Tournament Report from Tulsa, OK

There's been a whole lot that happened the last couple of days, but I'll try to find some end to start at. How about telling a bad beat story, that's a good start. And for all you motherfuckers that just skipped this entire paragraph after I started writing "bad beat story" I hope you burn in hell. I played a $130 tournament yesterday with about 460 people in it. It paid 36 spots. I got off to a decent start, fucked those chips off in a hurry and was floating around average until we were about 80 people left. I got moved to a table with a guy who had all the chippies sitting on my left, and I played with him the other night and I knew he was a full-blown donkafied superstar so I put the ol' target right on his forehead (not literally) and went to work! I was sort of short chipped at first so I laid down a lot of big hands that I'd normally raise with because I wanted to get a big hand to bust him with, since he liked to call a lot pre-flop.

I looked down at ace-seven and being the disciplined player that I am, that was the big hand I had been waiting for. I raised it to 1800 with 300/600 blinds, having a stack of 8000. He immediately said 'raise' and I took the chip off of my card ready to muck it, as I wasn't planning on calling a raise. He raised the absolute minimum though, and made it 3000. It was only 1200 more to me, and I decided I would call as I put him on a big pair and hoped to spike an ace. As I put my chips out there, he said "please no ace, please no ace" and that sort of confirmed my thought that he had kings or queens. First card out was an ace, followed by four four. I knew I was good, and I checked, he bet $1400, I moved allin for my remaining $2400 and he folded two kings. Somehow I was supposed to have two kings and trap the donkey who plays bullshit hands like A-7 to a raise but things never go the way you plan.

Then right before the break, I was sitting at about 15000 chips, still 300/600. A lady limps in, I complete the small blind with 9-7 and he checked his big blind option. The flop came down gin, Kh 7d 7c. I checked, he bet $2000, and I called. Turn was a three of diamonds, putting a diamond flush-draw out. I checked again, he says "I'm all-in" and I insta-called. He yells out "FUCK" and tables K-2 of diamonds for top pair with flushdraw. I dodge the diamond on the river and take a monster pot that puts me in the chiplead. I then proceed to play accordingly with my stack and I chip up from 30k to about 40k just taking down blinds. Then a tight player raises it in early position and I look down at aces. I thought about how to play this, and I figured he hasn't raised with a bad hand yet plus I have been in a lot of pots bullying the table so I thought if I move it all-in here I might get a call from 99-KK and AQ/AK. I just moved all-in and it folds around to him, he thinks for a while and calls with 10-10 and I win a big pot that puts me at about 60,000 chips. We're now well into the money and down to last three tables, I chip up from 60,000 to 98,000 without a showdown just taking down blinds and re-raising people trying to steal the blinds, we're now down to 12 people and I am feeling extremely confident and I am absolutely sure I am going to win this.

That's when it went to shit. I had a guy on my right that had about 90,000 chips when I had 98,000 and the average was about 27,000 so we were both huge in chips. I already decided I wasn't going to tangle with him too much, and that's when he limps in on my blind. The blinds are 600/1200 and I raise it an additional 4000 with J-10. He calls. Flop came down J-9-8 and he checks, I check behind to keep the pot small and the turn comes a 5. He checks again, I bet 6000, he minimum raises me to 12000 and I call. River is a 7 giving me the straight, he bets 10000 and I just call. He tables Q-10 for the flopped nuts, and higher straight and I'm down to 70,000 in chips.

The very next hand, I pick up two kings in the small blind. Someone limped under the gun, the guy on my right who just won that pot off of me limps in on the button. I decide to raise it real big to make it look like I'm steaming from the last pot so I made it 12,000 to go leaving myself with 58,000. The guy who limped on the button called and he's the only one at the table who can break me. The flop comes down 10h 7h 3s. I think for a little while and I then push it all-in, thinking I'm going to take it down right here. He studies for a moment and decides to call, and he flips up K-10. I'm already sick about it as I'm thinking dear god no ten. Whoever wins this pot will be an enormous chipleader and pretty much secured a top three finish, that's when the dealer burns and turns and there it is, a big fat fucking ten. I just stood up and walked off, I didn't collect my prize money ($400) or anything I just took off. I was so sick about it I didn't know what to do with myself, I played 7 hours of the best poker of my life and I feel like I got completely fucked out of a win that surely was mine. I didn't play any poker at all the day after that I just felt so sick about it, and I still do. If that ten doesn't roll off, I don't think there's a chance in hell I get anything but first. But that's how brutal tournament poker can be.