Many of the greatest poker players on the planet descended on The Casino at The Empire in Leicester Square, London, last month, trying to win millions of dollars and a World Series of Poker Europe bracelet.
There was near unanimous agreement that each of the four WSOPE bracelets up for grabs would count as coveted WSOP hardware. Hey, every great poker player wants to win a bracelet, baby!
I pulled my usual shenanigans right from the start by riding ten blocks through the heart of London in a chariot dressed as Caesar. The entrance was way over the top, with double-decker busses whizzing by and thousands of people in the streets snapping photos. I felt a bit stupid dressed as Caesar but did it anyway because my entrances are just plain fun. They’re good for my image and good for the game of poker.
Did I mention that I arrived at The Empire surrounded by eleven gorgeous models wearing white Roman-style dresses? Now that was a sight!
Once on the casino floor, though, it was time to play some serious poker. But given how I’ve been playing recently, that was no easy task.
I haven’t played consistently strong poker for the last year or two because I’ve been experimenting with my game. I’ve migrated away from my traditional patient style of play and moved towards a looser and more aggressive approach.
The results have been mixed. Though I did manage to cash six times at the WSOP in Vegas this year, I failed to make a final table for the first time in something like ten years.
A perfect example of this more aggressive style is the way I’ve been playing suited connectors.
The problem with calling raises and reraises with suited connectors like 8c-7c is that you’re often placed in tough positions where you have to make difficult decisions. For example, do you call a big bet or fold when the flop comes down J-8-2?
Of course, suited connectors occasionally will yield a huge winning hand, but more often than not, you’ll just get buried with this type of hand.
Suited connectors can also cause huge chip swings and that’s not how I like to play the game. I prefer to show my super-strong hands, or even the nuts, whenever I decide to push all of my big chips into the pot.
Anyway, back at the WSOPE, I raised it up with 10s-7s under the gun and was called by four players.
The flop came 10c-9d-6s and I bet $1,500 into a $3,000 pot.
The player behind me made it $3,000 to go and the action folded around to me. I knew I had to go with this hand. I only had $8,500 chips left and my opponent was playing very loose poker.
I moved all-in and my opponent called immediately, showing 10-9 for two pair – ouch! I needed to hit an eight or two running spades to win.
Well, the miracle 8s hit on the turn. Now, my opponent couldn’t even win if the 9s fell on the river as it would make my straight flush.
The river was another harmless eight and I was fortunate to be alive in the tournament.
That hand really forced me to reevaluate my recent style of play. I used to go days without pushing my chips all-in but with this more aggressive style, I found myself shoving all-in on Day One!
So, it’s back to playing classic, super-tight Phil Hellmuth poker. It’ll take a few sticks of dynamite to knock me out of a poker tournament in the years to come!
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