Still Alive for Day 2

Right now, the Renaissance Man ...

is probably out like a light, resting up for Day 2 of the WSOP Event #21, $3000 HORSE.

The field of 452 has wittled down to 198 competitors, including our man himself. Day 2 starts @ 2pm today. Official coverage, including tourney updates, chip counts, etc, can be found here.

The official event reports have had the honor of reporting some of the Renaissance Man's progress:

***********************

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 23:54:14

Schaaf Looking Solid

Last year's champion of the $1,500 H.O.R.S.E. event looks like he is our current chip leader. James Shaaf is up to 40,000 and change. He's sitting at a table with Fabrice Soulier, Nikolay Evdakov, and Vanessa Rousso.

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 02:12:37

Rousso Busto

Stud Vanessa Rousso: (X-X) (X) James Schaaf: (X-X) (X) Unknown Player: (X-X) (X) Rousso was all in on third street for her last 300 chips after placing in her ante. Schaaf completed and the other player called. Shaaf then check-raised fourth street and was called before leading on every street after that, where he was called as well. Schaaf tabled ( -X) for a full house, aces full of sevens. The third player mucked his hand and then Rousso showed her hole cards. She held ( ) in the hole and lost the hand. She was eliminated from the tournament.

***********************

We've received a first-hand report late @ ~4:00am:

*********************************

So things started the off great with me climbing to a one of the chip leaders (or at some times the absolute chip leader), a position I held for almost 5 hours. Then things got ugly.

Still I made it to second day with 17,100 chips which should put me right about in the middle of the pack. Final table possibilties still exist.

Some highlights:

I ran like a god early on. Not that many interesting hands, I just made monsters. Really easy to play.

One interesting hand early on was I limped utg with KQs(this was before the late comers were given seats so it was only 6 handed). I might have normally raised, but I had raised a lot because I had been getting good hands and was worried that people might think I was raising light. I felt better not facing possible raises on a c-bet with King high.
Young, geeky looking internet player raises from the big blind. I immediately put him as trying to take control of the table and playing aggressively, so I won't need to hit to continue. I think about raising, but just call.

Flop is AA9 1 heart. He bets, I call. Turn 3 no heart, he bets I call. I ready myself to make a crying call on the river with the 9 comes and he checks. I decide to check, and he shows K7u for a split. To bad the 9 came, but this was still probably a good hand. Showing you can't get run over is pretty good in these limit games.

Later, in hold'em. A guy who's aggressive with position raises from the hi-jack. Internet guy re-raises from the cut-off (which he's been doing a lot, I think to isolate). I have jacks in the small blind, and given the aggression level decide to 4-bet. Big blind 5-bets and caps (eek!). Internet guy and I call.

Flop is AJ9. Good flop, but I'm actually scared of aces, so I check-call. Internet guy folds. Turn is a T (Internet guy later claims to have folded tens). I check-call again. River is a beautiful, beautiful ace. Pocket aces seem unlikely now, and yet I might get a bet out of KK or QQ, and AK I'll be able to check-raise, which I do. He mucks when he sees my boat.

Still later on, I had missed that I had a flush in 7-eight or better (okay that's not a highlight, more of a low-light), and checked into a fairly tight guy who was showing 3 straightening low cards.
He actually had 2 pair, and when he asked why I didn't bet, I claimed that I was planning on check-raising him. This accidental misread might have paid dividends a few hands later in Hold-em. I had raised with a A4s from the highjack. He had called from the button, and one other person had called from the blind. Flop comes K23 rainbow. With the gutshot and over and lots of folding equity I decide to c-bet. Called by both--oops. Turn blank. I fire again hoping the one guy has an underpair (the blind I read as weak, and I think will fold). The guy on the button calls and the blind does fold. Now I'm in trouble when the river hits a J. If he's called this far with anything, he's going to call the river because the size of the pot and the possiblity I'm three-barreling. However, if I try a check-raise it might work. It wasn't too long ago he thinks I tried to check-raise on the river with a flush. So he might put me on a set, aces, king-jack or ace-king. Very few people can bluff that way with air, and he probably has no clue I'm one of them (at this point nobody at the table seemed to recognize me). Certainly most underpairs and big aces will fold. I might even get a king to fold. In any case, he tanks a LONG time before folding.

The ugliness started soon after the dinner break. The big hand the hurt me was Hold-em. One limper. Vanessa Rousso (who was directly to my right most of the day) raised. I re-raised with pocket aces. Button (a good, but annoying pro who seems to have a pretty good read on me, but doesn't seem to understand I have a pretty good read on him too) three-bet. Big blind (the sort of calling station who had been hitting well as opposed to the absolute calling station who had been hitting bad and was gone) called, vanessa folded. I four-bet everyone called. Flop a very, very ugly QKK. I probably should have been able to save some bets, but I didn't and called down to be shown the expected QQ.

I didn't recognize Vanessa at first, but she seemed friendly. I rewarded that friendliness by knocking her out near the end of the first day. She had completed with TKA, I had raised with split aces and a 7. Someone else flat-called with a 6 door card. Turn was a 7 for me, 4 for the 6, blank for her. I check-raised and was called. 5th street blanked for both of us, vanessa paired her door card. 6th street made me 7s full, and I got called down. Vanessa blanked the entire way. The six later claimed to have been rolled up. If so, I got real lucky.

After that I lost a lot of chips when my semi-bluffs, razz hands, and low hands didn't hit and when my high hands didn't hold up. I also probably wasn't playing as well (though not, I think, really badly. Just not really good either.) Too loose in starting hand requirement allowed people to call my semi-bluffs more.

I ended the day lucky. Trying to steal with 46 of clubs, betting every street and then raising good when he led the river on a Q546K board.

I think the table I was at was pretty tough after a couple of the weaker players busted early. Apparently, besides Vanessa, there were a couple of notable pros there. Also after Vanessa busted, a famous old-time pro I recognized but can't recall his name sat down (I'll get it sometime). The only hand we played, he completed with split 6s in stud-8 and I raised with split queens. He spike a 6 on 4th ugh.

Anyway, I'm pretty tired, going to get some rest. Cards are in the air at 2PM tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Jim

PS the WSOP blog claims at one point I was the chip leader with around 40,000 chips. I never actually had that many, I topped out around 35-36,000. Though I would have been past it if my aces had held up.