Sgt. Rock 2002 WSOP/Bellagio TR Part III
Sgt. Rock
===
Tuesday, May 14 - Day 15: Still 30/60
I open-raise from the middle with 55, and Toronto Donna 3-bets from late
position.
Heads-up board comes: A K 6, 8, 5.
Flop: I check, she checks!
Turn: I bet, she calls.
River: I bet lovingly, and she calls. I tell her "You're not gonna
like this," and turn over. How can she not follow-up her preflop 3-bet
with a bet on pretty much ANY flop?
I finish -$783 for the day.
---
Last year we stayed 21 days for WSOP, and I tried to set a personal
record. I tried to stay that whole time without ever once leaving the
Bellagio. 11 days into the trip, I got a nasty toothache. After a
couple days it got so one whole side of my jaw and face was aching and
throbbing, especially after any chewing. Then there was a small sharp
piece of tooth or bone trying to exit the lower inside gum, behind the
back molar, on the right side. I could feel it with my tongue. WTF?
I also noticed a very interesting phenomenon. We were playing mostly 80
that trip, heavy action, and whenever I won a nice pot, my jaw pain
faded away for a while. No joke. Endorphins?
Finally, on Day 15 Elvis just had to leave the building. I cabbed to
the 24 hr. Harmon Medical Center just off the strip by Aladdin, and saw
a doctor. We agreed that I should see my dentist as soon as I got home,
and she wrote an Rx for a strong antibiotic. Then I walked to the
Walgreen's by MGM, filled it, ($78 for 14 tabs!) walked to Monte Carlo,
and took the tram back to Bellagio. So much for my record.
The meds reduced the pain greatly within 24 hours, and completely within
48. I'd had an infection, but the Rx nuked it good. Saw my dentist the
day after I got home. By then the tooth/bone wasn't protruding any
more, and he found nothing on X-RAY, so sent me home. Two weeks later
it popped out again, no pain or infection this time, and I returned to
have him find and pull out a tiny bone fragment left over from a wisdom
tooth extraction 20+ years ago. It had sat there peacefully all that
time, but in the heat of WSOP side action it decided to make trouble.
Just like some guys I know.
Anyway, this year was my second shot at that 21 days record, but on Day
15 my Banker decided that we needed to visit the 24 hour Korean BBQ just
across the strip from the Stardust. I whined briefly about my record
attempt, but then made the great sacrifice and took her to dinner.
And so, I made 15 days in 2001 and again in 2002. Even if I had made 21
days, it's probably not a record. There's probably some degenerate
baccarat whale who lived there for six months or something. Still, I
challenge any RGPer, or anyone, for that matter, to top my modest record
of 15 straight days inside Bellagio. Anybody? I've got reliable
witnesses. Well, witnesses, anyway. Next year I'll make 21.
===
Wednesday, May 15 - Day 16: Still 30/60, after a *real* good night's
sleep.
A guy limps in early, I call from the button with KTo, Frenchman in SB
calls, and BB checks. 4-way action.
Board comes: Th 8h 5d, Ac, 4s
Flop: Limper bets, I raise, SB calls, BB folds.
Turn: Limper check-raises me, I fold, SB still calling.
River: Checked around! Limper has busted flush draw, and tenacious SB
wins with 9s5s (pair of fives). Disgusting, ain't it?
---
My ex-hero T.C., described in my Feb 2002 "Tripless In Seattle" report,
showed up and spent the whole day short stacked and doing miserably in
my game.
That afternoon Sgt. & Mrs. Rock did the buffet with Mr. & Mrs. Abdul
Jalib. Good times.
---
Terms of Endearment
Mrs. Rock retired early that evening, and later I visited the room to
check on her. I found her laying in bed, watching T.V, and eating
potato chips. Then, as I gave her a kiss and started to head back
downstairs to return to my game, I was struck by the esoteric phrase she
chose to bid me farewell. I mean, most wives might then say to their
husband something like "Bye, sweetie," or "See ya later," or maybe even
"I love you." Not her. As I'm walking out she tells me in a light,
lilting and loving tone to:
"Play good!"
