WSOP Day 1 with Gus Hansen

[uclabruinz]

Cross-posted from my blog http://uclabruinz.blogspot.com. Mods feel free to move if this is not deserving of its own thread.

WSOP ME: Day 1 recap

I don't think I have the energy to write up a long report, maybe more in spurts later. However, many people have been asking about the Gus Hansen bustout so I'll recap that quickly and give some overall thoughts.

As for Gus Hansen, this happened at the last level of the night (between 1am and 3am) and the blinds/antes were 200/400/50. I'm working from hazy memory, so forgive me if I don't get things exactly accurate.

Two absolutely horrible players limp in early position (as they did over and over again despite the high blinds/antes). By the way, on a sidenote, the one guy was so bad he folded his "option" in the big blind at least three times to only the small blind who completed. Wow. Anyway, they limp and as he has been doing Gus limps from LP wanting to play with these two postflop. I have just 200 more to complete from the SB so I do it reluctantly with J4s. The big blind comes along so we are now five handed going to the flop (very rare this late in the tourney). I would guess I had like 12k and Gus had about 10k to start the hand.

Anyway, the flop comes J83 rainbow. Unexcited about my top pair, weak kicker, I check and it checks all the way around. The turn comes another unexciting card, a 6 I think. I check again to see how things develop and it checks around to Gus (acting last) and he sets out 1700. I hesitate and call, the rest of the table folds and we are on to the river. The river comes an ace and I ask Gus what he has left, which is 5.2k. I'm relatively certain I'm ahead and figure I'll check and hope Gus bluffs at the pot. I do, and he does, for 2.5k. I give it a little more thought and call, and Gus mucks and says "you win."

Gus left himself with like 2.7k or something, and was muttering to himself incessantly, calling himself stupid, etc. It is hard for me to criticize someone who I literally think is among the very best, elite poker players in the world. I just don't think that betting into the turn with four other players in the hand (including the two calling station bad players) with nothing was a good idea, and considering how tight I had played betting the river after I called and ask for his chip count was really not a good idea. He knew this and thus the self-berating that went on until he left.

His bustout hand came when he was in the big blind with about 2500 left. I got A7 in EP and (now having a stack) raised. The huge stack on the button called (uh oh) and Gus obviously shoved his remaining chips in from the big blind. I called as did the button. The flop came A74 or something and I checked and the button bet and I instacalled. We checked down the turn and river and Gus was out with his 66. The button had 42s for bottom pair on the flop so I raked in another pretty hefty pot.

Gus played another hand that I will reluctantly criticize for a ton of chips. He raised from EP with AA. The big blind (the same huge stack guy) called in the big blind and seemed to really think over a reraise but settled on calling. The flop came T94 rainbow. Big blind checked and Gus bet, and big blind called without much excitement. Here is where it got interesting. A jack came on the turn and the big blind gave off a blatant live tell. He frowned, sighed, and checked. Gus, appearing not to have observed the big blind at all, bet out again. The big blind then immediately check/raised. Everything was saying that the jack had given him some kind of monster, either a straight or a set. Still, Gus called. The big blind then bet out pretty big on the river with a blank card, and Gus again reluctantly called. The pot was huge, and the big blind raked it in with his set of jacks.

Anyway, it's pretty ridiculous to sit here and criticize someone with poker skill and aptitude that I will never have, but his play was his play. Gus was really great to be at the table with, very personable (although quiet) and really good for the game without being at all obnoxious at any point. I have no played extensively with Jen Harmon, "Sheik" Shekhan, Dave "Devilfish" Ulliott, Layne Flack, and Gus, and Gus was definitely the most enjoyable, although the only one I kinda disliked was Flack, who was super talkative when things went well and/or the cameras were around, but super quiet and annoyed when things weren't going his way.

So I am now on to Day 2, which will be on Tuesday at noon, so I have plenty of time to recover from 15 hours of grueling poker yesterday. I think I played poorly early, but my patience is something I am very proud of, and I think I played very well the last couple hours both getting hands but also making some moves. Poker is fun.

On Day 2 there will be about 3200 total left out of the apparently 9000 or so total entrants. Probably about 900 will get paid. If I make it through Tuesday I won't play again until Friday.

I will have more to say between now and Tuesday.

[i am run]

good luck with the rest of the tourney.
hows it feel to crush the hopes of 4-time wpt champion gus hansen's chance at a wsop bracelet?

[Born 2 Loose]

nice report and good luck.

care to elaborate on your impressions of the Sheik?

[chopstick]

Nice writeup, thank you for sharing it with us. I look forward to reading the next one.

[tedtodd]

great report- certainly worthy of its own thread.

GL!

[Lessu]

very nice report. hope you'll post again after your next day.

[Chump Change]

How many chips did you end the day with?