So got this challenge started last night by playing the bounty comp at my local G.

£20 buy-in + £10 bounty + £6 fee.

Didn't do too badly, got down to final 12 or 13 (from 32 entries) and managed to win 1 bounty for £10.

1 key hand with 2 tables left which would have given me a huge stack plus another bounty, and I didn't follow my own rule of poker.

I have 1 rule... and that is... NEVER FOLD 63! (I have even written an article on this key piece of strategy advice)

I'm on the button with 63. Blinds 600/1200/200ra. I've got 30k or so, just below average.

UTG min-raises. I call. Then the big blind shoves for 7000 total (plus his bounty of course).

The original raiser calls so I do as well (because never fold 63)

Flop: 1043

Original raiser bets 5k. Small bet and into a dead pot. I've got good price and back door flush to go with my pair so I call (and because never fold 63)

Turn A

He bets 15k. Over half my stack. I was hoping the Ace might slow him down but it doesn't. He looks strong now.

I fold. He turns over K10os. BB had 77

River 3

NEVER FOLD 63!!

---------

I 3-bet jam with KQss not long after and called by A4 or some other shit and he holds

So played 1 comp, 1 £10 bounty (which, as the same with the last challenge, doesn't count towards my "Cashes" total), so no cashes yet.

Next comp I think will be on Saturday, which is the 3rd Annual Derek Kavanagh cup.

£56 buy-in with an optional £50 rebuy/add-on.

Event sold out back in November with I think 230 seats sold and a big alternates list on the day, the event is a BIG one!

This is a video from last year's which is pretty cool!





Lots of bountys and obviously a decent prize pool on offer so looking forward to it!

Played the "Kav Cup 3" last Saturday. Very packed cardroom at Manchester Bury New Road. Total entries were 280+ so a decent pot and just a great atmosphere. Unfortunately I couldn't get much going and busted about 4 hours in. Was some big names playing including Ste Warburton amongst others.

After I busted I decided to head to another casino in Manchester and play the regular £25+£6 Saturday evening comp.

40 entries total and I ended up finishing 6th for £90. It went a bit crazy on the final table, there was a guy who was quite drunk to say the least. He kept accusing people of stealing his 25k chips, and was shouting at the TD to check the tapes. TD refused as he plus 2 of the other dealers had been watching the final and he said there's nothing to check, no ones took any of your chips etc. At this point the player told him to "Go and get your manager you skinny little prick!"

He did go and get his manager (and security!) and he was kicked out of the comp and out the casino!

This was on the bubble so now there were 6 left and we're in the money! I had a decent stack, probably 2nd or just 3rd in chips but it went tits up as the guy who was kicked out, his mate was also still in and was like "I'll have to go" and was shoving every hand. I called him with AQdd and he had 73 and he hit ughh so was down to a short stack and knocked out soon after.

First cash of the year though £90! ($110) (The £530 up top would have been nice!)




1/25 Cashes

There's a tasty €230 event with €100k guaranteed on next month if you have any interest in making the trip over to Dublin for it

Is that the Grand Prix Poker Tour? Busy month next month with the GUKPT in Manchester and also probably a £220 comp in Nottingham. I do like Dublin though.

Update for this week, played a few comps.

Monday was £20+£10 bounty comp. Finished in 8th with 5 getting paid, however I did win 3x £10 bounties plus was 50/50 with a mate who cashed for £40 + 2 bounties, so £90 between us = £45 so small bit of profit

Wednesday headed back up for a small £15 freezeout. Final tabled again, bubbling this time in 6th with 5 getting paid! However jumped on the cash and ended up nearly tripping my buy-in so happy days!

Last night, is the biggest tournament of the week in this casino, £30+£30 rebuy or addon. I won the initial entry a while ago final tabling another tournament so works out pretty much half price once I take the add-on. 40 entries total with £2k gtd so a nice little pot. Was doing pretty decent, down to around 15 players left I had average stack of around 35bb.

Called a raise in the big blind with AK after a LP called as well (always merge your ranges )

Flop comes KJ4

Check, original raiser checks, late position half pots it. I jam my 30bb ish, original raiser calls with 25bb, raiser folds.

