Big radio show, small tournament, lots of fun

I was in Las Vegas the last few days to do a special, two-hour live, remote broadcast of my Internet radio show, Keep Flopping Aces, which airs every Thursday on www.holdemradio.com, at 9:00 PM, Eastern Time.

This was a special, two-hour show, originating from the Gamblers Bookshop. Live shows always have a lot of energy, and this one was energy packed, primarily because of our guests and topics. Mary Jones, who won the Women’s event at this year’s World Series of Poker, was our first guest. Back when she won the event, initial reports said that she was 84 years, but they got it wrong by about 40 years. Mary was a terrific guest who has been on a roll lately, winning another event in Atlantic City and placing in a WPT tournament within the past few weeks.

Nolan Dalla was up next, and Nolan, Howard Schwartz — the Gambler’s Bookshop proprietor — and I discussed the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act, where Nolan passionately expanded on his now famous, “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention!” statement.

Because of some technical difficulties, we were not able to bring in co-host Amy Calistri, who was would have been broadcasting from Austin, TX. So Earl Burton and Jennifer Shoots filled in and interviewed Dr. Al Schoonmaker who was onsite too.

It was a great show, and if you missed it when it aired, you can hear it in the “show vault” at Hold’em Radio, or you can listen to it as a podcast on i-Tunes.

On Saturday, I played in a small poker tournament that’s put on every year by Nana, a long-time, local poker player. This event was held at Sunset Station in Henderson. Because Nana is a regular guest on Hold’em Radio, a number of show hosts showed up to play in her tournament. When it got down to three handed, to our surprise, the final three finalists were all show hosts on Hold’em Radio, so apparently we can play as good a game as we talk.

I got lucky and managed to win it, so for me, and for the honor of Keep Flopping Aces, it was a terrific time.

Saudi Arabia Advances in Little League World Series

How surprised was I to learn that Saudi Arabia actually has a little league baseball team. They're not that bad either. The Arabian Americans of Dhahran play tonight at 6 PM ET (ESPN2 for those of you stateside), though they've already advanced out of pool play into the Little League World Series semifinals. So in five years are we going to hear names like "Abdullah" and "Majed" on the loudspeaker at Yankee Stadium? Probably not, the team is comprised of American expatriots whose parents work for Saudi Aramco (thus, the team name "Arabian American").

First Baseman Aaron Durley, 13 years old, standing at 6'8", 256 pounds

UPDATE: Yahoo Sports just posted an article about "Arabia's biggest export," check it out here. "'All of us are American,' Durley said, 'but we're representing Arabia.'"

Playing some limit hold'em

I played some 3/6 on WPEX (limit). Played 3 sessions, lost some, then won some, then lost some more, ended up a net loss of about $80. I really suck.

Then I played a bunch of 10c/20c limit. Won about $30. Those are what you'd call very soft games.

Just now I finished a $10 tournament. I'm finishing up the final table as I write this.

Nothing really memerable has happened.

One hand that reminded me of something needs to be noted, I think.

Early in the tournament, I have KcTc. The table is 8 handed. The UTG has 3,000 chips, I have 1,200. He limps. One fold. It's my turn. What should I do.

I limped behind him. I think a fold would have been fine. But, if I'd have been first in I'd probably have raised. And, if the UTG player had only had a couple hundred chips I'd probably have raised (blinds were small).

The point is, both your stack size and his stack size is important to take into account. If you're both deep you want to avoid any kind of raising war, but you do want to limp in with the hopes of busting him. I probably wasn't so deep as to make that an important point to keep in mind.

Anyway, I finished 4th in the tournment. Cashed $71. Makes up a little for the fiascos in the 3/6 limit game.

I think that puts the bankroll at $265. At adding $10 a day I'd have been better off if I hadn't played at all in the last month.

10 Sports Moments often overlooked

Today on SonsoftheSportsGuy.com, our pal "BostonSucksMyBalls" mocked the overexposure of the Buckner play in the '86 World Series. His reasoning is, the game was tied, even if Buckner makes the play, they go to the 11th (and that's making the assumption Buckner beats Mets' speedster Mookie Wilson to the bag, which is unlikely). However, the debate turned to moments that have, for some reason or another, been overlooked by the mass media.

