RMcG in the EPT

RMcG

Thank God I'm there, ive been bashing my head off walls for the last three or four weeks trying to justify taking 4200 out of my bankroll and pay up front to enter the EPT in Dublin. I couldnt find the answer yes and I am also, hopefully, at the end of the most horrendous run that Ive ever had in cash games losing probaby 10 out of my last 12 sessions!!!!

I hadnt even tried to qualify on any onlie sites or in the merrion until tonight, i had a disgusting bad beat today online when my flopped house of Queens was rivered by pocket Aces for almost $400. I was in foul mood so I said no more online poker until I get my confidence back, and the best way to do that is by trying to do myself justice in a live game.

So the Merrion EPT qualifier it was. I went in with 300 incase of an early beat or mistake and then another 100 for a top up.....I rebought after 10 hands when i misread Roy Brindley for over cards and my 77 ran into his 1010.

Then came a bad beat...four hands later I called on the SB with K10 suited, the flop came K102 with two hearts and one diamond, i checked, player bets and another player reraises, i go allin and get two calls.....player A has K8 diamonds and player B the 79 hearts....no hearts please.....and they didnt come....instead?????? Two running diamonds to make the K8 a flush, nightmare........

So I rebuy again and for some reason cant remember what hand I lost on but it wasnt too long before I had another rebuy and then a top up and in for 500 euro restarting after the break with a little above average on 13K.

I flittered around for an hour folding almost every hand then came a series of hands where I was calling blinds of 1000 only for someone to go allin for maybe 7 or 8 K and I had to fold, i soon found myself below average on 9K with blinds of 500 - 1000, and down to two tables. Lower than ten BB's alarm bells go off in my head and sometimes its good becasue I resign myself to going out of the tournament, and that can be very dangerous for other players...when someone has nothing to lose. Thats when the key hand of the night cropped up. I was on the BB, 1000 out of my 9000...a player raises to 6000 and gets called by Roy Brindley....i have 10.6 off suit. In my head I need to double up badly and will take a shot at doubling with any two picture cards or any ace above A7/A8.......but what about trebling up...well i thought about it for a while and decided that I would take a shot at trebling up with 10 6..........i go allin and get called by the two lads. Flop comes 78K..checked down.....turn card is a 7...i stand up and grab my stuff when the river comes a 9....sweet....player A shows JJ and roy mucks after missing with probably AQ or AJ....i take down 27/28K and now Im ready to play.

Roy is low about 7 K and starts going allin whenever its his button or whenever he is in late position....on my sb he does it again and I know I have him beat with A9, i call his 9K bet and he flips A4, no help and hes out and Im motoring.........

Down to the final table and I peg two players to get all their chips, one player played almost every hand and always folded to a raise and another player was getting lucky on hands like 94 and 96, and all night he was showing 89 910 78 any two connected cards, he was directly to my right so i had position on him 8 out of 9 hands. A key hand came when I spiked an Ace with A5, just the two of us in the pot...he had what I thought was a str8 draw and when the turn came another diamond he checked after me.....his favourite move is allin on a flush draw and seeing as he didnt do it, i checked the river which made a possible flush and when he immidiately went allin i called in an instant for the 40K he had left and was a huge chunk from my 60K.....he said great call and showed a busted straight draw........

Not much happened for me until we got down to three left. 2 tickets and third got a 400 ticket for the Thursday event...I had approx 100K, player B had approx 120K and player C had 25 - 30K, no more...

Player C began saying oh well at least I get the 440 ticket, Im happy with that and congratulated us on our win.........he had resigned himself to going out of the tournament....and I knew....very dangerous.....

He was allin every hand stealing blinds...then allin with 88, player B immidiately calls and I look down and see Q10 suited......i thought for a long time, it was 25K from my then stack of about 110K...not much, and a much better chance of both of us knocking him out together, but trebling him up instead of doubling him up would have made him a real threat and far more dangerous....if i folded it was a win win situation, it was either I win a ticket there and then with a fold or Im a huge chip leader......I decide to fold.....it was 88 v AK and the 88 held up, but I was sick!!! the board brought two queens and I would have been in the EPT and hour and a half earlier had I have stuck them in......Its actually a good point to debate wether or not the call there is good or not with any two cards.....

So it went around and around I bounced from 135K to 80K to 100K and all of a sudden we were all even, I started having nightmares about coming third...i couldnt let it happen so I went for it...four or five big raises in a row with little or no cards, just steaing the blinds, made me a decent chip leader and Player B, who had started with the lead found himself very low on approx 45K....thats when it ended.......and guess what, I wasnt even involved.....

Blinds of 4K - 8k, they were killing us, I bearly had more than 14BB's which as chip leader is not comfortabe anything can happen....i folded the button......Player B who had started on 25K was SB and made an absolutely superb play.....knowing that the BB, player C on 45K was desperate he smooth called his BB for another 4K, BB found AJ and 3handed is a monster goes allin.....SB had smooth caled with AQ and called immidiately....the flop JQ9.....and the rest is history folks.........into the EPT and I cant wait, its gonna be great.........

So sorry for ranting but as you can well imagine Im over the moon.....

I love poker lol

Rob

Hectorjelly

Nice report, good luck in it. I think I would call with QT.

roryc

ill swop you a ticket for a few pints.....

