Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 97: Big Hands From the WSOP-C Potawatomi
Table Of Contents
This past weekend I had the opportunity to play some tournaments at the World Series of Poker Circuit at Milwaukee's Potawatomi Hotel & Casino. That included Event 2: $400 NLH Multi-Flight, a tournament offering a $200,000 guarantee and four starting flights.
I was prepared to fire multiple bullets in my attempt to make Day 2, but much to the benefit of my bankroll it only took one entry to get the job done. Upon busting Event #1: $400 Double Stack after the dinner break, I late registered Event #2 with the plan of spinning up a stack.
Instead, I found myself nursing a short stack most of the night and testing the extremes of my patience. Still, as I sat there the field whittled down from 152 entries to around the final 30. That is when things got interesting for me, and for this week's column. I've decided to share four of the most interesting hands I played from that point forward.
Hand #1 – Getting Lucky to Quadruple-Up
At the 1,500/3,000/500 level I was sitting with 26,000 and looking for a spot to improve my situation. With the top 18 getting paid, I wasn't going to be able to fold my way to the money.
Knowing that, I opted to shove all in from middle position after looking down at Q♠J♠. I wasn't too thrilled when the big stack called from the cutoff with what turned out to be A♦Q♥, and even less so when the button and big blind, who both had similar stacks to mine, called off with nines and eights, respectively.
The 2♠7♦K♥ flop didn't do much for me, but the J♦ turn did as I paired my jack to take the lead. I held it, too, when the 3♥ bricked the river to essentially give me a quadruple-up. Suddenly I went from grinding a short stack for hours to actually having some chips with which to play.
Hand #2 – Sucking Out in the Money
I used that stack not only to make the money but the final 13. Play was slated to stop once we were down to 5 percent of our starting flight field, or eight players. Unfortunately, I was once again short when I got it in bad.
We were playing six-handed at our table when the player on the button with a pile of chips opened for 18,000 at the 3,000/6,000/1,000 level.
"I went from being a short stack to being in the thick of things."
From the small blind I jammed my last 85,000 holding A♥7♠, and the player in the big blind flatted. The button then moved all in over the top, chasing the big blind out of the hand.
I had a chance to triple-up in a heads-up pot, but I'd need to crack his Q♣Q♥ to do it. Fortunately, that's exactly what I did when the flop came down A♦8♣4♠. Neither the turn nor river changed a thing, and once again I went from being a short stack to being in the thick of things.
Hand #3 – Losing Last Hand for the Chip Lead
With nine players remaining, just one more needed to go before we were done for the night. That is when the short stack, who had 99,000, opened for 18,000 at the 3,000/6,000/1,000 level. I looked down at A♠K♠ next to act and three-bet to 40,000. The player in the cutoff then moved all in for 139,000 and action folded back to the original raiser, who called off.
Based on my experience with both players and how they acted I didn't expect either to have aces or kings, so I called. I was right, as the short stack rolled over A♦Q♣ and the other player Q♥Q♦.
The J♠9♠3♥ flop gave me a flush draw to go with my overs, but I missed when the 4♥ turn and J♦ river both bricked. The cutoff took down the monster pot while the short stack busted to end the night.
Had I won that pot I would have finished the night with the chip lead — an incredible thought given how card dead and short-stacked I'd been most of the day. Instead I finished with the short stack of 85,000 coming back to 4,000/8,000/1,000. The good news is I had $1,207 locked up.
Hand #4 – Bustout
The other flights brought the total field up to 1,098 entries and only 74 were returning for Day 2. I had the sixth-shortest stack among the returners, and given the fact that we were already in the money (and the payouts were extremely flat), I went in with a freeroll attitude. I was going to play loose and fast in an attempt to build a stack.
"I should've gone back to the patient grind I exhibited on Day 1 and found a better spot."
My plan worked well as I picked up several aces in the first orbit, shoved my stack, and swiped the blinds and antes. I then looked down at pocket aces, pushed my stack of about 125,000, and doubled up when an opponent picked up kings. Again, I was back in it.
