Sunday mates cash game - FINALLY!

Been FAR too long between drinks! I did mention that it was being kicked around as a possibility late in the week. Well it materialized, and I'm fuggen glad it did.

(Before I get into that, I must quickly mention that the Deerhunter and I managed to get into some impromptu madness on Friday night. After I did a community disco in Boyanup til 8.30, I got a txt from him that a) he was home, b) Carls was out, c) there was Poker on the box, d) there was beer in the fridge and e) he was keen for a shuffle up. Now I've been working like a slave of late, and haven't had a lot of R&R, so I took up the opportunity to 'drop by for a while'.

WHAT A JOKE! Got to his place 9.30pm. Pulled up stumps at 4am after much merriment and indulgences! Even better, saw this guy Tuan (WSOP tourney) be a serious card rack, flopping two pair almost every hand and totally dominating the table from the get-go. As for our cards, we must have played a dozen hands heads up, and we made it so they were pretty short stacks. No cash.... 'just for pride' as The Deerhunter likes to put it. The short stacks made it very interesting, because we were basically shoving after a couple of hands went against us. Or in some cirumstances, when we both caught serious cards, a couple of reraises each and it was push monkey heaven .... just with cards! Great fun. I can't remember any specific hands, but it was a handy warm up for Sundays game. I ended up leaving the van there and walking home!)

So .... Sunday! C-nut was down from Perth and keen for a shuffle, and of course, our money. Deerhunter was returning from a big Saturday night with friends down in Yallingup and happy to get back in time for a game too. (Back 2 back 2 back! Impressive buddy! In saying that, he DID start the arvo with a couple of Sprites. Poof.)

After C-nut got to my joint, we played a couple of hands of Hold'em with Zac. He loved it. One hand which he should've but didn't get away from was when C-nut and I flopped top pair (K), him with J kicker and me with a spade flush draw. Zac called our large post flop action. Turn card comes, rag heart. Even more action. Zac went right with us. River - rag spade which completed my flush. And he STILL didn't get away!!!! He was chasing his heart flush draw on the river. Poor lil bugger! He'll get it one day. Don't go chasing a flush with only one one of your cards on the board after the flop! Or ... at least have part of the board!!!

As for our 3 way game, I'll repeat how we work it. $25 buck buy in, with $10 rebuys for a third of our original stack till we deem 'too late'. Double rebuys allowed. (Hey, we're flexible!) 2nd place gets their money back. First takes the rest. We normally play 4 handed, but had to settle for 3 with this one.

Long story cut short. I started out playing good cards well and bad cards better. This is where reading my books seems to have helped me HEAPS. I really started to build my stack early. A few steals. A few really nice hands I disguised well.

One BAD play I made was with pocket Ladies pre flop. Just didn't raise enough. C-nut called my bet and flopped his K. I knew it straight away, and laid it down. Really pissed off with my play there.

Anyway, I had a commanding chip lead and the other guys were starting to make a stand. Even though C-nut was the shortest stack, the first all in play came from The Deerhunter. On a board of 5 - 6 - 8 rainbow (with me holding pocket 7's which I raised up 3x pre hoping to kill it there) I bet out a pot sized bet. OESD and decent pair. Nice. The Deerhunter jammed! And I'm thinking ... "what has he got?!" Overpair? Possibly, but not paint, based on his call of my pre flop raise. Overcards? Maybe, but unlikey. Bloody brave to jam with that. He had to have some piece of the board. Trips? Praps, but my read was that he didn't. 7 - 9? Nah, he wouldn't have called with that pre. So I figured I was, at worst, being beaten by a pair of 8's. At best I was in front and had a better draw with a massive chip lead. It was going to cost me a third of my stack if I was going down. I figure it's a CALL!

Deerhunter. Ah - 6h. BOOM! I'm in front! He'd have to improve and the flush possibility was runner-runner.

Turn - 6. Ouch. River - A! He fills up?!?! FAAAAAAAAARRRRRK!!!!

Oh well, At least my read was right and I made a good call. I was in front when we flipped 'em over. That's all you can do. So after counting out the chips, I reminded myself that I made the right play, my read was good and I mustn't tilt. Turned out to be a good thing. I just kept playing my cards and my opponents.

I worked my way back into it, taking a few chips from both of them. A couple of periods of card death, but nothing I couldn't get through. The antes were coming every 45 mins, and things were getting pretty dire for C-nut. He plays a short stack pretty aggressively and was openly talking about doubling up soon. Then, this hand rolls around.

I get dealt pocket 3's in the big blind. Cool, not great, but quite ok at this point in the evening. I figure I just want to see a flop, and if I don't spike, I get the f*ck out of Dodge. C-nut raises 3x the BB. It's only $200 more to call, so I do. Deerhunter folds his SB.

Flop. J - 6 - 3 rainbow. Sweet! No flush possibilities. Straight? Nup. And I've flopped my set.

C-nut bets. I raise. And he pushes. Insta-call!

Flip 'em up! C-nut. TPTK. Ha!

DOMINATED!!!!!!!!!! The board bricks out for him and I clean him out. Wicked! He bitched for a while that I should never have called his bet with a low pair, but like I said earlier, it was only $200 more to call. Easy call IMO.

So C-nut rebuys for $20, and get two-thirds of his starting stack. That's a pretty good platform for him. He's a solid player, regularly playing in cash games in Perth and at Burswood Casino. He even had a crack at a Aussie Millions satellite last year and bubbled. He's a more than capable player.

Next hand which I managed to cripple him was a ripper. I'll abreviate it tho. I had A4 off. Limped in pre. Not a favourite hand really. Understandable! C-nut was in the BB from memory. He settled to see a flop. Cool.

Flop came 3 - 2 - 6 rainbow. So I'm all around it, but haven't got a piece of it. But I lead out and STRONG. He pops me and I pop him right back. Our $200 chips are flying around all over the place. It's a serious pot. He ends up calling. Turn card 7. Aaaargh! I've got to lead out strong again, otherwise I'm fucked. $800 to go. He sits there, and says '....I reckon I've got you beat, but I'm laying them down." Thank Christ! He had 3's. I had nadda. W00t!!! That was some sphincter trembling action there. So now I was massive chip leader again and he was steamed.

Two more hands to get through.

Then I bust out C-nut. I led out with a 3x BB bet with pocket 9's. He called, so he had something!

Flop - K - 9 - rag. Set mining ROCKS!

Anyway, a bit of action, a shove, a call and ..... DOMINATED!!!!! I think he had KQ soooooted. He normally wouldn't make that play, but short stacked (and late-ish) he figured he'd push. Once again the board bricked out.

Final hand. Deerhunter and I. He was very short stacked compared to me. No action pre. I had Q3 off.

Flop - 3 - rag - rag.

I bet out the pot. He jammed. Swift call (given his range, he had to be pushing here) and he flips over 9-3 off or similar. Outkicked and dead. End of night, $45 richer. C-nuts $25 buy in and $20 rebuy. Booyah! A great night, and great to PLAY WELL as much as it was to win a little cash! I'm soooo fucking tight financially at the mo!