Poker Stars WSOP $1 Million giveaway: Weekly Final Live Blog

10:00 am I qualified into this tournament on Tuesday in one of the hourly tournaments that Poker Stars is running. The actual qualifying tournament was pretty much a super turbo rush job. I was surprised when I looked at the tournament info at the $5,000 starting stack and the blinds starting off small and lasting for 15 minutes. It's actually somewhat of a real tournament and not just a poosh fest. I don't know if that's good or bad for me. It's a half an hour before the tournament starts and there's already over 7,000 runners.

It's funny how excited I am about this tournament. It's the same feeling I get when I buy a lotto ticket. I get to dream about what I would do if I won. I'm picturing myself driving out to Vegas, entering into my suite at the Palms, hob nobbing with all the poker glitterati, you get the picture. Ahhh, dreaming. I don't do as much of it as I used to. So for a couple of hours I get to dream.

10:30 am 7,795 runners start it off, people are already playing 10x the blind on the first couple of hands. Sigh.

10:45 blinds up to 15/30 I'm at 4,800 in chips. Saw a couple of flops but nothing happened. Stack: largest 20355, smallest 10, average 5261 Your current position is 5195 out of 7424.

11:00 am blinds 25/50 I'm at 6,895 in chips. Won a couple of hands and split a plot to get up above the starting stack. Stack: largest 29325, smallest 100, average 5841 Your current position is 384 out of 6681

11:15 blinds 50/100 I won another couple of pots to double my starting stack. $10,445. Feeling pretty good about my play right now. Stack: largest 35610, smallest 180, average 6239 Your current position is 814 out of 6263

11:30 first break blinds 75/150. I'm at $10,945. Was a slow level for me. I actually got check-raised out of a pot that somewhat hurt. OK, got to go pee. Stack: largest 41595, smallest 70, average 6881 Your current position is 759 out of 5664

11:50 blinds 100/200. My first huge all in bluff works. Thank God. $14,570 in chips. I'm also at a new table, a couple of stacks larger than mine. Stack: largest 77640, smallest 50, average 8003 Your current position is 560 out of 4880

12:13 I'm out. The stupid hand that crippled me. I don't know what the hell I was thinking, couldn't lay it down. I hate myself right now....

PokerStars Game #18443112332: Tournament #84389993, Freeroll Hold'em No Limit - Level VII (125/250) - 2008/06/28 - 15:07:35 (ET)
Table '84389993 974' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: raster1 (13410 in chips)
Seat 2: Marto28 (3380 in chips) is sitting out
Seat 3: ashhardwares (11109 in chips)
Seat 4: Nuscas (3275 in chips) is sitting out
Seat 5: bub66ohm (14270 in chips)
Seat 6: MrSiggs (21243 in chips)
Seat 7: Cigman420 (3525 in chips) is sitting out
Seat 8: headsuppkr (9400 in chips)
Seat 9: SLOWHANDS59 (12158 in chips)
raster1: posts the ante 25Marto28: posts the ante 25
ashhardwares: posts the ante 25
Nuscas: posts the ante 25
bub66ohm: posts the ante 25
MrSiggs: posts the ante 25
Cigman420: posts the ante 25
headsuppkr: posts the ante 25
SLOWHANDS59: posts the ante 25
MrSiggs: posts small blind 125
Cigman420: posts big blind 250
*** HOLE CARDS ***Dealt to bub66ohm [8c Jc]
headsuppkr: folds
SLOWHANDS59: calls 250
raster1: calls 250
Marto28: folds
ashhardwares: calls 250
Nuscas: folds
bub66ohm: calls 250
MrSiggs: calls 125
Cigman420: folds

*** FLOP *** [5h Jd Js]
MrSiggs: checks
SLOWHANDS59: checks
raster1: checks
ashhardwares: checks
bub66ohm: bets 800
MrSiggs: folds
SLOWHANDS59: folds
raster1: calls 800
ashhardwares: folds

*** TURN *** [5h Jd Js] [2s]
raster1: checks
bub66ohm: bets 1600
raster1: raises 1600 to 3200
bub66ohm: raises 9995 to 13195 and is all-in
raster1: calls 9135 and is all-in
Uncalled bet (860) returned to bub66ohm

*** RIVER *** [5h Jd Js 2s] [6d]

*** SHOW DOWN ***raster1: shows [2h Jh] (a full house, Jacks full of Deuces)
bub66ohm: shows [8c Jc] (three of a kind, Jacks)
raster1 collected 27995 from pot

*** SUMMARY ***Total pot 27995 Rake 0 Board [5h Jd Js 2s 6d]Seat 1: raster1 showed [2h Jh] and won (27995) with a full house, Jacks full of DeucesSeat 2: Marto28 folded before Flop (didn't bet)Seat 3: ashhardwares folded on the FlopSeat 4: Nuscas folded before Flop (didn't bet)Seat 5: bub66ohm (button) showed [8c Jc] and lost with three of a kind, JacksSeat 6: MrSiggs (small blind) folded on the FlopSeat 7: Cigman420 (big blind) folded before FlopSeat 8: headsuppkr folded before Flop (didn't bet)Seat 9: SLOWHANDS59 folded on the Flop

There it is. In a live tourney I probably only call in that spot and then get out of the way. Here I think I can push someone off of a hand, he obviously check raised me with something and I wasn't going to get him off the hand. Shit. Oh well, maybe next year. I think I'm going to go play some live cash at the Lady Luck as soon as I cool off.