NASCAR Week behind me

Thank God. It's usually a fun week, but it's also a huge grind.

There was a big positive to come out of it. We played the ESPN Night Poker tourney on Tuesday at the media hospitality suite. I worked my normal day Tuesday (sort of, as I was in a couple hours early to head over to a luncheon and then driver interviews). Worked my shift, and then left about 10:40. Made the 20 or so minute drive to the hotel, and got into the very last qualifying tournament. I told the ESPN guy (George, a great dude in many respects), that I would be running late, and he made sure they held a seat for me. My buddy Tim came along, and he got in too, but since we were both in, they too chips off of our stacks to make things more balanced at the table. Anyway, Tim goes bust early, I'm hanging around as a short stack, and hit a big hand to triple up. That helped me finish in the top 2 in the qualifying tourney--top 2 advance to the final table. Nice.

As we start the final table, I'm looking around, and I only see one face that scares me. It's this guy that works for a TV station in Roanoke, VA. A fella named Chris, but we all called him "Commonwealth" at the table. Cool guy, and the nickname actually fit. Funny. Anyway, Commonwealth goes bust, and that was a good thing, since he won this event last year, beating me in heads-up. So now, I just need to not get caught up in a bad spot, and wait for a shot to win it. Down to 4 players, I am in the BB with A-4 suited in hearts. No raises to me, so I take the free flop. It's K hi, all hearts. YES!

I sit on it, and check. 2 checks to the SB, who bets out. Time to act....meek....and after a few seconds of thinking out loud, saying things like, "you hit 2 pair?" Or, "you wouldn't move there without SOMETHING..." I call. The other 2 fold.

Turn card is a black 2. I check, he fires again, and I continue to play the weak opponent, and after deliberating again, I just call.

River card is an A. I check once more, and this time he fires a big bet. I check raise him all in, and he calls. He turns over AK, for 2 pair, and roll over the nut flush. I say "nut flush," and he starts scooping the pot! "Whoa," I say. "I said nut flush." He looks and says, "Oh, I thought you said you had nothing." We both chuckled, and he walked off, eliminated. From there, I eliminated the 3rd place finisher as well, so once heads up began (all chips remaining on the table were 500 denom), my opponent had 1500 in chips, I had the rest.

We played one hand of HU, he had AJ and went all in for his final 1000 (from the button), and with me being the BB for 1000, it was 500 more to call. I called blind. I peek at a MONSTER!

4-2 off.

LOL. I hit the 2 and win it.

What did I win? A weekend for 4 to Busch Gardens, Williamsburg! Hotel, and park tickets taken care of. Last year's winner (which I wrote about in the blog), sponsored a child at Victory Junction Gang Camp in his name. Also a cool prize, but the family can certainly enjoy this one.

We played a cash game after the (.25/.50), and I walked away with a nice profit as well. Drunk players are so much fun to sit with. The table chatter is always entertaining, and the bad calls, and bad plays are very profitable. Anyway, I didn't get home and to sleep until 4am, and had to turn around for an early day at work for the 3rd day of the media tour. I worked a day shift, and made my way to Irish Jim's for his weekly game. I know, now, that I play poorly when I am tired, and I was beat. I busted on the bubble, knocked out 4-handed when my J-7 suited was beat by Klownboxer's K-7 off suit. It happens. He called blind, since it was (I think) 700 more to play the hand. Whatyagonnado?

Anyway, looks like I won't be at Big Kat's on Saturday. Mrs. Chipstack and I will be doing some babysitting Saturday night, and I don't think the rest will hurt me all that much. Klownboxer begins his NASCAR travails this weekend, so a Sunday game won't happen this week, or next, with Superbowl XXLII on tap--that means Irish Jim's for the annual SB bash. No poker, just a football celebration that is usually a good time.

After the low of busting early in the league event, then winning the trip, to the exhaustion I felt at Irish Jim's, taking a few weeks off is probably a good thing, so I can get focused for the February league game. I currently sit 4th in the points, and need to have some high finishes over the final 3 tourneys if I have any chance of winning POY honors.

Good luck and good cards,
~M