Maybe I did. I finished +$2,686 for the day and +$2,558 for the trip.
===
Thursday May 16 - Day 17: Cowardice in the Face of the Enemy
(Court-martial Offense)
Today I finally got back into the 80/160 must-move game, but it was
kinda short and the lineup was mediocre. The main game looked great, I
was third on the list to move, and the two guys ahead of me were worth
chasing, so I tried to hang in. Then my stack moved down half a rack,
and I found myself thinking of it in terms of dollars rather than bets.
That's not good. In short, I was not psychologically ready to play 80.
I kept thinking about how difficult it had been, and what a relief it
was, to go from buried $12K to back in the green. Then I realized that
I just didn't want to risk getting buried in the 80 again when we were
approaching the end of our visit. Bottom line: I didn't want to go
home a loser. Just about that time I won a couple pots and was +$90 for
the game. I got up, returned to 30/60 and never did play 80 again this
trip. I'll be better prepared, and will get 'em next time. Mrs. Rock
very briefly played 80 a couple times early in the trip, but otherwise
stayed with the 30 herself.
FTTS: "I Can't Call You..."
Say the button open-steal-raises, and I'm in the blind with big cards.
I might shake my head and tell him "I can't call you" with a sad tone,
then 3-bet. First couple times I do this, it tends to get a surprised
reaction from the victim and the other players.
If I've said this and reraised a few times in a session, then I might
REVERSE it. I might say it again, and actually fold. That REALLY
brings a reaction (relief) from the guys who are now conditioned (Does
the name Pavlov ring a bell?) to think that the phrase signals a raise.
I been having some fun with this.
Caution. Two times I said "I can't call you," and it faked-out THE
DEALER! One dealer dropped the deck when I said it, even as I was
raising.
The strangest thing happened today. I had a guy "conditioned," and had
not yet reversed it. Then, when he bet into me on the turn, I said "I
can't call you," whereupon HE THREW HIS HAND AWAY! In this instance I
really WAS gonna raise, but think about how glorious it will be when the
day comes that I say "I can't call you," and really mean it, and the
bettor mucks his hand.
Now please don't think that I'm forsaking solid play for psychological
trickery in some desperate attempt to hike my win rate or cut my loss
rate or whatever. I would if I could but I can't. I don't know how.
No clue. This whole "I can't call you" thing started as a joke, and
just accidentally turned into... well, I'm not quite sure what it is.
But when that guy threw his hand away, it REALLY got my attention.
---
FTTS: "Six Titties!"
A tourist open-limps from the middle. T.C. is back in the game and
still short-stacked, still pulling out bills a few at a time, and he
raises from the button. I 3-bet from the SB with QQ, but the limper
says four. Uh, oh. T.C. caps it, but I'm more worried about the
limper. Until I see the flop :-)
Board comes: Q 9 7, 9, 7.
Flop: I bet out, limper raises, T.C. calls, and I call.
Turn: I check-raise the limper, and he calls. T.C. is still calling
too.
River: I bet, limper calls, T.C. raises, I reraise, limper calls, T.C.
folds.
You know what I said when I turned that hand over. Limper shows Aces.
T.C., whose river raise gave me slight pause and tiny fear that I might
be facing quads, announces that he "had pocket Kings and raised the
river to see where I'm at." OK, fine.
---
UTG raises, and gets four callers, and I call from the SB with Kh Th.
The flop comes with two hearts, including the Ace, and it turns out that
I'm able to make it four bets and let the original raiser cap it, and
only lose one guy. Then another heart on the turn and I check-raise.
Bet and called on the river, and I take down 46 small bets. Yes!
I quit +$2,126 for the day and +$4,684 for the trip.
===
Friday, May 17 - Day 18
This day is a complete blank in both my trip notes and (what's left of)
my memory. All I got is my daily ledger that says I lost $1,413. Sure
hope I had some fun.
===
Saturday, May 18 - Day 19: Preakness Day
FTTS: "I Didn't Know What To Put Me On"
I'm not proud of this one. I call a raise from the SB with As 2s for
what I thought was gonna be 4-way action, but turned out to be 3-way.
