Tunica trip report

Well, I didn't get to play as much poker as I wanted to but the whole trip was a blast. I went down with my Dad and future Brother-in-law, and we met up with my wife's dad, from Jacksonville, and some of his friends. I know it's long, but it's good bathroom break reading material while you're at work.

$100+30 tourney 1pm at the Grand.
Started out with $5,000 in chips and $25/50 blinds moving up every 15 m inutes. I thought that the large number of starting chips would compensate for the quick blind structure, and it did for a while at least. There were only 38 signed up and most of them were older gentlemen. By the first break I had been down to around $3.5K but gotten back up to right at $5K. After the first blind level I could tell that it was a semi-loose passive table, with 4 or 5 seeing the flop un-raised. The second hand of the tournament I got dealt AA 3 seats off the button with one limper utg. I raised 4X the bb and it got folded all the way around. I guess had I seen that no one was raising pre-flop I wouldn’t have raised quite as much. I limped in several pots trying to catch a good flop and didn’t really connect on anything. Then I decided to try to steal a pot from the button when it folded around to me. OOPS, I realized after I raised that I hadn’t even picked up my cards and I think the two guys on my left realized it since my steal attempt didn’t work. When the flop came out with two aces I got check-raised when I tried to steal again, AFTER checking my cards, and I decided to back down. A little later on in the first level I got KK and was called by the big blind pre-flop and on the flop with my pot sized bet and all under cards. I led at the pot again on the turn and took it down. A couple of hands later I had K6s in the small blind and called. The flop came out KQQ and I made a pot sized bet, the big blind immediately pushed all in and had me covered. I thought about it for a minute or two and folded. The guy flashed me a queen as he mucked and drug the pot. That hand put me around $5K for the end of the first level.

My dad was also playing in the tourney and he was up to about $5.5K, I was proud of him. He never plays tournaments and had never even been to a casino, so I was glad he was enjoying himself. I did hear a female dealer tell him she was going to smack his hand when he tried to make change out of someone else’s bet. She was just joking around about smacking him but he didn’t know he couldn’t touch the other player’s money and it was pretty funny at the time.

We get started back and I took a pot or two with a couple of late position steals. Then the following hand comes up. I limp in middle position with 77, the button calls and the bb checks. I think the blinds were at 200/400 by now so there was 1,400 in the pot. The flop was T47 two clubs. BB checked I bet 1,000. The button called and the bb folded. The turn is a beautiful 4 pairing the board and giving me a boat. I check and the button bets 2,000. I raise all in and he calls. He had an A7 and thought middle pair was good I guess. So I doubled up to around $11K. Shortly after that we took a second break and then combined tables to 3 instead of 4.
Then I realized even though I’ve got a nice stack the blinds + antes were going to eat me alive. When we started back the blinds were 300/600 with a 100 ante. I might have taken down one or two pots with a steal other than that NO CARDS to play. We are down to 2 tables and my dad was knocked out around 20th or so. The next level was 400/800 with 200 ante. NO CARDS and the big stack at the table was on my right and taking any chances I would have at steals away by his own raises.
Next level 600/1200 with 200 antes. WTF. I’m thinking, what happened to the 500/1000 level!! I get down to about $9,000 and get moved the other table where there were a couple of guys with several $5K chips.
The blinds are eating me alive and I can’t find a spot to make a move in. Finally I’m in the big blind when they are 1,000/2,000 with a 400 ante. After posting ante plus blind I have 3,500. There is $5,400 out there so I’m pretty much calling all in if there’s any raise or pushing if there’s any calls. I get Q6 off suit and the button (big stack) raises enough to put me in. I really didn’t want to call but I figured I could possibly be ahead if he’s just trying to steal and I could have at least one over card if he has a pair. I call and he shows JJ. I flop a 6 but no more and I’m out in 11th. Boo hiss.

I didn’t get to play anymore poker until that night when my brother-in-law finally decided to go to bed at 9pm. He hadn’t been to bed since we arrived and was running very good playing 3-card poker. He was up $11K at Fitz and lost it back down to around $8K. So he was happy, drunk, and exhausted and called it a weekend.

So, I then decided to go to Sam’s Town and play the $2/4 limit. I had been there once before and loved this game due to the absolutely horrible play. There was a small waiting list when I got there, and I found something else out when I got there. The have single table sit n’ go tournaments. I really wish I had known this earlier in the day. They have a $28, $38, $58 and $110. They have a waiting list for each and as soon as they get 10 people they start it off and pay the top 3 places. I put my name on the $28 and the $2/4 limit game. I got called for the $2/4 limit before the tourney so I had them take my name off the tourney list.

Once again it was full of fish. There were 6 or 7 players to see just about every flop and hardly ever a pre-flop raise. I bought in for $100 and won a good pot when I got into a raising war on the flop with AK and flop was AK2 turn 9 river was a 3 or something. The guy had an A7. I couldn’t believe he capped it on the flop with a 7 kicker, lucky me. Up to about $130. I then proceed to catch no cards or hit no flops with the good cards that I have. I never had so many AXs, ,KXs, 77, 33, 22 and so on. If there were any overs to my pair or didn’t hit 4 to the flush or 4 to the straight I’d fold. If I hit 4 to the flush I’d raise on the flop and get 3 or 4 callers. Those never seemed to materialize. I did hit a set of 8’s on a 4-way hand and raised it on the flop. The guy to my left was one of the only other decent players and he called my 2 bets cold along with the original bettor. I think the flop was 8K6. Turn was a blank, I bet the guy on my left was the only caller. River was a 9 I bet he raised and I called. He show’s me 57 for the rivered straight.

I wind up losing down to about $45 and then the amazing happens and the table kind of starts to tighten up. All of a sudden there’s only 3 or 4 seeing the flop. By this time (3:00 am) there are only 4 games going 2 $2/4 tables, 1 $3/6 table, and 1 $1/2 NL table. Then our table starts to break up. It got down to 5 handed and then 3 other’s decided to leave and the only other guy that wanted to play still drew a higher card for the only seat in the $2/4 game that was left. He decided to play 3/6 though and gave me the 2/4 seat.

So I sit down at the new table with about $30 and proceed. It was just as juicy and loose as the other table had been. My cards started coming around and I caught some really good hands. Flopped a 789 for a straight with JT and took down a huge $40 pot. Flopped another straight with 67 on a 589 flop. Took that smaller $26 pot down. Then I decided to limp in from late position with a 32 of diamonds. Flopped four to a flush + open ended straight draw Jd5c4d with 4 players. It was bet out by the big blind and I raised to get it to 3 handed and taking the button. Turn was blank and the big blind bet out again, the guy between us folded and I called. River was a beautiful Ad. I knew the big blind didn’t have a flush so I raised him and then listened to everyone act stunned and pissed off that I played a 32 and took the $40 pot. It was nice. I ended up playing till 6am and cashed out with $121. I had a great time and ended up not losing, from that nice little run of cards there towards the end.

A couple of things that surprised me, well not really surprised me but kind of baffles me. I was expecting a LOT better play in that $130 tournament. I guess since there aren’t tournaments to play every waking minute “like online” you see bad play even in the $100 level. Also, I couldn’t believe the number of bad players in the $2/4 limit game that were complaining because they were only playing 2/4 because the $1/2 NL or the $4/8 limit was full. These guys couldn’t win at $2/4 much less a higher limit. I almost wanted to follow them to the higher tables.
Anyway, I had a great time once again and can’t wait to go back in January for the WSOP Circuit event at the Grand. Sorry it was so long and hope you enjoyed the read seeing how it was my first little trip report!!