On arriving at Melbourne’s Crown Casino I am first struck with two thoughts – 1. This place is lush, and the second, being on acid in this place would be wack. Lights and colors flash at me from ever angle, this place would also be bad for an epileptic. Every way I look, slots, tables, gaming machines and bars seem to stretch on for ever. A few facts on Crown – It is the largest Casino in the southern hemisphere, attracts close to 200,000 visitors daily and has a license to operate 2,500 slot machines and 350 gaming tables.
So after wandering through the casino twice trying to find the poker room, I eventually stumble across it after numerous failed attempts at directions from burly low iq security guards. The poker room expands a 100 or so meters and ever spare inch is packed with poker tables. First up are 2 dozen or so poker pro tables – the electronic tables where each player has a screen which they play off aswell as a giant screen filling the center of the table to display the play actions, at the moment these sit empty, the action focused further along on the two dozen or so cash games being held in the center of the room. I watch for a few moments, the diversity of players is quite profound. There are youths covered up in hoodies and wrap around glasses packing earphones, old gents sporting experience and style, tattooed bikies, asian punters and average joes. I’m on the look out for pros, and I spot one guy wearing a sponsored hat and sitting on a substantial chip stack – note to self, watch out for this guy in the tournaments.
Time to get my self into the action, along with fellow staff Liam and Snoop (im still not sure what his real name is) we register for the $70 super satellite. 2 hours to kill till the action starts, I’m off to explore this place…
Two hours later i find my self back at the poker room and searching for my seat. A tinge of apprehension grips my gut and I honestly cant help but feel that im more than out of my league. While I’ve played my fair share of home games and clocked up my hours playing online, there’s something bigger and more real about a live game at a casino. Though everyone’s smiling and cautiously melding in with fellow players, the smiles are thinly vieled – everyone’s out for blood.
‘Shuffle Up’ shouts the tournament supervisor and the play begins. Im sitting in early position and my strategy is to play tight. This is a tournament and if I can win my solid hands and avoid bleeding chips I might do alright. After the first dozen or so hands and numerous all in calls my strategy is well literally screwed. There’s something I hadn’t accounted for – Re-buys. Now I thought rebuys at $50 a pop would have been used sparingly, after all we each just forked out $70 for entry. However players are splashing out cash on rebuys like theres no tomorrow. One player moves all in with 3/4 off suit, his up against AQ or something similar (my memory fails me for precision), he busts out, a double rebuy – $100 next hand. Two hands later he is all in again something a little better this time and he does have the other player covered. Still, he loses half his stack – thats $50 wiped away right there. Im confused by this play as I know he is a very good player – after overhearing table conversation he made 6 cashes at this years WSOP. (note to self – try to avoid hands with him in them). Finally the blinds creep up – it takes agonizingly long at 30 minute intervals. My chip stack bleeds, second hand in I peer down at KK – the famed cowboys. A substantial raise preflop 350 – more than 1/3 of my starting stack. Two callers, and an ace on the flop. I check. A bet. I cant play this. I fold and curse my luck. I’m now short stacked. I play tight. Very tight. Which makes me and oddity at a table and tournament where loose play seems to be the new new black. I pick up a few good cards here and there, folding some, moving all in on another. My luck holds as AQ suited takes down the pot. Im now back up to just under starting stack. Another all in 20 minutes later and my luck holds again. Finally the blinds move up and the buyins and add ons are called to an end. But not before some very loose play particularly by the aforementioned semi pro. It seems to me that play up until this point has been almost a no brainer. It hasn’t really counted for anything as everyone bar me adds on and cashes up in chips. Once again i’m short stacked, and with no money to add on my chances of making it seem rather bleak. Though I am only in this tournament to get a feel for the event im reporting on, I’m not a super serious poker player like most of these people. However that’s likely to change soon…
After a short break, play resumes ,blinds are up and the teeth come out, everyone’s out to bite now. Instantly I notice the semipros play change, his stack quickly grows, he is definitely a player to be recognized with. I play well and tight. I haven’t made a call i’m not happy with yet. So I can at least be happy with that. There are a few players busted out as play continues, the river being particularly unlucky to AA several times. I win a few pots and steal some blinds, not much but at least i’ve got some chips to play with now. The player next to me moves all in, Ive been chatting to him though out the game, so I’m rooting for him. He shows 66 against semipros AA. Ouch. Things don’t look good. The flop comes 6 4 9, turn another card that doesn’t help AA, the river – A. BAM! Another dropped from the field. Later buddy.
