In our last installment, our heroine was left tied to the rails with the train coming towards her. Seven were left. This was not an aggressive table by any stretch of the imagination so, fortunate for our heroine, the train was moving slowly. The blinds were at 150/300 and I'm looking at [ 9h 5h ] on the button. I consider making a move with this as three in front of me fold one by one. The decision is now on me and I opt to fold, as well. My neighbor to the left in the SB was on life support, too, and the BB had a healthy stack. Pushing in here would not have been wise. I couldn't risk my neighbor making a move on top of mine and then having the big blind come in for the kill. I had four hands before I'd be forced to make a move and I opted to wait it out for a better hand. As it turns out, the small blind folded, too.
The next hand brought some help with [ Kh Qd ]. UTG comes in with a raise double the BB and the next guy, our chip leader, folds. For me, well it's now or never - I push all 125 of my chips in. The guy to my left decides to make his move, too, and pushes in all 650 of his. And then the BB calls with all 585 of his. All that's left is for UTG to call a mere 50 which he does. I held my breath - with that many in the pot, I figured I was doomed. An A-x hitting will have me crawling to the rail.
The flop comes [6s Tc 7s] - it was not looking good - and then Maudie's faerie-godmother appeared on the turn with a sprinkling of faerie dust...the [ Qh ]. I didn't think I was completely off the tracks, though. The river brought [ 5h ]. I had a pair of [ QQ ] with a [ K ] kicker. I'd be beat by any one of my opponents who happened to have [A Q], [ 8 9], [ 3 4 ], [ 5 5 ], [ 6 6 ], [ 7 7 ], [T T], [ Q Q ], [ K K ], [ A A ] or any 2 pair that hit. Have I left any out?
The SB had [ Ks Qs], and took the majority of the pot. The BB had [ Ad Td] and got some of his chips back. I got 312 chips for my share and the guy next to me went to the rails. I squeaked out of that one. I may have been off the tracks, but there were wolves circling and they wanted more than grandma's cookies!
The next hand, UTG comes in for double the BB and I fold my [ K 9 ]. Some may argue in favor of pushing here, and I thought about it, but I had one more hand before I'd be forced in and I decided to wait. I second guessed this decision when, after another all-in across the table from me, the board came [ Q 5 7 6 8 ]. I thought I had just blown it. The all-in got reprieved with [Q Q] having [ Q J ] in the pocket against [ A 3 ]. This put him second in chips with me in a distant last with T312.
The next hand gave me [ 8d 2h ]. I folded. I winced in pain when the flop hit
[ 2d 2s 7h ]. That faerie-godmother was trying to shove that horseshoe
up help me out and I just didn't get it. The guy to my right
pushed all-in and stole the pot, so I'll never know whether I truly would have
gotten it on that one.
Now the BB hits and I'm in and left with 12 chips to spare. I'm dealt [ Qc 8c ]. There's nothing left to do but close my eyes and hope I land on something soft. The wolf on my right won't even spare me the remaining 12 - he raises and I toss them in. Here we go. Flop [ 7d 5d 8d] - I have a pair of eights staring down the flush draw. Turn - [ 8h ] - teeth are bared and I'm growling back. River [ 3s ]. I pounce. My set holds up against his 2 pair. He had [ 5s 3d ].
I double up but now I'm in the small blind. I've got a ways to go before I can get out of the woods. I have [ As 5h ]. The guy I just pounced on makes a desperate all-in. I let it pass by. I've got a reprieve and couple of free hands coming, I wanted to stay cautious. The button passes to me and I'm given [ Kh Jc ]. Here we go. Fold, fold, fold to me and all 474 of my chips go to the middle. SB folds, BB calls. Flop [ Js 8c 3s ] - yes. Turn [ 5h ] - um-hmm, baby. River [ 4d ] yes...yes...he turns over [ As 7d ] just missing the strait....oh...baby! yes! - shove those chips over here. That hand put me third in chips. Sweet mama.
I let the next three hands pass by while I lie back and have a smoke (metaphorically speaking, that is ...I don't smoke...it's nasty...you should quit). One other person gets eliminated and we're now at 5. The BB comes and I go back on alert. The dealer (who's always so calm, handsome) tosses me [ Kc Qh ]. Short-stack on the button goes all-in and SB (chip-leader) folds. It's only T12 for me to call, and so I do. Flop [ Kh Jd 8s ]. Turn and river [ 5d Ts ]. My boys hold up against his [ As Tc ]. And then there were 4. I'm second in chips with T1510, however the chip leader is at T4356.
In the SB again and with [Ad 9d]. It's folded to me and I raise double the big blind to 800. I should have gone ahead and gone all-in here. I'm prone to act before thinking and, given the chip count, I was pot committed with that raise, so the proper move would have been to push all-in. The BB came over the top all-in and I called. Our flop was [6c Td 4d] - giving me the nut flush draw and a double belly-buster strait draw. I had outs. The turn and river brought [ Ks 7s]. He turned over [Ac 5d] - my ace beat his ace and he went home. Now we're three.
I take the next guy out with [ Kc Tc ] - we both paired a king on the river but I had the better kicker. Now we're two and we are almost even in chips. I shifted into high gear. I am a fairly decent heads up player - I know it's less about the cards and more about pure aggression. Since we were about even in chips, I resolved that folding would not be an option and I would need to hammer away at him. Take control and keep control. If he showed any weakness, I would exploit it. The first hand told me what he was made of. I raised he folded. I knew I'd crush him. It only took 8 hands. I either raised or called, I never folded. I only lost one of those hands. Only three of them made it to the river. On the flop, if he checked, I bet. It didn't matter what I had. The last hand I had [8s 3h] on the button and over 4x the chips he had. I raised and he went all-in. I didn't hesitate - I called. I remembered reading in one of my many poker books that in heads up before the flop any two cards is a coin flip against whatever your opponent may have, or something like that. I may have that grossly misinterpreted, but that was at the back of my mind when I made that call. The hand played out thusly: [ As 8c Kd 4h Qc ]. I paired my eight. He turned over [ 5d 5h ].
And, friends, that's how Maudie won her $30 Sit-n-Go. This is one I will give some closer scrutiny to in poker tracker. I had the good fortune to get a good mix of good cards and good luck. This one gives me the opportunity to study it and to look at what more I needed to be considering with each decision. But, I tell you, that win tasted real good. I want more.
