Blah Blah Bay 101. I Suck at Poker as Usual (and so does my brother, apparently)
After finishing up at the WSOP Academy, I started on Day 1a of the Bay 101 Shooting Stars Tournament in San Jose. The Shooting Stars event is a unique $10K WPT tournament because over 40 of the well known poker pros ave $5K bounties on their heads. This makes it a little harder to play as a bounty but it is a lot of fun and the field tends to be a little softer than your average Vegas or LA event.
I got off to a really strong start on Day 1. I never dipped below my initial starting stack of 20K chips. I had some great hands. I had KK 4 times and won every time. Three times an A even fell on the flop and I still managed to win the pot (that is when you really know things are going your way). The 4th time I had them I flopped top set. I flopped a set of jacks in a huge pot against AA and top 2. Obviously I won a bunch there. I had Aces in the big blind once with a raise and a call in front of me and took that pot down. Things just really went my way. When I bluffed it either worked or I got there. When I had hands they tended to hold up.
I ended Day 1 with 74K in chips, 12th of 50 for that starting day. My brother played Day 2 and ended the day around the same as me, winning a humongous and strange hand with Aces to pick up most of the stack he ended with. At the 75/150 level a guy limped in early position and picked up 3 callers to Howard’s big blind. Bub looked down at AA and made it 800 to go. The original limper calls and the second limper now makes it 7K (leaving himself only 8K behind that). The next two guys fold to Bub who now moves in for 26K. Now the first guy calls his 22K stack! The second guy, the one who made it 7K, now folds for his last 8K into a 45K pot with QQ! Before I tell you the flop, this is just the craziest action ever. I mean the first guy flat calls 150, then flat calls 800, then flat calls 22K. He never put in a raise. The second guy just made it 7K from 800 when 3 or 4K would do the same thing there. He leaves himself only 8K behind getting well over 5 to 1 from the pot and folds the last 8K. That is bizzare to say the least.
Anyway, Howard shows his AA and the guy who called has KK. The flop comes QJ4! Howard is thinking thank god that guy folded his QQ. But then the turn comes a T and the river a K and Howard makes an Ace High straight! Pretty amazing.
So Bub and I take a cab over to Bay 101 together from our hotel this morning and we both just kind of have the same day. I am hovering around 60 to 70K all day. I am only picking up pots on bluffs for the most part cause I can’t seem to get a real hand. I did have one big miss where I had T8h on a 963 two hearts board and couldn’t outrun T3d. That sucked. The board paired sixes on the turn and I did bet the hand when checked to. The T3 was sticky though but, interestingly, I was a favorite with one to come anyone so it turned out to be a value bet. I blanked the river though so blah.
I did see a pretty amazing hand though. The guy who was chipleader at the end of Day 1 called an early position raise from the small blind preflop. The board came JT4 two spades. Chipleader checks. early position guy bets 4500, chipleader calls. Turn pairs the 4. Chipleader checks, early position guy bets 10K, chipleader now raises to 30K. Early position guy moves in for 45K more. Chipleader guy calls and turns over 98d vs the early position guy’s JJ for jacks full. Um…drawing dead. Chipleader guy loses about 80K on the hand. Some crazy shit there.
Howard was over at Joe Sebok’s table and reported an even crazier hand. Apparently, this dude opens for 3K, the button calls the 3K and the big blind moves in for 20K. First guy folds and second guy calls the 20K with 96o! That was the craziest thing of all. Of course, the BB had 33 and had no shot against the 96. Howard tells me this story just as tables are breaking and I am moved over to his table. Joe Sebok is in the 5 seat, Bub in the 6 and I am in the 7 seat. The first thing I ask, of course, is who is the 96 dude. I should have guessed it was the guy with the mirrored plastic sunglasses and the crazy neon colored hat and sweatshirt. But asking is safer than assuming.
So Howard gets knocked out by Joe Sebok pretty fast with TT vs Joe’s JJ. Right after that, I get all in before the flop with AKc vs a guy’s QQ. I only have the guy covered by 4K. The flop comes Q high and I am totally crippled. I managed one triple up then rammed my 66 into T9 for the kill. Done. Bub and I are on the rail and going to dinner tonight in San Jose.
Boo Hiss. We suck at poker.
Hi Annie. You’re one of my favorite players nowadays. I’m loving watching you on The Apprentice and The Best Damn Poker Show 2. I stopped by Bay 101 long enough to watch Erick Lindgren, Gavin Smith and Jennifer Harman bust out, bust missed seeing you or Howard. That’s a fun event, even for us railbirds that can’t afford the buy-in. Better luck next year!
Hi Annie!
Like above, you are my favorite player, Howard is almost there too.. and every woman who plays
I have a dream to became the first woman who wins WSOP
I have to practice a lot my blinds 1500/3000 (and over) play, I start to suck there if I don’t get the nuts. Do you have some tricks to tell about that? 
After graduating I will start to analyze my hands for real, now I haven’t done that a lot.
Have a nice day and I wish you luck for your games!