August2012Issue - Minnesota Poker Magazine

Minnesota’s #1
Poker Source
august 2012
Minnesota Poker Magazine
AUGUST 2012
page 3
Letter from the Publisher
PLAYING WITH IVEY
By Bryan Mileski
P
hil Ivey has won eight World Series of Poker bracelets
and one World Poker Tour title. He has reached
twenty-eight WSOP final tables and nine WPT final
tables. Ivey is regarded by most poker players and observers
as the best all-around player in the world today.
At the most recent WSOP, I was fortunate enough to be able
to play with Ivey for almost an entire day. I’m not one to be
star-struck, and I wasn’t on this day, but I certainly respect
the hell out of someone who can be so consistently good over
a ten-year span. I was not going to leave the table without
learning something about how he operates.
The event was #59—$1,000 NLHE. 4,620 players entered through two Day 1
flights. 726 players advanced to Day 2, 468 places would get paid.
I arrived at my table to rip open my bag of 7,975 chips in the six-seat, the tournament was playing nine-handed at this point. The blinds would be 300/600 to
start the day.
Shortly after my arrival, Phil Ivey strolled in. Ivey was stacked to the tune of
50,000 chips, 25th overall. I was happy to see him settle in on my right in the fourseat. This way I could keep a good eye on him and maybe learn something. I was
only carrying thirteen big blinds so I really only had one move, which probably
took a little tension off the thought of battling Ivey.
Ivey folded for the first hour, rarely played a hand. He saw a couple of flops for
cheap and folded after he had missed. That was it, pretty boring.
As Event #59 continued to lose players at a rapid pace, Ivey disappeared during
the second hour. He had also reached Day 2 of Event #60—$10,000—2-7 Draw Lowball (No-Limit). He was multi-tabling on Day 2 of each event.
Ivey busted Event #60 during that second hour and returned back to our table,
this time he wasn’t so passive, though definitely not crazy.
Before I tell you how he does it, I’ll share with you how the money bubble went
down at our table.
When you’re dealing with almost 50 tables on the bubble, dealers are required
to stand up when the hand at their table is complete. Once all dealers are standing, if nobody has busted, another hand is played. This process can often take
10+ minutes per hand. Grown men turn into 4-year olds at this time. They can’t sit
still. One player at our table (table chip leader) asked the dealer to take a picture
of him with Ivey. Phil was cool about it and obliged. But then it turned into a photo shoot with three other players at the table (I was not one of them). Ivey handled
it well and took every picture request, signed several autographs as well.
In a scene out of Happy Gilmore, he was even asked by a gal in the front row of
the rail next to our table to sign her breasts, on the shirt though. He agreed.
Moving on…what I’m about to tell you isn’t rocket science, but this is how the
best poker player in the world plays. Its more fundamental and basic than you
would think. Sometimes we need to be reminded of what good poker really is. If it
MNPOKERMAG.COM Vol. 3/No. 8
President and Publisher
Bryan Mileski
[email protected]
Art Director
Carolyn Borgen
[email protected]
Contributors
Chris “Fox” Wallace
Jacob Westlin
Jocelyn Bendijo
Advertising Information
Bryan Mileski
612-743-9847
[email protected]
Story Ideas
[email protected]
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Minnesota Poker Magazine is a
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Minnesota Poker Magazine
Lakeville, MN
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page 4
Minnesota Poker Magazine
were somebody else in the four-seat, I likely wouldn’t have
paid much attention.
Ivey, that day, was the definition of “Position Poker”. Amateurs and beginners often underestimate the importance of
position. He rarely played a hand from the first three positions, folded instantly almost every time.
Ivey raised my blinds 100% of the time. If it folded to him
on the button, he never missed an opportunity to raise. I
wasn’t trying to outplay him on this day. It makes no sense
for me to try to play against him out of position. I let him
have at it. For the record, I held garbage frequently in those
positions. I three-bet him once with K♥5♥, he folded. I also
called to see a flop with J♠9♠, missed completely and checkfolded. For the most part though, I was trying to pick my
battles elsewhere.
Ivey also punished limpers. If there were two or more
limpers and he was on the button, he popped it.
He would also three-bet lighter from late position. Never
did I see his cards in these instances, but there was twice
where he three-bet from the button and folded to a four-bet
shove.
