3/25

just a quick $6 token sat on FTP today. got the token.

3/20

after running such a bad streak over the weekend that i still dont feel like talking about it, i only returned just earlier to FTP for a quickie $6 token sat. got the damn thing...

3/16

entered the 10am 3.5K guaranteed on FTP today. after some good, fun, challenging 2.5hrs, placed 6th out of 168 for a neat handful of coins. :)

3/14

just a little $6 token sat on FTP. got the token...

3/13

still smarting from yesterday, i decided to play one of the small token FTP guarantees, namely the 3.5K at 10am...

picked up couple of pots early, but then 2 costly semibluffs reduce my stack size to M=5ish before first hr. where i pick up TT LP and push. only one call, by a trigger happy bigger stack with KQ. of course, K on flop.

3/12, cont'd

the big one, 200K guar on FTP. 1031 ppl today, nice crowd, with a few resident pros.

picked off a few spots early and stayed out of trouble in few others. built my stack to around 2400 going into first 45mins.

then, the fateful hand...

i get KK in SB. BB is big stack, to my notes a solid-ish, tough guy who earlier punished a few recklessly loose folks. UTG is a medium stack relatively new to table.

i decide to raise 2x, asking for action. flop comes JT5, i bet pot. big stack reraises 2x, UTG folds.

after some deliberation, i decide to push, my stack now being slightly larger than the pot at hand. he calls, showing JJ. out in 750th.

weirdly reminiscent of my first winner's choice on FTP 1.5 months ago, when i just started playing there, when my SB JJ ran into BB's KK.

i switched sites on new year's after spending my first poker yr fooling around on stars' and UB's turbo/rebuy cesspools, but my tough luck follows me wherever i go. :)

3/12, cont'd

just a couple of $6 token sats on FTP, to start the engine a little before tonight's big one...

nothing too eventful. got the token in the first one. in the second one, on the bubble i raise cca 4xBB with JJ, get called by a loose big stack. flop comes diamond rags. i push, he calls with baby ace SOOTED of diamonds. :)

3/12

poker-wise, im just gonna take it easy today till the FTP 200K guaranteed later on in the day...

3/11, cont'd

the 6:30pm FTP winner's choice $26 sat. wow, what a ride that was.

first, some 15 mins before 1st break i get disconnected by server. cant get back in for 10 mins. when i finally succeed, im down to some 500 chips and on a table of megastacks. interestingly, there are all of 16 of us left at that point out of 42.

then, i get on a torrid roll of allins, some 4-5 of them in a series, all of which i win. to my defense, only one was a coinflip. 2 i was dominating, and 2 i had overpair to underpair. then, i squeak into the final table. top 4 get seats to $216 WC tonite, 5th-7th a few consolation coins.

on the small bubble, the two ty leaders get entangled into a monster pot over a flop of seemingly harmless rags. to my astonishment, they go allin! one of them busts out, IMHO totally needlessly and foolishly when he was all but assured a seat.

long story short, i manage to survive yet a bit longer. then, on the big bubble, again on a ministack to the other 4 monsters, in SB i push K8 vs the BB's T7. river comes 7, im out 5th, and i get $72 for my troubles.

no regrets.

3/11

1) entered the 10am 4K guar on FTP. nothing much in first hr. after break, stack dwindling, pushed 66 vs a very loose large stack's JT. of course, sixes no good. :)

2) tried a quickie $6 token on FTP. picked off a few spots early vs the usual assortment of chasers and calling stations. on the half hr, get KK, reraise a loose goose's 88 who pushes allin. i of course call, and, of course, the flop contains an 8.

3) will try the 6:30pm WC sat. stay tuned...