EPT Barcelona, Day Two

I’m in the six, the legendary Annette_15 is in the seven with less than 10k, and Paul is in the 8 with 12k. There was another short stack to his left, and some big stacks to my right. I knew right away I was going to have to play tight (what else is new?) but the table broke after a wild half hour where someone was all-in almost every hand.

25,000
400-800-100

The very first hand UTG raises to 2300. Normally everyone just quickly folds in this situation but I look down at two queens in third position. Right away I didn’t know what to do. A wild thought went through my head to just fold the hand but I laughed that off. I also ruled out calling as I would have no idea where I stood on a rag flop. I ultimately decided to make a small reraise to 5600 as I knew that would look powerful but let me get away from the hand if he pushed in. In other words, he couldn’t push me off the hand unless he had kings or aces. He called the reraise, the flop came 882, and I knew I was dead if he had decided to slowplay kings or aces. He check-folded to my bet of 6600.

Raise the very next hand with AQ all fold.

Two hands later folds to me in SB I pick up A4s and shove Annette (BB) in for her 8kish stack she folds.

Fold A7o HJ, 76o CO, 46s in 3^rd pos all of this 7-handed.

Moved to a new table which is absolutely loaded with chips. Menlo is on my left, dmmikkel is two to his left, a dude with 70k is to his left, and a dude with 80k (who I later found out was this Ansky character) to his left.

The first hand I play, the CO (Scandinavian kid) raises to 2500 and I smoothcall with AA on the button. With Menlo and a short stack lurking in the blinds I was looking for a squeeze but they didn’t take the bait. The flop came 7s5d4c and the Scandi bet 3300. He had about 27k to work with after the flop as did I. The danger of slowplaying AA in spots like this is if you get outflopped, you will probably go broke. I decided the best way for me to play the hand was to make some weak-looking raise and let him go all-in with a hopefully inferior hand. I stumbled with my chips for a bit and then finally made it 9k. Thirty seconds later he had moved all in and I had called and he had flipped over Ac7c. Just a few seconds after that the dealer had turned over a club on the turn and another on the river, my opponent had made the nut flush, and we were counting the stacks down. I was left with a laughable 300 chips and wanted to get out of the casino, but the horror wasn’t over just yet.

300
500-1000-100

The next hand UTG raised and I called all-in without looking. Everyone else folded, UTG turned over 66 and I woke up with 99, held on, and was up to 1500 chips.

I folded the next three hands and then “pushed” all-in for 1200 UTG with AQ. Mikkel made a small raise which cleared everyone out and got me head up against his KTs. I won that one too to quadruple up.

The very next hand I was in the BB with 1k of my 4.4k in the pot. A short stack moved all-in from early position and I picked up two kings and doubled through his QJo. Now I was up to 10k.

A few hands later Ansky, who was raising a lot, raised UTG to 3k and I shoved with 99 for 9500 a few spots behind. Everyone folded to Ansky who had to call with his K8s. He flopped a king and that was it for me. I really wish I had just busted out on the AA hand rather than have my hopes raised again only to take another bad beat.