You can see the pattern here. He played frequently from
late position and rarely from early position. He put pressure
on players constantly simply by being Phil Ivey and acting
last in every pot.
I did see him shove twice on draws where his opponent
had to make the decision whether to risk their entire stack
by calling. In these two instances Ivey was called, once he
hit and the other time he did not. The miss left him short but
not out.
And even the best get lucky from time-to-time. At one
point facing elimination, Ivey rivered a queen holding acequeen versus ace-king.
Eventually though Ivey would take a bad beat. He picked
up kings on the button and raised, the small blind shoved
over the top. I folded ace-jack in the big blind. Ivey called
and the small blind showed pocket threes. The turn was a
three. Ivey busted 208th for $3,119.
What’s important here is that you pick up what I’m putting
down. Ivey played aggressive and opened his range from late
position. He never played a pot from early position or out of
position. This seems basic, but I see players constantly limpcalling a raise while in early to middle position and consistently playing pots out of position. Bad idea if you’d like to
be an eight-time WSOP champ.
As for me, it was a good run. I grinded a short stack most of
the day and into the money. I eventually got hot late on Day 2
and ended the day with 338,000 after starting with only 7,975.
51 players advanced to Day 3 where play would resume until
a bracelet was awarded. I entered Day 3—13th of 51 in chips.
With blinds at 5,000/10,000, I lost a 200,000 pot with QQ versus AA. With 12-big blinds at a seven-handed table, I shoved
Q♣9♣ and was called by pocket eights. The board bricked
for me though and I was sent to the rail in 40th place.
Oh…and before I forget, Ivey got a TON of walks.
2012 WSOP Event #59
AUGUST 2012
MNPOKERMAG.COM Minnesota Poker Magazine
page 6
AUGUST 2012
Tournament News
2012 ANNIVERSARY TOURNAMENT
By MNPOKERMAG STAFF
R
unning Aces Harness
Park in Columbus,
MN hosted their
Anniversary
Tournament on Saturday, June 30th.
In 2011, Erick Wright bested a
71-entrant field to earn $19,225. In
2010, it was Kuong Yek earning the
title for $19,430.
This year, the star of the
show would be Reg Powell. The
Reg Powell
$1,000+$100 buy-in event drew
64-runners, Powell was the last person standing and added a
cool $23,900 to his bankroll as a result.
Powell, from Elk River, has multiple MSPT cashes and
a Minnesota State Poker Championship final table on his
resume. It took Powell an hour and a half heads up to finally
take out “Minneapolis” Jim Meehan.
Meehan won a WSOP bracelet in 2003 and has $1.4 Million
in lifetime earnings on the felt.
The last hand saw Powell’s A♥10♣ defeat Meehan’s 4♥5♥
on a board that read 4♠7♥J♣7♦J♥.
Meehan’s runner-up finish earned him $13,855.
Running Aces, Columbus, MN
Buy-in: $1,000 + $100 ♣ 64 Entrants
Place
Name
1
Reg Powell
$23,900
2
Jim Meehan
$13,855
3
Corey Canaday
$7,340
4
Erick Eelkema
$3,825
5
James Erickson
$2,610
6
Dan Stewart
$2,350
7
Jeff Petronack
$2,110
8
Jason Hartwig
$1,890
9
Adam Praught
$1,600
10
Ron Spain
$1,500
Running Aces will be hosting a $2,350+$150 buy-in Tournament of Champions August 11-12. The first place prize
is guaranteed at $75,000. Visit www.mnpokermag.com or
www.runningacesharness.com for further details.
Final Table
Prize
MNPOKERMAG.COM page 8
Minnesota Poker Magazine
AUGUST 2012
Tournament News
MORGAN GETS MONEY’S WORTH
AT ONE DROP
By MNPOKERMAG STAFF
J
ohn Morgan’s run in the $1 Million Big One for One
Drop may have come up short but he will certainly be
remembered from what many poker pros are calling
the craziest hand they’ve ever seen!
Morgan’s Day ended when he ran a semi bluff on Richard
Yong. Yong was not going anywhere with his trips.
