The 300 pound gorilla in the room that I talk about way to often just walked out the door. Ok lets be honest I don't talk about it I bitch and moan. In case you are wondering what gorilla I am talking about well it's the fact that I have never won a multi table tournament. Not once… not even any of the 30 man tourneys I have hosted or any of the other tournaments around town. I have come in second way to many times and made the final table even more. But finally last night in the wee hours of the morning I won. I actually won.
It was not a huge amount of money but a good ROI, it was the Full Tilt 24+2 $10k guarantee. There were 743 entrants making the prize pool over $17k and first paid over $4,200. But to me it was not the money that mattered if it had been for 500 I would not have cared, I just wanted a win.
What follows is the account of how it happened in my eyes and the events leading up to it.
The day started out terrible. I had played in several other tournaments in which I was sucked out on the worst was I was in the top 5 of stacks about midway through this $150 tournament. I got KK in the BB and it was raised and re-raised in front of me. The original raiser was also in the top 5 and had about 500 more in chips than me. The re-raiser went all in for like 5k and I was more than happy with that pot as that would make me the chip leader. So I push all in over the top. And to my surprise the original raiser calls. I was thinking crap he must have aces. The cards start flying out and the river is an ace. The cards flip over and the guy that had me covered called with a-5 off suit…. The other guy had QQ. I could not believe that someone would be so moronic as to call with a-5 and 2 all-ins in front of him. It was beyond comprehension, and that is when I flew off the handle and made my post on the forums about being done with poker.
About that same time I was still in another tournament the 10k guarantee. We had just made the money a few minutes before and I was a relative low stack and things were looking like I would not make it much further. I had not been getting any cards and I am in the BB and get dealt A-3 of clubs. Another low-mid stack just called from mid-position. And I get to see the flop for free. The flop is Qc Ks Tc, so as I am sure y'all know I am on the Ace high flush draw. I check it waiting to see what the other player does. And he bets pot, $3200, the SB folds and
I think then say "I got to get lucky sometime" and call.
I called cause I got the flush draw and the straight draw and an over card. It was not a good call but I felt I needed to do something and I am roughly 40% to win this hand, and thus not a horrible call. My chance to win the hand without contest came on the turn when a 3 of diamonds hit. This gave me a few more outs incase he was playing something like 2 pair or even just top pair. So I pushed all in. It turns out it was a mistake. But I was thinking that there was a possibility that the guy was betting the flop to take it down and that he had something like 88 or 99 and would not call off a majority of his stack with anything less than the nuts. He has Q-10 spades, with one card left to come I am behind. I need a 3, Ace, any club or a J to come on the river. All these outs give me a 38% chance of hitting. And Bam I hit. The Jack of clubs falls on the river. And I just sucked out. And gave me enough of a chip stack that I now was in the top 30 stacks and could play comfortably for a while. I then went on a tear of getting good card and loose players calling off their stacks or pushing into me when I had the nuts.
It was down to about 20 players when it happened. I had built my stack to 120k was in the top five or so of chips stacks and the big stack was two to my right and another big stack was my SB. I got dealt AA in the BB and the blinds are 3k-6k and it folds around to the button I was expecting that everyone would fold cause hell that is my luck but the button raises to 18k, I was like nice I will at least get something. I was typing out to Jake that I had AA when the SB pushes all in for like 105k.
My jaw dropped. And I had to switch back to the tourney window. And I was saying to myself "do I call or push?"
… I pushed because it would either let the Button know I had a hand or it would make him think that I was weak and did not want a caller, it all depends on his mentality. Plus I was more than happy with the double up. To my utter amazement he called. Now I was scared shitless, I don't want there to be two people in there trying to suck-out on me. The cards flip over and the button has KK the SB has JJ and I am sitting there with AA. The Aces Held up for once in a critical situation. And I was now the monster stack in the tourney with just under 360k.
Things slowed down for a bit as people were tightening up I took that opportunity to steal some of the large blinds and maintain most of my stack going into the final table I was the big stack with around 300k+ in chips very quickly I was able to add to that lead when I had KK and took someone out that had A-K. From there it was pick and choose. I lost some of my stack and at the three way point I was only the chip leader by under 100k margin. I took out the third place player and there I was the big stack going heads up. I think I had like 680k in chips to his 400k+. We battled back and forth and then it happened.
Disaster struck, with antes of 3k and blinds at 12k/24k I got pocket 4's and raised pot pre-flop to 78k, and he called. So now I was looking for a 4 on the flop and I got it. The flop was 4-9-5 rainbow. I bet 72k and he called. The turn was a 9, and that sealed the deal for me to win. I bet another 72k and he called again when he called I knew he likely had a-9 and was trying to get the most of his trip 9's the river was a 7 and he bets out first instead of checking to me again. I just knew he only had a 9 and thus I raised to put him all in and he instantly called. He had 9-7.
It appeared that my curse of coming in second was back in full effect. I was pissed. I think I broke another keyboard. But I was not going to go out like some chump. I was the short stack and I knew how I had to play it. Loose and aggressive cause if I don't get lucky and or steal some of the massive blinds I will get blinded out quickly. We traded some chips and I stole some to add about 100k to my stack. I had about 300k when I bet pot with A-7, and he re-raised me. I got a sense that he was not all that strong and just tired of me being aggressive. That and he had shown time and time again at the final table that he was willing to re-raise and go all in with two face cards. So I went all in which was only another 10k or so to him. He called and I was right he had q-k spades. I was ahead the flop came with two spades which crushed my hopes inside. But then a small miracle happened. My ace high held up to win the pot. Now I was back in control. I WAS THE BIGSTACK. Now there was no way I was going to let this guy take the tourney away from me.
I accumulated a few more chips and got A-10 diamonds and won a 200k pot. And the very next hand I got AA. I knew if I played this weak I could take this tourney down right now. This is how you play AA against an overaggressive player that is reeling from losing his chip lead. And that you know is willing to take chances to accumulate some of his chips back. The final Hand is below.
Before reading it I would just like to say thanks to my friends who came out and supported my final table play, and to thank Jake for his support throughout most of the tourney. Some of y'all have asked "how it feels and if I am happy?". This may sound corny but I don't think that Happiness really describes it, happiness is part of it, but I really feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders and that I can actually breathe. There is a deep feeling of accomplishment and pride.
FullTiltPoker Game #1111918488: $10,000 Guarantee (7364896), Table 46 - 20000/40000 Ante 5000 - No Limit Hold'em - 1:35:35 ET - 2006/10/17
Seat 2: koreanboy (306,768)
Seat 3: WestonPoker (807,732)
koreanboy antes 5,000
WestonPoker antes 5,000
WestonPoker posts the small blind of 20,000
koreanboy posts the big blind of 40,000
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to WestonPoker [Ah Ac]
WestonPoker calls 20,000
koreanboy raises to 130,000
WestonPoker calls 90,000
*** FLOP *** [5h 8s Th]
koreanboy bets 171,768, and is all in
WestonPoker calls 171,768
koreanboy shows [9d Qc]
WestonPoker shows [Ah Ac]
*** TURN *** [5h 8s Th] [Qh]
*** RIVER *** [5h 8s Th Qh] [6d]
koreanboy shows a pair of Queens
WestonPoker shows a pair of Aces
WestonPoker wins the pot (613,536) with a pair of Aces
koreanboy stands up
WestonPoker stands up
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 613,536 | Rake 0
Board: [5h 8s Th Qh 6d]
Seat 2: koreanboy (big blind) showed [9d Qc] and lost with a pair of Queens
Seat 3: WestonPoker (small blind) showed [Ah Ac] and won (613,536) with a pair of Aces