Unfortunately, that is when my "freeroll" attitude got the better of me. With the blinds at 6,000/12,000/2,000, a big stack in the cutoff opened for 30,000 and I decided to try to steal with a three-bet jam for 200,000 holding A♦4♠ in the small blind.
"I don't think I can lay this hand down," my opponent said when it got back to him. He was giving me credit for a big hand (my tight image was working), but did call with A♠K♠, which he obviously had to do.
I failed to get lucky and busted in 44th place for $1,500. Not a bad result given where I started the day, but I did have regrets. I should've gone back to the patient grind I exhibited on Day 1 and found a better spot. There were easier targets to pick on at the table, but I went after a good player with a big stack holding a weak ace.
Lesson learned.
Lead photo courtesy of WSOP.
In this Series
- 1 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 1: Making Reads and Trusting Them
- 2 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 2: Playing in Poker Charity Events
- 3 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 3: Throttle Back Before You End Up Punting
- 4 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 4: Punish the Satellite Bubble
- 5 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 5: What is Proper Accumulator Strategy?
- 6 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 6: A Chip and a Chair Story with “SirWatts”
- 7 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 7: 15 Things About Poker I Wish I’d Known Sooner
- 8 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 8: Examining the Largest Overlay in Poker History
- 9 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 9: Differences Between Rebuys and Reentries
- 10 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 10: Five Must-Read Poker Books of 2014
- 11 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 11: When Will You Finally Break Through?
- 12 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 12: Dealing with a Target on Your Back
- 13 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 13: Knowing When to Call It Quits
- 14 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 14: Embarking on a Year-Long Weight Loss Journey
- 15 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 15: Navigating Multiple Decision Points in a Poker Hand
- 16 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 16: Chris Moorman Tells Me How Badly I Play Poker
- 17 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 17: Richard “nutsinho” Lyndaker on Getting It in Marginal
- 18 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 18: Getting Inside the Head of Poker Pro Brian Rast
- 19 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 19: Stupid Calls & Lucky Draws in MSPT WI Championship
- 20 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 20: Talking Ante-Only Strategy with Greg “FossilMan” Raymer
- 21 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 21: Contributing to Jonathan Little’s New Book
- 22 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 22: Consequences of Acting Out of Turn & Tossing in Chips
- 23 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 23: When It Comes to Chops, Do What’s In Your Best Interest
- 24 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 24: Accepting Bad Beats & Lessons in Selling Action
- 25 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 25: Heinz’ Ace-High Call Shows Why He's a World Champ
- 26 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 26: Is Keeping the Short Stack Alive Collusion?
- 27 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 27: Great Laydown or Bad Fold on Poker Night in America?
- 28 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 28: Calling Hellmuth with Jack-Deuce Offsuit
- 29 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 29: The Philosophy of "No-Chop" Chad
- 30 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 30: Preparing to Play the World Series of Poker
- 31 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 31: Staying on Your Grind at the World Series of Poker
- 32 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 32: The Perilous Decision to Call Off with Ace-Queen
- 33 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 33: Using Poker Skills in Reality TV Competitions
- 34 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 34: Esfandiari Explains How to Recover from Bad Beats
- 35 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 35: Tilly vs. Brunson in Super High Roller Cash Game Hand
- 36 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol 36: Unconventional Play Leads to Good WSOP Main Event Start
- 37 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 37: Lessons in Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Low w/ Evan Jarvis
- 38 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 38: Things to Say and Do When You Bust a Poker Tournament
- 39 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 39: How Much Did I Have to Raise to Get You to Fold?
- 40 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 40: Practicing Patience in My Deep PPC Poker Tour Run
- 41 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 41: Analyzing a Questionable SHRPO Main Event Hand
- 42 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 42: Analyzing the Play of Neymar Jr. at EPT Barcelona
- 43 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 43: The Value of a Reliable Poker Reputation
- 44 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 44: John “KasinoKrime” Beauprez Rips My PLO Game Apart
- 45 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 45: Satellite Dilemmas -- To Call or Not to Call
- 46 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 46: Seiver Leverages the River in Super High Roller Bowl
- 47 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 47: What Untraditional Moves in Poker Might Mean
- 48 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 48: Thinking About the Future with Sam Grizzle
- 49 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 49: WCOOP Champ “Coenaldinho7” Offers Up His Biggest Hands
- 50 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 50: The Peril of Shoving Weak Aces
- 51 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 51: The Importance of Not Giving Up in Poker Tournaments
- 52 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 52: Does Asking “Check” Actually Constitute a Check?
