Sorry part 2 took so long..  Took  me a while to remember the details.

12:15 a.m. tournament
Taj Mahal, Atlantic City
Buy-in $50 + $15
95 people

This is the first time I am taking part in the midnight tournament and I like it better than the 7:15.  No ante’s, the pace is much slower, more time to play and more people which means more places pay.  But there are your share of characters.

Level one, blinds 25-50, I am in the SB.  3 limpers in front of me so I complete with K-6 off.  5 players to a flop of 10-6-3 with two diamonds.  Everyone  checks.  Turn is the 7 of diamonds.  3 checks, I fire 200, one caller.  River 9 of spades.  He checks, I bet 400 and drag the pot.

Nothing much until level 3, blinds 100-200, from middle position I raise to 650 with pocket 10’s, both blinds call.  3 players to the flop which comes 10-8-7 with two clubs.  I am first to act now and given the fact that the two players in the blinds have been pretty aggressive up to this point, I took a read that with the texture of the flop, one of them was going to bet at it so I check.  They both check behind me.  What the hell was I thinking.  Even with that type of read, you can’t check this flop EVEN IF YOU ARE 100% SURE your opponent will bet it.  Too many draws can beat you and if your opponent commits him/herself, you’re gonna sweat.  Turn is the 4 of diamonds…  an irrelevant card.  Time for me to try and correct my initial mistake.  I lead out 2300.  SB folds but BB calls.  The river (of course) is the worst card in the deck…  the 6 of clubs.  NOW WHAT?  I check, the BB bets 6250.  WONDERFUL.  I played this hand like a typical rookie.  Now with 3 clubs and a 4-card straight on the board, what the hell do you do with top set?  I went into the tank for literally 5 minutes.  He played the hand like a typical flush draw.  Check the flop, flat call the turn, bet out the river when the club hits.  I am not worried about a non-club 9..  It wouldn’t have made it past the turn unless it was something like a 10-9s and with me having 3 of the 4 tens tied up, that’s highly improbable.  Looks like an easy fold…  except for one thing…  the one thing every poker player argues with from time to time…  instinct.  Something in my gut just simply told me this guy had absolute crap.  The call was about 80% of my stack.  After the time I took, I decided that I really didn’t care about losing the hand..  If I did, it’s a lesson learned but I wasn’t gonna be bluffed off of this hand…  so I called it.  He turns over the Q-J of diamonds.  Exactly what I thought…  CRAP!!!  He told me afterwards that he misread his hand and thought he had a straight.  I told him that I misread MY hand and though I had four sevens.  Even though I misplayed this hand miserably, it worked out for me in the end.

Nothing to talk about until after the first break.  I am at about 23,000.  I am on the button and half the table is late returning from the break.  The BB is in the pot for 800 and only has a total of 2200 left.  So I told him that if the action was folded around to me, I would move in in the dark and give him a chance to double up.  Stupid, yes…  but for 2200, I would probably have tried to steal the blinds with anything 10 high of better.  Si it folds to me, I move in dark, he calls dark.  I turn over 10-2 clubs, he turns over ACES!!!  Can you say running clubs for a club flush?  Dirty…  so dirty.

Same level, I am first to act with A-Q and raise to 2800 after stealing the blinds last hand with the same raise.  BB calls.  Flop comes A-2-4.  I  bet 2800, BB raises to 7000, I move in, BB insta-calls and turns over A-10.  I make an unnecessary aces up on the river and dismiss him putting me at a little over 50,000.

Blinds now at 1000-2000.  A couple steal attempts go bad then from mid position I pick up two jacks and raise to 4500.  Only caller is the BB who only has a total of 5500 and ships it.  Obvious call and he flips A-6s.  I tell the guy next to me two things…  ONE  I HATE jacks.  TWO, This is usually where the ace of hearts screws me.  Off comes the flop and the window card is….  Good guess!!  The ace of hearts.  BUT, the jack of spades is also in the flop and my set holds up.  Back to 50,000.

Now on the button, folds to me with K-Q hearts.  Two blinds with short stacks behind me, I ship it.  Called by SB with J-10 spades.  Jack on the turn and I am down to about 40,000.

Last hand before the second break.  I raise in EP to 5000 with A-10.  BB calls.  Flop is J-6-6.  She checks, I fire a standard continuation bet of 6500.  She thinks and ships it for about 15,000.  Nice way to donk off 12,000 right before the break moron!!

I head into the second break with 31,000.  Blinds at 1500-3000 when we return.  Without antes, I have a revolution before I have to play two-card poker.  Not desperation time yet but it’s not too far away.

Before the revolution completes I pick up pocket jacks again.  I raise to 8,000.  Three seats to my left ships it and has me covered.  GOD I HATE COIN FLIPS..  But I am in no position to even consider mucking these jacks.  I make the call and he turns up A-K.  I haven’t won a coin flip since 1989!!! And this would be no different.  Flop comes off K-Q-8 and I am sent packing 26th.

A bitter pill to swallow playing for three and a half hours and having nothing to show for it.  But poker really isn’t about winning or losing, it’s about making the right decisions.  Right decisions have the numbers in your favor.  How do you think casino’s make their billions?  They have good days and bad days but the numbers always work out in the end.

Next action scheduled for March 30th at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City.