We pulled up to the double-wide trailer in rural Lafayette County and there were a half dozen pickup trucks parked nearby. I pulled my little Saturn off the gravel road and onto the grass. There didn’t seem to be assigned parking spaces.
When Mr. Steal, Artillery and I walked in, there were a dozen people already inside. Mr. Steal asked if had time to go buy some dip, to which 7 people responded, “I got some you could use.” The bulges under their bottom limps were unmistakable.
Doublewides, pickup trucks and chewing tobacco. There’s no such thing as stereotypes. Oh, did I mention the hard-core porn on the TV?
We started at about 7:30pm and about an hour later we were down to six. All 15 players started with T1000 with blinds at 25/50, going up every half hour. The average stack size was T2500. Take me out of the equation, and their average stack was T2995. If you do a little quick math, you’ll find I was down to T225.
Oh, and blinds were at 100/200. Oh, and I was UTG.
I suppose you could say I was a little desperate. If Felicia were there, she’d be berating me for being afraid to die and letting myself get blinded away. But why start here… let’s step back a bit.
—
I had played with a few of these guys 2 weeks ago, and in two 8-person $10 SNG’s, I won first and second place, for a profit of $70. Maybe they thought I was a ringer.
Two weeks later, I’m back and the pot is now $150. $110 goes to the winner, $30 to second and $10 to third. If you haven’t come to win, you shouldn’t be playing.
I know I can play with these guys. There’s little if any fancy play. I can’t remember seeing many, if any, check-raises. There wasn’t a whole lot of slow-playing. These guys played their hands if they were good, or occasionally threw a stone-cold bluff. There wasn’t much else. However, the blind structure mandated I adjust my rock-like tendencies.
I folded around the first two orbits with bad hand after bad hand. By that time, a guy at the table had announced he wants to see every flop because if you fold rags and they hit, you lose money. I filed that away.
I get AQs and raise to T150 (3xBB). Mr. Any Two Cards folds, but the next guy calls. The flop is all undercards and I bet out T200. My opponent calls, and I’m worried. I’ve got myself seriously shortstacked because I thought he’d fold. The turn is another blank and I push. He folds. Phew…
A few hands later, I raise to 3xBB with AJs. Mr. Any Two Cards goes all in. I think he might be trying to make a move on the ringer, but then I think through it. If he’s paired, it’s either a coin flip or I’m way behind big pairs. If he’s AQ or AK, I’m dominated.
I’m in good shape stack-wise and decide to fold. It wasn’t worth it at that time. He did get called however, and his AQ caught the nut straight on the river. Good laydown.
I’m in pretty good shape when a short stack goes all-in in front of me. I’ve got A9s and I call. He flips Crabs and I never improve. It was the start of the slide.
A few hands later, the same guy moves all-in. I look down at sbo Crabs myself and I decided to call. He had gotten pretty short again. It’s called behind me. We check down to find out the all-in guy had Speed Limit and tripped on the flop. Ugh.
Next, it’s one of my favorite hands, Pocket 10’s. I raise to T300 from the BB of T100. I get two callers behind me. The flop comes J-x-x. I bet another T300 to see where I’m at. The next player hems and haws before calling. I wonder if he’s on a flush draw. The other guy folds. The turn is another blank. I put the guy all in. He calls with QJs. I get no help, he doubles through me and I’m hurting.
Two orbits later and I’m at T225. What the hell happened? I can beat these guys. I know it.
—
So we’re back where I started. UTG. I tell them that if I like the first card, I’m pushing without looking at the second. The first card was a 7 of spades. Not quite what I’m looking for. I figure I’ll fold and play the BB blind. The second card comes and it’s the 7 of clubs. Hmmmm… JACKPOT?
I push and get three callers. Not quite what I was hoping, but when your all-in raises just T25, you’re gonna get called!
The flop comes and the first card off is the 7 of hearts. I couldn’t believe my luck. The next two were the Q and J of spades. Hmmm… straight draw, flush draw. Not what I was hoping to see. They check around.
The turn is a J, and suddenly my boat is nearly unbeatable. They check again. The river is a blank, and I pull the main pot my way telling them they can fight over a side pot if they want to bet. I’m not sure they believed me. It’s a check around and I flip my 7’s.
I’m back in the game! And I turn to the guy behind me and say, “Get ready to watch the greatest comeback ever.”
Of course T900 doesn’t get you far when the blinds are 200/100. I’m forced to fold my BB hand, so I’m down to T700. That’s when I see Presto in the SB. There are three callers in front of me and I push all-in. Remarkably, I get just one caller, and he flip A9s.
I knew it would be a coin flip, I’m just glad it was only one player. The flop, however, disappointed. It’s K-9-3 rainbow. That’s just great, I’m now looking at a 2 outer. The turn is a blank. The dealer was sitting at the other end of the table with two people watching the cards come. When they erupt at the river, I knew lady luck was on my side. The 5 comes, and I’m up to T1800.
danielgross