It is what it is...or so it seems...

Nope - its not the Party 40k. [let alone the WSOP - nice work Hoy!]

Nonetheless, just two short weeks after my (proof that Satan holds up his end of a deal) victory (okay, okay - distant third) at the Mookie, lightning descended on the same seat again; mine. As per my previously written desire, I found myself among the last nine men and women standing at WWdN. So that's Written Goal Numero Dos accomplished.


I now formally opine it would be nice to final table the Sunday Millions on Stars....

Yeah, I agree - it's a bit of a reach, but what the fuck: if this blog truly is endowed with Magical Wish Granting powers, I'm not squandering any more JuJu impressing my friends. I'm goin' for the payday - next stop EASY STREET! Who's with me on this one?

What? No, I haven't played an MTT with more than 100 people who I already have some knowledge of - why do you ask? Alright, be that way, but when I take that bad boy down, I'm gonna expect some serious kudos...

Actually what made WWdN very cool was hanging practically the whole time with Big D, and watching him run a clinic in how to wait on your pitch and then FedEx that bastard into the upperdeck when you see it. Sometimes I think the fear of "going like Broomcorn's Uncle" pressures me to make moves that compromise my game's down-field strategy. On a related note, I realize I didn't raise to Don's blind until way late in the game, and the one time I did, he made me pay. I had a pair of 4's in the BB, D as SB completed. Hoping to get out of Dodge pre-flop, I raised with one of those patently untrustable, yet all too often dead-on BAD FEELINGS. I could practically hear D laugh when he typed "jeez, you try to be nice..." and he called. 3 over cards later, I checked to him. Yes, he could've had the Hammer, but I just didn't want to C-bet that flop with the blinds as high as they were and my stack aching for aid. He raises and I fold, well aware I looked like a total puss-puss. Just didn't feel good, and I hate busting when the Voice Inside gets to gloat.

This run was made possible by me using up most of my good fortune in one hand. Right before the first break, when I was riding high on a couple of tough reraises and a successful coinflip, with a fairly large stack I bought myself a ticket for an early exit. I ignored some of Doyle's simplest advice in SS2 and deserved to pay dearly for it. I was feeling frisky and decided to play 56s, got called by Julius in better posistion. Flop made me a straight - the low end of the straight - but drops 3 spades into my midst. I bet out, which strikes me as reasonable. I get reraised to put me all-in, and I almost insta-call, which strikes me as a little unreasonable... Whatdya know, dealer sent Julius the better end of the girl - and if you have to ask, you're not old enough to read this stuff.

So I'm done, and planning a post based on the rookiesh infatuation I felt with a flopped PeeWee straight. Then this happens:

To his great credit Julius took it like a man; although couldn't resist renaming me Travolta in honor of my ability to keep stayin alive. Fair Enough. But I was back in business.

To my credit (or can you not say something like that without sounding like a total tool?) I gave Julius a chance to polish me off. I forgot to Hoy his 3BBraise and without finesse decided I could live with busting out showing down AKo, given that earlier weasel-run had me feeling a bit guilty.

Dangerous thinking I know; Julius bit and I get (a bit) lucky to pull an A out of the rabbbit hole. Julius' nines find out the meaning of unrequited, and I double up. It's moments like that (and for that matter the rescue from the jaws of death earlier) that give you a sense this could be your night.

Moments like that lie, of course.

Proving I have a long way to go in my screenshotting technique, I missed the beat I took which just about evened out my karma for the night. I was dealt ladies, raised preflop, was called by what turned out to be ATo. Fine. Flop brings 667, which I bet near the pot to show I am not fucking around. I am called again without too much hesitation. Mmmmm? Medium pair - if 77, why no reraise? Did he call preflop with with A6? Not sure, but don't think so. In fact, it feels like I'm good here...turn is a 9. I agree it's a little concerning if our boy was one-gapping - possible. But I need to know without sealing the escape hatch. I bet half my stack - 800 or so I think. If he comes over the top...there's a straight, and I'm seriously injured, but will fold and live to fight another hand. Long pause and he types, "oh my...." and then calls. I pretty much knew then the read was ok, and he was on a straight draw that hadn't gotten there yet. Despite me making it pretty -EV to call, he moves ahead. So be it. River surfaces an 8 and our friend checks in the hope I'll fire off the rest of my stack. I knew I was beat, but I felt pretty good about my understanding of his hand, and my ability to resist the urge to try to push through the immovable. He was going to call, I believe, no matter what went in the pot. And at each street I felt I put money in with the best of it, and when I no longer had the best of it, I knew it and checked it down. Based on his mood in the chat, I think he would have called a turn push. And I would have been out when he revealed a developed straight. He was gracious about winning like that, but needn't have worried - not only was I not tilting, I was congratulating myself for surviving the hand. For that reason, I do not consider this a bad beat story - it has the important distinction of a happy ending. Ya know Korean massage style...