The flop read 10♠10♣8♣ . When Yong bet 300,000, Morgan
decided to raise it up to 900,000, but that wasn’t enough for
Yong who made it 1.9 million. Morgan didn’t seem impressed, he moved all in, and Yong called his remaining
chips off.
John Morgan K♣9♣
Richard Yong 10♦5♠
Morgan was looking for a club or running straight cards
in order to stay alive, and the turn was the J♥. Morgan could
still win this big pot with a seven, queen or a club, but the
river was the J♦ giving Yong a full house.
On the next hand Yong raised it up to 130,000, and Morgan
moved all in for 650,000 from the hijack. Ilya Bulychev was
in the cutoff and he moved all in as well. Yong folded and we
got see another heads-up showdown.
John Morgan A♦8♥
Ilya Bulychev 7♦7♣
The board ran out 5♦Q♣2♥J♠Q♠, and Bulychev’s pair held
up. Morgan was knocked out in 29th place.
Though Morgan was unable to reach the final table, he
won a hand that will likely be the most memorable throughout the entire event and one that even pros are calling
unbelievable.
On Day 1, Morgan got Mikhail Smirnov to fold Quad 8′s!
Tom Dwan opened for 32,000 and received a call from
Smirnov and Morgan. The flop landed J♠8♣7♠. Dwan
checked and Smirnov bet. Morgan called and Dwan folded.
The turn was the 8♠ and Smirnov bet 200,000. Morgan
called quickly.
The river was the K♠. Smirnov bet 700,000 and Morgan
raised all-in for 3.4 Million. Smirnov tank-folded 8♦8♥
face up.
Phil Galfond tweeted:
Just saw the craziest
hand I’ve ever seen. Guy
folded 88 face up on
Js87s8sKs. “I’ve never
seen a fold like that,
absolutely not,” the cash
game pro said.
The twitter universe
and chat rooms all over
the world have been
blowing up with discussion about this hand.
Morgan has remained
tight-lipped about
whether he had the
goods or not.
John Morgan
“For me, it was a very
easy fold,” Smirnov said.
“If he had two kings before the flop he would have re-raised
Dwan, because he’s been active and raising a lot. So, two
kings was impossible. Two jacks, in theory, was possible.”
Smirnov said that he thought jacks full of eights wouldn’t
have been such a confident shove on the river. “He was like
all-in, no problem. Before he had been playing very carefully and tight.”
According to his logic, Morgan would have the 10♠9♠.
The size of the buy-in was not a factor in the decision,
Smirnov said. He added that Morgan seemed visibly upset
after the hand, giving more validity to the fold.
“I personally couldn’t have done it,” Galfond said. “I’d
lose sleep. But, I think it was a reasonable fold actually.
There are definitely very few hands John could have had
that weren’t a straight flush. Jacks full was probably the one
that made the most sense, other than a straight flush.”
According to Galfond, the table erupted once the quads
were shown. Dwan left the table in disbelief.
Smirnov, who has a Ph.D in economics, is a regular in huge
cash games in Russia.
Professional poker player Antonio Esfandiari was the
eventual One Drop champion, taking home $18.3 Million.
MNPOKERMAG.COM Minnesota Poker Magazine
page 12
AUGUST 2012
World Series of Poker
43RD ANNUAL WSOP UPDATE
BY MNPOKERMAG STAFF
As
only the Octobernine remain,
the 2012 World Series
of Poker is pretty much
a wrap. 6,598 players
entered the Main Event,
down slightly from 2011
when 6,865 players took
their shot at immortality.
The prize pool for the
Main was slightly over
$62 Million, first place
will be $8,527,982.
All told, the 61 bracelet
events for this year's
John Hayes
WSOP drew a total of
74,766 entries, with the overall prize pool for all 61 events
adding up to a record $222,035,192. A total of 41 of this summer's events featured prize pools exceeding $1,000,000.
After a slow start, Minnesota players came on strong the
second half of the WSOP series.
John “johnnyGStaks” Hayes of St. Paul did the most damage and was close to capturing his first bracelet. GStaks
finished third in Event #49—$1,500 Ante Only NLHE—earning $99,409. Hayes cashed a MN-best three times during the
series for $104,108.
Ryan LaPlante of Burnsville also cashed twice in the
series for $63,150. His largest was a 7th place finish in Event
#33—$1,000 NLHE—for $56,372.