RMcG

Cheers Hector appreciate that.....I cant get the Q10 head out of my head but I'll tell you something about the hand that is quite interesting.

The player that had the AK was playing a hell of alot of pots and was a huge chip leader, he was getting involved in far too many pots when he should have just protected his lead, I dont know anything abut the chap...and a really decent bloke at that....but from that point alone I had him pegged as a slightly inexperienced player. When we were down to five I played a hand with him and an one other player. Other player was low stack and went allin with A4, I had A10suited and third place finisher had KJ....the flop came J high and I was ready to check it out no matter what came down....

But our friend bet the pot and eliminated me. I was providing him great cover incase an A came which in my opinion any decent player checks down there, as it turns out no Ace came and we did get down to four players and no big damage done to my stack....BUT BUT BUT

That was in my head with the Q10 and I was toying with the idea that if I did make the call i couldnt really trust him to check it out and possibly wouldnt have gotten to see the full board, I think that ultimately led me to fold and the stress of finishing anywhere but third...but its a really interesting situation and one ive not found myself in before.....I probably will make the call if i ever find myself in that position again.....I just love the way poker throws new situations at you all the time no matter how long you play the game...

Anyway cheers mate...

Hectorjelly

Yeah thats a good reason not to get involved.

kpnuts

Well done, Rob! :cool:

Courageous (and timely) move with the 10 6 and you clearly played super poker thereafter to take advantage of your overdue slice of good fortune (I felt your pain when Gerry's Kd8d runner-runnered you) ... the Q10 is an automatic call in that spot IMO, as long as you are confident the other big stack will behave rationally LOL, but in this specific situation, I totally understand your reluctance to stick in the 25k

I was the Nutter sat to your right who tilted our starting table from the off! Just a shame I tilted myself in the process too!!! Hmm, I did recover from that howler i made with the 33 against RB's 88, managing to quickly build stack back up to near 20k ... when I made a dangerous move against a dangerous player ... blinds 500-1k and I raised to 3k in mid pos with A9 ... flat-called on the button our loose ultra-aggressive friend who had also been at our starting table (he whose very early pre-flop 69o all-in RR i called in a flash with the 5s8s LOL) anyway, my A9 misses as flop comes 7-hi rainbow, i check, he bets 3k, i go immediately all-in for 16k, he dwells for an age and calls with AK ... good read him! goodbye me!

Anyway, see you next week in the Merrion, I will play EPT game anyway, and hopefully play better next week than I did last night!

Meanwhile, GL,

KP

ocallagh

Nice one Rob and a great report too! Sounds like you took the final table apart, GL in the main event!

KP, Dave told me about your rebuy strategy, lol He said your table had the other ones out-chipped by at least 3/1!

Ollieboy

Well played and well done.

I also enjoyed last nite and found the standard a bit mixed. I was very unlucky, losing two allins, when I was well ahead before the flop, one of them been KK against A6, but I did have plenty of luck earlier. If I had won both of these hands I'm sure I would have made the last table. I got knock out on a really poor call against the chip leader, thought he was stealing, or on a mid to small pair, so came over the top with Ace 10 suit, 9/10 times I would just put this down, but I think I had tilt from earlier and felt I was under pressure to get a few chips. Went out about 16, which was very disappointing. Anyway, its all history. I also came 7th on Tuesday in the PPP EPT, when my 1010 got rivered by 88 to give him trips. Anyway, another chance on Sunday, but would love to play in this event.

Well played again.

NickyOD

Wakka Wakka! Nice work!

AmarilloFats

Enjoyed the report.. Good luck in the EPT event

The Troll

Wowsers, good job. ocallagh i believe you're friends with Ken Jackson.

RMcG

Cheers Niall....hehe you have to act the maggot at the start to get some chips...Cheers guys, Ken I remember you well, that was a gutsy move with 33...I had Roy on big cards too but not a higher pair....do you remember our last encounter in the first hand of the Fitz Poker Fest 500, i had AQ and you had AJ on a board of AAQ......nasty old first hand hehe......

Ollie I lost count of how many times you were dealt KK, always heart breaking when they get cracked and by A6.........yowzers..

The chap who cracked you was the same gentleman that did Ken and was the same gentleman I marked for his chips.....nice when things like that work out......

10 6.....you gotta laugh:D

Shortstack

RMcG, If I'd have known that was you I would have said hello. Well played especially the foresight with the 10 6 I was sat to ollieboy's left and ended up all in with my really shortstack with KQ vs K2 to go out 7th when matey boy hit a 2 :mad:

GL in the EPT.

Dub13

Well Done.Goodluck in the main event.

Hitman Actual

Best of luck... it would be great to see an Irish winner on home patch.

So how many boardsters are playing this so far? I think Shortstack won a ticket as well?? Fatboydim??? Daithio, Bohsman, ocallagh????

Doc Farrell

n1 Rob. class.

Ste05

Great result, from the sounds of you're posts, I doubt you need luck, but I hope the cards fall nicely and you bring the win we need for the home players,

pokertroll

Congratualations Rob,
U've done it before, no reason why u cant go one better this time.
Unfortunately I'm gonna miss all this as I'm away till christmas
Good Luck,
Mark Mac.