Who's The One Outer Boy? Me !!!

Last night at the Legion we had a larger turnout than usual, almost 4 full tables.  I was playing very tight and got involved early with Pete, the tournament organizer.  I open raised with Q/Q for $100 with blinds at $20/40 and was reraised to $300 by Pete in the big blind.  Call.  Flop was 8 high and Pete fired $300, call!  Turn was another small card, Pete again fired $300, call!  River was an ace and he suddenly checked.  Suspiciously I checked behind, and with almost half my starting chips in the pot turned over my queens and Pete slow rolled.....queens!  Yikes.  I played it so bad.  At no point did I try to regain the lead or even find out where I was.  Then, when checked to me I fail to place a value bet.  Oh well, nothing ventured as they say.

A little later a fairly short stack shoves with K/Q on the button and is called by another short stack with just a few more chips and A/J suited.  I wake up in the big blind with A/A and re-shove forcing out two limpers and putting the other player all-in.  My aces hold up, two players are eliminated and I am nicely stacked up.

Reaching the final table I am probably a middle sized stack.  The first two hands we play are unbelievable.  The first I am two under the gun with A/A.  I raise and everyone folds, picking up blinds.  The very next hand, UTG, I am dealt K/K.  I could get used to this.  Raising to $1200 (blinds at 200/400), everyone folds except the short stacked big blind who defends with K/7.  Bad matchup for Sandy and she is eliminated.  I knock out another player with 5/5 and a flopped set vs. his flush draw and am sittting pretty well.

Playing exceptionally tight I pick up a pot or two and end up the very short stack with 4 players remaining.  With only 5,000 and blinds at 1/2,000 and under the gun after the break I open shove with pocket 10's.  Gary, the big stack in the BB calls with some weak crap  and I double up.  He then concedes the small blind to me and I am suddenly alive.  Then the game changer happens.  On the button I have A/Q and shove.  Big stack limper snap calls me with A/K.  Rut-Row!  This is the guy who I knocked out two weeks ago and who knocked me out last week.  We were joking earlier about whose turn it was.  The flop is no help, the turn is a blank, and before the river is dealt Gary says helpfully, "I mucked a queen" and Eric, the other remaining player says, "So did I".  The river, no problem, the case queen.  Sorry, I just don't get that lucky very often.

After the AK man is eliminated a hand or two later the three of us chop for $324 each.  Not bad for my $40 buy-in.  Overall I like my play most of the time.  I failed to trap an habitual bettor with my two pair flop once, and I hated my queens play.  Other than that I avoided playing small pairs out of position, folded blinds against strength, and played my good hands aggressively.