In 2011, Minnesota players tallied 55 cashes, 2 final tables
and $585,046 in WSOP earnings. $585K was 0.3% of the total
prize pool.
In 2012, we accumulated more cashes with 59 and the same
number of final tables with 2. Total prize money was less but
still very respectable at $533,602.
As for the Main Event, four Minnesota reps found pay-dirt.
Todd Breyfogle of Hopkins and Eric Brix of Little Canada
both earned $32,871, placing 328th and 346th respectively.
Larry Barbetta of Wayzata and Everett Carlton of St. Paul
also faired well bringing home $28,530 and $24,808.
In addition to Hayes and LaPlante, players with multiple
cashes include Eric Brix–$36,915, Everett Carlton–$29,403,
Jason Senti–$17,233, Bryan Mileski–$16,769, Jarod Ludemann–$9,935 and John Reading–$8,062.
Matt Kirby of Bemidji won a $235 Daily Rio event for
$52,085 by outlasting 1,368 entrants. Kirby also placed 78th in
Event #43—$1,500 NLHE—for $6,208.
WSOP Event #49 Final 5 (John Hayes in 8-seat wearing black hat)
43rd Annual World Series of Poker ♣
World
Series of Poker
Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV
Event #
Name
City
Buy-in
Event
Place
Entrants
5
8
9
9
9
14
19
20
Matt Alexander
Tyler Schwecke
Everett Carlton
Eric Worre
Jared Michelizzi
John Reading
Thomas Ogara
Mike Schneider
Minneapolis
St. Paul
St. Paul
Eden Prairie
Blaine
Rochester
Mendota Heights
Minneapolis
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$5,000
Pot-Limit Hold em
Omaha Hi-Low Split 8 or Better
NLHE Re-entry
NLHE Re-entry
NLHE Re-entry
NLHE Shootout
NLHE
LHE
40
13
122
157
181
108
158
16
639
967
3404
3404
3404
1138
2302
166
MNPOKERMAG.COM Earnings
$4,011
$11,957
$4,595
$4,043
$4,043
$5,295
$3,356
$11,071
Minnesota Poker Magazine
AUGUST 2012
page 13
World Series of Poker
43rd Annual World Series of Poker ♣
World
Series of Poker
Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV
Event #
Name
City
Buy-in
Event
Place
Entrants
21
21
23
27
29
31
33
33
33
33
38
38
38
40
41
43
43
43
43
44
44
44
44
44
44
44
44
47
49
49
49
49
49
49
52
53
54
54
56
56
56
56
56
56
56
58
59
61
61
61
61
Robby Westrom
Marc Lome
Jason Senti
Greg Dyer
Jonathan Goetze
Tom Hammers
Ryan LaPlante
Paul Dominski
John Reading
James Wadzinski
Jason Senti
Jarrod Blackwell
Kou Vang
Richard Alsup
Dan Hendrickson
Matt Kirby
Jarod Ludemann
Chad Boehnke
Alan Jeevanathan
Ryan Hartmann
David Carlson
Tucker Hummel
Eric Anderson
Jeff Schnettler
Paul Janssen
Darin Minkel
John McDonald
Alan Dejesus
John Hayes
Jeff Dobrin
Jeremy Dresch
Eric Brix
Terrance Eischens
Theodore Simonson
Chris Wallace
Bryan Mileski
Todd Barrett
John Hayes
Kevin McClurg
Jarod Ludemann
Andrew Johnson
Rob Wazwaz
Wade Woelfel
Brad Friestad
John Hayes
Ryan LaPlante
Bryan Mileski
Todd Breyfogle
Eric Brix
Larry Barbetta
Everett Carlton
St. Paul
Eden Prairie
St. Louis Park
Minneapolis
Minneapolis
Shakopee
Brainerd
Minnetonka
Rochester
Hastings
St. Louis Park
Milaca
Maplewood
Plymouth
Faribault
Bemidji
Wells
Marietta
Blaine
Minneapolis
Minneapolis
New Hope
Bemidji
Cold Spring
Side Lake
Morton
Marshall
Crystal
St. Paul
Minnetonka
Fridley
Little Canada
Shakopee
Minneapolis
St. Paul
Lakeville
Redlake
St. Paul
Eagan
Wells
Minneapolis
Brooklyn Park
Mankato
Crystal
St. Paul
Brainerd
Lakeville
Hopkins
Little Canada
Wayzata
St. Paul
$1,500
$1,500
$3,000
$1,500
$1,000
$1,500
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$2,500
$3,000
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$2,500
$1,500
$1,000
$1,000
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$1,500
$3,000
$1,000
$10,000
$10,000
$10,000
$10,000
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE 6-handed
H.O.R.S.E.
