Looking forward to the West Palm trip coming up this week, and glad to be done with Tunica. I will say that there were lots of sketchy plays I seen while there, but that's the beauty of Tunica...You get to play with soooo many bad players.
I showed up the 1st weekend to fire at the the 1st event there...the 2 day entry and got lambasted with the flood of people that turned out for the Superbowl weekend in Tunica. Wow...its been since...like...WPO 2006 that I saw 70-80 people on the 1-3/2-5 NL list and a two hour wait to play cash. Lines at every tournament in town...having to drive to Harrah's and park in South Memphis ...it was crazy. I went late to the Goldstrike for their Monthly Guarantee tourney and was greeted at the top of the escalators with a line wrapping into the Theatre area and the Poker Room manager announcing to the crowd, "You'll know this is a DeepStack event and we will seat alternates for about 15 more minutes"...to a line of about 60 people...to which they all just stood there like drones ...like the poker "Red Sea" was going to part and they would miraculously get a seat. It was bizarre to see everything from the online wanna-be standing 40 players deep in line with his headphones around his neck/head all cockeyed with his hoodie over his head ...to Grandma Jones straight out of her cash game at the old folks home at the end of the line.
Yea...the sights and sounds of Tunica, MS are an awaking indeed. Just read Bills latest Blog...But I did uncover one "Jewel" that made my trip worthwhile.
Ever since my run at the IP in late 2011, I have a ritual I have been doing on tourney days. Its what my wife and Bill call "GTL"...Only without the T and the L...LOL... I like to wake up and get the workout area about 10am...do a good Cardio workout...then hit the "wet side" of the men's spa. That would include a locker for your stuff...Hot tub/Hot Sauna/Steam room/private showers/Lounge area with fresh fruit and fresh squeezed juices. I like to just sit in the Sauna/Steam Room and just clear my mind of anything that is bothering me and after a nice cool shower...hit the tourney. I feel like a million dollars when I get to my seat. I have also been swimming at the local YMCA here in my hometown, and I feel soooooo much better being able to get in a good exercise routine in to my schedule.
Well the IP has a pretty nice Spa and its only an $8 charge on weekdays/$15 Weekends...the Beau's is a flat $20...and the Harrah's Tunica Bellissimo Spa located in the Terrace building rocked them all. This place rocked big time for only $20 but comps are given. They have a "cold dip" tub right next to the 2 hot tubs. Its round and about 4 feet deep and you "dip in" after the hot tubs. I watched several guys do it, but I could not bring myself to do it. I said I was going to before I left and I told the guys working there I was...but I didn't have the sack to do it. Also...they have a "Swedish" shower in there that has 12-14 shower heads hitting you at once in an enclosed Shower...its shear heaven. I have run into several Poker Players there...David Sidler at the IP and then ran into Paul "Bicycle" Sokoloff at the Spa in Tunica the morning he won 1st place and a ring in event #2 for over $40k
Ok...I have said something positive about Tunica so I can move on...LOL
The Tunica trip also took me back to reality as far as missing my wife and son. In my previous blog I said I was going to road trip it to West Palm leaving last Thurs and playing the HPT in Daytona...on to the West Palm event. I missed my family sooooo much the 4 days in Tunica...I passed on those plans and instead just booked my flight and hotel room. I just don't think I could be away from them for that long, and I was there with Bill too... and I saw how hard it was for him being gone the whole series from his wife and kids...its tough. In a matter of 4 days my son started talking in complete sentences and forming his own thoughts and sentences. When I called home on Sunday and he answered my wife's phone saying, "Hey daddy...Im going to 2 Birthday parties today"...Tears welled up in my eyes and I almost dropped my phone.
Well I made it through that 1st event with no cash ...Me coming in bout 190th out of close to 1250 players. They payed like 112 I think. I am in the SB and everyone folds around to the button who has a big stack...he is raising there as I would with UNO cards. I shove 13 bigs over the button with A-J and get stammer called by the BB sitting on 15 bigs saying, "Oh well...I c-c-c-c call"...Button pitches and BB turns up K-Qo. Jeremy Drewery and I just look at each other stunned and I say, "Really man...you called there"...as I stood out of my chair and turned my back and grabbed my backpack. I knew I was toast...I could feel it. I don't look and after a few seconds I ask, "Is it over"...to what Jeremy says, "Yea...Don't look though"...and we started laughing as I packed up. I mean my shove range right there has him crushed...the best he could have hoped for was a flip with me holding J-J or 10-10...and the chances of me having A-K/A-Q there are so high then he's crushed...both are at the top of my shove range there. Siiiigghhhhh
What else ...I want to give a shout out as we were on the same table for quite awhile to Justin "truesyalose" Truesdell. Really nice guy and a hell of a poker player. We were sitting at the same table close to each other when he found out that his buddy Josh Mancuso had just shipped the Main at Borgata (see site for details)...Trues said he actually told Josh how nasty it was in A.C and he shouldn't go...LOL. I think Justin made a FT in a mixed game event during the series.
Also...Congrats goes out to Jeremy Drewery who cashed 4 times during this event with a 2nd place in one of the last $345 events...and to Rodney "Coach" Shows who gets himself a ring and close to $18k for winning the last ring event of the series.
Personally...The job front is rocking forward...more on that later once I land somewhere.
Today's Valentines Day and want to say Happy V-Day to my Beautiful Wife Julie and all the females that may read this.
Time for my Facebook rant...I have gotten criticized recently for not being "active enough" on Facebook as I don't even have a pic on my profile...LOL... Personally...I prefer to be a "Lurker"...I don't like Facebook...I can't stand some of the "Dribble" people post...but sometimes its like a "Trainwreck"...you have to rubberneck it just to see exactly how stupid some people are and how "Bizarre" their life can be. Oh well...my friends on Facebook know who they are and maybe the trainwrecks will somehow get the wheels "Back on the Track".
Ivey had his "Valentines Day" party today at Day Care and his Momma dressed him up...I wanted camo gear but instead he went as a Candy Kane...LOL...Pics below
"Some people never go crazy. What truly horrible lives they must lead"
Mickey Rourke as Henry in "BarFly"