He turns over AQ

Turn 3

River 10 Would have been good for a final table stack but oh well, that's poker

So just the £45 this week




May play tomorrow night live, may not do. I'm in Amsterdam from Monday-Wednesday, mainly seeing Green Day on Tuesday night but there's a €30 comp on at the Holland Casino on the Monday which I may have a crack it, try and get my first foreign flag on Hendon Mob!

Just the one to add from last week




Was in Amsterdam this week, went to the Holland Casino on Monday. There was a €30 comp on so enquired about that... and they have the wierdest system ever.

They have like 10 tables in the poker "room", but they cap the tournament at 40 players, and it was sold out. So I asked to be put on the alternates list, and he said there isn't one. Just a waiting list in case one of the 40 drop out before it starts, but it would be unlikely. So it's just the 40 players, no late reg, no alternates just once it's done it's done. This is the only casino in Amsterdam where you can play proper poker for money, wouldn't like to live there! It could be much better, and the casino was packed so surely there is demand there, not only that it's a huge tourist destination!

Cash wise, they had a €2/4 table, again which was full (above my bankroll anyway), but I could go on the wait list which was 6 people deep already, but they won't open any more tables... so odd.

So just to update the total...





2/25 Cashes

You partake in the Amsterdam way of life?

Haha nah, Not into "illegal" substances however legal it is at the time and the other stuff, wouldn't pay for something you can get for free

Do need to update this thread with a nice win from a couple of weeks ago, so close to another trophy

How hard do you take it when it just doesn't go your way and you come so close yet so far?

It does hurt, I'll be honest.

One hand that sticks with me from FIVE years ago was on the final table bubble of a big GUKPT event, I was a big stack and I got one-outer rivered in a 4-way all-in hand by the one guy who could take me out. Any other card in the deck and I'm a ridiculously overwhelming chip leader with 7 players left. (Bad beat story incoming.... My AQ against KQ, A7 and 77 on a AQ4r flop. Case 7 on the river)


But recently, finishing second in the 6-Max Championship at Dusk Till Dawn was a tough one. Started off about a 2-1 dog against an experienced and solid player but soon reversed the chip counts and made a good hero call for a big pot. Key hand was hitting a disguised straight, which also gave him a disguised flush! I shoved when my straight hit as him having the flush was so far down his possible hands the way the hand had played, but he did, and that left me a shorter stack which I shoved with a decent suited king and he called me with an ace and held. Felt I was just on the wrong side of the big hands heads-up, but it wasn't to be. It's not about the money when it gets to that point, I want the trophy! I want that first place and the winners photo!

-----------------

The decentish win I had this month, was again a GUKPT event in Manchester. The £165 Bounty side event (including £75 bounties). Took a number of bounties, and after knocking the first player out on the final table was the chip leader with 8 of us left. Played solid for the next 40mins or so, couple of shorties has been knocked out and then got into a key hand against the 2nd or 3rd in chips player.

Dealt Kings (which I know I should just fold pre!!), and got him to massively overbet shove the turn on a J946r board with AJ (Shoved 90k into a 40k pot), I snapped. River J. Again I'd have been big big chip leader with 4 left. I was down to about 12BB and soon out in 5th. (Remaining 4 then did a deal and the AJ guy took the trophy). Won over £800 but again, just being that one card away from the win when you've been playing well, and not really doing anything wrong just sucks.

----------------

But that's poker and just got to keep plodding on. Being so close to the trophy in the only 2 big events I've played within a couple of months of each other gives me confidence going forward. There's the APAT World Championship in Manchester next month, I'm playing 7/8 events with buy-ins totalling around £400. No trophies but they award medals and bracelets! Lots of different formats including HORSE, Omaha, and OFC over 10 days so really looking forward to it!

Some pics from the above comp a couple weeks ago.

This was a fun hand early on! :D





Nice final table stack





Not huge payouts but nice value with £75 bounties as well





Nice opportunity for Will Kassouf to meet his favourite poker player as well

In terms of the overall challenge, I've hardly been able to play live recently. As well as being busy, I've also been ill for the past 4/5 weeks and been back and to from the doctors/hospital for various tests and stuff but not got to the bottom of it yet. Played a few local £20 comps but with not much to report, no cashes, although have been in decent profit on the cash tables last 2 times out.