Senior's NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
LHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
PLO Hi-Low Split 8 or Better
Ante Only NLHE
Ante Only NLHE
Ante Only NLHE
Ante Only NLHE
Ante Only NLHE
Ante Only NLHE
10-Game Mix / 6-Handed
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
PLO Hi-Low Split 8 or Better
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
181
230
35
34
164
205
7
110
129
242
74
77
229
17
124
78
162
239
247
45
50
81
86
93
135
239
290
42
3
39
55
59
65
97
21
206
135
315
39
81
127
148
160
231
293
37
40
328
346
426
503
2799
2799
924
889
4128
2811
2795
2795
2795
2795
2534
2534
2534
302
1394
2770
2770
2770
2770
2949
2949
2949
2949
2949
2949
2949
2949
978
939
939
939
939
939
939
421
3166
3221
3221
2798
2798
2798
2798
2798
2798
2798
526
4620
6598
6598
6598
6598
MNPOKERMAG.COM Earnings
$2,217
$2,015
$11,452
$5,088
$2,786
$3,339
$56,372
$2,767
$2,767
$2,012
$5,781
$5,781
$2,771
$7,495
$5,937
$6,208
$3,665
$2,992
$2,992
$8,812
$7,299
$4,406
$3,795
$3,318
$2,920
$2,123
$1,937
$5,704
$99,409
$5,476
$4,044
$4,044
$3,549
$2,611
$7,614
$3,505
$3,015
$1,942
$12,541
$6,270
$4,155
$3,702
$3,702
$3,022
$2,757
$6,778
$13,264
$32,871
$32,871
$28,530
$24,808
Minnesota Poker Magazine
page 14
AUGUST 2012
Venetian Deep Stack
DEEP STACK EXTRAVAGANZA III
BY MNPOKERMAG STAFF
By
now everyone is familiar with The Venetian Deep
Stack Extravaganza. The series of events was held
from May 24th–July 15th simultaneously with the World
Series of Poker. Like the WSOP, the series boasted a large
number of events—this year fifty-five—and included a
variety of games with an emphasis on No-Limit Hold’em.
The tournaments themselves were actually hosted at the
Venetian’s sister casino, The Palazzo.
Robby Westrom of St. Paul had the largest win of all Minnesota players when he placed 3rd in Event #8—$600 NLHE.
Westrom’s deep run earned him $34,327.
Kou Vang of Maplewood and James Wadzinski of Hastings
each grinded a series-high four cashes.
Vang’s four cashes earned him $25,796. His largest came in
Event #18—$400 NLHE—a 3rd place finish for $13,083.
Wadzinski brought home $19,755 as a result of his four
scores, the largest coming in Event #4—$400 NLHE. He won
that event for $16,712 by defeating a 206-player field.
Chris “Fox” Wallace was the only other player to record
The Venetian Deep Stack Extravaganza III ♣
World
Series of Poker
Kou Vang
Robby Westrom
multiple cashes (2) during the Deep Stack series.
In total, Minnesota players cashed twenty-three times for
$135,592.
