Skills Win!!!

I won the Skills tournament again tonight!!! wheeeeeeee
Thanks to everyone that played and everyone that cheered me on!!!
The final 4 was a big time battle where the chips were evened back up at around 55k or so.
Vinnay, tiltaway, ChippyMcStacks, and myself....good times!!!

Fun Times

I had a great time at BrainMc's Saturday night. I arrived early and got to hang out with BrainMc for a while. ISS Spock was the next to arrive. I've played online with him for a long time and this was the first time I have met him in person; great to meet you!
Everyone else arrived around tourney time including Kajagugu and Aposec72 . I called WeakPlayer just before the tourney started to see if he was going to make it. He was running late and didn't make it for the tourney but he came over later to play the cash game.
I ran pretty well in the tourney for a while but went a little card dead in the middle stages. I managed to limp in to the final table but couldn't really get much going and went out just after we merged to the final table.
I decided to cut loose and have a great time playing the table maniac at the cash table while it was 6 and 7 handed. It was a lot of fun raising 3 of every 4 hands dealt. I called down several of what I thought were losing hands on the river only to find several times that I was ahead but I did manage to lose a little overall for the night. The table filled and I had to slow up a bit in the later part of the evening but I still managed to keep my loose image intact.
Thanks BrainMc for hosting a great night of poker!!!

Goals

I have some new goals to accomplish and they are big!!!!! That means a lot more playing at higher stakes.
Put on your seat belts folks, we're going for a ride!!!

Double A and B and the Skills Tourney

I'm running 3 tournaments tonight. I'm off to a decent start in Daily Double Tournaments A & B just after the first break.
I'm playing the Skills tournament. It's a rotation game of limit holdem, omaha h/l, and stud h/l....not my strongest tournament games. I'm struggling to keep a stack going but hanging in so far with a few lucky hands.
Update: One hour and forty five minutes in I just busted out of Double B in about 350th place of around 1,000 players. I'm still running great in Double A with 12k and the average stack is around 6k. 341 left in and 153 cash.
I've ramped up the aggression a little in the Skills tournament and it seems to be helping a little. Of course getting the cards you need here and there helps too. We started with 67 players and there are 62 still in after a little over an hour. The top 8 make the money. I'm currently in 39th in chips.
Update: We're at the second break in the Double A. The average stack is 9,051. I'm at 16,316 in chips and 27th of the 230 left in. I'm 6th of the 51 left in the Skills tournament. There's still a long way to go in both.
Update: I stayed in a few hands I should have folded in the Skills tourney and I'm out around 27th or so. I ran 99 in to AA in the Double A and got short stacked. I went out a short time later in 77th place out of 1,050.

We Interrupt This Program.....

If you get a chance check out Poker Enthusiast's raw uncensored look back at his younger years. Warning: rated R

Daily Fifteen Grand on Stars

I'm playing the Daily 15 Grand on Stars right now. We are past the first break.
There are 715 of the original 2,427 entrants left in. $24,270 in the prize pool. The top 378 make the money. I'm sitting in about 400th right now with 5,000 or so in chips. the average stack is 7k so I'll need a hand here in a while. I'll be back to update.
Update: Out in 371st. I hung in to the money but I couldn't ever pick up a hand to run with before that. Once in the money I was in the big blind with K 10. It folded around to the small blind who just called. I had 800 in as the big blind and another 1,800 behind. I decided to go ahead and shove knowing he would call because he was a really lose big stack. He called and held A 4. Two more fours on the flop. I picked up an open ended straight draw on the turn but the top end was no good because it would have given him a boat. River is a blank and I'm out.

It's a little surprising to me that a field this large gets to the money in less than 2 hours.

Mookie and Doubles A & B

No live blogging tonight. I'm just listening to Live Poker Radio , relaxing, and playing The Mookie along with Daily Doubles A & B on Tilt. I'm watching several bloggers in FTOPS Event #1.
Best of luck to all of you!!!

Sunday Hundred Grand and Iron Man

I went to see Iron Man last night. Robert Downey Jr. did a great job as Tony Stark. I recommend it. It was very enjoyable.
I'm playing the Sunday Hundred Grand on Poker Stars and a couple of tournaments on Full Tilt.
The Sunday Hundy has 22,182 entrants and the prize pool is $221,820. The top 3,375 get paid.
I was dealt pocket aces the first hand of the game and the flop came out king high giving a player with AK top pair top kicker. He went to the felt with me and I have doubled to 6k. I'll be back in a bit to update.
Update: First update is not a good one. I made a top straight on the turn with no pair or flush on board and re-re-reraised a player who held two pair. The board paired on the river giving him a boat and I paid him off. I'm down to 2k.
Update: I picked up AK and reraised it. One caller and a king high flop. I weak bet it and he re-popped it. I shoved with just a little more and he made the crying call and doubled me up. I'm sitting at 4,370 now. The average stack is 3,418 and there are 19,438 in.
Update 3:55 pm- We have been running 25 minutes on Stars. My two tournaments are getting ready to start in 5 minutes on Tilt. I'm playing the early A & B double tournaments. It looks like we will probably have over a thousand in each. I'll post the payouts and specifics in a few. I hit a set just now on Stars but 4 clubs on the board at the river. I didn't lose much and I'm still at 4,170.
Update 4:08 pm- I went out in the Hundred with a set of fours. Opponent held A 5 and hit 2 3 4 for the straight. The two on Tilt have started.
Tourney A has 1,223 entrants and Tourney B has 1,106. The top 180 make the money in each.
Update 4:21 pm- Out of Tourney B. I flopped a flush and a player with top two pair pushed all in. He hit his boat on the turn and I'm done. I'm doing ok in the other one. I have 2,800 or so. the average is 2,347.
Update 5:07pm- 4,305 at the first break in Tourney A. The avg is 3,827 and there are 639 left in of the 1,223 that started. I'm in 225th.
Update 6:14pm- We are at the next break. I have 8,922 and the avg is 9,592. I'm 122nd of 255 left and 180 make the money...hanging in.
Update 6:28pm- I called an all in from the button out of the big blind with AQ. He held Q9 suited but made a flush and I'm down to 3,547. We're about 20 from the money.
Update 6:41pm- We're in the money. I managed to double up to 5k.
Update 6:45pm- Out in 152nd. I shoved from the small blind with A2. The big blind called with A mid and his kicker played.