Ice Ice Baby

The snowstorm that was forecasted for Thursday night wasn't that big of a deal for me. There wasn't much snow, but there was some freezing rain. I went down to my car on Friday morning, and found a thin covering of ice all over the car. There was also about 3/4 inch of frozen slush on my windshield.

I decided to go back to Four Winds casino. I wanted to get some more time on the PokerPro tables. With the weather being a small factor, the casino is just around the corner and down the street from my hotel. The $283,000 Bad Beat Jackpot was also a small motivation.

I got to the Poker Room about 10:45am. Nobody was there. There was only one player on the list, and he was playing Blackjack. I ended up playing Pia Gow for two hours (-$15), before they finally got a game going.

This was the second time that I had to wait two hours for a seat. I want to be pissed about it, but the weather was definitely a factor. The casino was slow all day, and the Pia Gow dealer mentioned that they had 32 dealers call off.

I sat down at the .50/1 table, and then moved to the 1/2 table when it started up. Later in the evening, the poker room finally got some full tables. They had three .50/1 tables, my 1/2 table, and a .75/1.50 table that they just started spreading. I don't get the point of the .75/1.50 game, and neither do most of the players who are regulars.

I walked out of the Poker Room at 12:30 am when the 1/2 game broke up. I lost $100 at .50/1, but finally caught some cards at the 1/2 game (+$467).

Overall for the three day trip, I lost $95 + expenses. For the number of hand that i played, I was fairly card dead. But it's only $95, and I can make that up at my Saturday night game.

Hand #1 - .50/1 Four Winds
Lady UTG raises to $6. Five players call. I'm the SB with two red Kings, and makes it $25. Lady shoves All-In for about $120. Everyone folds to me. It is vividly clear the she's got AA, so I fold my KK face up.

Laying down KK vs AA is not why I posted this hand. I've done it two other time in the last 18 months, and they were all this easy.

The reason for this hand is the $283,000 Bad Beat Jackpot, Aces Full of Kings beaten by Quads. When I showed the KK, about half of the players at the table were pissed off at me. "How can you lay that down? Don't you know about the BBJ?" "I had a suited connector. I could have seen the Flop." "This is .50/1. I didn't know we were playing real poker."

This is one of many reasons that i HATE any Bad Beat Jackpot. Yes, if any of the five cards on the board ended up being A K K, then I'm a very happy person today. But the pot odds of hitting a 1/million board just don't add up to chase a two outer when I know I'm beat.

"I didn't know we were playing real poker." Geez.

Hand #2 - 1/2 Four Winds
Six limpers. I've got 99 in the BB, and check.

Flop: Ah 9h 5d - Cool! I check. The Cutoff, an action player, bets $15. It folds to me. I've learned through experience in low limit games that nobody folds a Flush Draw on the Flop. If I try to bet them off of it, they just have a bigger pot to chase. Wait for the Turn, and then hammer the pot. I just call, and so does UTG+1.

Turn: (Ah 9h 5d) 5c - Well, that changes things. Check. UTG+1 Checks. Cutoff bets $20. Looks like he's got an A. I'm not sure what UTG+1 has. I decide to just call. If no Heart pops on the River, I will fire a large bet to look like a missed draw. UTG+1 folds.

River: (Ah 9h 5d 5c) Ad - Are you serious? I just slow played my way into a lost pot. I check. If he bets, I will fold. He thinks for a moment and says, "You planning on check raising me?" He checks and shows 5h 3h, a flopped Flush Draw with Bottom Pair. We both assumed that the other player had an Ace. I told him that I was folding if he bet the River, but he didn't believe me.

So I won a decent pot, but I left money on the table again. Last time, I overplayed a Set against Two Pair and the guy folded. This time I underplayed my Boat against Trips with a Flush Draw. I could have gotten another $100 or more off this guy.

Hand #3 - 1/2 Four Winds
Many limpers. I'm in the SB, and look at Kh Kc. $12. BB calls. UTG calls. Two others call. Five players are going to the Flop, and I'm out of position. This should be fun

Flop: Qh 9c 3d - I bet $40. BB calls. Player A (Mid position) calls.

Turn: (Qh 9c 3d) Ks - I hit Top Set, but JT just hit their Open-Ender. Good thing nobody would every play that hand. I think for a moment, and decide to check and see what happens. I'm not slow playing my Set. I just have no clue what everyone else has.

BB checks. Player A pauses, then bets $125. Now I go into the tank. I've only got $230 left, and decide to shove. If he's got me, then he's got me. BB folds AQ. Player A calls the $105 and shows 33 for Bottom Set. He misses his one-outer.

So I more than doubled up, but I really hate playing out of position.

Hand #4 - 1/2 Four Winds
I folded preflop in this hand, so the amounts may be a little off. Player A (UTG) raises to $7. Player B (UTG +1) calls. Player C (Button) re-raises to $25. I'm the SB, and eject quickly. Player A calls. Player B re-re-raises to $60. Player C calls. Player A thinks for a while, then folds.

Flop: Jh Jc 7h - Player B bet $75. Player C thinks for a while, and folds QQ

So far, this is nothing special. The reason I am telling this hand is Player A, who folded preflop. When the Flop showed on the screen, he turned as white as a ghost, and had that "deer in the headlights" look on his face. I've never been good at noticing tells, but even a cocktail waitress would have caught this.

After Player C folded, Player A said he just folded Quads (JJ). We then got into lengthy discussion about the hand. It was obvious that his JJ were behind, so folding is understandable. But the fourth raise was only $35 more. So the pot odds were good to call and hit your two outer, or both of them in this case. Of course, the $283,000 Bad Beat Jackpot was also discussed.