The Palazzo, Las Vegas, NV
Event #
Name
City
Buy-in
Event
Place
Entrants
4
6
8
8
13
16
18
20
21
25
28
29
29
31
37
40
41
42
42
43
44
46
54
James Wadzinski
Derek Palmer
Robby Westrom
Kou Vang
James Wadzinski
Adam Mingo
Kou Vang
Wade Woelfel
Kou Vang
Dan Kraft
Bennett Wadekamper
James Wadzinski
Chris Wallace
Kou Vang
Dan Anderson
Ryan Hartmann
Pat Ryan
David Cooper
Shane Crelly
Andrew Redleaf
Chris Wallace
James Wadzinski
John Reading
Hastings
Glencoe
St. Paul
Maplewood
Hastings
Faribault
Maplewood
Mankato
Maplewood
Zimmerman
Lonsdale
Hastings
St. Paul
Maplewood
New Ulm
Minneapolis
Apple Valley
St. Louis Park
Minneapolis
Minneapolis
St. Paul
Hastings
Rochester
$400
$600
$600
$600
$400
$600
$400
$600
$2,200
$400
$600
$600
$600
$1,100
$400
$600
$1,100
$600
$600
$600
$600
$400
$600
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
Big Bounty NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
PLO
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
NLHE
HORSE
NLHE
NLHE
1
34
3
59
45
11
3
28
18
80
30
21
24
8
4
10
21
18
46
16
10
48
3
206
401
739
739
531
553
397
572
195
1093
489
301
301
218
264
362
391
1046
1046
313
167
661
421
MNPOKERMAG.COM Earnings
$16,712
$1,270
$34,327
$1,304
$844
$4,650
$13,083
$1,722
$4,686
$997
$1,548
$1,328
$1,328
$6,723
$6,373
$3,570
$3,254
$4,017
$2,117
$1,771
$2,340
$871
$20,757
AUGUST 2012
Minnesota Poker Magazine
MNPOKERMAG.COM page 17
Minnesota Poker Magazine
page 20
AUGUST 2012
Grinder Chronicles
49 DAYS IN
VEGAS
by Chris "fox" Wallace
I spent forty-nine days in Vegas
this summer. Yep. Forty-nine.
That's a damn long time in the
summer heat in the desert and a
damn long time to be away from
my wife, my dogs, my friends, and
my own bed. I did it, like I do every
year, because of all the soft players playing way too high for their skill level. That's what we look
for in a good game right? And many of the games were fantastic.
I played around $50,000 in tournaments, winning back only
about $35,000, but in such a small sample size you aren't always
going to come home a winner. Luckily, I made enough in cash
games and sit-and-go tournaments that I was able to pay the bills
and come home with a small profit, but this trip was definitely
not what I had hoped for. As I'm headed back to Minnesota, I find
myself tempted to repeat my least favorite quote of the summer.
"And if I win that hand..."
That was all I heard this year. From donkeys to experienced
pros, they were all focused on the one hand that they thought
would have propelled them to stardom. My favorite was a player
who busted a $1,000 buy-in event as a short stack with 200 players
left and lost his Ace-King against a pair of tens. I actually laughed
out loud when he told the story to his friend standing in line for a
burrito at the Rio's Poker Kitchen.
"And if I win that hand, I've got 25-bigs, almost average with 200
left for a bracelet. I'm the best player at my table by far, and if I
win that hand I probably make the final table."
I was annoyed throughout the series at players expressing a
similar sentiment, but now I'm flying home thinking the same way.
Seven weeks of missed draws, second best hands, and hitting it
to the warning track instead of the home run that I envisioned.
Poker can be a harsh mistress indeed.
Along with a number of min-cashes, I had a 10th, 17th, 21st, and
30th place finishes. I have cashed in the razz and the ten-game
mixed events twice now, with a shot at a bracelet both times, but
that and $14 will get me a burrito at the poker kitchen.
I think what bothered me the most this year was how badly
they run things at the Rio for the WSOP. While we show up to get
our asses kicked day after day, the only people that are guaranteed to make money, the house, treat players like they couldn't
care less if we show up again next year so they can make another
$150,000,000 from us. After your first $4 bottle of water in the
poker kitchen you have a taste of what is to come, but it gets much
worse.
After you finish your meal, you can head down to the tournament registration area where you can wait in line for an hour,
fuming the whole time that half the cashier windows are empty.
Then you get registered for your event and head to your table,
where everything seems to be running smoothly until you need a
floor decision. Some of the floor people are excellent, but for the
kind of money we are paying they should ALL be good at their
jobs, have a player's best interests in mind, and know the TDA
rules.
If the bad floor decision busts you, you can head up to your
room, which you overpaid for, or go play a sit-and-go which may
also require a significant amount of standing in line. Once you
bust the sit-and-go, you can stand in line some more to play another one, or you can register for a daily event. And you guessed
it, stand in line for that too, sometimes for half an hour or more.
