MTT Bonanza

Last night I did something I never, ever do. Ever. Like, ever.

I bought into a (gasp!) $5 + .50 MTT on Titan.

I know, I know, I know. I don't do that. Like, ever.

Even though that buy-in is peanuts for most of the people who stop by this blog, it was a big decision for me. I've been crushing the micro-limits (for the most part) lately, and slowly growing my initial deposit and bonus in to something of a bankroll. Putting in $5.50 to play something that I may or may not have a shot at (i.e. a big field) is usually -EV for me.

When the cards hit the digital air, there were 193 players. 1000 starting chips, blinds starting at 10/20. I was pretty much Foldy McFolderson the first hour, getting involved in only two pots (which I won), and hovering just over the buy in.

The second hour was my hour. I got good cards, played solid poker, bluffed a few pots, and by the second break I was 6th in chips with around 8K. One hand in particular was fun to play, but scarier than a Michael Jackson face-lift.

It's the beginning of the second hour, and I'm in the BB with AQo and about T3500. There is one guy in EP who raises 3x the BB. It folds to me, I bump it up to double his bet, and he calls. The flop comes 3QT rainbow. I bet the pot, and monkey-boy decides to push all-in.

Now, I'm in a quandry. I've only got him covered by about 1000 chips, but I've seen him push people off pots with massive overbets and all-ins at this table before. I decide he's got one of two hands: TT or AJ. If he has AJ, I'm good unless he hits his straight, if he has TT I'm screwed more than Tara Reid after a Wild On E! taping.

Poker is about risks, right? "In order to live, you must be willing to die" and all that, right?

I elect to call.

Monkey flips AJo and my queens hold up to take the pot and send him to rail where he flames me in the girlie chat box for a minute or two.

Other than that hand and that read, my play was really just chipping up by playing big hands for as many chips I could get.

In the third hour, with blinds at 1000/2000, I was card dead forever. I was still in the top in chips (barely), but was starting to get in real danger of being blinded out. I think I had an M of 2. Not goot.

I wake up in the SB with ATo. It's folded around to me, and I'm looking to at least get the BB's 2000, if not more, so I push. He instacalls with KQ.

Flop: AKx (yeah!)
Turn: K (shit!)
River: Q (so fucking rigged)

I collect my junk from the floor and hold my head high as I'm bounced in 14th place (out of 193) for a big score of $10.

I'm actually pretty happy with that. Moneying in any sort of MTT at all is a major coup for me, so I'll take the addition to my bankroll to keep building it up so I can step up a level in the SnGs.

Have a great weekend, beetches.