Ive taken a few days off before writing this blog for the simple reason I didn’t want to write a ranting blog about how stupid some people are! But I still get the feeling its going to end up that way!!!

The Irish open 10,000 chips, one hour clock and a great structure, add to this me in the form of my life and im seriously looking forward to achieving something!

My first table was a dream, a very passive table with three calling stations evenly spread around.  This meant if I wanted to see a cheap flop I just called, if I had a hand and wanted to get a pot going I’d raise and either way I’d be in a 3-4 way pot. After 4-5 hours id added $6000 to my stack and was going along very nicely, no big decisions, no drama just nice and tidy chipping away. All good things though come to an end and the table was broken and I was moved to a table that I was expecting from the beginning, a table full of over aggressive loose players! I didn’t want to sit down and start trying to throw my weight about at this table, so once again I just sat back and slowly introduced myself as the TAG that I am.

After an hour or so I make my first play raising from the cut-off with Qs-9s. All fold to the big blind who calls. The flop was a rather tasty 9h9c7h. He checks to me and I bet out, my thinking there’s no way he puts me on a 9 and is very capable of making a play on me with a large range……..bingo he moves all in !!!! I have a quick check of my cards before calling and flip over my hand that receives a groan from my opponent who flips over 10hQh. For once in a live tourney he doesn’t outdraw and I go from an average stack to a very very healthy 30,000 deep stack.

With enough chips to come back for day two already in the bag I was in no mood to start getting clever with my chips, so it was back to the trusted good hands, good position strategy. It was another 40mins or so before I play my next significant hand. A new Canadian guy sits down and raises his first hand under the gun. All fold to me and I look down on the button to find QQ. My first thought is stack size, hes got a big pile of chips in front of him, this makes up my mind to smooth call, hes new to the table and im not sure I want to play for a massive pot with QQ, and I have position. The small blind then pushes all in fo around 7,000. The Canadian fella doesn’t think to long before calling, again having nothing to go on I have to give him credit for his UTG play so fold my QQ face up as I want to re-establish my tight image.  You’d thing I was mad throwing QQ by a couple of looks I got at the table, but for me it was a straight forward obvious fold, when the SB flips over AA and UTG AK the looks of madness turn to looks of agreement- of course it was the right fold!!!!!!

A few hands later I pick up AhQh from early position and put in a standard raise, I get a call from the only solid player at the table and everyone else instantly folds. The flop 2 7 Q rainbow looks good and I bet out and run straight into a re raise. After much though I really cant put this fella on a hand im beating and again fold showing my hand. He taps the table and shows me pocket 7s. So im playing good, ive hit a few hands, ive made a few good lay downs, ive got a good table image and ive still got around 24,000 chips……….and im going to make the second day as we deal the LAST hand of the day, 700 players started the day and with the last hand being dealt we were down to about 300 players and I was just over average chips.

So to the last hand of the day, blinds are 300/600 with a 50 anti, its folded to me in the SB ive got As10d, so I raise. The big blind thinks awhile then calls. The flop is an attractive Ks 10h 7s. I bet out and my opponent again thinks a little before calling. Now ive been at this table a few hours and im pretty sure ive got my table sussed, im playing well made no mistakes, im in total control. The turn is a nothing card (4d I think) and im very confident my opponent doesn’t really like his hand, hes either on a draw or a weak king. My plan here is to check raise him all in, hes not a bad player so I know by showing him weakness he will try to take the pot, im also pretty sure again because hes an ok player he can lay down a hand that’s beating me, ie the weak king. So I check, he bets around 3000 into the 5-6k in the pot, I think awhile and push all in for around 24k. Instantly I know im right with the play as he virtually crumbles in front of me, he counts his chips, he asks for a count, he checks the pot, checks his card, checks his stack again, then his cards again, checks the scoreboard- yep its last hand and your coming back with around average stack- now fold and lets bag the chips up! I start getting worried after 5 mins or so, it cant be on the flush draw as he would surely knows he cant call, he must have the K but maybe his kicker isn’t to bad, could be a Q or has he slow played AK?? Again he counts the chips check his hand etc etc.

Then after what seemed like an hour he calls- FOOOOOOCK. I know im beat………….till he turns over,………….2s3s !!!!!!! Seriously what the ?!!!!!!!! Im still looking at his cards in disbelief while the dealer flips over his last river of the day, and of course it has to be a spade……………last hand of the day, 48k pot and I get sucked out on by a 3 high f***ing flush f***ing draw???????? Seriously, this guy as spent a few hours playing with me, the only big pot I’d played I showed trips, ive folded QQ face up pre flop, id folded AQ face up on a Q high rainbow board, and it’s the last hand of the day and he wants to call off all his chips on the TURN with a 3 high draw………………………now seriously?!

Ive been around long enough not to get to upset about badbeats, but this surely is the exception to the rule, surely there must be a rule somewhere that when facing such a stupid f***ing call im allowed to hit him hard on the chin?! Well that’s what I did………………………….I didn’t really but for the first time in my poker life that’s what I wanted to do!!! Instead I congratulated him on his play, wished the table good luck and headed straight to my room so I could trash it…………………..i think its safe to say I was just a little pissed off!!!!!!!! Its fair to say that im still a little pissed off!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There was a 1500euro event the next day that a couple of people had said they’d pay me into, such was my pissed offness I declined there kind offers and headed straight to the airport……………the last thing I wanted after that beat was to bump into the balloon again, no much safer for us both if I just head off home to the family!!!!!!!! Bloody 23 you ***!

BTW I sent a msn that night to the usual suspects explaining my exit, the next day I get a text back from Jeff Kimber, FIRST hand of day two in a 50k pot he gets knocked out, someone pushed all in against his set…………….they pushed all in with a 3 high flush draw…………..seriously you couldn’t make it up could you?!!