Hey all, just got out of another weekend grind and wanted to break down my latest tournament run. It was a $50 buy-in online event, about 300 players, standard structure with 20-minute blinds. Finished 12th, which isn’t a trophy but still in the money, so I’ll take it. Thought I’d share a couple of key hands that shaped the run and what I took away from them.
Early on, maybe 30 minutes in, I’m sitting with about 18k in chips, blinds at 100/200. I get dealt AQo in middle position. UTG raises to 600, one caller, and I decide to flat. Flop comes Qh-8d-3s. UTG bets 1,200, other guy folds, and I call with top pair. Turn’s a 5c, he fires 2,800, and I stick around. River’s a blank—2d. He shoves for 9k into a pot of about 8k. I tanked for a bit, but AQ felt strong enough to call. He flips over JJ, and I scoop it. Looking back, I probably got lucky he didn’t slow down with an overpair, but it taught me to trust my reads on aggressive players early in these things—some guys just can’t help overplaying.
Mid-stage was a slog. Blinds at 500/1,000, I’m hovering around 25k. Pick up 8s9s in the cutoff, and it’s folded to me. I raise to 2,500, button calls, blinds fold. Flop’s 10d-7h-2s. I’ve got an open-ender, so I c-bet 3,000. Button calls. Turn’s a 6c—boom, straight. I bet 6,500, he raises to 15k. I shove my last 13k or so, and he calls with QJ for the higher straight. Brutal. He had me covered, but I doubled through someone else a few hands later with KK vs AQ. Lesson here was obvious but hit hard: position matters, and chasing draws against a thinking player can backfire. I should’ve smelled the trap.
Late game, final two tables, blinds 2k/4k with a 400 ante. I’m at 60k, average stack. Get dealt 10h10d on the button. UTG+1 min-raises to 8k, I call, blinds fold. Flop’s 9s-5d-2c. He bets 10k, I call. Turn’s a 7h. He checks, I bet 15k, he calls. River’s a 3s. He checks again, I shove for 27k into a 56k pot. He folds after a minute, showing AJ. Felt good to flip the script and apply pressure, especially since I’d been card-dead for an hour. Takeaway: tens are sneaky strong late if you can read hesitation.
Busted when I jammed AKo preflop into AA with 12 left. Standard cooler, no regrets. Overall, I’m happy with the run—cashed for $220, so it’s a profit. Biggest thing I’m working on now is tightening up mid-tourney when the field thins but antes kick in. Anyone else notice how much harder it is to steal blinds these days? Curious what you all think about those spots or if you’ve got similar hands to chew on.
Early on, maybe 30 minutes in, I’m sitting with about 18k in chips, blinds at 100/200. I get dealt AQo in middle position. UTG raises to 600, one caller, and I decide to flat. Flop comes Qh-8d-3s. UTG bets 1,200, other guy folds, and I call with top pair. Turn’s a 5c, he fires 2,800, and I stick around. River’s a blank—2d. He shoves for 9k into a pot of about 8k. I tanked for a bit, but AQ felt strong enough to call. He flips over JJ, and I scoop it. Looking back, I probably got lucky he didn’t slow down with an overpair, but it taught me to trust my reads on aggressive players early in these things—some guys just can’t help overplaying.
Mid-stage was a slog. Blinds at 500/1,000, I’m hovering around 25k. Pick up 8s9s in the cutoff, and it’s folded to me. I raise to 2,500, button calls, blinds fold. Flop’s 10d-7h-2s. I’ve got an open-ender, so I c-bet 3,000. Button calls. Turn’s a 6c—boom, straight. I bet 6,500, he raises to 15k. I shove my last 13k or so, and he calls with QJ for the higher straight. Brutal. He had me covered, but I doubled through someone else a few hands later with KK vs AQ. Lesson here was obvious but hit hard: position matters, and chasing draws against a thinking player can backfire. I should’ve smelled the trap.
Late game, final two tables, blinds 2k/4k with a 400 ante. I’m at 60k, average stack. Get dealt 10h10d on the button. UTG+1 min-raises to 8k, I call, blinds fold. Flop’s 9s-5d-2c. He bets 10k, I call. Turn’s a 7h. He checks, I bet 15k, he calls. River’s a 3s. He checks again, I shove for 27k into a 56k pot. He folds after a minute, showing AJ. Felt good to flip the script and apply pressure, especially since I’d been card-dead for an hour. Takeaway: tens are sneaky strong late if you can read hesitation.
Busted when I jammed AKo preflop into AA with 12 left. Standard cooler, no regrets. Overall, I’m happy with the run—cashed for $220, so it’s a profit. Biggest thing I’m working on now is tightening up mid-tourney when the field thins but antes kick in. Anyone else notice how much harder it is to steal blinds these days? Curious what you all think about those spots or if you’ve got similar hands to chew on.