- 53 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 53: Thomas Cannuli Impresses Even After Main Event Bustout
- 54 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 54: Dealers Aren’t Always Right
- 55 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 55: Don’t Get Married to Pocket Aces
- 56 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 56: Bazeley’s Survival Instinct Leads to Continued Success
- 57 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 57: Playing “Deuces Wild” on the European Poker Tour
- 58 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 58: The Wildest Hand in European Poker Tour History
- 59 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 59: Death, Zombies & Spending Time w/Phil Hellmuth
- 60 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 60: How the Unstoppable Fedor Holz Managed to Win Again
- 61 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 61: Lessons To Be Learned When You Hit the Big Stage
- 62 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 62: Steve O’Dwyer Explains the “Oreo Cookie Tell”
- 63 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 63: What Would Happen to a Chip Stack If a November Niner Died?
- 64 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 64: Forgetting One Chip -- Should It Still Be an All-In Bet?
- 65 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 65: Todd “sharkslayerrr” Breyfogle on Bankroll Management
- 66 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 66: Cash Game Pro Daniel Arfin Offers Sound Bankroll Advice
- 67 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 67: Honeyman Plays Kings to Keep in Opponent’s Bluff Range
- 68 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 68: Why Do I Even Bother Drinking at the Poker Table?
- 69 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 69: Is Your Favorite Poker Pro Left- or Right-Handed?
- 70 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 70: In Order to Live You Have to Be Willing to Die
- 71 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 71: How to Amass a Big Stack Early in a Poker Tournament
- 72 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 72: Answering User-Submitted Poker Scenarios
- 73 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 73: Saying Goodbye with a Top Five List
- 74 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 74: We're Back, Baby!
- 75 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 75: Jivkov on Exploiting Capped Ranges
- 76 Hold’em with Holloway, Vol. 76: Matt Bretzfield Gets Tricky With Aces
- 77 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 77: Joseph Cheong Gets Crazy with a Pair of Ladies
- 78 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 78: Wyoming Poker Action & Wild South Dakota Hand
- 79 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 79: Calling Controversy at WinStar
- 80 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 80: Going for Value with Matt Hunt
- 81 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 81: Bracelet Winner Ryan Leng on Bad Call
- 82 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 82: Romeopro33 Recounts XL Eclipse Victory
- 83 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 83: Men The Master Doesn't Get Paid
- 84 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 84: Harman Hits Back-to-Back Miracle Turns
- 85 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 85: Jamie Kerstetter on Dealing with Bounties
- 86 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 86: Matt Stout Develops a Limp Dynamic
- 87 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 87: Matt Alexander Caught in Between w/ Two Red Aces
- 88 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 88: John Beauprez on Why He Folded a Set of Jacks
- 89 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 89: Alex Aqel Lets Opponent Hang Himself with Aces
- 90 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 90: David Peters Makes Beastly Call Against Will Givens
- 91 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 91: Poker Lessons from a Game of Risk
- 92 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 92: My Upstuck Diagnosis by the CLC Squad
- 93 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 93: Alex Foxen Coolers Nick Petrangelo in SHRB
- 94 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 94: My $25,000 PSPC Experience at 2019 PCA
- 95 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 95: The Equity of Leveraging Time Extensions
- 96 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 96: Dan O'Brien on Developing Healthy Routines
- 97 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 97: Big Hands From the WSOP-C Potawatomi
- 98 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 98: Simon Deadman Rips Apart My NLH Tourney Play
- 99 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 99: Shoving 10-6 Smack Dab Into Pocket Aces
- 100 Hold'em with Holloway, Vol. 100: The Revived Re-Entries Debate