Sorry folks! Life gets in the way so its taken me some time to get back to this. But here we go....
I'll be honest - my note-taking wasn't the best from here on in, because I moved tables four times over the next two hours, mostly due to the number of busts, but also due to being BB once or twice. I do want to focus on a technique I used in some spots that I want to develop as I make my trip to the WSOP in June (June 5-10, for anyone going).
The loudish guy to my right offered me a stick of gum. I was hesitant at first to chew it, but I was sitting on a 40BB stack with around 200 left, and I rarely play it safe, so I thought I'd mess with the rhythm of my chewing and see if I could develop some kind of tell that someone would try to exploit. A spewy guy ahead of me raised to 7500 at 3K/6K and I three bet him with 8c9c. He calls. Flop is K86. He checks and I shove. I start a rhythmic chewing at a constant rhythm and look him straight in the eye. Usually a sign of weakness, he didn't really know what to do with the 3-bet, as I hadn't really gotten out of line at this table yet and he knew it. He agonized for a good two minutes, to the point where someone at the table considered calling clock, and then he said, "Will you show if I fold?" Usually I'll say something witty like, you can call and find out, but instead I just kept my chewing constant and said, "No." Realizing that he was truly confused, I just kept going. Chew, chew chew. He eventually folded. Over the next hour I used this technique three more times, all on a flope shove, all resulting in folds. I was surprised no one picked up on it and tried to fight back, but sometimes I did have the best of it on the flop, to be honest. Tables were falling fast and I was doing ok with about 25BB and the bubble approaching.
The bubble broke incredibly fast, you could hear 'seat open' in rapid fire over the next five minutes, so fast you couldn't actually keep track, but then the floor came by and said the bubble had broken as he headed to the mic to announce it. Table cards are handed out and I sit at a new table, and wake up with QQ on the first hand.
There's no action ahead of me so at 6K/12K, I raise it to 24K. two to my left, I guy who has me covered shoves. I know nothing about this table, no read on the guy, so I figure he knows this and I shove. He tables AQ and whee! I'm ahead. Flop, blanks for both, turn nothing, and then the river, where I'm about 94% to win, the ace comes, and I'm out, in 51st place, min-cashing for my efforts.
That was just pure bad luck, and winning that would have put me n good shape, but I can't fault my play there, or realy anywhere on the day. I put my chips at risk a little more than I'd like, but interestingly enough it was the first and only hand I lost at showdown the entire tournament, which I guess you kinda need to do to win, right?
Looking forward to Vegas this summer, as I'm aiming to do a flight of The Giant while I'm there, play cash and some other tournaments - and I'll definitely be bringing my gum. :)