10. Chris Chambliss wins 1976 Pennant for the Yankees-I don't like the Yankees. Never have, never will. However, this play is one of TWO walk-off LCS homers (the other one was one that was beaten into our collective heads during the '04 ALCS, the Aaron Boone homer to win the '03 ALCS). This was the culmination of a great series between the New York Yankees and the Kansas City Royals. Game 5 was a classic, that saw a brawl between Graig Nettles and George Brett break out at home plate, a dramatic game-tying 3-run shot from Brett in the top of the 8th, but the most dramatic came in the bottom of the ninth, as Chambliss led off with a solo shot to win the game for the Yanks. In the celebration following, Chambliss was nearly torn apart circling the bases.

9. Jim O'Brien wins Super Bowl V for the Baltimore Colts-Contrary to popular belief, Adam Vinatieri WASN'T the first player to win a Super Bowl with a late field goal. In 1971, the Baltimore Colts faced the perennial bridesmaid Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl V. The game was not exactly super, as the teams combined for 11 turnovers, none more important than Craig Morton's pass being intercepted by Mike Curtis (off the outstetched fingertips of Dan Reeves) late in the game to set the stage for O'Brien's game-winning field goal with 4 seconds left.

8. Cleveland Indians defeat Boston Red Sox 8-3 to win 1948 American League Title-This, until 1978, was the ONLY one-game playoff in American League history. Both teams came into the game 96-58, with the Red Sox sweeping a pair from the Yankees to get here, while the Indians lost two straight to the Tigers. However, in a move that baffled everyone, Boston skipper Joe McCarthy started journeyman Denny Galehouse, who was roughed up by the Cleveland offense. Cleveland went on to win the World Series in 6 over the Boston Braves, their last World Series title.

7. Loyola-Chicago stuns Cincinnati to win 1963 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship-One of the forgotten classics of the NCAA Tournament, Cincinnati came into the game the 2-time defending national champion, looking for their third straight. Loyola was a heavy underdog coming into the game, but George Ireland's squad held tough, and a Vic Rouse basket with time running down handed the Ramblers the first (and only) title to a Chicago or Illinois basketball team. Lost in this is the fact that Loyola was one of the few teams that actually started more than 2 black players in a single game. Still, social ramifications aside, this is a game that has fallen through the cracks of history.

6. San Francisco Giants win 1962 National League Pennant over the L.A. Dodgers in 3-game playoff-Although the 1951 playoff between these two franchises gets most of the love, these two did move the rivalry to the West Coast, and in 1962, put on a classic pennant race for the California fans. It all came down to the third game of a 3-game playoff at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Like the 1951 series, the Dodgers went into the 9th inning holding the lead. And like the 1951 series, the Dodgers gave up 4 runs to the Giants in the 9th, scoring on 4 walks, 2 hits, and one error to clinch the pennant 6-4 in Chavez Ravine.

5. Broncos defeat Raiders 20-17 in 1977 AFC Championship Game with help from controversial call-The 1977 Denver Broncos were a solid, if not spectacular team with a great defense known as the "Orange Crush." They won the AFC West that year over the defending World Champion Oakland Raiders, who then defeated the Baltimore Colts in the AFC Divisional Playoffs to meet the Broncos (who defeated Pittsburgh 34-21 in the other divisional playoff) in the AFC Title game. With the Broncos nursing a 7-3 lead in the 3rd quarter, the Broncos recovered a fumble at the Oakland 17 and drove down to the 2. On the next play, Jack Tatum hit Rob Lytle, knocking the ball loose and giving Oakland the ball. However, the refs ruled the play dead before the fumble, and Denver scored to take a 14-3 lead. The Raiders never recovered, and Denver held on for a 20-17 win and its first AFC Title.

4. Avery Johnson hits late jumper to give Spurs first world title over the Knicks-In many ways, the 1999 NBA season is forgettable. It saw a lockout that nearly forced the cancellation of the season 5 years before the NHL did the same thing. It also saw scoring go down and the end of the Bulls dynasty. The playoffs were a little better, but the Knicks, the 8-seed from the East, won the Eastern Conference Finals over Indiana in 6 games, 2 of which had controversial refereeing from Dick Bavetta (ok, that was cheap, but I still hate the Knicks for that season. I loved those late '90s Pacers). They met the Spurs, who steamrolled the T-Wolves, Lakers, and Trail Blazers in a combined 12 games. The Spurs took the first two in San Antonio, then split the next two in Madison Square Garden. Game 5, much like its predecessors, was ugly. Late in the game, the Knicks clung to a 77-76 lead. With 2.1 seconds left, Avery Johnson launched a 20-footer from the right wing and nailed it, giving the Spurs their first title. This series also saw the explosion of Tim Duncan on the basketball scene, as he averaged 27.4 points and 14 rebounds a game.

