POKER AT THE HOME OF MIKE

Last night I played in my first home tourney since late last year. It’s a good group of guys that can stretch from 7 to 16 depending on who is in town and ready to play. Last night it was just the core. It’s fun to play in the same group over and over to see if you can pick up other people’s style of play before you give your own away. I had a few hands last night worth talking about.

The first hand began with Mike the Host raising the big blind 3x. I had QQ and decided to play him heads up so I re-raised the minimum, enough to pot commit him or chase him. I figured he had AT or AJ, hands I wouldn’t mind playing against, but I didn’t want to limp and invite 54s. To my surprise, the other Mike on the button, Mike the Accountant, pushed all in. Mike the Host made a crying call. I had a decision to make. Knowing Mike the Accountant, I figured he had AK at best, but since I also had Mike the Host on an Ace, I reckoned I was in the lead. So I called. Mike the Host had AT and Mike the Accountant turned over JJ and winced at the Queens. They key was know thy player. I would have laid down QQ had certain other players made such a move. A push after a raise and a re-raise means power from some players, but Mike the Accountant frequently overplays such hands.

About 30 minutes later, I had one of those funny one-of-a-kind situations. I’m in the big blind with AK. Mike the Accountant makes a 3x raise two to my left. Everyone folds around to me. He has a pretty big stack after his re-buy and a double up. My gut says that I’m in the lead, but listening to TJ, don’t pull if they are going to push. I call and I immediately check the ace flop. It worked like some kind of Jedi mind trick. Mike the Accountant sensed some kind of weakness in my check and clearly said all-in and started to play with his chips. I immediately called and turned over my hand. Then Mike the Accountant said check. We all laughed. He says, “What?” Every player at the table heard him say all-in and he said that he said “wait a minute,” which doesn’t rhyme with “all-in.” He gets upset and says he clearly asked for time, but there isn’t a player at the table that didn’t hear him say all-in. I’ve known him for two years and I don’t doubt his veracity. He really had no clue that what he said. It’s like the way I said check resulted in a Pavlovian response so subliminal that he left the game upset thinking he was robbed.

I took a couple of chip hits afterwards losing an all-in with 99 v Q8 and losing AQ v QQ. With three players left, I worked to the chip lead with the tough Robert to my left, and the lucky Bruce to my right. The first important hand was me smooth calling AQs and Robert pushing all in with KQ and mine held up. It was fortunate for me, because I expected to heads up with Robert and chop like we did last time we played in December.

I feel kind of bad that I didn’t offer Bruce the same deal, because Bruce is the nicest guy in this game. I have never heard him say a harsh word to anyone about anything. Mike the host doesn’t help my guilt by saying that he doesn’t remember the last time a tourney didn’t end with a chop. The thing is, Bruce has knocked me out of more tourneys on bad beats than anyone in this game. It’s because he doesn’t ever know when he is behind in a hand. If he likes his cards he’s in without ever considering the situation so the bluff never works and when he calls from behind he catches, at least against me. I don’t ever recollect knocking him out of anything, but he’s done it to me 4 or 5 times. Bruce finishes in the money better than my analysis would suggest which speaks to the luck factor in 15 minute blind tourneys, but also to power of not being intimidated by what an opponent does. You learn something from every opponent. But I figured since Bruce has cost me more money, I must play to win. I gots to know. Can I finally harpoon the whale?

I beat him in about 5 hands. I don’t remember how it ended. He pushed and I think I called with the better hand. I’ve won the last two of these with this group of guys and it’s a good feeling, because it’s the toughest group pound for pound that I play with. I’ll freely admit I had my own share of luck with a little skill here or there.

The main thing is my online games and my home games are back in the same week and I don’t have to leave Dude over here posting by himself.