I'm down here in Temecula, CA to play in the Pechanga tournaments.  I've played 2 events and I think I'm done with the tournaments.  The first one I busted in 45 minutes, the second I played about 6.5 hours and finished about 45th out of 492 players.  The payout structure is very top heavy with first getting 35% of prize pool of about $63,000.  This means they also don't pay 10%, it was top 30 that paid.  But since 30th only got $300 ($150 entry), I was definetely not going for just a cash.  I'm going to post some hands for anyone who cares to read them.  A little background about the two days first.  I flew to Ontario, CA on Tuesday night from Dallas after a long day (9am - 7pm) of interviews and by the time I drove to my hotel it was after 1am.  I was pretty tired on Wednesday and didn't really feel great about playing--not horrible, but not great.  On Thursday, I said to my brother I felt fine and felt a LOT better than Wednesday and felt like I could play.  I even stretched out in the sun for awhile before the tournament started so I felt good.

Hand 1)  Quick one hand from first day that busted me.  Blind is 50, UTG guy looks at his cards and excitedly raises to 200.  This was his first raise of the game so I have no idea what he raises with or what the amount means.  One guy makes a comment about it being a big raise and folds.  However, there are 3 callers before me and I have JJ on the button.  I immediately regret seeing JJ but call the 200.  I think I should have gotten away from this flop....flop is AJ9, all clubs.  UTG guy bets 1000 now!!  It folds to me of course and I'm thinking "Is there any way I can fold this?"  I decide the guy could have raised preflop with AA, KK, QQ, AK, or even AQ suited.  After the flop, I'm thinking did he bet that much because he was scared of the texture of the flop?  I didn't think he would bet 1000 with KK or QQ with an Ace high all suited flop though, unless the KK included the club maybe.  So then most likely it's AA or AK and possible AQ.  I have about 2100 chips so I'm all in or folding.  I don't want to regret folding so I go all in.  The guy immediately calls and flips over AA.  I'm gone 45 min in.  Oh well.

2)  From here on, it's the 2nd tournament.  Blinds are something like 50/100.  I'm on button (nice getting these big hands on the button eh).  One or two callers then cutoff raises to 400.  I call with QQ but then the friggin BB reraises to 1000.  Cutoff then goes all in.  I didn't think very long and folded my QQ.  BB calls and flips over KK while Cutoff flips over AK.  The KK wins, AK is gone, and I would have been gone also.  I felt really good about this fold because I was pretty sure the BB had a big pair.  I had been paying close attention during the entire tournament even while I wasn't in a hand.

3)  I had been over 5000 chips but was now down to about 4200 or so.  It's the last hand before the break.  I think the BB was 150 and someone raised to like 450.  It folds to me on the SB and I have QQ.  The raiser was a loose aggressive player and I didn't feel he had that great of a hand.  I reraise to 1000.  Folds back to him and he goes all in immediately.  I didn't like the quickness of his all in on one hand but on the other hand I liked it.  I felt that he would have hesitated more with AA to draw me in and would have hesitated a sec with KK to wonder if I had AA.  I said something like "Well, I guess I can bust right now.  I call."  He said good call and flips over 99.  Flop had a Q and a 9 so of course I'm thinking case 9 is coming but no, I double up and go on break with about 8600 or so in chips.  My brother had about 3500 so I felt good.

4)  Right after break I got up over 10,000 chips but then I got AK UTG.  BB was 200 so I raised to 600 since I was in early position.  Got one caller only (by this time people realized I wasn't bluffing all the time!).  Flop was J high (J79 I think)and completely missed me.  I bet 600 and he called.  Turn missed me again but I didn't think he loved his hand so I said something like "What do you have?  Pocket tens?"  He said something about me being worried about tens and I replied "No, tens don't worry me but if you have JJ I'm screwed."  haha.  I bet 1200.  He called.  River missed again and I check.  He bets 500.  Come on!  I say "you're betting 500 into a pot of almost 4000?"  He then looks at the pot and I fold.  A few seconds later when someone else was asking he replied he had AJ.  Everyone assumed I had him beat but I wasn't sure if that was true.  Later I saw him call a big raise with AT so I think it was.  Just wanted to protect the fact that I had been betting with AK only.

5)  The very next I hand I get QQ and when guy to my right raises, I reraise and he calls as does one other.  Flop looks good and they both check.  I bet and just guy to my right calls.  Turn looks good, he checks, I bet, he folds.  I elected to show here because I didn't want people to think I was steaming and start attacking me.  A couple people laughed when I showed and said they thought I was steaming.  Or they probably said Tilting.

