[uclabruinz]

Quick trip report from Legends if you are interested.

Tough opening table with three known online players: Jason Gray, CrazyMarco, and #1Pen. The unknown young guy on my left clearly knew very well what he was doing. The guy who made the final table last year and wrote/directed Old School also here. Later had MrTimCaum for awhile, and David Singer two to my right for most of the day. Did have a few donkeys come and go but others got there huge hands paid off and eliminated them before I could catch anything at all.

I basically played very tight and very few hands. Did not get ANY playable speculative hands really for deep stack play: very little suited connectors, very little pairs, almost none of the bigger hands. At 20k I lost 8k or so on this hand: I raise UTG with TT. Old School guy who is getting hit by the deck (he stacked CrazyMarco, who stacked off 200 BBs on the flop with AA vs a flopped set) and playing loose/aggro and has called me in position before once or twice calls in LP. Flop is low rags, I check/call. Another rainbow rag comes on turn, I check/call. Another rag comes on river, I check/call. He had a flopped set of deuces. Glad I exercised pot control, opting to keep the pot small if behind or let him bluff off chips to me if I was ahead.

Another biggish hand. I have 14k. I raise UTG with AK to 600. Jason reraises in LP to 2100 leaving himself about 4100 behind. Loudmouth, older, loose/aggro donk hems and haws forever in the SB and I can't quite read whether it's a show or whether he's really trying to figure out what to do. He had 40k or something. He finally calls, so I can either shove 70 BBs having Jason well covered or call. Closing the action, I opt to call. Flop is Txx rainbow, checks around. Turn and river are also rags and it checks around and loudmouth celebrates with his 99. Jason had AK. Should I have shoved pre? Seemed really close, but didn't feel good getting 70BBs in preflop with AK here?

The rest of the day was 72o etc and very frustrating, but I stayed really patient and held in the 12-20 BBs range most of the day, trying to play perfect shortstack poker. I kept looking for spots to come over the top of a loose raise and double up, but no such luck. I shoved from the blinds over Singer three times (T8s, AQs, 99) but he folded every time. Finally I got moved to a new table that appeared to be full of mediocre (at best player). Ah, all I need is a double up or two and I am in business! Again I wait for the right spot and I finally find it. LP limps. Button limps. I look down at K7o and with 10 BBs this feels like a great spot, particularly with the huge antes. I shove. First limper takes for a minute or two and folds, second guy tanks forever and keeps saying "I only need 40%." Finally he reluctantly puts his chips in and flips over 98o!!!??? A 9 on the turn ends my day, my first allin showdown.

So I feel like I played really well all day, not making any mistakes. I was the most card dead I have ever been in any live tournament. A successful tournament even if the results weren't there.

Got to catch up with a couple 2p2ers, Colson, Locutus, and MrTimCaum, and met mastr briefly. Also got to meet some P5ers, who seem like pretty good young kids. #1Pen was on my right all day and SERIOUSLY got hit by the deck (older, loose/aggro, loudmouth donk stacked off 200 BBs preflop to him with QQ vs Pen's AA, wow), but I also was very impressed that with his big stack he continued to play very, very solid. If he got out of line at all, it was at a very optimal rate. Met SCTrojans, which was cool because we give each other a little rivalry crap online sometimes at tables, another nice kid. It was also fun playing with the Old School writer/director. He was pretty funny, and got into a long dustup with the loudmouth donk that had everyone rolling for about an hour straight.