I did head to Dusk Till Dawn to play the DTD200 which is a £220 comp with a £100k Guarantee so pretty nice. Made day 2 with 20BB and doubled up not long into Day 2 getting lucky with AQ against AK. Couldn't get much going though and busted around 90th with 55 getting paid.

Also had a big birthday recently, kinda sucks not being in my 20's anymore!!

Heading down to Cheltenham for the Gold Cup Festival with a few family and friends, was a good day and only lost the minimum on the gambling!


Packed Grandstands





Beautiful creatures






Anyway, back to poker, like I said above, the APAT World Championships is in a couple of weeks which will be fun and I'll play a few local comps before then just to get back into it properly!

Adding the above final table cash+bounties onto the total...




3/25 Cashes

Only a 10% of the way with nearly a quarter of the year gone isn't where I would have liked to have been but external factors have been a big influence on this, and with the comps coming in April, I want to have at least doubled this by the end of April as a minimum. No Pressure

So I had a relatively successful return to the live table last night, small local tournament £20 + £6 + £10 Bounty comp. Didn't get as many runners as usual with 19 I think total entries so only the Top 3 were paid.


Played solid, concentrated on playing in position and recognising spots to take control of pots and this worked quite well. With the big "World Championship" coming up in a couple of weeks I really want to be playing my A game. In these comps I'll usually just play for a bit of a laugh, play 70-80% of hands (Any 2 Cards Ash) and just see what happens but I want to get in the zone so going to be playing seriously for the next month or so.





Anyway, just chipped up and up, playing generally small-ball (and thus winning no bounties for the majority of the tournament), before losing nearly half my stack calling a "blind" all-in with KQ (she was sat next to me, she definitely hadn't looked at the cards), and she had aces!! I knew she hadn't looked anyway and her reaction was genuine when she flipped them over! I think I have to call there with KQ, she had blind shoved the previous 2 hands and got folds (She was "bored").


Final table bubble now and I shove Kings, get called my 88 and we both hit a set! Phew!


Picked up some hands on the final table, knocked the first player out, he shoved the cutoff for 12BB and I re-shoved the button with AQcc. He had Kings but luckily I spiked on the turn!




This was an interesting hand.

8 players left (6 players also get an added £36 seat to another comp so some small ICM considerations I guess).

Blinds 800/1600/300ra. UTG big stack limps, folded to the button who shoves for about 8000 total

I'm in the small blind with 99. I raise it to 20k out of my 110k stack (quarter of the chips in play).

Big blind folds and the UTG limper, thinks for about 30 seconds and then jams for 80k total

There's a couple of things to consider. First of all, UTG limp-shoving is usually MEGA strong. However, with the bounty aspect he could be isolating with a medium strength hand. He could also think I'm just isolating using my big stack to get heads-up for the bounty as well. He's a solid player, capable of making moves, however he had also recently raise-called a shove with Q2 off-suit.

If I fold, I'm still 2nd/3rd in chips. If I call and lose I still have around 20BB to play with. If I call and win I win £20 in bounties and have half the chips in play, (not forgetting that only the top 3 get paid).

I folded and UTG turned over Aces





Loooooooong Story short, I was chip leader with 4 left when we agreed to pay the bubble £30. The short stack was pretty short with about 8bb so didn't want to give too much away from the top 2 prizes with it not being a decent prizepool anyway.

The shortie then gets a full quadruple up!

Few hands later I'm in the big blind with AK, folded round to the small blind who ships, I snap and he has A10, and hits the 10 on the turn. I'm now left short and soon out in 4th! Pretty gutting after being chip leader to only taking a paltry £30 but hey ho, better than nothing plus I won £30 in bounties and a £36 seat so not all bad.

So just £60 to add to the total, plus I've just realised I didn't convert the £800 above into $$ which is $1004 + £60 is $75 which = $279 to be added to the total !




4/25 Cashes


And a start to the mini challenge of winning $1,044 by the end of April! ($75/$1044)

May play 1 more night this week and then I should be heading up the sunny coast to play this

That looks like a decent tournament and I think bounties makes it extra fun.

Showing my age and time out of poker here but how are the bounties paid? Everyone has a chip or something which you cash in at the end?

