World Poker Tour Celebrity Invitational - Part III

When we left off last issue, I was down to $6,900 in the World Poker Tour Celebrity Invitational, and the level was about to rise to a $100 ante and $400-$800 blinds. I have chronicled the hands I played and my thought processes throughout the tournament. My thoughts are in italics and parentheses.

Near the button, I limped in with the K 10. The flop totally missed me and I folded when facing a big bet. (I'd better get a hand soon or I will be out of this event.)

I was anted and blinded down to $4,300 and decided to move all in with A-10 offsuit after Gabe Kaplan had limped in. (I hope no one calls.) David Chiu almost beat me into the pot. (I must be in trouble here.) After everyone else folded, David turned up the A® K®. Kaplan said he folded A-J. (Help!) A lovely 10 flopped and when no king arrived, I was back to $11,500. A jack had also flopped, so Kaplan would have won the pot if he had played! (I am a lucky player … a powerful winning force surrounds me!) I would like to add here that David Chiu was extremely gracious and never showed any disappointment about this ugly suckout. (David is one of my poker heroes!)

When the level increased to a $200 ante and $600-$1,200 blinds, I had $9,500 in chips. I had played very few hands and was tired of picking up garbage cards. I went through another round without a playable hand and was down to $6,700 when I picked up 9-9 in the small blind. Gabe Kaplan had limped in for $1,200 and I pushed all in … no callers (yea, a moral victory)

My chip count was $10,500 when the level increased to a $200 ante and $800-$1,600 blinds. There was one limper, and I looked down again to see 9-9. Everyone folded to my $5,000 raise. (I am happy to win these hands without a flop. The blinds and antes plus a limper's bet add up!) A few hands later, I raised to $7,000 from the button after everyone had folded to me, and again, I had no callers. (This is fun … I like no-limit!) The very next hand, I was dealt A-K and there was one limper in the pot. I raised to $7,000 and got no callers. (Wow, we are down to 70 players and I am still in, although with $20,100 in chips, I have less than the average stack. Play well!)

My table had gotten even tougher as most of the "stars" had been eliminated and replaced by Phil Hellmuth, Haig Kelegian, Jack McClelland, and David Sklansky. The ante went up to $300 with $1,200-$2,400 blinds, and I was relatively short-stacked with just $16,500. After one player had limped in, I decided to move all in with my A-Q. Jack McClelland reraised all in for about double my bet. (Oops, I picked the wrong spot here.) We turned up our hands, and sure enough, my hand was dominated by Jack's A-K. The flop and turn were rags, but I got very lucky on the river and caught a queen to double up to $38,700. (Wow, I can't even look at Jack. He is such a gentleman and doesn't say a word about a horrendous beat.)

We were down to 42 players as the dinner break was called. Commerce Casino put out a terrific buffet spread, and I enjoyed talking with a reporter during dinner and getting his impressions of poker players. He found the whole poker atmosphere intriguing, and was fascinated with the intensity of the play.

The levels increased to a $500 ante and $1,500-$3,000 blinds. I had one odd $100 chip and won a $500 chip in the chip race-off. (I needed that!) On the fifth hand, everyone folded to me in the small blind, and I raised to $8,000 with J-J and won the antes and blinds. A few hands later, I raised to $8,000 from the cutoff position and got no callers. In the big blind, I had 2-2. Phil Hellmuth raised to $10,000. (Phil has raised a lot of pots, and if I move all in for $35,000 more, I will probably win the pot unless he has kings or aces. Good plan. Oops! He called quickly and turned up two kings. I hate poker! I tried to play well all day and now I am almost out of the tournament. I am down to $4,500 now.) A few hands later, I was happy to see K-K, and raised all in and got no callers. On the button, I was dealt A-Q. Jack McClelland had moved all in for $8,000, so I decided to reraise all in for $12,000 total. An ace on the flop basically killed Jack's chances, and I was back to $26,000. (Jack is a real champion … I am so impressed with his table demeanor.)

David Grey was moved to my table as the limits increased to a $500 ante and $2,000-$4,000 blinds. I was left with a measly $17,000 after the blinds, and didn't see a playable hand the next round. After folding the big blind, an interesting situation came up. I was dealt the 9 4 in the small blind. One player limped, and a conservative player went all in for $15,000. I had $7,500 left and had a decision to make. I usually act very quickly, but this time, I went into the tank for about three minutes, the longest time I have ever taken at a poker table. (This is tough; I know I have to hit something, because 9 high isn't going to win anything. With the blinds, antes, and the limper's and raiser's bets in the pot, there will be $30,000 in the pot if I call, assuming the limper and big blind fold so that I'm getting good odds for my $7,500. On the other hand, I have gone through the blinds and will be on the button with $7,500 if I fold. Perhaps I will pick up an ace in the next round. Of course, I will get called because I will be so short on chips. I am surprised no one has called the clock on me.)

What would you have done? Feel free to e-mail me with your opinion. In Part III, I will tell you what I did.

Now, let's play poker!

Editor's note: Linda can be reached through her website at www.cardplayercruises.com; she appreciates all reader input. She also is available to host poker events and seminars.