I am ready for a Fresh start in 2012

*Before you read this and say don’t complain about beats and running bad…I am not…I am just recapping 2011 and looking forward to 2012

I finished 2010 pretty strong and was overly excited for 2011, I set my goals pretty high. I brought the whole family down to the Bahamas for PCA and was really ready to start off the year strong. The thing about PCA is that you start with the main event instead of pre-lims and when I busted the main, it started a miserable mood and then I proceeded to get unlucky a few times in the shootout and the bounty tournaments and I did not enjoy myself at all. Before the Borgata series I made a deep run in the Sunday Brawl on FTP and close to another score, I got 12th…we all know how 12th’s feel when that much $ is on the line for 1st. I went right to Borgata after that series and had all the chips in the main event and was really excited to make a run until 3 really unlucky hands came my way in a matter of 2 orbits where I lost with KK to AQ all in on a flop of 7 high because this kid was upset with me but he got there. Then I lost with KK again the next orbit to 2 pair and then ultimately busted with AK to AQ and it was like what in the world just happened. The worst thing about that run was that I really felt I was playing amazing and things were going my way until those few hands and all the sudden instead of making a run at a huge 500k score I min cashed and was again really miserable. My mood, like most players, goes with my chip stack and my swings, typically it takes me a day or so to get over it. This one stung a little more because I came back from a rough PCA expensive trip and had a chance to start off 2011 with a bang and got unlucky, whatever it happens time to move on, it isn’t gonna last too long…o how I didn’t realize…or maybe I did and that is why I was so upset.

I went down to Florida for the West Palm WSOP and was there for less than 24 hours, even making day 2. I ran my stack up real nice on Day one only to flop the nuts against 2 guys with 2 pair and they both got there so instead of bagging the Chip Lead I bagged alot less and ultimately busted to my boy Dwyte on Day 2. I was playing a fair amount of online in March and April and had a few final tables but couldn’t really get a big score to get me going. I also cashed the Borgata deepstack in March but this one I feel I should of final tabled and quite honestly I made a few mistakes that I really regret in that one and have no one to blame there but myself. Then black friday hit and I didn’t really take full understanding of the impact it would really have months later because at the time I was rather burnt out from playing so many tables online and having to trade $ with people and buy into FTP multi entries for a ton of $ etc…I was ready for an online break…that was then…today and the last few months I am feeling it bad and am really dying to play…it is actually eating at me alot recently with the downswing and the baby boy on the way, I really just want back what we had.

The WSOP is now here at the end of May and I am more excited than ever and have plans to take alot of shots and play like every event. I put a decent amount of time into reading books of the mixed games, reading some things online and playing a decent amount prior to black friday so that I could play some mixed events this summer. Without describing all 27 events I played, I just want to recap a few. I final tabled the $1500 2-7 Single Draw No Limit and quite frankly it was like the most fun tourney I have ever played and it was my first live 2-7. I busted Mercier in 7th but I busted shortly after when Perrins outdrew me and went on to win the bracelet and 100k…I got 14k for 6th. The $1500 NL Shootout I won my table easily and had a really bad draw for my day 2 table but I played pretty good and Scott Montgomery called me down on a hand that I thought I played well and took just about all my chips after I had a reasonable stack, so I didn’t win my 2nd table to make the final. My parents were in town for a wknd and I happen to make a deep run while they were there, I got as lucky as ever close to the $ but I had like 10 big blinds and doubled up. I went on to make Day 3 but fell short of the final table goal and busted 23rd for 19k. The main event was really interesting and I thought for a while I was going to make another run until I got tangled in some hands that didn’t go my way and bagged a rather small stack heading to Day 3 and ran QQ into AA to bust before the $ and end my 2011 WSOP. This WSOP though was a few cards here and there from being a big one or atleast a profitable one. I made day 2 of the $10k 2-7 and busted 10 away from the $ and that was just huge for me to cash and I didn’t. I also made day 2 of the $10k 6max and missed one spot against Ben Lamb and Devilfish that I really regret and I busted about 20 from the $ in that, another huge min cash that changes my summer alot. Cashing those two events would of changed a losing summer into a rather profitable summer and changed my whole year around but that is how it goes. I took some shots and overextended myself at times…reaching way out of the bankroll management boundaries and it cost me.

I made another Final Table at the Borgata Open in September but it was a small buy in and I got 5th place after running AQ into AA 5 handed on a AQ42 board. Then in October at Hammond in a large main event field I made a nice run when top 5 all were 6 figure scores and could help me out big time at this point, I busted 34th after losing a million chip race I couldn’t recover and lost one of the last few chances to save 2011. In November at Borgata in the $1k I got really lucky on the bubble with KQ to AQ all in preflop and I made the money, but shortly after I busted with QQ to KK and AA. There are definitely times where I have gotten lucky in key spots, the problem this year has been that it hasn’t mattered because it hasn’t happened after that spot, where I have lost every race and got coolered or took a beat in every situation close to big scores. To finish off 2011 I busted my last 2 main events of the year with KK to AA, the Borgata in November and the Harrahs in December. Quite a fitting way to end such a miserable year.

I really just wanted to recap my year in this blog and I am not at all trying to complain about the coolers/beats etc, but rather explain how 2011 went as compared to prior years when these things that happen to all of us, happened less then. I would have never thought that a downswing and a run bad could really last 12 months. Each trip I re-focused, played well and expected to break out of the slump…and each trip it kept happening. The thing that really gets to me the most is that some people don’t understand the variance or respect it because some people don’t experience the bad side of variance…or if they do it isn’t for this long. I certainly do not claim to be better than everyone at this game but I can truthfully sit here and be happy with how I played almost all of the time in 2011 and not be happy with the results and that is what ultimately matters. We play this game to make correct decisions and have them pay off over the long run, sometimes variance has other plans. I lost alot of money in 2011 and I am not afraid to admit to that and I am not saying that I played perfect, but I played well enough to deserve better than a losing year. I will work hard in 2012 and I hope that it pays off because it took its toll on me over the last 12 months, but I got thru it and you won’t see this guy quit. As long as I have opportunities I am going to go after them and I have worked way too damn hard at this game to not get rewarded for it again like I have in the 3 years prior to this one. I have had alot of stress this year trying to live up to my own expectations and my family and friends who have supported me thru the good and the bad…and it is time for some good once again…

I never had this feeling before of starting fresh, but it seems like a damn good time to start fresh…I got a little baby boy coming in May and his daddy needs to make some freakin money! 2012 here I come baby!

*I have to skip PCA because it is too expensive without being able to win a Stars package…GL to all my friends going…I will start 2012 off with the Borgata open and then I am going to LA for the LAPC Main Event!