$50,000 Poker Players Championship: Part II

When we left off in my last column, I was having my ass handed to me in the $50,000 Players Championship event. I couldn’t win even the smallest of pots, and kept running into monsters when I did manage to make something. It was looking like I was gonna get an eo (dealer lingo for early out) on day one.

It was somewhat late on day one when I picked up an interesting hand in stud eight-or-better: 9 8 7, with the 9 up. Now, all of my cards were live, but this is still not a hand I’m crazy about. I practically never used to play it until I had a conversation with my friend David Sklansky.

He said that it has so much drawing power that you should practically never throw it away when your cards are live. I pointed out that everyone would have a good idea of what you started with when you limped with a 9 up, but he said that wasn’t an important enough reason not to play it. So, I have been playing it for the past few years, and without much success. (Thanks, David.)

Anyway, this pot got jammed multiway on third street, thanks partly to Barry Greenstein, who was playing the wrong game (stud high). He started with a jack up and paired it on fifth street. I had caught the 10 on fourth street, so he conveniently blocked the straight flush that I would have made on fifth street. Instead, I got a 6, giving me a 10-high straight. (Can you guys please play the right game? Maybe I should announce it every hand!)

Besides Barry’s open jacks, there were three other players in this pot, all apparently going low. The 6 fell behind me on sixth street, which also would have given me a straight flush, but I didn’t really think I needed it at this point — especially when Barry looked at the signs and mucked his open jacks.

My friend Arturo broke into open deuces on sixth street, which didn’t look too dangerous. His board was now 2-6-A-2. But when he bet out and everyone else folded, I figured that we were going to chop it, and that there was like a 100-to-1 shot he was somehow gonna beat me. Well, that 100-to-1 shot came in when he came out of the hole with pocket aces. He claimed to have had them all along, but he never put in a raise the entire way, so I think he got lucky on the end. Aw!

It looked like I was on my way to the electric chair, when the governor gave me a reprieve in the form of Phil Hellmuth getting moved to my table. He didn’t take long to help me out, either. The game was Omaha eight-or-better, and I raised from the one hole.

Phil re-popped me, and I quickly made it four bets. I held A-A-10-3 double-suited. The flop was pretty good; it came 10-8-2 with two of one of my suits, giving me the nut-low draw, the nut-flush draw, and a pair of tens, and, of course, I still had my two aces. I bet, and Phil called. The turn was an offsuit 7, giving me the nut low. I again bet, and was called. The river brought the J, giving me the nut high, an ace-high flush. I bet again, and this time Phil went into the tank forever before calling.

I got to say my favorite two words, “Nut-nut,” and Philly showed A-K-2, then claimed to have another low card for some kind of low. This is usually a pretty good hand, but not really if you know your players, and Phil should know that when I raise out of the one spot, he shouldn’t be three-betting me with that garbage.

A few hands later, the game was razz, and Phil again tried to dump me some chips. I raised from the one hole with like six small cards behind me, and Phil reraised me with a 7 up. Nice hand there, Phil — lol. I mean, did he really think I had raised into six babies with an 8 in the hole?

I had a 3 up with an A-2 in the hole. The one redeeming factor for Phil was that he might have had a 5 in the hole, as there were three out. But that proved not to be the case, as Phil bricked on fourth street (as did three others, including me), then hit the miracle 5 on fifth street. It wasn’t enough, as Arturo’s board looked scarier than a BP oil rig in pristine waters: 5-4-3-6. Phil had to fold on the river.

Sadly, this table was disbanded after this hand, as were the rest of my chips, without their benefactor Phil Hellmuth. Another tournament, and $50,000 down the toilet. It was a tough start to the 2010 World Series, but I’d have plenty of chances to redeem myself!

Todd Brunson has been a professional poker player for more than 20 years. While primarily a cash-game player, he still has managed to win 18 major tournaments, for more than $3.5 million. He has won one bracelet and cashed 25 times at the World Series of Poker. You can play with Todd online at DoylesRoom.com or live at his tournament, The Todd Brunson Montana Poker Challenge, in Bigfork, Montana. Check his website, ToddBrunson.com, for details.