Happy new year to everybody!

December 31. saw Katja and me playing a €300 two-table live tournament. It was held in the Spielbank Hamburg, a place where we seldom play any poker anymore as they fail to adjust the tax to a reasonable level. But, this tourney was an exception as it was tax-free, no entry-fee, 100% payout and given the players it had a huuuge overlay for everybody even able to cover his hand correctly. So, we skipped a party and went to the casino (isn't that 'pro'? lol). The tourney found 17 players and when I drawed for my seat it was the ace of spades (table 1, seat 1) which I took for a good sign. Katja re-drawed until she had a seat at the other table.

The tournament started fine for me, I made a straight in the very hand when I limped in with 78o and Frank, my former weightbet opponent (who refuses to take the same bet again) also only limped in with AK. Flop was A67, he made a small bet, got a caller and I called also. Turn was 9, it went check-check-check and the river was a 5, both checked to me and I made a pot sized bet which was not called. The pot held about 400 chips anyway (1500 start chips) and that was a nice start for me. I was able to run my chips up to 3000 without ever being in any danger when the "final table" got build (Katja made an early exit when her AQs met KK and got no help)

So was the situation at December 31., about 22:30. I was feeling good, about the situation, the game and with my new owned luck I expected nothing bad. Well, this would not be yours truly little blog would things not come down in the most nasty way since then. This is how that and two others tournaments went since then:

1. In that live tourney I happened to get NO cards at all when the final table started, no two paints, no ace-x, not even king-x, only hands like 52o, 93o, 84o and so on. I had no chance to make a play at all as in the 10 seat was an aggressive danish player who knew what he was doing. He raised almost always and with two big stacks right behind me I could not fight there without at least a decent hand which I did not get. So I went down in chips to about 1,000 when only 5 players including me were left. I was the short stack. I picked up TT on the button and "raised" the BB by 40 (BB was already 1,000). I won the hand! Then the two chip leaders clashed and only 4 players were left, 3 in the money. I was the small stack again but with two other players also in danger. UTG I picked up QQ and shoved my money in, not even being able to raise as I did not had enough to cover the BB. UTG+1 called, SB called and BB checked. Nice. Flop was all rags with one diamond but turn was a wonderfull Qd! I started to feel like I could win that hand with my set. River was a diamond blank, I opened, big ahs-and-ohhs but even more ahhs-and-ohhs when the BB showed J6 of diamonds for a flush and I was out in 4th place. We left the place in a hurry, not even taking time to say goodbye to anybody or even paying our small check (I was a little pissed as you might figure). Katja and I arrived in the new year 2006 at home, togehter, which I figure is the best way possible to arrive anywhere!!!

2. Sunday (Jan 1st) I played a $50 MTT at party. I had a nice stack after 2 hours which I lost with AK and a board of A47 against AT when a T showed up on the river (sounds familar?)

3. The $500k guaranteed on party saw me playing for about 3 hours and holding an average stack which first got cut to half by running with AKs in late position vs. AA in the BB (nice) and then in the hand right after I got KK, called a raise and moved in with about 1200 into a 1800 pot when both other players checked to me on the 3-4-4 board. One folded but the other called after some hesitation, showing AQ. Turn was save but the river was an A and I was out (700 left of over 2900). Sigh.

So I figure it still takes some time to allow this new luck of mine to really get accoustimzed to my personal conditions and as it looks this is no easy task. Katja and I talked for a while about all the beats we took very late in big-buy events in the months behind and we were laughing about'em. At least that's something good - and I won some money in the cashgames to cover the tournament costs thru the last days.