Up until the dinner break I was feeling very sure of myself. I started the day at 69k and managed to get my stack up to 115k although I was surrounded by big stacks and pros. I thought the poker gods were on my side, especially after this hand slightly before dinner break. In mid-position I raise to 2,500 holding 8s. I get one caller and then a Danish poker pro who was on the button and had a massive stack makes it 7,500 and then the short stack on the bb shoves for 13.5k. I fold, and the two guys behind me call. But of course the flop is a 8d, 6d, 4c and the turn is 6s. Would have made the boat. On massive tilt cursing my luck, when the 7d appears on the river and then after more betting the Danish pro shows the straight flush. I would have been out and dodged a bullet.
Filled with confidence, two hands after our return from dinner, it is folded around to me in sb where I find a9. I raise, poker pro with decent size stack to my left calls. A-10-3 on the flop, and long story short my pair of aces lose 20k as he called me with 10-3. A couple of hands later, I lose another 20k with aq, when q hits on flop, but another good size stack holding onto a flush draw, hits a k on river. Now I am down to 55k in chips and on massive tilt.
I got down to 35k, doubled up, back up to 80k, back down to 40k when another guy hit a straight on river against my aq which turned into trip qs. In the 9th hour of poker on the day, down to 25k and with each revolution costing 4200, I shove on sb with a5 after button makes a positional raise after it was folded to her. But bb woke up with qqs and I was gone.
Being told not a bad showing for my first wsop, but after I dodged that bullet, I was convinced I was destined for greatness.
Anyway, good luck to everyone playing today.
Michael Levine
Cell 917 414 0371
Nice run Mike! Good game.