3. Lew Burdette shuts out Yanks on 2 days rest to clinch 1957 World Title for Braves-The 1957 season was the coming out party for the Milwaukee Braves, who had fallen just short of the Brooklyn Dodgers in '56. The Braves featured a solid pitching corps of Bob Buhl, Warren Spahn, and Lew Burdette. Buhl struggled in the Series, going 0-1 with a 10.80 ERA in only 3.2 innings of work. However, Spahn was solid, and Burdette was amazing, going 3-0 with an ERA of 0.67 in the Series. His best performance was his last, Game 7 at Yankee Stadium. After shutting the Yanks out 1-0 in Game 5 at County Stadium in Milwaukee, Burdette was even more masterful, holding the Yanks to 7 hits in a 5-0 win, giving the Braves their first World Title since 1914, when they were located in Boston.

2. Mike Scott no-hits Giants to clinch 1986 NL West Crown for the Houston Astros-In 1986, Mike Scott, and his newfangled pitch, the split-fingered fastball, were taking over baseball. Along with 39-year-old Nolan Ryan, the Astros stunned baseball analysts by storming to a lead in the NL West, and on September 25, Mike Scott took the mound against the Giants with a chance to clinch the title for the Astros and set up an NLCS against the New York Mets. Scott was literally unhittable that night, as, for the first time in baseball history, a division or pennant was won thanks to a no-hitter. Scott pitched all nine-innings, walking 2, hitting 1, and striking out 13 in giving the Astros their first division crown since 1980.

1. Bill Mazeroski hits walk-off homer in Game 7 to win 1960 World Series for the Pirates-The 1960 World Series looked, on paper, like a mismatch. The out-of-nowhere Pirates, led by Don Hoak and Dick Groat, would take on the mighty New York Yankees, who had won 15 straight going into the playoffs. The first game, however, showed this series would be a little different, as the Pirates stunned the Yanks 6-4. The next two games, however, showed the world that the Yanks would not be easily deterred, as the Bombers destroyed the Pirates 16-3 and 10-0. However, the Pirates won the next two, 3-2 and 5-2, setting up a possible clincher in Game 6. However, Whitey Ford and the Yankee offense would have none of that, as they both dominated the Pirates en route to a 12-0 win, setting up the decisive game 7. The game started off well for the Bucs, as a 2-run Rocky Nelson homer and a 2-RBI single by Bill Virdon gave the Pirates a 4-0 lead. However, Moose Skowron and Yogi Berra hit homers in the 5th and sixth, staking the Yanks to a 5-4 lead. It got worse for the Pirates in the 8th, as a 2-out, 2-run double by Clete Boyer gave the Yanks a 7-4 lead. The bottom of the 8th, however, would prove to be disastrous for the Yanks. Gino Cimoli got a single to lead off the inning, then Virdon hit a sure double play ball to shortstop Tony Kubek. However, the ball hit a pebble, hitting Kubek in the throat and giving the Pirates men on first and second. Kubek was replaced by Joe DeMaestri. Dick Groat followed that up with an RBI single to cut the lead to 7-5. Bob Skinner followed with a sacrifice bunt to put men on second and third, then Rocky Nelson hit a short fly to right, giving the Pirates 2 outs and a man on 3rd. The next batter, Roberto Clemente, would prove to be the most important play of the game. He hit a slow roller to Skowron, but pitcher Jim Coates did not cover the bag, and Clemente beat Skowron to the bag, allowing Virdon to score and Groat to advance to 2nd. The next batter, former Yankee Hal Smith hit a 3-run shot to give the Pirates a 9-7 lead. The Yanks, however, refused to die, getting singles from Bobby Richardson, ex-Pirate Dale Long, and Mickey Mantle (all sandwiched around a Roger Maris foul-out) to cut the lead to 9-8 and put runners on the corners. Yogi Berra then hit a rocket down the first base line that Rocky Nelson grabbed and tagged first for the out. However, in the confusion, Mickey Mantle was able to get back to 1st, allowing pinch-runner Gil McDougald to score the game-tying run. That tie would last all of 2 pitches, as Bill Mazeroski hit the first, and to date, only walk-off World Series Game 7 homer in history. For the Series, the Yanks outscored the Pirates 55-27, outhit them 91-60, and still lost the Series. Sadly, this moment seems to be overlooked for moments like Kirk Gibson's homer, Carlton Fisk's homer, Reggie Jackson's 3-homer game, and even Joe Carter's walk-off homer (although his is overlooked), and ESPECIALLY the Bobby Thomson homer. '

This list is not out to antagonize anybody, it's to show that from time to time, moments that are great are overlooked, while other great moments are beaten into the ground.