6)  There was a hand where I limped with 88.  About 4 of us in hand and flop comes AAA.  Guy to my right makes a 3X BB bet and I say "Well, I think you would have raised in your position with any pocket pair bigger than mine so I'll call."  Everyone else folds and he checks turn.  I say "Yeah, I think I was right" and bet about 6X BB.  He calls and checks river.  I didn't like the call so I check river and turn over 88.  He turns over 66.  Whew, good read. :)

7)  Next thing I know I'm down to 4500 in chips because of blinds and antes.  It's 2nd break and my brother and most of his buddies/coworkers are out except 1.  I tell my brother I'll be out soon as I just have to pick a hand.  I don't want to let myself get so shortstacked that my all in is barely a raise.  First hand I'm UTG and the blind is like 800.  I have 33 and go all in.  Two people fold and another guy (medium stack) goes all in.  I'm thinking "Sweet!  Second best thing that could happen!!" (first being e1 folds)  Everyone else folds and I say to the guy "I think you may have just saved me."  He flips over AJ offsuit and I say "Yep, just may work."  My 3s hold up and he's a little pissed. lol

8)  Very next hand a short stack goes all in for 1800, another goes all in for 2200 and girl to my right (had been saying how she had to drive to vegas the next day and had to go) just calls the 2200.  She has like 25,000.  I'm on the BB and see QQ again.  I'm still almost short stacked so I decide to go for it and call all in.  I'm thinking she's a big stack and called just to try to knock the 2 out and she'll fold.  No, she calls my all in!  First player had 22, second had 66 and she had 10-2 suited!!  My QQ looked good...until the flop.  The flop was 345, all hearts.  The 22 and 66 both had a heart!  Turn was a T which now pairs the T2 hand.  River was a blank and I won!  This hand was key as I then had over 20,000 and could play.

9)  This hand isn't big but shows how my new stack helped.  Folds to cutoff (that crazy lady) who limps in.  She'd been playing a little scared after her big loss.  I decide to try to limp with KJ off on button.  First time playing KJ in the past two days.  SB folds, BB checks.  Flop was AQx and they both check to me. I bet 2X the blind and they both fold.

10) With the blinds and antes going up, I'm dangerously on verge of being short stacked at each increase.  My brother and his friends had been cheering me on.  I thought I'd be nervous about that but it actually felt good and made me play even better.  Ok, BB is 2000 and UTG guy raises to 4000.  Huh?  I look at my brother and we both give a WTF kind of look.  One player calls and crazy lady to my right goes all in.  I have AK and know I have a better hand than her so I need to isolate.  I go all in.  It was barely more than she had probably but I had to look strong.  I'm expecting them both to fold but No, UTG guy immediately calls and flips up AA.  Crazy lady had K9 spades.  Ten of spades on flop gave my only possibility of winning either the last two Kings in the deck or QJ for straight.  Of course, the miracle cards don't come and I'm gone.  I think I made the right play here to isolate against her but maybe some of you (Phil?) could have folded AK here?  I don't regret going for it and getting knocked out 45th (might have been like 43rd actually).  Top 30 paid but 30th was only like $300.  I was not playing for 30th and winning this hand would have put me in a decent position where I wasn't short stacked at the next blind increase.

Anyway, thanks for reading.  I had a lot of fun the 2nd day and felt like I only made a couple of mistakes.  The earlier AK hand (hand 4) I could have checked and let go sooner.  But overall I felt pretty good about how I played.  Felt like I knew when to fold, raise, etc.

Oh, a couple more things about my bust hand...

First, the day before my brother was telling me the story of how he busted.  He started with "A guy minraised UTG..." and I said "You didn't think AA?"  He said no that he sees a lot people will min raise there with a hand like KQ, AJ, Ax suited, etc.  Some hand they want to play and hope no one will reraise.  So when it happened to me I thought that but then forgot about it when I wanted to isolate.  I should have considered it more though as in this stage people raise minimum even more because it seems like a lot.  Sometimes they go to raise and then realize the blinds went up but they still have to raise so they min raise.  My brother says a min raise with AA there is a negative expected play but I'm not sure about it at late stages.  The short stacks will still go all in if they have a decent hand and most others will still fold to a 4000 bet.  Even the BB will fold a crap hand.  The only problem I see would be the BB calling a marginal hand, or a decent stack limping with some pocket pair and hitting a set.

After the AA guy said call the other limper hesitated then showed an ace before folding.  When he did that I was momentarily hopeful that UTG didn't have AA.  I actually worried that he may have AK also and we had each other outs.

Lastly, I think this hand could have gone a diferent way if EITHER of these players did what they SHOULD have done.  First, if he had raised more, crazy lady may have just folded and waited for a better opportunity to go all in.  Then I would have just called and could have gotten away from the flop.  Second, if crazy lady had not decided to go all in with K9, I would have just called the 4000 and again gotten away.  I guess they should have checked with me first on what they should do.