So why do we do it? Why do we endure the Rio when there
are so many other tournaments happening all over Vegas? The
answer depends on why you play the game.
Most people play it for fun, pride, competition, respect, the
action, and money, with money actually being the least important.
Those people play at the Rio because there is a bracelet at the
end of the rainbow and they'll keep chasing it as long as they can
afford it. They think that bracelet will make them famous (not
true unless it's the main event), rich (generally not true either,
$300k after taxes is not rich), respected (not likely since Jamie
Gold has one and they have given out over a thousand of them
now) and proud.
Those of us who primarily play the game for money, and make
our living at the tables, play at the Rio because that's where the
fish are. I played a $1,000 event at the Venetian this year toward
the beginning of the series, and the field was drastically tougher
than the $2,500 event I played later at the Rio. The fish want those
bracelets because they believe the hype, and the sharks may
know the water isn't warm but we have to go where the fish go.
Year-after-year we go to the Rio and chase the fish, dealing with
the terrible customer service because it's where the money is.
And the Rio itself has very little incentive to change. The fish
will keep coming as long as they keep waving a shiny trinket in
front of them and telling them that this could be their year and
they could be rich and famous if they just play one more tournament. There are other nice prizes in poker, MSPT bracelets,
WSOP circuit rings, but in the eyes of a fish, nothing compares to
a WSOP bracelet. And it would be laughable if I said that I didn't
want one myself.
Next year the bracelets will be there, the fish will be there,
and if you're there we'll get a drink at the hooker bar, because
I'll be there too, chasing bracelets through mine fields of clueless
donkeys chasing the same bracelets. Until then, it's good to be
heading home.
MNPOKERMAG.COM Minnesota Poker Magazine
AUGUST 2012
page 21
Grinder Chronicles
EXPLAINING
POKER
by Jacob Westlin
My wedding is three weeks
away. I’m getting married on August 4th at the Sculpture Garden
in Minneapolis. I’m very much
looking forward to it, as luckily
my fiance and I have had little extended family interference in our
planning. The wedding should be
a nice reflection of us: casual, fun, and full of booze.
What I am somewhat trepidatious about, however, is the
many obligatory awkward conversations with extended
family about my poker-playing. To be clear, none of these
conversations will be instigated with malice; these delicate
talks always arise because of simple ignorance on the topic
of poker, and attempting to explain the role of poker in my
life can be tricky. The discussions I have with my own aunts
and uncles are uncomfortable enough, let alone talking to a
protective elder relative of the woman I’m about to marry.
I can see it now. A half-drunk uncle I’ve met once in my life
stumbles up to me and says, “So, I hear you’re a big poker
player!”
I know he means no harm. He’s simply trying to have a
discussion with his new nephew-in-law about whom he only
knows one thing. The problem for me is determining exactly
what type of conversation this man wants to have. To me,
there are only four types of strangers who strike up a conversation about poker with me. I’ve categorized them as such:
#1 Guy who thinks you’re a degenerate gambler who
loses all of his money
This guy is the harshest of the people I encounter. He
doesn’t believe poker is a skill; he thinks I’m lying to my
fiance, convincing her I make money playing this “game,”
while in fact, I really just lose thousands and thousands of
dollars. He’s skeptical, protective and accusatory. He once
saw a 20/20 special about addicted online poker players, and
now not only is he an expert, but he views all poker players
exactly the same way: losers. I can attempt to explain to him
the reality of my poker-playing, but people don’t like to be
confused with facts once they’ve made up their mind.
#2 Guy who doesn’t believe you are successful since he
hasn’t seen you on ESPN
This person will acknowledge that there are indeed successful poker players in the world. He simply doesn’t think
I’m one of them. Again, I can try to tell him that I’m not a
tournament player and that I play in mid-level cash games.
It doesn’t matter. He’s not as unwavering as the first guy, but
he’s at best skeptical. If I’m so good, why hasn’t he seen me on
TV holding up a trophy and millions of dollars?
#3 Guy who saw Rounders and thinks I can spot physical
tells like a madman
This guy is tolerable. He’s completely wrong in the way he
views poker, but he recognizes it as a skill and is enthusiastic
to discuss it. He thinks that poker is like he saw in Rounders:
everybody plays with their cookies when they have the nuts,
and you need only to spot this one massively ridiculous flaw
to become successful. Sorry dude, it doesn’t work like that.
