Bitches, Man!...Cont.

Saturday was much like the previous two days at the Bike. I had trouble getting anything going with crap cards and tons of raising ahead of me.

I was seated at the same table from the night before but it was full of tight/trappy players this time. Fortunately, a couple of the guys at the other end of the table were talking and having fun so I was able to enjoy it.

After sitting around, paying blinds, folding on missed flops, I was able to limp in middle position with 2s-2c. Five of us saw a flop of 7h-6c-2h. The blinds checked and I lead out with $15 into the $21 pot (after rake) and was called by one late position player and the big blind. The turn was an off-suit 4. BB checked, I paused briefly to consider the possible straight and came up with a $50 bet. The late player folded and it came back to the BB. He thought only briefly before declaring "all-in." He was sitting with about $1500 and I had already picked up on him using it to bully some pots. I had $255 left behind but that didn't even factor in. I new it was a huge bet into me but I was already prepared to make it. It only took about two beats for me to say "call." But he was distracted by a player on his left and didn't hear me. The dealer didn't hear me either as he was rearraging the pot and rake, or something like that, which he should not have been doing.

So I repeated myself to the BB and then to the dealer. They finally got it and the dealer peeled off the river, a black J. I thought momentarily that it could have been a bad card if the guy had been bluffing with paint (obviously wrong). At any rate, I waited for him to show since I had called him and he was first in order. He revealed 7-5 for top pair, open-ended on the turn. My set miraculously held up. When I tabled it, the BB was stunned. For several hands after that, he continued to discuss it with the guys next to him. I never told him that I called because I thought he was making a move. I decided to let him make up his own mind, likely that it was a loose donk call.

The table was still pretty dead for action, though, and I was freezing my ass off directly under an AC vent. So I asked for a table change and was immediately moved. At first, the new table didn't seem any different than the first but it turned out to have a few very soft players and a couple fun people to talk to. Unfortunately, things didn't really go my way there. In one hand, I checked T-T from the BB with three limpers after thinking that I would raise from there if I had a big hand. But when I looked at it, I changed my mind. Bad choice. Flop was T-T-5. I checked and so did everyone else. I decided to bet the turn when a 9 came because someone might have picked up a straight draw. No dice...no action. The only good thing I took away from it was that I didn't show and resisted the urge to brag about it. After all, it is best to leave as much unknown as possible.

Later, I raised preflop and made a continuation bet after everyone checked to me. I had $150 behind and bet $70 into a $100 pot. It folded back to the player on my right (new to the table) who MIN-RAISED ME! At the first table, I had been minned three or four times. I was already quite sick of it. But I had missed the flop so I decided to lay down. As I discussed it with the guy on my left, I realized the other player may have just min-raised because he knew it essentially put me all-in. I asked him, "Did you know how much I had left?" to which he replied, "Huh?" So, no. He was just min-raising because that's what people do.

I wasn't steaming but did pick up Q-Q on the very next hand and decided to push for my remaining $80 after the min-ster had limped. I hadn't given it any serious thought. I simply thought I might take advantage of the "tilt" image from the previous hand and maybe get called by a hand I dominate. It folded back to the min-ster and he went into the tank. He actually asked how much more it was, as if the exact amount really mattered...it was alot compared to the $5 he had in. He decide to call and the rest was down hill. The board ended up being 10-high so I figured I was either up against a set or I was good. After studying the board, he announced that he had a straight. Really? Yep. Jd-8d completed a straight.

Oh, well. I got what I had hoped for but it just didn't work out. I rebought and played for a couple more hours without much success to speak of. I cashed out at 3:30am -540.

Damn. I am not happy after writing this. I think I'll have a scotch before trying to sleep and save the rest for another day. I still haven't gotten to the inspiration for the title of this series.

SEEYa