Yeah each player usually gets "Kill chip" which you give to the player who knocks you out and when you bust you take these to the cash desk who will give you the cash for them.

In the GUKPT Bounty side event, when someone was knocked out they called the floor over and they gave the £75 in cash, which was nice

I've mentioned this in another thread but given how with age I concluded that live poker is, in fact, the superior form of poker and given how I get so very few chances to play it I live vicariously through your's and other users post about it. So yeah, keep writing

That bounty tournament sounds super fun, let us know how it went!

Will do! Leaving for Blackpool shortly (roughly 90 minute drive) and have a hotel booked in case I make Day 2, either way it's a weekend at the beach!

Great start to the month!




The "Blackpool Bonanza" didn't go too well, was table chip leader about 4 hours into Day 1 before getting a guy to ship it on the turn with 78 on a 789Ahhh board. I had KQhh, snap him and he fills up on the river (punch). Ship my 12bb with AQ not long later and get 3 callers had the best hand but obviously it's never going to hold lol.

In my last big update I said I'm going to be playing properly and concentrating ahead of the APAT World Championship of Amateur Poker which starts tomorrow (8th April) and it has paid off a bit this week.


Monday night I played the local bounty I play quite often. Finished 4th last week after being chip leader with 4 left and wanted to make amends, so I did

£36 buy-in, 34 entries and I took it down for £260 + £90 in bounties = £350! They wanted to chop 4-handed, I said no (being 2nd in chips), and when we were heads-up I was the shorter stack and I again refused knowing I can outplay the other player who isn't particularly strong, and obviously it paid off!






In this Monday tournament, the casino adds 6x £36 seats to Thursday's tournament which is a £30 r/a +£6 fee comp. I won 2 seats in the last 2 weeks (Which can also be used as the rebuy/add-on), so played the tournament last night freerolling the £66 comp which has a £2000 guarantee.

There was a much smaller turn-out than usual and the casino ended up adding nearly £1k to the pot. 24 entries in total with just 4 being paid and with the overlay the min-cash was a nice £240 and £800 up top.

Played pretty solid and patiently with the deep structure of the comp (with 24 entries there was still 20 left 3.5hours in! Very rare..), with 18 left I made a questionable call against 2 all-ins with A10. But it was for a huge, final table sized stack so took the gamble and it paid off!

Kicked on from there and we were soon on the final, and play tightened up even more with the quite big payouts for this comp lol

5 left and it was asked to pay the bubble, I just assumed it would be given, it's a friendly place, bubbles are paid most nights (Token amount from first and second - usually to get money back), and with the casino adding nearly £1k and the decent sized min-cash it was quite a surprise when one of the players refused. But whatever, it's his choice and all that.

So play really tightened up now, and the bubble refusal player was taking the aggressive line but I was the only one playing back at him so he soon stopped. There were 2 relatively short stacks when the 2nd biggest stack open shipped for just over 200k with pocket kings (total chips in play was 700,000), blinds only 2000/4000 so it's a big shove. The bubble refuser (chip leader) calls with AK and hits the Ace to knock them out (had them barely covered). I personally think it's a bad call, a very tight player, and for a HUGE amount with 2 short stacks on the bubble.

The short stacks were happy obviously lol, with one shipping soon after and I called with a king and was ahead and won so down to 3 with 1 short stack. He shoved the button with 77 and I called from BB with A5ss. Ace on the flop but also a 7, with another 7 on the turn just to make sure! He then doubled up again through the bubble refuser and I was now the short stack. Blind on blind the bubble refuser raises, I'm BB with A9ss so ship and he calls with AQ and holds

So third for £380! I was eyeing up at least the £580 but either way I'm happy considering I'm freerolling anyway and a nice run after winning a couple of days earlier.

So a total of £730 this week = $903




6/25 Cashes

Which puts me much nearer where I would have liked to have been by this point of the year.

Also for my mini target is now up to $978/$1044 (by the end of April), which I'll probably only need one more cash to achieve, so I'm quite happy with that!


Really looking to the WCOAP which starts tomorrow, so lots more poker and hopefully cashes to update you with!

I've already pre-registered to most of the events tomorrow so in the morning I'll put my schedule up and more info about the series.

See you then!

b