tptkc

Last night's final hand had a lot in common with the final hand from the night before. Once again, I flopped top pair, top kicker. Once again, my hole cards were of the same suit. This time, however, no flush draw was in the offing. Once again, I hit the rail. Once again, it was a big goodbye (I forgot to mention that in last night's post). So this all added up to tptkc - top pair, top kicker cracked. One of these days, top pair, top kicker is going to hold up for me :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    32      68   15    41        0

delta: $-300,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $41,641,000
2019 balance: $7,637,250
balance: $54,221,510

tptkfdc

Tonight's blog post title is shorthand for what befell me on the final hand of last night's session. I was dealt Th Ah, and the flop came 4h 2h Tc. That gave me top pair, top kicker, and a flush draw. My home-grown percent at flop utility tells me that holding with that flop wins 88.81% of all possible heads up outcomes. Unfortunately for me, I ran into one of them. My opponent had been dealt 2s 2c, and his three of a kind held up. So my top pair, top kicker, flush draw was cracked. Hence tptkfdc :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    53      67   15    26        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $41,941,000
2019 balance: $7,937,250
balance: $54,521,510

A $520,000 fold

The money jumps near the top of the payout tables for MTT-R NLHEs are truly staggering. They're so big, they can (and should) change your strategy. Last night, when I made it to four-handed play, I was the short stack, but the player with the second shortest stack was sitting out. If I could manage to outlast just this one player, I'd be the beneficiary of a $520,00 money jump. So that's what I focused on. I had to win a pot or two, in order to have a bigger stack than the player sitting out (let's call him player B). If I could achieve that, I only needed to fold for the rest of the tournament in order to achieve my goal (barring player B surviving the inevitable fall-in). I'm happy to report that's just what happened. On the hand where player B hit the rail, I was dealt ducks (pocket deuces). I folded them before the flop. Friends and neighbors, chalk that up as a $520,000 fold :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9   148      51   12     3  1619000

delta: $1,419,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $42,141,000
2019 balance: $8,137,250
balance: $54,721,510

Ace rag out

The most honorable way to exit a tournament in with pocket aces. A close second is with a big slick. The least honorable way to exit a tournament is with a hammer (seven deuce offsuit). A close second is with ace rag. Last night, I exited the only tournament I entered in a very dishonorable way - with A2o (ace deuce offsuit). That definitely qualifies as ace rag. I was actually a little ashamed of myself, to tell the truth.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    36      58   12    41        0

delta: $-100,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $40,722,000
2019 balance: $6,718,250
balance: $53,302,510

A tale of two flushes

Flopping a flush is one of the nicest things that can happen to you at a poker table. Dealing with an opponent who hits a flush on the river can be one of the most unpleasant. Both of these things happened in the second tournament I entered last night. Hand 62 was when fortune smiled on me, shooting my stack up to its peak. Hand 73 was when fortune smiled on an opponent, and took me to the rail. Easy come, easy go :-)

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    16      49   12    23        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    73      65   15    23        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $40,822,000
2019 balance: $6,818,250
balance: $53,402,510

My poker graveyard

Having played online poker for over ten years, I've gathered quite a collection of style/flavor combos I've sworn never to play again. I call it my poker graveyard :-) Here it is, sorted in descending order of final date played:

date        style      flavor

2017-11-09  Sit & Go   No Limit Hold'em
2017-10-18  Cash game  No Limit Hold'em
2017-08-02  Sit & Go   8-Game
2017-03-03  Power up   No Limit Hold'em
2016-09-25  Spin & Go  No Limit Hold'em
2015-04-06  Sit & Go   HORSE
2014-08-28  Cash game  Limit 7 Card Stud
2014-07-07  Cash game  Limit Triple Draw 2-7 Lowball
2013-07-07  Cash game  Pot Limit Omaha
2012-07-15  Sit & Go   Limit Hold'em
2012-07-15  Sit & Go   Limit Triple Draw 2-7 Lowball
2012-07-14  Cash game  No Limit Triple Draw 2-7 Lowball
2012-07-14  Cash game  Pot Limit Triple Draw 2-7 Lowball
2011-08-26  Cash game  Limit 5 Card Draw
2011-08-12  Cash game  Pot Limit Hold'em

Here's the list of combos I'll continue to play:

date        style      flavor

2019-05-01  MTT-R      No Limit Hold'em
2019-02-20  MTT        No Limit Hold'em
2019-02-16  KO poker   No Limit Hold'em
2019-02-15  MTT        8-Game
2019-02-01  MTT-B      No Limit Hold'em
2018-12-17  MTT        Limit Badugi
2016-09-24  MTT        Limit Triple Draw 2-7 Lowball
2016-08-22  MTT        HORSE

I'm strictly a tournament player now.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    41      71   15    34        0
MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    52      67   15    30        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $41,022,000
2019 balance: $7,018,250
balance: $53,602,510

Little big goodbye

Last night's tournament ended with a little big goodbye. What do I mean by that? I'm glad you asked :-) A true big goodbye is when the absolute value of the final hand's hand delta is the maximum absolute value of all the hand deltas. A little big goodbye is when the conditions for a true big goodbye aren't met by the full set of hand deltas, but are met when the positive hand deltas are excluded from consideration. So far in my MTT-R NLHE career, I've had 206 big goodbyes and 130 little big goodbyes.

style flavor buy_in entry players hands entries paid place winnings

MTT-R NLHE    43500  6500       9    68      54   12    15        0

delta: $-200,000
MTT with rebuys NLHE balance: $41,222,000
2019 balance: $7,218,250
balance: $53,802,510