tanking for a good 5 minutes he decided to call showing AJ! The river came a 4 and I was able to double to 1.15 million in chips in a pretty sick hand. I rarely call in these spot preflop, either choosing to fold or 4-bet jam and if he would have raised a larger amount I probably would have just jammed but the 3-bet size was so small compared to my raise I figured I could profitably call him with position and a hand that flops well. The highlight of the hand was his decision to hero call me with AJ high. When he was tanking for forever, I figured he had a hand like 99-77 and I wasnt ever really worried that I was beat with 2nd pair no kicker. As is patented Jaka, he decided to make the hero call but this time it was no good. Like I had said before, all of the time that I had jammed the turn on him previously paid off in this pot allowed me to win a massive pot to put me right up with the chip leaders. Faraz busted the very next hand and we went 6-handed with me having as good of shot as anyone to win this thing. I was at 1150000 and we went up to the next level.
Level 22: 15000-30000 5000. One of the 1st hands of the level, I found QQ on the button and opened to 65000, the old man called from the SB in seat 10, and the young German kid shoved for 575k from the BB. I snap reshoved and he showed A9dd and I was on the verge of becoming massive chip leader of the tournament. The flop ran out T32 but the A on the turn flipped the situation and the 9 on the river didnt give me my miracle adn I was shot back down to under 600k. Bah. . .what sucks even more about not winning this is that the whole final table dynamic would have changed. I would have had just under 2m, David had 1.2m, Kenna James and seat 10 would have been short stacks with around 400k each, and the German guy would have had 1.5m. It is extremely likely that David and I get to 3 handed with the German guy if this holds up giving one of us a great shot at winning but that just was not the case. I opened to 65k from UTG +1 with A9o and David called from the BB. The flop came KQ6, he checked, I bet 80k, and he folded. My stack dwindled to around 460k or so after not getting involved and watching the short stacks double up around me. I made it 65k UTG with J8dd and the German guy called in the BB. The flop came A32 2 diamonds, he checked, I moved all in for 400k or so, and he folded. I was at 540000 and we went up to the next level.
Level 23: 20000-40000 5000. After folding through the blinds, I found A7o on the button and moved all in causing everyone to fold. I was at 540k when I played an extremely odd hand with the German that basically cost me my tournament. It folded to him in the SB and he decided to limp my BB. I thought this was particularily odd as I am likely to shove here so I gave him credit for a big hand and just checked when I found J4o. The flop came T55, he checked, and I checked behind. The turn came a 4 pairing me, he checked, I bet 55k, and he caled. The river came a 3, he checked, I value bet 100k, he instantly put me all in, I folded, and he showed QJo for the stone cold bluff. Ugh. . .I sooooooo wish I would have just checked behind on the river or just shoved the flop. He did limp pretty strong but he is probably folding to a push (plus I get there if he calls). I figured him for an A high hand when he went limp/check/check/check with his line so I tried to extract an extra 100k on the river with my pair. I definently did not think he was capable of making a play such as a check/raise river bluff with little fold equity. Damn. . .Oh well. This hand left me crippled with just 320k or so. A couple of hands later I moved all in from MP with 87o and Kenna James isoed all in from the SB showing AQo. I could not suckout on a big ace with 87 again and I unfortunately busted in 6th.
It is frustrating to go deep and not finish the job but I cant be too mad with my performance. . .especially considering that I got lucky to not get out 10th at the final table. It was a great experience to be able to get through such a tough field, play with some great players, and make a final table with a good friend. I took home around 10.2k for my 6th place (5.1k of which was mine). David ended up busting out in 5th place which was equally as disappointing because he had a ton of chips at one point but sometimes things just dont go your way and only one person can truly be happy at the end of a tournament. I just know we were a QQ holding vs A9 from one of us likely winning. Hopefully I have one more deep run left in me this summer and I will be able to improve on my 6th place finish of this tournament.
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