2006 World Series of Poker Bracelet Unveiled

It is the epitome of excellence in the poker world. For almost four decades now, the World Series of Poker has crowned champions and, along with the cash for winning the event, awarded the victors further awards in the form of a gold bracelet. These bracelets not only recognize the achievement of winning a WSOP tournament but also have become the benchmark of success in the poker community. On June 6th, Harrah's displayed for the first time the awards that will be available once the events start on June 25th.

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"It's impossible to overstate the value of a World Series of Poker gold bracelet to anyone who takes the game seriously," stated World Series of Poker Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack during the unveiling. "It is the equivalent of winning the Stanley Cup in hockey or the Lombardi Trophy in football. As such, the champion's bracelet at the 37th Annual World Series of Poker will be the best ever, something the winner will take pride in for a lifetime."

The schedule of events at this year's World Series has forty five events and, for forty four of them, the bracelet will be special. Each winner of an official event during these events will receive a bracelet constructed by Triton Jewelry, a division of Frederick Goldman, Inc. These bracelets will be made from 14-karat yellow gold and accentuated by full cut white diamonds. The center plaque of the bracelet will have one-third a carat of diamonds and be held together by thirty five grams of solid diamond cut rope chain. While these bracelets are exquisite, the World Champion's bracelet will most definitely outshine it.

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The winner of the $10,000 Championship Event, in addition to the estimated $10 million first place bounty, will also have a specially created bracelet to add to his (or her) jewelry collection. The Champion's bracelet will be created from 14-karat white and yellow gold with full cut diamonds. The plaque that is the centerpiece of the bracelet will have 170 hand picked diamonds weighing in at six carats. Each suit that is displayed under the World Series logo will also have special attention, as they will be created from jewels (a heart shaped ruby, a princess cut ruby for diamonds, a black sapphire for the spades and three round black diamonds for clubs) that will separate the World Champion's bracelet from the others. Holding this together will be a solid diamond cut rope chain that weighs in at almost sixty grams.

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The bracelets that have been created for this year's tournament are quite special, befitting the achievement of beating the best players in the world to win one. We'll see who gets these pieces of jewelry in just a few weeks as the World Series gets ready to start.

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In which I snub world opinion

I've been mulling this one over for a couple of weeks now. Finally I think it's time ...

Call me a narrow minded, ethnocentric American, but I detest the World Cup. There, I said it. Note that it's not soccer itself that bugs me; rather it's the World Cup. Why does this grand spectacle of sports bug me so much?

Well I've got to string you along for a little while, so I'll start with the common complaints that DO NOT bother me -- low scoring and perceived lack of action. These are two oft-voiced complaints about baseball and my blog title should tell you that I'm okay with a slow-paced, low scoring game. In fact, I love to watch a good 1-0 or 2-1 baseball game.

So if it's not that watching soccer is about as exciting as watching paint dry, then what is my complaint? My complaint is that the referee seems to decide way too many contests with arbitrary calls (or non-calls) in the box. I know it wasn't every match, but it SEEMED as if every contest in the most recent Cup was decided, in very large part, by whether or not the referee awarded a penalty kick on some questionable play. The end of the Australia/Italy game drove me over the edge. What really riled me up, though, was the general reaction to the end-of-game call. The commentators all seemed to indicate it wasn't really a foul, but the Australian guy still was at fault for sliding and giving the Italian guy the opportunity to "sell it" to the referee. This was the final stages of the self-proclaimed greatest sporting event in the world and games were being decided on the basis of whether one player was a good enough actor to get a call from an official? WTF?!?!

See, that's what gets me -- the arbitrary nature of the outcomes of the matches. It just seemed to me that many games were won, not necessarily by the better team, but by the team that was fortunate enough to get a call. That's it -- 90+ minutes of hard fought action and the outcome is decided by one whistle.