From there I just played the game trying to mimic equal parts Don and Hoy, which made having D at my table a huge advantage. Without meaning to sound too fanboyish - I realize plenty of you have solid games that are very effective - I would recommend this technique to anyone relatively new to the game and curious about how to final table these things. Just read Hoy and Don's strategy posts and Hoy's MTT primers and you'd be surprised how easy it is to get comfortable in unfamiliar territory. D and Hoy end up final tabling so often these days it must be getting dull. I'll be happy to take your spots, just let me know where and when...

Yeah, you have to get lucky, there's no other way about it; you need to win some races. And yes, you need the timing - but the real key is what you do between the races. For my own game, I am trying to develop a style where I can hang back, even let blinds run through without biting, and then when I do decide to play (whether packing heat or packing lunch) play hard pre- and post-flop. Patience, blended with genuine Aggression. The two times I've felt comfortable oscillating like this, I ended up doing well, thus I'm running with this for now.

And here's a shoutout to my fellow Canuck (I overlook his fundamental West Coastishness) Fuel55. Borrowed your hand and it worked out fine. Put my own (sorta) spin on it by Hoying my opponent with it. Gary and I are duking it out for Most Devoted Disciple of the Hoy these days. While he has me in the skills department, and final table finishes, I am in a different league than G when it comes to trash talking my Hoyee - which you must all know by now is the WHOLE POINT of the Hoy. Gary, sad to say, you're just too much of a gentleman. It's the what the Oklahoma night air does to a guy...

But Me? Not so much. Exhibits A through D. I woulda really tried to tilt him in the Field, but at the Mookie, I put on my nice guy hat.

Double up when it really mattered built entirely on Nickels. Lucko was very cool about the whole HoyDoubleUp, which is really your only defense to its tilt inseminating powers.

And one last thing I wanted to show, although maybe this one is a Yay Me! shot [Poor Form!], but find it in your hearts to overlook it. Hoy drops a Hoy on the blinds and the UTG raise...I hold AQs in the SB...I mull long and hard...and fold. UTG calls with...AQo. And Hoy? KTo or something equally unexpected. Yah nevah know...which is the point I guess...but the real point becomes obvious to the caller when a K hits the turn.

FEAR THE HOY!

(motto credit to Hoff - anyone cool enough to coin that bad boy has to be due many karmic breaks in short order...) So it turns out my AQs fold was a good one from a results POV. I put caller on AT to QQ, but I really put Hoy on a monster; QQ, KK, AA. Either way, I thought there would be 2 to play, with at least one of them dominating me, and AQ (even suited) didn't seem worth the risk. Too tentative? Would you call that Hoy knowing it would likely be three to go? Again, don't want to be too results focused, but this felt like a good fold.

And that was mostly it...I final tabled by mostly staying out of the way after being quite involved in the MidGame. Then it was basically pick a hand I liked at try to take it home. No joy there, but as always, a blast, and I can't complain a bit.

Epilogue:

Lousy headspace at the Mookie tonight - some of you patiently let me rant of my household tilt, so thanks bigtime for that!- yet I can still live with my bustout and play overall. I called a postflop push at a 77x flop, holding 7T - lost to 7K, who hit a K on the river for good measure. There are worse calls buried in my closet.

And, in case anyone was curious, I only use the handle Iakaris online. I've grown to really like Iak (Ike) as a nickname, which is why I don't make a big deal about using my real name. Strangely, I am something of a stickler about people using my first name at the hospital rather than my title. Eric (the father of all things boney) brought it up at the Mookie tonight, and I thought I may as well clarify things. On the odd chance a patient found this blog, I originally wanted to keep some anonymity, but the more I think about it, that's really not an issue. Anyone who plays with me who'd prefer to use my real name is welcome to. Shoot me an email, and my reply will include it in all its Pakistani-by-way-of-Toronto goodness.

Fuck it, that's too much work.

My name's Irfan (pronounced Air-fawn with accent on the second syllable).
By all means, Ike is easier, and I like it just fine. Your call.

Later.