Kerching ! Bling !!

Thank you to everyone for the good luck and congratulatory messages. What actually happened was that we chopped it even heads up and played for the WPT seat and the bling, which I won. It was nice of a couple of posters to say I deserve a result but poker doesn't work like that ! Well it does in the long run, very much so, but on the day you can't believe that you're entitled to anything. Did I deserve the result yesterday ? Probably not quite. I played OK except for one half hour spell where I was wobbling quite badly, whereas James Mallinak played very well throughout. That's why I asked for a chop as soon as we were heads up, he was playing better than me no doubt.

I might go into some hands later but a lot of what happens at a final table is just random noise really. I suppose there were two key pots. Three-handed I reraised JM's button raise all-in on a complete re-steal, but he called me with AQ. I made a flush with my 96. Never in doubt :-). Unfortunately he won most of them back with AQ v my AT, a hand which I could possibly have folded to his reraise. Possibly, it was 3-handed. That topped off my wobbly half-hour but luckily for me there was an immediate break, during which I pulled myself together. After that I worked back up with some move-in mojo, to the clear frustration of eventual 3rd place finisher John Connelly. He started bleeding chips to both of us, and took a fair hit when I check-raised him all in with J8 on a board of QJxT. I have no idea what he had, he just made the right size of bet that was asking to be check-raised, and he folded.

I set John allin with AQ against A3 but he escaped with a chop ; soon after I set him in with Q4s only for him to call with ATs. Queen on the turn, so that was the second key pot. Or suckout, if you like. We immediately made the deal with virtually even chips, I moved into a small lead, we smashed it all in with my A9 v his A8 and I won.

So that's $61,000, a bling bracelet and (most amusingly) a seat in the WPT main event. Not bad for 12 hours work. I really wasn't expecting this to happen and it hasn't sunk in yet. I'll post some more thoughts as and when I have them. It's a shame I don't know anyone here, then again as Frode says that means no one to nip me :-)