We are down to two tables now, and I’m sitting reasonably well. I look at my cards A 8, good position and a weaker player on the big blind, I raise to 8000, 2x the big blind. Fold , Fold, All in. Damn! that’s not what I wanted – I was hoping for a quick steal of the blinds or a call at worse. The big blind also moves all in. Im covered so if I call and lose I’m out of the tournament.
The Table Argument – while deliberating on the call the player opposite me whose called the all in states “you should fold”. An argument ensues with the other all in player – an old lady with a very ornate jeweled frog as a card guard. Arguing that he cant talk about the hand in play, he retorts that talk of the cards is prohibited but he can try and influence my play in any way. Its poker and we try and do that every action we take. The table supervisor is called and this is all sorted. He is right but warned to keep comments like that down. My realization – people are very up tight in this game. Either way, while their petty debate rages on I’m considering my options – two callers, one likely has an Ace so that renders my trump card null, and my kicker is probably not as good as theirs if they are re-raising me. I fold. A good lay down that earns me kudos from several players. I was right in my call as the lady lays down A Q suited. She wins much to my dismay.
Snoops just been moved to my table and sits on a short stack, two hands later his out, later Snoop dog, A glance over at Liam on table 2 and he sits tidy with a smallish stack, but I know he ain’t out yet. Next hand im big blind and have only one caller – chip leader from the other end of the table, I have a reasonable hand and decide to play aggressive, I picked this guys tell a few hands back. He makes the call and the flop comes. I watch his reaction first: the flops not going anywhere and notice the twitch of his mouth – an ever so slight grimace. Gotcha now sucker. I check, he follows suit. If the next card is insignificant I’m betting. a 3 gets turned over, I bet 12000, he folds. A nice hand. Semi pro asked me if I had the 9. I say no; an honest answer, but I know he is wary of me now. that’s the third time he has put me on something only to be wrong.
Soon a few more players have dropped from the field, and I’ve bled some chips, I’m sitting small against high blinds. KQ suited. I’m all in, its now or never. I’m called and we turn over – AA. Ok, I had a good run, better than I expected. The flop comes as I stand up, 9 K Q. Haha! I’m still alive and just won a huge pot.
The final table comes shortly and Im still in it. Ive played well for the last few blind levels. Even folding hands that were really good as players were all in. A9 suited, KJ suited. The hand after 10th place is busted, a deal at the table is cut. If everyone pops out another $200 right then, the prize pool will be big enough to extend down to 9th place. Its a nice guarantee, for $200 now, I’m assured of at least $500. We all agree and play is continued. I don’t want the seat, as I’m lucky to have gotten this far. But I do want the cash. I last the next few bust outs till there are 6 of us left. I say I don’t want the seat and just want the cash. Its over – until another player also claims he just wants the cash. This I had not figured on. I was only playing to have some fun and try the casino poker thing. I figured all these other players were actually wanting a seat.
We play on, I’m pissed now and win two big pots, aggressively shoving masses of chips in the center. If I had known this I would have started bleeding chips to come 6th. Either way I have too bigger stack against his puny tower of chips. He moves all in and so does another player. Screw it if I’m winning a seat I’m winning it with style, i push the whole stack in, and take both out. With 5 players remaining I was sitting on an almost double the second chip stack. For my first live poker tournament Ive won A $2,200 Main Event Seat against a field of players far more experienced than me. Not a bad feat for only a $70 buy in and against a mountain of re-buys and add ons. I’m no Longer the poker rookie.
Well, the first break in play has just finished and players are scurrying back to their seats and precious chip stacks. You can always tell when a tournament has returned from a break by the thick cloud of nicotine filled smoke that lingers near the poker room entrance. You can literally see players exhaling their last drag as they return to the tables.