How ever many way action, it's probably a flakey call. Most times I
feel like I don't wanna play ANY hand that contains a single deuce or
trey. This time I felt I should be a little looser, as the raiser was a
kinda loose Vegas local, a really nice guy, and maybe a little easier to
read and/or manipulate than most.
Board comes: J 8 2, 2, 6. I check-call the flop (shame on me!)
check-raise the turn, and bet the river. He calls, and when I show them
Acey-Deucey, three guys groan, and he gives me the "How could you do
that?" look, but just politely says "That's not like you!"
"Yeah, I know," I reply sheepishly. "I didn't know what the hell to put
me on."
Izmet Fekali arrived tonight, and a couple hours later Keith Fichtemaier
showed up.
I end the day +$1,202.
===
Sunday, May 19 - Day 20: Slept in until 1:30pm.
I open-raise from the middle with 8h 8s, button calls, and TN from LA
3-bets from the BB.
Board comes: Tc 8c 7c, 6s, 6c
TN bets the flop, then rereaises me, then calls my re-reraise. The
button is still in there, calling everything in sight. Checked to me on
the turn; I bet, they call. That river card scared the pants off me,
but I check-raised anyway (button bet) and took it. Phew!
I lose $150 for the day.
===
Monday, May 20 - Day 21
FTTS: "Keep Looking"
I bet the river with a flush draw/straight draw that never got there,
because we're heads-up and I think there's a reasonable chance he might
fold a better hand. Wrong answer. He calls. So I turn over and open
my hand and say nothing. Now there's a 0.707% chance that he might
misread my hand and muck, and I don't want to deny him that
opportunity. Wrong again. He and the dealer and two other guys keep
studying the board and my hand with puzzled looks on their faces.
Finally, I tell them to "Keep looking, maybe you'll find something."
---
So here I am facing the most dubious lineup I've seen lately. We got
Abdul Jalib in seat 7, Izmet Fekali in 8, a tough local pro in 9, and
Jim Geary in 10. I'm in seat 3 looking at them, and hating it. The
other guys in the game were average, but they weren't loving it either,
and half of them were walking half the time.
Today only, my friends at the other end have based their game selection
on social intercourse rather than expectation. They're having a
mini-RGP/ARGE event right there in my game. We're buddies who don't see
each other very often, and they want to hang out.
But I'm getting ready to go home soon, and want to do all I can to win a
few bucks before then. Finally, I can't stand it. I mean, I love these
guys (except the asshole in 9), but I get a table change and get into a
real game. We can chat on the internet later, I tell them.
The move paid off, too. I cashed +$1,289 for the day.
===
Tuesday, May 21. I want to go home Thursday, or maybe Wednesday, but
Mrs. Rock wants to leave today. We compromise, and leave today. Damn,
missed that great opportunity to fight Memorial Day holiday weekend
traffic.
We pay $2,338.05 CASH to settle the Bellagio room bill, and hit the road
at high noon. We drive straight North from Vegas, through Ely and
Jackpot, Nevada to Twin Falls, ID, then hang a left to Boise, where we
grab some grub at Denny's (Yuck. Never again.) and crash at Motel-6
around midnight.
Yeah, we'd been tired, but that sure was a beautiful drive. Mostly 75
MPH on 2 lane highway through Nevada; nice weather, sparse traffic,
desert, snow-capped mountains, lottsa farms. The big valley just South
of Jackpot is really pretty. Every time we drove through a tiny town we
looked at each other and asked the same questions: "What the hell do
these people do for fun? Do they go play video poker at the gas station
and the grocery store? Bet there's a lot of babies in this town, huh?"
:-)
If I had left Vegas still buried it would have been THE LONG DRIVE FROM
HELL. Turned out, though, to be a nice peaceful and relaxing day. I
thought a lot about my seventeen thousand dollar swing, and played some
mental coulda/woulda/shoulda. What might my trip result have been if I
had ONLY played 30? Who knows.
