In my last column, I began chronicling hands that I played in a ladies-only $540 buy-in poker tournament at Cherokee Casino in Tulsa, Oklahoma. As we start this column, the blinds just increased to $200-$400 with a $50 ante, and 31 players remained. I had an average stack of about $7,000.
I played through the blinds and was down to $5,900. From late position, I raised to $1,800 with Q-Q and the big blind called. The flop was A-K-8. My opponent bet $2,500; I folded. (
Damn … two overcards!)
Down to 27 players, we redrew for seats. I drew the big blind. (
Bad redraw!)
A-9 (big blind): The button raised to $1,200. I debated between moving all in preflop or making a stop-and-go play. I thought I might have some fold equity if she was on a complete steal, so I moved all in for $3,600. My opponent called and showed A-J. (
Oops.) The board came 9-7-5-3-8. (
Wow! I got real lucky.)
K-9 (small blind): One player limped in, I called $200 more, and the big blind checked. The flop was 8-7-6. I led out for $500 and the big blind moved all in for $4,700; I folded. (
Too much to pay for a draw.)
10-7 suited (button): Two players limped in, I raised to $2,400, and everyone folded. (
I just picked up $1,800! I'm up to $8,900, which is OK for now.)
K-8 (small blind): One player limped in from middle position and I limped. The flop came A
K
4
. Everyone checked. A 7 came on the turn and I bet $1,000. The big blind called quickly. (
Make the river card black, please.) A black jack came on the river and we each checked. My kicker played, as the big blind showed K-5 - and yes, she had the 5
.
4-4 (cutoff): I open-raised to $1,200 and got reraised for all of my chips by a tight player; I decided to wait for a better hand.
J-J (button): A middle-position player moved all in for $2,100 and I moved all in, as well. I lost the race to her A-Q.
The blinds increased to $300-$600 with a $50 ante. I had $7,800; 22 players remained. In this round, I made a lot of preflop raises with a variety of hands (2-2, K-Q, A-8, Q-J, 9-9, 8-6 suited) and usually picked up the blinds and antes. I had to fold once to a big preflop reraise, and once to an all-in bet on the flop.
My stack had increased to $12,800 as the $400-$800 ($100 ante) round began. Nineteen players remained and the average stack was $11,605. I didn't get too involved in this round but managed to pick up a few pots with preflop raises.
The blinds increased to $600-$1,200 with a $200 ante. I had $13,200; the average was $12,970. (
There's not much play left, since the average is about 10 big blinds.) My best friend, Jan Fisher, got moved to my left. (
She has become a strong no-limit player and I don't like having her on my left.)
Everyone folded to me in the small blind; I raised to $4,000 with 9-7. Jan folded. On the button, I raised to $4,000 with Q-5 suited and everyone folded. Under the gun, I raised to $4,000 with A-9 suited and got called by the button. The flop was 9-6-5. I bet $4,500 and won the pot. On the last hand of the round, I lost a pot with K-K to someone who moved all in with A-J, and was down to $11,200.
The blinds increased to $800-$1,600 with a $200 ante; 12 players remained. They were paying nine places. I moved all in with K-9 from the small blind after one player had limped in, and won the pot preflop. In the cutoff, I moved in with 7-4 offsuit and everyone folded. (We were on the bubble and playing fivehanded, and I knew it would take a big hand for any opponents to call.)
Two players busted out at once, so we went to the final table eighthanded. I had $14,400. On the second hand, I was in the big blind and was dealt 4-4. An aggressive player raised to $3,600 and I moved all in. She called with 9-9, and I didn't improve and was out in eighth place.
I decided to stay and watch the final table. Jan Fisher won the event, so I asked her for a brief interview after her win.
Linda Johnson: Congratulations. What was your strategy in the beginning? Did it change as the tournament went along?
Jan Fisher: In the beginning, my strategy was to be patient, get a line on the other players, and play only good hands since the structure was so player-friendly. About an hour into the tournament, I got short-stacked but didn't give up. I readjusted my strategy to play an all-in style of poker to give myself a chance to gather chips to get back into the game. At the final table, my strategy was to move my chips and keep the pressure on.
LJ: You did a good job of that. In fact, the final-table reporter, Crystalynn Harris, wrote that you won 47 out of 147 hands at the final table.
JF: I have learned that aggression is the key to winning tournaments, and that no-limit is not about the cards. I used to wait for hands, but now I wait for situations. Most of my opponents were waiting for good cards, so I made lots of raises and stole lots of blinds and antes.
I'm sure that we will see Jan at many more final tables.
Now, let's play poker.
Linda is a co-owner of Card Player Cruises and hosts seminars, charity events, and tournaments around the country. You can contact her at [email protected].
