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Um. I have no idea how you would play this game. Is that bad? Sklansky in this one? I think I've seen TT post he likes this game? Any 2p2er's playing? 5 pm start today.

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InWithTheBest and groth (active 2-7 strategy poster in the Other Poker forums) are both in the event along with Newhizzle, Brad L, Sklansky, Bill Chen, BugStud, and a few others. Brad and BugStud have big enough stacks that they have a lot of play left (around 16-19 big bets on the next round), David Sklanksy was hanging on by the short hairs when I left yesterday but has managed to survive with 5.4k chips - 4.5 big bets, which is not a lot for a game with 4 betting rounds, probably not enough to stage a comeback. Brad L and BugStud are at the same table along with Steve Z, Howard Lederer, and two other regular 2-7 players whose names escape me at the moment, they might have been at the toughest table in the field since Steve and Howard are two of the founding fathers of this game as well as Chinese Poker (it was spread at the Mayfair in NYC where they both started playing poker), Howard used to be regarded as one of the worlds best 2-7 TD players. The most feared player in the field was probably Billy Baxter, but he busted out early.

Victor Ramadin is one of the chip leaders which I find comical because when i was watching him play yesterday he was absolutely horrible - he just luckboxed his way up the top. Overall the play has been a mix of horrifically passive (see the Helmuth/Cunningham hand below), and stupid agressive such as a hand I watched while sweating Sklansky's table. 400lb guy is pat leading into the third round in position, guy out of position draws one card and bets the river. 400lb guy raises, river better hems and haws then calls. 400lb guy has 87624 and wins! For those of you who don't know 2-7, 87624 is the 15th best hand - nobody in their right mind would raise here, and nobody in their right mind would call a raise on the river with a hand worse than that!

The Phil Helmuth / Alan Cunningham hand was equally as comical. Helmuth is in position and open-raises, Cunningham calls in the big blind - They both draw 2. Alan checks, Phil bets, Alan calls. They both draw one and Phil makes a wise ass comment about Alan drawing the an 8. The next round goes check/check, Alan draws one and Phil draws 1 while turning over the 9 saying "I only draw clean, next round I will keep the 9 if I get it". At this point Phil practically announced to the table that he held 2387x, 2487x, 2587x, or 2687x, Alan draws one completely oblivious to the disclosure of Phil's hand. Alan checks, and Phil checks behind - Alan draws one card, and Phil is Pat - this means Phil has caught exactly a T or a J because he is too spineless to be here and he is announcing his hand to Cunningham who is still oblivious to it all. On the final draw Cunningham catches a Jack and misses the best oportunity in the world to bluff the pot knowing that there is no way in hell Phil Helmuth can call with his J87623. The two turn over their hands and Phil Wins! The hand was a perfect example of the blind leading the blind... very funny.



As for me, I decided I didn't want to play at the very last second. I played the 2-7 lead up event at Binion's the day before and I realized that without a 7k minimum investment (rebuys) I didn't stand a chance in this tournament - something my bankroll cannot absorb at this time.