Oct 05, 2007

After a summer long of non-stop poker; I have played very little poker the past month. During this time, I have spent much of my time writing a few small journals of my tournament experiences during the 2007 WSOP. Some of these recollections I will post in the articles section of this website in the near future. The time off from poker has also allowed me to reflect alot on my playing style and mistakes that I have made in the past. One of the big gaps in my game is to get caught up folding hands in the middle of a tournament. These time periods of folding may not cost me more chips but they are definitely preventing me from accumulating more chips. By the way, in my last blog entry- the hand I busted out on, the turn was a 6 and not a 5. had the turn been a 6, then I would have doubled up with two pair. Even, Chewey makes mistakes sometimes. On to my results from the first-ever Heartland Poker Tour Event in Colorado.

One of the disadvantages to gambling or playing poker in Colorado is that it is limit gaming. As a result, you cannot directly buy-in to the larger events that are held in Colorado and must win your way through satellites/qualifiers. For those of you not familiar with what The Heartland Poker Tour. This tour is similar to the farming system in baseball and is the mid-major level of poker. The main event for the Heartland Poker Tour will be held October 13-14 at Golden Gates Casino. There are several ways that you can participate in the main event.

1.) Win a $40 1-Player Advance Satellite
2.) $75 2-Player Satellite / be one of the last 2 remaining at your table.
3.) Win a $350 satellite or be one of last 2 remaining.

On a Friday evening, without much thought- I decide to go try my hand in a $75 satellite. For some reason, I'm a little nervous on my way up to the casino. maybe just pre-action jitters. I give a call to one of my poker buddies and he reassures me that this should be easy as cake and that I should advance in my first try. Wow, he has more faith in my play than I do. I do have confidence in my play but not to the point that I let it get to my head or to the point of arrogance. I sign up for the $75 satellite and end up waiting nearly two hours for a seat.It is nearly 6pm and I have been up since 4am and also went to work earlier the day. Could I be getting tired? Would this affect my play? In a satellite (commonly referred as a sit-n-go), you play at one table and the try to be the winner of the table or be one of last two remaining. For this satellite, the blinds start at 25-50 and go up every ten minutes and you start with 1,500 in chips. This structure does not allow a lot of room for error or limping into a lot of pots. Undaunted, I go to my table and the very first hand I raise with an A,9 suited to 150. The button raises to 450 and it's folded to me. The button is a player that I have played frequently with at The GIlpin Casino. immediately, I go into my memory banks and try to put him on a hand. Do I re-raise over the top or fold? Calling his bet is not an option because that would leave me with only 950 and short stacked. I fold and decide to fight another hand. The first two levels, I don't see much in the way of cards and decide to play aggressive in the next level. The two most aggressive players at the table and my Gilpin friend are the first three to be eliminated from the table. We are now down to 7 players, need 5 more to be eliminated for me to advance to the qualifier. I begin my aggressiveness in level 3 and am able to pick up a few pots. My first all-in is in level 4 with A,K suited versus pocket 10's. No, I don't have pocket 10s, the other player does. I call his all-in bet and am able to catch an Ace on the flop and double through him.

I eliminate the next two players at the table and am beginning to get the attention of the chip leader at our table. My stack has increased from 1150 to nearly 4,000 in the last two levels. The strategy now is to not get into a confrontation with the chip leader and to whittle the short-stack's chips. Down to three players, I decide to turn up the pressure even more and pick on the third player at the table. The third player is short-stacked and I am able to take down a huge pot which virtually locks me up to advance. The hand goes: I'm in the button position with 3,7 suited and raise it to 1300 with the blinds at 300-600. The big blind calls and the flop is Q,Q,6. The blind has been a tight player thus far and all of the hands revealed by this player have been premium hands. I have decided to bet out 1,100 leaving me with 2500 in chips and I scoop the pot. Now I'm at nearly 5300 in chips and both me and the chip leader are waiting for the third player to bust out or get blinded out to receive our qualifier certificates. I'm dealt A,K suited a few hands later in the button position and decide to fold. The short-stack has only 1700 total including her blind.

Why did Chewey fold? The better question to ponder is "why give her more chips to use against you and to use the sheer magnitude of numbers against her. With her short stack unless she wins the next 4 hands, she will be out of chips. Her hand is K,3 versus the big blinds 7,3 and the river gives both of them a full-house; 3s over 8s. had I played, then it would have cost me 1700 and she would have gotten 850 of my chips. Now the short stack is at 2400 and not 3150. Within two hands, she is blinded out without me playing a hand and I receive my qualifier certificate. It is not always about the cards, situational play and strategy are a huge part of sit-n-go tournaments. It is not how you start but how you finish. Mission #1 of getting a qualifier acheived. Next mission, finish in the top 20% in the qualifier. The next time that Chewey will be in action is Monday, October 15 at 6:30 pm in The Heartland Poker Tour Qualifier. Home field advantage is definitely a plus in Chewey's pursuit for a bid into the Heartland Poker Colorado Main Event.

Fitness and state of mind are definitely keys to your mental game in Poker, visit Udaya Yoga Studio & Walls By Manny in the Retailers section of this website to be a part of the Chewey Poker Experience.

See You at The Tables!
Chewey