WSOP - Round 3 & Celebrity Fun

Yesterday was the first day that I did not play a hand of poker since I arrived in Vegas 11 days ago. I decided to take a break to clear my head before my WSOP event today. It turned into quite the sporty day - tennis in the morning with Sarah's friend Jamie, and golf on my own in the afternoon. I've played two golf courses since I'm here, and have been quite impressed with both, although despite a few nice shots, I wasn't thrilled with my play.

However, the highlight of yesterday for me may have been meeting Shannon Elizabeth. Jamie is sharing a condo with Shannon and her poker manager, and I went over to visit the condo before playing tennis in their community. Shannon is also out here for the WSOP - she is one of the better celebrity poker players these days - so we chatted about poker for a while. She seemed really sweet, and is pretty much just as hot as she looked in American Pie. I hope I run into her at the Rio at some point - it would be fun to say hi and be "that guy who's talking to Shannon Elizabeth".

Anyway, today it was back to the Rio for my 3rd WSOP event. I was pretty pumped up, ready to get back to the action and looking to improve on my two earlier finishes. Unfortunately, once again, it was not to be...

It was Event 23, No Limit Hold 'Em, $2,000 buy-in with about 1,300 entrants. 99 places were to be paid in this event, and upon seeing my table today, I really thought I could make the money. There were no pros at the table, and only a couple of players who I felt were particularly strong. After starting with 4k chips, I was able to methodically build my stack to about 13k after a couple of levels. I didn't end up in any critical pots early on, which was helpful, and I picked my spots carefully, playing only a few sizable pots and eliminating short-stacked players when I had hands like QQ and A10 suited.

I then lost about half my stack to a very loose player when I held K5 of clubs in the small blind and the flop came down 622 with two clubs. I bet, he raised, I called, and when a king hit the turn, I was committed to the hand, and called him when he bet all in (I had about twice as many chips). He showed A2 for trip 2s, and I didn't improve on the river.

A little while later, on the last hand before the second break, I limped in with 10 9 of hearts, and 5 players saw a flop of 9 6 5, with one heart. I made a large bet and was called by two players - one in late position and the small blind. The turn was the 5 of hearts, giving me two pair and a flush draw. I pushed all in, and was called by the player in late position (small blind folded). I flipped my hand, and the other player showed... 53?!?! He had trip 5s, and I needed a 9 or heart on the river to stay alive. Given how my luck has been running this trip, I had no expectations of improving, and I was halfway out the door before the meaningless 7 of clubs hit the river. For the record, I think I finished ~580th out of 1,330.

For the first time in my WSOP experience, I left the room feeling pretty upset (and I was definitely less gracious than the first two times - I may have "tossed" a couple of my chips at the guy on the way out - oops!). First off, what the hell was the guy doing calling a big bet on the flop with bottom pair and a 3 kicker?!? Second, I was so frustrated knowing that I was legitimately one of the better players at my table and should have been able to outplay my opponents more than I did. However, I can't deny that I made a handful of mistakes, and definitely could have gotten my chips in the pot in a better spot than I did. Just another learning experience I guess...

I've got a couple of free days now before my dad gets here on Sunday, so I may play a tournament at Caesar's tomorrow. I'll admit that I'm a bit dejected with poker at the moment, so depending on how I feel tomorrow and Saturday, I may sit it out until my next scheduled WSOP tournament on Tuesday. Once my dad gets here, its straight to the golf course, and we'll be playing 3 rounds between Sunday morning and Monday evening - couldn't ask for a much better Father's Day!