Think about the 4 "major" stick and ball sports in the U.S. and think about what these events have in common:

Franco Harris' Immaculate Reception. [Ooh, or the 2003 Fiesta Bowl between Miami and OSU.]Don Denkinger's call at 1st base in the 1985 World Series. The 1972 Olympic basketball gold medal game. [Also game 6 of the '98 NBA finals -- the Jordan push.] Brett Hull's questionable goal in the 1999 Stanley Cup Finals.

Okay you might not recognize all of them at first glance, but if you're a sports fan you can quickly figure out (if you care to click through) the significance of those events. Those were times when officiating decisions (or non-decisions) had MAJOR impacts on the championships of the major sports leagues. John Madden is still upset 30+ years after the Immaculate Reception and I'm still madder than hell at Don Denkinger. Heck, someone (ESPN or HBO, I think) even made a movie not too long ago about the 1972 Olympic basketball thing. These events stick in our minds because it just seems so blatantly unfair and wrong that a questionable bit of officiating should decide the final champion. In one World Cup, conversely, there seemed to be multiple games "decided" by the referees.

I won't deny the World Cup is the biggest sporting event on the planet, yet the outcomes remind of nothing more than the Saturday morning "rasslin" shows I watched as a kid. Who would win the match depended on whether or not the ref saw Masked Avenger pull that chain from his trunks. Seriously, that's what all the diving and writhing around on the ground reminded me of. I'm sure these guys (the soccer players) are very skilled and I'm sure theirs is not an easy game. It seems a shame that their games come down to which side has better actors.

I'm not going to be arrogant enough to suggest changes that might improve the spectacle that is the World Cup. Instead I'm just going to make the point that it is a spectacle more so than a true quest for the world's best soccer team. If people want to participate in all the pomp, circumstance, and drunken revelry that go with such a grand spectacle, more power to them. If, though, you're going to argue that my apathy toward future Cups shows me to be an ignorant or biased sports fan, you'll have to come up with a more compelling argument than, "Everyone else in the rest of the world loves it, hence you're wrong." That argument hasn't convinced me that Jimmy Stewart was a great actor, nor did it convince my mother than I should be allowed to have a motorcycle when I was a young lad. It's going to take more than that to get me excited about South Africa in 2010.

Last week was a pretty decent week highlighted by two ok cashes in ...

Last week was a pretty decent week highlighted by two ok cashes in some tournaments. I got second in one of the “deep stack” tournaments on Pacific (worst players anywhere) and hit 25th in one of the $10 rebuys on Stars. I really thought I was going to final table at Stars, but I went card dead the last hour and that was that. It is now obvious to me why that is regarded as one of the best MTTs anywhere. I found it painfully easy to trap people with hands as weak as top pair. They would just put giant amounts of chips in the pot with nothing. Going into the third hour I thought I was overmatched because I was checking out my tablemate’s stats at the pokerdb and everybody but me and a few others had five figure winnings.

Last Friday I was at Mandalay Bay for a concert and they had already set up roughly 20 poker tables for the upcoming WPT event. These were set up right by the poker room and took the place of a bunch of slot machines. Now, as a gaming management major, I would like to know why they have a bunch of poker tables sitting unused a week before they are needed. They have to be losing thousands of dollars. Come to think of it, I was there about three weeks ago and they had already begun setting things up for the event. This makes no sense to me and it’s one of the reasons I’m very afraid to go work in the corporate world.

My internet had been on the fritz the past few days which allowed me to catch up on some recreational reading. At the start of the year I began using my Party points and FPP’s for an enormous amount of poker literature. Over the past week I was able to take care of Chris Moneymaker’s book and One of a Kind by Nolan Dalla. Oh, and both of these were apparently autographed copies since I ordered them from the Stars VIP store. I guess I’m one of the cool kids now. Moneymaker’s book is worth the read but I wouldn’t pay money to purchase it. One of a Kind was much better and I’d recommend that one to anybody, especially if you enjoy depressing yourself.

Also, the Orleans Open is coming up at the beginning of July and will be running for the first few weeks of the month. There are some events scheduled during the blogger get together. If you’re interested, go here. I’m thinking of playing in a few of the smaller $200-$300 events if things go well between now and then. On that note, does anybody have any information on the different satellites they run at the World Series? Moneymaker’s book said something about $100 single table satellites which would be wonderful for a player of my limited means to try and get into some of the smaller events.