Tuesday 9/15 1pm shoot-out at Thunder Valley: $20+2 buy-in, 3,000 chips, 32 players >> chop top 5 ($110 prize)
With 3,000 and starting blinds at 100 and 200, you're already with an M of 10 at the very first hand! First table shoot-out: every move counts, so no fooling around with marginal hand, but play aggressive if you decide to enter the pot. It's not exciting and I can't recall a single "important hand" even though I finished 1st.

Fun hand: first hand dealt at the final table, with 8 players. I have the button; the SB and BB on my left made comments that with the structure at Thunder Valley and a probable chop 6-way, the goal was to survive the two unlucky who will get busted out of the money. I decided then that I would push those guys to try and steal their blinds even with an average hand. The UTG+1 limps in, rest of the table folds. I find ATs of heart in the pocket, 500 chips in the pot, I raise 3 times the BB to 600. SB folds, BB calls and complains that I am "bullying" the table. UTG+1 folds. The flop is KJ9, with 2 clubs. Heads-up, BB checks: I don't have much, some draws, but I can probably shake him loose with a continuation bet. I bet 800 (half the pot) and BB complains again of why oh why I would bully people, but he calls! That's smelly and bad news, I don't like that a bit because the guy looked pretty savvy when I watched him win his table. Turn is a beautiful Q of diamonds, making me a straight, but with 2 clubs and 2 diamonds on the board. BB checks again, I have made my straight, now what? Check is out of question: 2 flush draws, he must pay to beat me. But I don't want to lose him, I'd like to bust him now, because I feel he's got either a massive draw from the start, or even one or two pairs. I settle on a 900 bet: we each have 1,600 chips, so I somewhat hope he'd feel committed by a call, and even attempt now an all-in raise with bad pot odds. Unfortunately, his holdings must have been a bit weaker than I thought, or he was smarter, because he laid down his hand... Good start!

Sunday 9/6 3pm shoot-out at Thunder Valley: $30+3 buy-in, 3,000 chips, 50 players >> Finished 1st (almost $300 prize)

Nice move? Avoided the bigger stacks, played position and then aggressively, looked intently at each player before making any decision, slow played a couple of hands... finished 1st on the first table of 10. No big hand what-so-ever... a bit dull in fact. Final table, I have folded 30 hands in a row - all very weak or with dangerous prior action. Started catching better cards and pushed: climbed quickly.

Lucky hand: on the final table, down to 8 players (only top 6 paid) I am chip leader, in the SB with TJ off. BB is the short stack. It's folded around to me: I suspect BB will move all in with big cards, so my TJ would play well, but if I show strength, I'd lose him, so I call his BB. He bets all-in quickly: I put him on an ace or 2 big cards, and I call. He shows AT off, I hate being dominated. Flop is Q97; turn is a 6 and we both have straight draws; the river is a lucky 8: he makes a lower straight and thinks we tie, but my Jack plays for a higher straight, he's out.

Last hand: when we started the final table (10 players) we agreed that when down to 6 players, we would chop for $250 each. Otherwise, 1st place is only $450 and the other 5 prizes not exciting... Down to 6, we call the floor and announce we chop 6-way, but 2 guys propose a side-bet of 10 bucks each, we keep playing and 2nd gets $20, 1st gets $40. Fun play then! No more jockeying for position, it became real poker! Down to heads-up, I am still chip leader (2 to 1 advantage.) SB goes all-in with A9 off, I find AT suited and call, and made the flush! Won the $250 and the $40 prop-bet!!!

Friday 9/5 High-Rollers at Deuces Wild: $100+10+5 buy-in, 11,000 chips, 30 players >> Finished 5th (about $250 prize)

Nice move? down to ~15 players, blinds creeping up, M down to ~7, the conservative UTG guy limps in, I decide, in late position to raise all-in with a weak A6 off. Blinds fold, and UTG mocks his AQ, very upset. I am glad but shut-up. Next hand on his BB I get Queens! I shove all-in again, SB folds, and he mocks his hand again. I realize my relatively tight image might be compromised, so I show my QQ saying "two hands in a row, amazing!" Image reinforced.

Lucky hand: SB is a jerk, aggressive big stack but very lucky. UTG is the short-stack (M=4) ultra-conservative. I am on the button with M ~6 and a pocket 9s. UTG goes all in (2/3rd of my stack); it's folded up to me: I grab all my chips to go all-in but the SB jumps the gun and announces all-in out of turn. I freeze and re-consider: the jerk is not crazy, and exudes confidence (and apologizes...) I decide to fold and he shows Queens, UTG shows AKs. First card on the flop is a Queen, end of story... Free-roll baby!

Last hand: 6th place finish was the BB on my right, and got busted by one of the 2 massive chip leaders.
BB moves to me at 4,000 leaving me with 32,000. Nader (the other chip leader) raises on the cut-off to 10,000. I have an M of 5+ but in 2 minutes blinds go up to 3,000 and 6,000 or an M of 3! I found a pocket deuces in the hole and push all in. Nader pushes all his chips and shows pocket rockets. Good night, $250 is not too bad!