how right do things have to go to win? a final table story.

[elmitchbo]

i just came in 5th out of a 1600 player field. that's my best finish to date for a field that large. i think my game has improved as of late.... thanks guys!! my ITM, and ROI are steadily improving, and i finally make a fianl table!

i felt like i was playing my normal game, but good fortune was on my side. early on i pushed all in with TT and got called by AA. i flop quads, and boom goes the dynamite. that put me near the chip lead. in the next level i got into a big tangle with another huge stack. this time i'm allin with KK against AA and i turn a K. now i'm the chip leader by a mile, but only because of two monster suck outs.

with the chip lead i rolled over the table. in the next 150 hands i won 35 without a showdown, and 45 overall. i had AK maybe 15 times in that stretch, and every time someone tried to make a stand it happened to be when i had big slick. i got sucked out on a few times, but it didn't matter. for the most part i had their AJ dominated or caught an A over their 44.

after losing a big hand (AQ vs. AA on a Q high flop) i was pulled back to the field a bit. i went a little card dry, but still managed to steal enough to keep my stack growing with the blinds.

with about 45 people left i went on a small pp bonanza. i got 33, 55, and 66 in a short stretch. each time i limped in. each time i fopped a set. i CR'd twice, and bet out once. three big pots and i'm back to being chip leader by a mile.

i cruise to the final table. the blinds finally caught up with everybody.

with 5 players left i'm 3rd in chips. the top 3 stacks are about $600k, $450k, and $375k(me). the botom 2 are $100k, and $25k. blinds are 10,000/20,000 ante 1,000.

this was the first time i've been faced with a 'if this guy bust out i get $X more' situation. it was 4am and i was getting delirious, but i think i should have known better than to continue with this hand.....

i've got KdQs. i call big stacks raise and 2nd stack over calls. flop comes AJ5 alll diamonds. i've got the nut flush draw and the straight draw.

it's checked to me and i bet out. big stack raises me allin, and i'm getting 3:1 on the call. i'm getting the odds i need to call and see 2 cards, but the small stack won't be able to post his blinds this orbit. call? or watch the small stack bust then start playing again?

i called, big stack shows AJ, and i'm out 5th. i think that was probably stupid. the idea of always pushing an edge gets tossed around here alot, and for the most part i agree. but i think this was a situation where i should have turned down the effective odds to avoid ruin. i could've slid into 3rd pretty easily if i'd been smart. it was 4am....

do things have to go this right to make it deep in a tourney like this? i don't think i played any better than normal. things just worked out everytime i tried. great cards most of the way, a couple of huge suck outs, and i was playing really well in between(particularly with the big stack).

the luck factor in MTT's might be more significant than i thought.

sorry for the lengthy ramble. just some thoughts and questions i had along the way.