9 Lives helps @ Skybox

Wow, what a night.

67 players at Skybox. Got the donkey shirt on so you know it'll be a good night.

Started off well. Probably doubled my stack by break 1, but lost most of it by break 2.

The 3rd session is where it started getting CRAZY! 3 huge hands in this session. Blinds are 50/100 I believe, and I am down to $900 in chips. I'm the big blind, and there was 1 limper. I look down at a 66, and I just call, after thinking about pushing. BB checks. Here comes the flop. JJ6! BAMMM. OK, now how can I get some chips out of this. The 2 players in the hand are "Brian" (Not Brian S) and Phoenix. Phoenix is tight enough, so I don't think she hit it. Dude to my left likes draws and calls anything, so I'm hoping he stabs at it. I check, and they both check. Turn is a Q. I check, and they both check. DAMN! I want to get paid off here. River is a 2, and I push all-in hoping they think I'm bluffing. Dude insta-calls with a Jx. Just like that I'm up to $2500 or so.

Next hand is even better (For Me). I'm now the small blind. I look down at KQd. Tim raises about 4x and it folds to me. I call. It's just me and Tim to the flop. Kh 7d 2c. I push instantly. Tim's got me covered (Oh Shit...didn't see that!) and thinks for a while and calls with AK! Damn, that's it for me! NOPE. Not so fast my friend! Contrar Meu'frer! runner runner diamond. Flush baby! That brings me back up to over $6K.

At that point I really felt it could be my night. You don't win tourneys without getting lucky.

Well, my stack went backwards when I held 88. Blinds were up to 300/600. I'm in middle position and it folds to me, so I just call. Manny calls from the button. Small blind folds, 3 players to the flop. Flop is Ah 10h 2c. BB checks and I throw out $2400. Manny re-raises all-in. DAMN IT. I really don't give him credit for an A. For God sake's he could actually have a 10 2. I think for a while and fold. I really think I was ahead there. He later told me he was on a heart draw, and I could believe that. I hate those. Players like Manny are the toughest for me to play against.

After a few other pre-flop raises with middle pairs and missing the flops, I'm down to $3000 with 2 tables left. That's when they moved Scotty Nguyen to our table with his monstrous stack. He easily had our whole table covered. He proceeds to call every all-in with nothing and donks off his chips to everyone else but me. Finally I look down at AQh in the BB. The blinds are 1K/2K so I've got to push. I get 4 callers and nail the flush so I'm back in business.

Porn gets busted, and then we have a huge hand that takes out 3 on our table. Scotty "Don't know Nguyen to Fold" calls 3 all-ins on our table. 3 hands are: A6, AK, QQ, and of course Scotty's 10 7 wins when he hits 2 10's. SICK, but I'm lovin' it because we're now down to 10, and Mr. Donater is still at my table. No luck though, because the other table loses a few and we're down to the final table. Several hands in a couple players get knocked out. 2 of the players from the other table came in with good stacks, but the rest were pretty short. Scotty gets knocked out, and we're down to 5 players. Tim gets bent over for the final time when his AQ is sucked out on by a K10 with 4 flush cards. Looks like I'm headed for another 4th place finish because I'm the tiny stack next to 3 giants. As luck has it (Again - I've been getting lucky all night) The guy to my right has been aggressive with his big stack. I'm the SB. UTG folds, and he makes a position raise to chase me and the BB. I look down at QQ and push. He thinks about it, but there is $40K in the pot and it's only another $8K to call. He throws it in and shows Q8. He doesn't improve and I'm now 2 in chips. The guy to my left has slightly less than I do, and I got fancy and did the same thing. I made a huge raise from the button with 52c and he re-raised all-in. I had to call and said "Oops, you busted me". He flips over AQ. Flop comes AQ9, 2 clubs. Sure enough, Turn is a 6 of clubs, and he's sent to the rail by my 52c. I can only imagine the verbal beating I'd have taken if that was you Porn!

Down to 3. Chip leader gets hammered when 3 pushes and sucks out on him with rags. I'm now the chip leader and the other 2 are a close 2nd. I knock out the guy to my right when he pushes with about $15K left, and I look down at JJ and insta-call. He doesn't improve, and it's now heads up. I have about a 2-1 chip lead on my opponent. He pushes all-in twice, and I had absolutely nothing to call with (Like the 52c was before! lol). We get to about even and proceed to steal each other's big blind for 5 or 6 hands.

At that point I could tell Joe wanted to bail, and it was midnight, so I offered the dude a $80/$80 split of the cash, and we'd play for the win and the balance of the $20 left in the prize pool. Neither of us are in the points chase, so it wouldn't effect the outcome of league. He agreed. I can't recall the hands, but we again kept pushing and folding away the BB. Then I look down at 88, and he calls with Q8. YAH BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*%@)!*& !!!! Q hits the flop and he wins. WTF?

Anyway, I'll take the second place and the $80 no problem. I used all 9 lives tonight, so I can't complain.

Can't say it enough: "I'd rather be lucky than good!"