Poker News

Peter Costa

It’s day three (my second day in the event) and I started with just 25,800. I obviously need some help from the cards. But not to worry, I get dealt K-K, K-K Q-Q and Q-Q again. Yep! down to just one 10K chip. In the meantime, I am also seeing outdraw after outdraw on the table. Is this game straight? Why can’t I give a bad beat? I know why! I keep putting it with the best hand - that’s why!

But I was learning fast. Having slowly built back up to 20K - and facing a raise and three callers - I pushed all-in with my Ah-Qh God help anyone calling with a better hand! The initial raiser called and threw over A-A as if it was the nuts or something. He was drawing dead after the turn. So that’s how its done! But the truth, I just don’t like this style!

So for the next two days or so - I reverted back to trying to win with the best hand. It worked!

But for many others, the beats came thick and fast. Take Arthur Azan from New York. The guy was playing real steady poker and going very well. Getting chips from this guy would not be easy! But wait just a moment! A-A, A-A and then A-A again - he loses all three. That just can’t be. Serves him right for trying to play solid poker! But what goes around comes around and Arthur gets his chance for revenge against the cards. We are down to the last 50 or so and Arthur is about to crack A-A with his 9-9. He raises it to 40K and has 100K left. The fact that he gets reraised by a guy with the same size stack is now immaterial - he will be taking his shot.After all, he doesn’t know he is up against A-A.

But just as he is about to get his one chance to actually win a hand - yours truly decides to gamble. O.K, so I have about 540K at this stage. And I do have Ad-Kd, and I can afford to gamble. But this is not me here. Normally I would not think too much about laying down this hand. But I decide to gamble. Arthur has seen me playing like a rock all day - he just can’t call after me. How much luck is there in poker? The question has been asked a million times - the answer is never simple. Some say 10%, while others say 90%. The truth is - the luck factor changes on a daily basis. Just ask Arthur!

But it wasn’t just Arthur who suffered in this event. I found myself in just the perfect spot to increase my stack to over 250K. With Antonio the “Magician” holding about 180K at the time, and dominating the table - I would have been in perfect position to have fun with him. Having slow played my Q-Q to his UTG raise, one of the other three callers bets the flop of 8-7-2 when holding T-T. After both Antonio and I checked - he was perfectly entitled to. He then called all-in when I raised him - but another Ten hit the turn. Come on! How many tens in this deck? Why is it that when a player sets a perfect trap - the cards don’t like it?

Talking about perfection, there were two players that had been playing perfect poker. They slowly built up their little stacks to give themselves a great shot at a huge prize. Surely the bad beats cannot continue-can they?

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