Wednesday we head out early, and cut across the NE corner of Oregon,
over the Columbia River into Washington, and on through Tri-Cities,
Yakima, Ellensburg and Snoqualmie to arrive home mid afternoon.
Three things I learned on the road:
1. Cruise control is the nuts.
2. Arby's "Market Fresh" Deli sandwiches are very good. A bit pricey,
but worth it when you're hungry, in a hurry, and sick of burgers.
3. When you spend one night at Bellagio in Vegas, and the next at
Motel-6 in Boise, it brings you down to Earth, and all the way back to
the real world.
As soon as we get home our younger daughter shows us a big rock on her
finger and informs us that she's getting married in August. Shit, there
go my winnings. Stuck again.
---
Trip Recap:
+10 (kilobucks) mmm
+9.845
mmmmm
+9 mm m
mm m m
+8 mm m m
m m m
+7 mm m m
m mmm
+6 mmmmm mm
mmm mmm s
+5.612
+5 m s
mm s ss s
+4 m s s s s s
m s s s s
+3 mm s s
m s
+2 m s
m s s
+1 m s s
m s s s
Day-> 1s2 s3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12s13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
s s s s
-1 s s s s m = Mrs. Rock
s s s s = Sgt. Rock
-2 s s
s s
-3 s s
s s
-4 s s
s s
-5 s s
s s
-6 s s
s s s
-7 s s s
s s s s
-8 s s s s
s s s ss
-9 s s ss
s s
-10 s s
s
Sgt. Rock
http://sarge.virtualave.net
Mail To: woodrack AT sarge DOT virtualave DOT net
Patrick B. O'Malley
night. Love your reports !!
--
Patrick B. O'Malley
"Sgt. Rock" <don't-call-me@i'll-call-u.com> wrote in message
news:6kxI8.94774$L76.155216@rwcrnsc53...
Dan Radosevich
>
> Tuesday, May 21. I want to go home Thursday, or maybe Wednesday, but
You're the best, sir. I appreciate your trips reports lots and lots.
Stay well.
DR.
Linda K Sherman
sharing.
Lin
CSt1015577
>From: Linda K Sherman poke...@worldnet.att.net
>Date: 05/27/2002 10:53 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>Message-id: <3CF2FFFA...@worldnet.att.net>
>
>As always, Sgt., your trip reports are the absolute nuts. Thanks for
>sharing.
>
>Lin
>
Not only that but this 3 parter is a saga.
Eddie Steele "The Road Goes on Forever"---Robert Earl Keen
Bennett Niizawa
<don't-call-me@i'll-call-u.com> wrote:
<snip of the usual terrific trip report>
Thanks for another outstanding report...so good, I lost track of the
time and missed hand # 191,000,000 on Paradise! Oh well...
Stephen Carbonara
You're TR's, as usual, are great. And, in this epic, you may have out done
yourself.
-steve
Mark P.
> (continued from Part II)
Sarge,
Thanks for posting! Between you and TBill, RGP has had some of the
best trip reports in the last two weeks as it's had in a long time.
Mark P.
David Downing
Fantastic, as always!
Gl
Dave D
"What are they gonna say man when he's gone...he was a kind man?
He was a wise man? He had plans, he had wisdom? Bulls--t man. "
MandTYoshida
Tony
Glen Johnson
"Linda K Sherman" <poke...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:3CF2FFFA...@worldnet.att.net...
> As always, Sgt., your trip reports are the absolute nuts. Thanks for
> sharing.
>
Of course they are BUT if you could get Mrs. Rock to add how to play WINNING
poker we would appreciate it.
:-)
Linda K Sherman
I just want a picture of her so I know to avoid her table.
Lin
cloud9gal
soon?
Coupe
Refreshing.
Coupe
Sgt. Rock <don't-call-me@i'll-call-u.com> wrote:
Jeff
Thanks,
Jeff
"Linda K Sherman" <poke...@worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:3CF41FE3...@worldnet.att.net...
Ed Barrett
way to rec.gambling.poker and enter subject to this thread.
"Jeff" <vin...@swbell.net> wrote in message
news:cT8J8.19522$Zf5.344...@newssvr30.news.prodigy.com...