Tunica Update

Arrived in Tunica around 10:30 am on Saturday. Sat down at the casino bar and played some video poker until my friend arrived. Won $21.. good start.

At Harrah's in Tunica they have the Heat Wave Pool Parties which is basically like a Vegas style pool party... MUCHO FUN!! From 1-7pm it's adults only; DJ, beer pong, air hockey, jello shots, water volley ball, and much much more. It truly was a great time. Never expected to have a such a good time at a Tunica pool. We stayed there until around 6pm then we headed back to the room to get ready for some poker.

Thad and I put our name on the $4/$8 LIMIT table. While we wait to be seated, we go back to the video poker machines and I won $400 hitting quad's twice back to back.

They finally start a new table so we get seated. It was a fun table, alot of drunks (including us I am sure) but fun nonetheless. I played like shit but had the best time ever. Lost $100.

We had plans to meet Thad's g/f at the sports bar at 8:30pm and then watch the UFC fight at 9pm. On our way to the sports bar we stopped at a blackjack table. Needless to say, my $400 winnings from video poker went right back to the casino! FUN TIMES!

Sunday we get up and head to Memphis for the day and start out at Beale Street, walked over to Peabody Hotel to see the famous Peabody Ducks.. We just missed the marching of the ducks but they were in the fountain having a good ole' time.

We stayed in Memphis for a few hours then headed over to Sam's Town for poker. Thad and I started out at the Limit table again, then at 6pm I played in the $70 NL Tournament. Couple things about the tournament I didn't like. First they had 37 players but only had 3 tables putting 11 players at each table and having alternates. Why they just didn't have a fourth table I will never know. Thus, when you jam 11 people around a table it's not very comfortable.

On to the tournament... I was playing pretty tight at the beginning trying to learn the players at my table. Young guy directly on my left, typical young want-to-be poker player with his shades and iPod on, another guy who likes to smoke weed (I know this because he told the table) who likes to play every had is sitting three to my right. About an hour in the following hand happens...

Mr. Pot Head is on Big Blind, guy on his left goes all in for 1100, guy on his left goes all in for 1150, I have pocket 10's so I call the 1150, everyone else folds around to Mr. Pot Head. He thinks, and thinks, and thinks and decides to call. I am not happy about the call.

Flop comes A - 3 - A, I bet so I can get a feel is this guy has an Ace in his hand. Mr. Pot Head has about $650 less then I do and he goes all in. Now there is about 6625 in the pot with the blinds, ante's, and all the betting. I think about it and decide that based on Mr. Pot Head previous play for the last hour that he might not have an Ace in his hand so I decide to call. MISTAKE #1. I think to myself before I even made the bet after the flop that I will put a bet out there, if he calls or pushes I'm folding but instead of doing that, I call. STUPID. I actually thought out the play before making a move but then didn't do what I said I was going to do. I played that hand to badly.

Mr. Pot Head had A 3 to flop the full house. That hand knocks out two players and leaves me with $650 going into the first break coming back with $200/$400 blinds and $50 ante's. Not good.

After the break I am on the button so at least I can see a few hands before the blind comes around. Finally I get Big Slick and push my remaining $650 in. I win the pot to triple up. HEY!!

A few hands later, Mr. Pot Head double's me up again... HEY!!!

I continue to push and play pretty aggressively to start building back my stack. Finally we are down to 20 players and combine the tables down to two. I get moved to the 10 seat (which I hate) and ended up doubling one more time. Play continues for the next three hours until we are down to the final 6. Top 6 positions pay. Happy that I made the money but wanted more than just 6th place.

Blinds and ante's are huge at this point and I am short stacked so I raise it $4000 and get one caller, Mr. Pot Head. I hit middle pair on the flop, he checks and I push my chips toward the middle. This act, as I had done it, apparently looks like a string bet and the dealer wouldn't let me go all in as I didn't say "all in". So the bet ended up being $2500 instead of $6725 and Mr. Pot Head calls. He was chasing a straight and needed a 7 to beat my pair. Yep you guessed it, a 7 came on the river. MISTAKE #2.

If I had said "all in" and was able to do that, he would have folded. UGH. Live and learn, I won't make that mistake again, EVER.

I cashed, which is good. But it was a long 4 hours just to get my money back. End of trip I came home with $30 more in the pocket. Overall can't complain, had a great weekend with an old friend, got to play some poker, seen some of Memphis and still came home with more money.

Wednesday we play our home league.