Round 1: The Expert

It’s always a pleasure to play and deal in the SIG Poker tourney and 2015 was no different. It’s about the nicest poker tournament around, with everyone very willing to help beginners as well as discuss hands. Of course, that doesn’t change the competitive nature, and the fact that some players may consider me a target to take down. I usually plan to take advantage of this, trying to win some small pots, but knowing I will need to win a few confrontations. We started with 1000 in chips, and at the beginning of the 30-60 blind round (Round 3), I had about 1250. No major confrontations, and I did get a couple bets in with K7 on the river, but lost a few hands where I had to fold the flop or turn. I had just moved to the table one hand ago, and in the small blind, I had 66. The button, who seemed to have at least 5000 in chips, raised to 200. My major clue as to how the button plays is from his number of chips. I decided to go all-in, trying to increase my stack by 260 if the button folds, and don’t really mind taking him on unless he has a big pair. BB folds, button calls with JT. Not a terrible call, and probably fitting with his style. Interestingly enough, this is one of the best hands to play against 66 when you don’t have a pair. Well, a T hit the board, and I was out.