A few weeks ago I put a lil money on PokerStars and have been playing the PCA Steps. The Steps are single table tournament satellites or sit n' go's in a step format that if you make it all the way to step 6 and win you go to the PCA all expenses paid . They start at step 1 which you can buy into for $7.50 and go to step 6 which is a $2100.00 buy in. Place in the top two places and go to the next step, 3rd or 4th get another chance at that step, 5th or 6th in step 2 or higher and go back one step and try again. So its not to hard to make it to the top 6 if you can dodge some bullets and play good, making it to the top 2 is tough cause these sit n' go's are turbos so the blinds increase every 5 mins.
Well I bought into step 2 which was $27.00 and placed in the top 2 all the way to step 5 where I placed in 3rd and had to retry that step and then placed in the top 2 my very next try. So I had made it to step 6 the final step where 1st gets the PCA prize package + $1000.00 2nd gets $2100.00 and 3rd gets $1600. I wasn't sure if I wanted to play it right away or wait a few days to play it. I had been playing well all night so I decided to go ahead and play it right away, so I went ahead and registered. The structure in this one is a bit better T$3000 and 10 minute blinds.
I got a lil short early on when I limped from the button with only the small and big blinds left to act, I should of raised just to steal but opted to limp instead, big mistake. SB folds BB calls flop comes 586 rainbow, I froppa da nutz. BB checks, I bet 30 he raises to 120, I just call and start to have a really bad feeling about this hand. Turn is a 10 and BB leads out 270 and I just call, only cause my gut is telling me this hand is not going to end well and I don't want to loose any more then I have to. I know if the board pairs I could be in trouble and wouldn't ya know it a 8 comes off on the river. BB leads out for 750 and I call when I know I should fold and he of course has 85 off suit for the rivered boat (see full hand history here). I'm pretty sure if I had re-raised him on the flop or raised the turn all the money would have gone in before the river and since I had a bad feeling I opted to just play it safe/weak and call him down after the flop.
I loose another hand with 88 when I raised and c-bet the the KQ6 flop and had to fold when the caller raised me all in. Down to T$1350 now uggh! I raise a few pots from LP and pick up a few pots and start the gradual incline back up to T$1540 and I pick up 77 and put in a small raise to 500 SB min raises to 1000 and I move in. He has AJ need I say more the flop comes 10 high I turn a set and I double up plus some. (full hand history). I'm sitting with T$3280 now and get dealt 10 10 on the button and put in a raise to 900, the same guy from earlier shoves again putting me all in and I call he has AJ again, need I say more? AJ never wins LOL (full HH) At this point I have T$6410 and I'm just like wow! I'm winning races, something I'm not used too and can't believe I have this many chips so I just hunker down and play my best game.
I get 33 UTG and raise to 900, blinds are 150/300 with 25 ante, MP guy goes all in for 1020 more, I call he's got 77, I go yuck and can't watch cause I hate doubling up the short stack. I look back in time to see a pretty 6 fall on the river that makes me a straight and take in a nice 4K pot (full HH) sitting with T$8840 now 6 players left. I ran that up to around T$10K at one point back down to 5K and back up to a lil over 8K and the blinds were getting vicious wen we finally got down to 5 players. At this point I played the toughest part of the tournament, this was the tightest and toughest table I ever played and it seemed like it took forever for us to loose the next player which we do and we are down to 4. After that the next guy went out about 4 hands later and I'm in the money and in the running for 1st and PCA package.
Not too much more to talk about, 5 hands later we are down to the final 3 when the button shoves all in and I'm in the BB with Aces.....oops (full HH) Aces are way goot and we are down to two. We are heads up and about even in chips and I take a small chip lead, we played about 8 more hands and I'm in the BB for 800, he completes his SB, 400, to 800 and we see a flop. Flop comes out 8d5h7c I lead out for 1600, SB raises to 4200 and I call. Turn is a 10h now I'm open ended with a flush draw so I shove putting the SB all in and he calls and boy do I need some assistance and boy do I get it when a pretty Jh falls on the river. (full HH) I take down step 6 and prize package worth $14,300 which includes a trip to the Bahamas to play in the PCA at the Atlantis resort, the $10K buy in to the main event at the PCA, and $1K in cash.
