Money for Nothing

A few weeks ago Bag IMed me to see if I wanted to play in a softball game on Saturday. I told him I couldn’t because I was playing in some weekly freerolls. A scoffing Bag wrote, “softball >>>>>>>> freerolls” to which I replied, “not if you win.” Fast forward to last week, another Saturday where I found myself playing a few freerolls, and mercifully untempted by softball. Freerolls, more than any other tourney (that I play, i.e. turbos don’t count), are true donkaments. But I’ve been reading Nappy’s blog a lot lately and his crasian aggro style has been rubbing off on me, which means I’m currently playing a style ideally suited to a donkament freeroll. I played a lot of hands, called light, and put people on a weaker range than I normally would.

About 1,600 people played in the $75k freeroll and 288 made the money. With about 200 people left I felt like I was in complete control of the tournament. I told myself I would at least get top 18. I’d been ridiculously aggressive, raising and then calling all ins with hands like T8s, and even a 43s once, both of which I was delighted to win.

Soon after the money, I got moved to a new table, where I was pleased to be sitting directly to the left of the table’s big stack, Rhubarb. This guy was pretty open about the fact that he was robbing people blind. He probably raised about half the pots, and usually took it down. But when he got reraised he usually folded quickly, not getting into any pissing contests with the upstarts. This was an ideal situation for me because I was able to resteal from him most of the time, bringing in a hefty amount of chips but not having to risk mine very often. Unfortunately, when that table broke I got moved to a new one where the guy to my right, EasyY, was very good and started to knock large chunks out of my sizeable stack. He was moved to the new table in time to watch me raise one hand and take it uncontested, then double up in a 250k pot with JJ against AK the very next hand (3 for 3 on my flips). Two hands later I have 77 UTG and raise it to 12.5k with blinds at 2.5/5k. He reraised from the button to 40k and I flatcall. The board came 995 and he bet 44k into an 88k pot. I figured this was a good spot for me so I reraised to 109k, and he instantly went all in. With 97k left behind, I made a very difficult fold, but good fold all the same. I’m sure I wouldn’t be posting this blog if I hadn’t. Two hands later I get JJ in the SB, and after an EP limp EasyY raises 3x. I really should have seen that one coming, but I was pissed off from our previous hand and shipped it for 100k. EasyY with the obvious rockets called immediately, but BINK! a beautiful jack on the river doubled me up! (Sorry Nappy, but JJ is my new favorite hand. I’m probably the one sucking out on you constantly.)

Suddenly I’m there. I’d made top 18 and I paused for a moment of celebration because I’d achieved my goal and then some! I was sitting pretty at 5th in chips, and from there I cruised my way easily into the final table.

I wasn’t too happy with where I was sitting, as Rhubarb was three seats to my left. However, while still active I’ve still got a pretty good read on him. Easy_Y is there too, sitting two to my left. The two shortest stacks are sitting to my right, one of whom had been folding to me all through the last table. Of the remaining final 9, a guy named Freako8 had 500k, Rhubarb and I each had 350k, and 4 guys had around 250k.

The very first hand I get AK in the SB. Rhubarb, as predictable as pie raised to 18k w/ blinds at 3.5k/7k, and Freako called. I reraised to 69k, and they both folded. Good start! Rhubarb knocks out the smallest stack 4 hands in, and after that everyone’s stacks are so close it’s a battle to the end. With 7 left, 5 of us are right around 400k, EasyY was up to 600k, and one shorty had 150k. I continued my bludgeoner style and started shtealing my way up to a more dominating stack. I was up to 550k when I called a small-stack’s all in with AJo, running up against their QQ and bumping me down to 350k. I tightened up for a couple of orbits, when I played this hand:

With 6 left it folded to me in the hijack and I raised it to 29k w/ blinds at 6/12k with Jd5d. The player to my left flat called, and the board came 563 with two clubs (I had no clubs). I bet out 52k and he called. The turn was a non-club deuce, and I checked. He bet into me for a 90k and I considered my options. If he’d had a 4 I thought he would’ve checked, so I immediately discounted that option. He could’ve had a pocket pair, but if that were the case he probably would’ve raised the flop. Plus, with such a junk board it didn’t look like I’d hit anything, so he could be betting with crap just because he thought I didn’t have anything. So I shoved all in. He used up almost his entire timebank before calling with JcTc. No club or T, and I was up to 660k.

Down to 5: I was still in the middle of texting Wolf news of my double up when I woke up with AKo on the button. I raised to 29k (blinds still 6/12k) and it folded to Rhubarb in the BB with 600k who reraised to 51k. I wasn’t surprised; I’d been stealing a lot and was pleased to see him defending since I held a monster. I rereraised to $139k, and after tanking he pushed all in. I thought I was in a coinflip, but then he showed AdQd! In my mind I pictured his cheeks reddening in embarrassment as his cards were revealed. But AK < AQ was proven yet again when he hit a flush, and I was crippled down to 47k. Rhubarb now had 1.2M from the biggest pot—and biggest suckout-- of the entire tournament. I was confident that I would wind up in 5th place.

I folded until my BB where I got 82o. Rhubarb, reveling in his newfound wealth, raised to 30k and I glumly went all in for my pittance of 43k. He had AK, but I spiked a 2 and doubled up to 100k. The very next hand I woke up with aces and cheered. Rhubarb continued his raising ways and when I re-shoved he called with QJo. I held and suddenly I was back in the game with 210k. After that it was a grind as the nit to my right slowly got blinded out of the tourney. Then the other short-stack tight player at the table went into panic mode and started raising like crazy. EasyY and Rhubarb basically sat back and watched us try and knock each other out. In the end though it was Rhubarb who knocked out the other guy, and we reached final three with Rhubarb at 1.3M, EasyY at 800k and me with a small but feisty 300k stack.

We ended up making a deal, and I walked away with $8,000. It’s the biggest score I’ve ever made, and it comes from a tournament in which I invested $0 dollars and only 6 hours of time.