When I push all of my chips into the pot pre-flop, I usually have a hand that will defend off most competitors. Early on in the 1st game, I began to get called by any hand imaginable, and when I kept betting with the best hand, I still got called. Steve Seman just happened to be on the other end of those loose calls during the first game, and yet Steve was able to catch cards on the river to split the pots with myself. With having to split a couple of pots, I was ready to change my strategy, with 10 out of 11 players still in the game, I checked my hole cards to see a suited
. After looking at my chip stack, I felt that this was the time to push. Bob Burtshci was last to act, and found himself
. Burtschi made the call. Your classic coin flip situation, well at least pre-flop. Once the flop was revealed, I new that my luck had almost all ran out, and it was still early in the August 16th session. The flop came
, giving Bob a full house. I was drawing dead at that point.
I felt that I had the ability to play a better game in the second game of the session, not that I played poorly in the 1st game, just hoped things would go more my way this time around. Again, early in the game, I picked up
, and I raised the action to $600. I got a call from 2009 point leader, Chad Haynes from the $200 big blind. The flop came
, and a check came from the point leader. I felt I was still the best hand and bet the same $600. Chad check-raised me to $1200, and I immediately called. The turn came a
. Chad bet $600 and I quickly called. The river brought an
. Chad checked, and I was ready to see what the point leader was check-raising with. Chad flipped over his hole cards of
, thus giving him a pair of 4’s to win the hand. Chad had definitely loosened up his game to call a pre-flop raise with those cards. Poker is poker, and he who catches cards, will win the majority of the time. Even I, the defending league champ, understand this.
There are six (6) games remaining in the 2009 season and it will be a fight to the end. I will have to play solid for all remaining game, if I wants to repeat as DPL Champion. I will have to catch some cards as well.