Like, not at all. But I appreciate the enthusiasm, even if it is
completely misguided.
#4 Guy who legitimately wants to hear what you have
to say
This is the rarest of all breeds, and this applies not simply
to poker discussion but to life. It’s hard to find somebody who
hasn’t yet made up their mind, and is willing to discuss something with an expert before jumping to conclusions. Talking with this man is an absolute delight! He wants to know
what I do, how it works, and why I continue to be successful
at it. He knows nothing about poker and doesn’t pretend to.
In that way, I can inform him of the realities without being
clouded with 20/20, ESPN, or Rounders. He walks away from
the conversation feeling reassured that my poker-playing is a
low-risk, skilled, thoughtful pursuit.
I have to say, with every one of these men, I keep my discussion strategy simple. I don’t overload them with specific details. People become bored incredibly easily when you start
rambling on and on and on about the intimate details of a
life they don’t understand. Give them the easy-to-understand
facts: I play poker a few times a week at the local card-room,
and earn a very nice ancillary income. That’s it. And also, I
don’t try to change their minds. I give them a gentle nudge
in the right direction of poker understanding, but if they
don’t care to know the reality, I don’t care to give it to them.
There’s no need getting into an argument with Uncle Billy
over whether or not my poker-playing will put us in the poorhouse. ”You win, Uncle Billy! I’m a loser! I’m going to get a
drink.”
Jacob "Jaymind" Westlin is a semi-professional limit hold'em
player with a strong, sarcastic wit. Read his blogs at
www.mnpokermag.com.
MNPOKERMAG.COM page 22
Minnesota Poker Magazine
AUGUST 2012
Grinder Chronicles
Nice catch!
By Jacob “JayMind” Westlin and Bryan Mileski
Poker players have a
common language. We
seem to speak to one another with phrases only
interpretable by people
who actually play cards.
And these phrases are
stunningly universal. You
can be in Little Rock,
Arkansas, Eau Claire,
Wisconsin, or Las Vegas,
Nevada, and the reactions to wins and losses
at the hold’em table will
be strikingly similar. The
old farmer in Wisconsin
has nothing in common
with the young professional in Vegas; yet,
both have a seemingly
biological urge, upon
losing an ugly hand, to
sarcastically berate their
opponent with the words,
“Nice Catch!”
What a glorious idiom!
“Nice Catch” somehow
manages to thinly mask
a player’s overwhelming disgust with another
player. That’s the brilliance of the phrase!
If we strip down the
words to their most raw
definition, “Nice Catch”
sounds positive. It almost sounds like a compliment. If a
person who never plays poker heard those words said during
a game, he’d probably be impressed with the player’s civility
and sportsmanship. To him, it probably sounds the same as,
“Hey, nice job.”
In the world of the seasoned poker player, however, the
term “Nice Catch” is more closely analogous to the term,
“Way to get lucky on me, dipshit!” To us, “Nice Catch” is one
of the worst fucking things
you can say to another
player! What it means,
essentially, is that the person who beat you did so
despite his own horribly
shitty play. “Nice Catch”
gives credit to the luck of
the cards at the expense
of the player’s own skills.
If somebody with pocket
kings flops a king and
beats you, you don’t say
“Nice Catch.” That seems
like a deserving win. The
guy had a beast of a hand!
If, however, some dickhead with pocket deuces
runs down your two-pair
to the river, only to catch
that miracle deuce, you’ll
gladly berate him with
the condescending “Nice
Catch!” This situation
is the very reason “Nice
Catch” was invented: for
players who want to take
their dumbass opponents
by the hair and punch
them in the teeth, but,
unfortunately, live in a
society where people are
expected to act like civilized humans. Stupid.
Again, that’s the genius
of “Nice Catch”: you can insult your opponent without actually saying anything insulting. It’s therapeutic to release
your tilted emotions, and yet, the words are also perfectly
socially acceptable. Poker players are clever!
For more entertaining bits like this, go to www.PPNSBook.
com TODAY and order your copy of “Poker Players are Narcissistic Sociopaths” written by Jacob “Jaymind” Westlin and
Bryan Mileski. Its only $15! Don’t be cheap.
MNPOKERMAG.COM