ANOTHER NEAR MISS

$20 NL tourney with 84 entrants. I played well and got to the penultimate table, where I held A9 in the $400 big blind. The small blind raised after everyone else folded, and I played back at him with a reraise, which he called. The flop came 24A. He bet and I raised a hefty chunk. He should have folded, but instead went all in at a lunge for the pot. I knew I could be beat with a good kicker, and even a bad kicker could have two paired the flop, but I just knew I had him beat and that his all in was from desperation. Of course, that same old story of losing on the river applies here, after he matched his kicker when a 6 came off, and I was out at #18.