2009 Aussie Millions

$1 Million Cash Game
Day: 1
Event Info

2009 Aussie Millions

Event Info
Buy-in
1,000,000 AUD

Table Talk

Ever the logician, Chris Ferguson just explained to Phil Laak that eating a stalk of celery burns more calories than the celery returns to the body. "So you can't live off celery," Ferguson added, connecting the dots for Laak.

A few hands later, Laak took a small pot off of Dwan. He was ecstatic. "Small pots from durrrr feel like big accomplishments."

More Cash for durrrr

PLO:

There was stone silence on the set for this hand. Tom Dwan apparently wasn't getting enough action; he put the straddle on for this hand. Action folded to Andrew Robl in the big blind. He raised to $6,500 and durrrr called.

{5-Spades} {7-Diamonds} {J-Spades}

Robl was first to act and bet 12,000. Dwan called again to see the board pair {5-Diamonds}. Robl slowed down and checked; Dwan took the initiative to bet $23,600. Robl thought it through and made the call. The river was the {Q-Clubs}. Again Robl checked. Dwan tanked for more than a minute before betting $68,200. Robl called after a minute of his own. Dwan turned over {k-Clubs} {j-Diamonds} {5-Hearts} {2-Diamonds} for a full house, fives full of jacks. That was a winner.

After getting absolutely smashed by Patrik Antonius during the earlier heads-up match, Dwan seems to have gotten his legs back under him. Who knows? He may dig himself completely out of the $525,000 hole he was in at dinner.

Pickering All Smiles Now

Jamie Pickering has loosened up a bit. His body language is not quite as nervous-looking as it was earlier and he's actually cracked a few jokes. I guess netting $130,000 out of a pot will do that to a guy. The question now is whether he'll loosen up his play as well. If he plays more hands, he'll be putting himself to more decisions where he might potentially make a mistake.

Pickering Goes All the Way with Big Slick

Hold'em:

Chris Ferguson is now in the game to the right of Jamie Pickering. He sat down with $200,000 and immediately found himself in a huge pot. Jamie Pickering opened with a raise to $3,500 that was called by Niki Jedlicka and small blind Tom Dwan. Ferguson then reraised to $20,300. Everyone called, putting $81,000 in the middle before the flop was out.

{4-Diamonds} {6-Clubs} {A-Spades}

Dwan opened the action with a bet of $31,400. Ferguson peeked back at his cards and then mucked. That moved the action to Pickering, who asked for a count of the bet. He still seems the most nervous of all of the players at the table, but he steeled himself and called. Jedlicka folded, leaving Dwan and Pickering to battle it out on the turn {2-Diamonds}. Dwan tanked for a minute before betting $41,800.

"I've got no idea where I am," said Pickering. He mumbled a few other words to himself before double-checking the amount of the bet again and then calling.

The river came {9-Clubs}. Dwan must have sensed that there was no way of moving Pickering off his hand; he checked. Pickering breathed a sigh of relief and checked behind.

"You've got it," said Dwan. "I have a deuce." Pickering showed down ace-king for the winner.

"I was going to have to call," said Pickering as he collected the pot. "I didn't want to. But I was going to have to." Both statements were as obvious as they were true.

It has not been a good day for Tom Dwan.

Jedlicka Stacks Laak

Niki Jedlicka, from earlier in the Aussie Millions
Niki Jedlicka, from earlier in the Aussie Millions
Hold'em:

Action again folded to Phil Laak. He opened with a raise to $3,500 from the cutoff. Patrik Antonius called before Niki Jedlicka reraised to $20,500. That folded Andrew Robl.

Laak didn't take all that long to reraise to $103,000. Antonius obligingly moved out of the way; Jedlicka took that as his cue to move all in. Laak called. There was some hemming and hawing regarding opening the cards before Phil Laak said, "Everyone at home already knows what we have. Let's just catch up."

Laak: {A-Hearts} {K-Clubs}
Jedlicka: {A-Spades} {A-Clubs}

They agreed to run it twice. Both boards were a total "swing and miss" for Laak. His $200,000 now belongs to Jedlicka.

"Is the bank of durrrr open?" Laak asked Tom Dwan after the hand was over. Dwan shipped him a fresh $200,000.

Jedlicka Again

Hold'em:

Action folds to Phil Laak on the button. His $3,500 raise is called by Patrik Antonius before Niki Jedlicka reraises to $15,500. Laak, true to his reputation as a tight player, declines to call. Antonius, however, throws the additional chips into the pot.

Both players check the {7-Diamonds} {6-Clubs} {Q-Spades} flop. Antonius makes a $24,000 stab when the turn falls {5-Clubs}. Jedlicka takes approximately a minute to make the call.

The river is the {7-Hearts}. Antonius checks to Jedlicka, who makes what looks like a value bet of $23,000. Antonius isn't interested in finding out. He folds.

Chris Has Died, Chris Has Risen...

Chris Ferguson is on the set now. He'll be joining the game in the seat to the right of Jamie Pickering. That should give Pickering someone to talk to who might actually be interested in something other than a one-sided conversation.

Robl Ships It

PLO:

We had a raise and reraise preflop. Andrew Robl made it $9,500 to go from the button. He was called by Patrik Antonius and Niki Jedlicka.

The flop was big cards, {A-Hearts} {A-Diamonds} {K-Spades}. Action checked to Robl, who made it $17,000 to go. Only Jedlicka called. Things slowed down considerably on the {7-Hearts} turn, with Jedlicka taking more than a minute to check. Robl took his time as well before settling on a bet of $46,000. Jedlicka folded shortly thereafter.

Pickering Bets Strong

Hold'em:

Action folded to Tom Dwan on the button. He raised to $3,800, then called when Jamie Pickering reraised to $12,000 from the small blind.

On a flop of {J-Spades} {6-Hearts} {K-Diamonds}, Patrik Antonius grabbed two bananas; one for himself and one for Niki Jedlicka. They peeled the bananas and started eating them as Jamie Pickering bet $15,000. Antonius offered a banana to Andrew Robl as well but he declined.

"Three guys in a row eating bananas," said Robl. "Someone's gonna Photoshop it and put it on the internet. I don't want to be involved in that picure."

Unfortunately our photographer is downstairs in the Crown Poker Room, otherwise I would have made sure to get a snap and let 2+2 users run wild. I guess you'll just have to wait until the television broadcast to go Photoshop crazy.

Dwan folded his hand after the banana-eating was complete.

Jedlicka Floats?

Hold'em:

Patrik Antonius raised to $4,200 during a rare moment of silence from Phil Laak. Niki Jedlicka was the only caller.

On a flop of {3-Clubs} {2-Clubs} {7-Diamonds}, Antonius continued for $8,000. Jedlicka called again, then took the pot away on the {5-Diamonds} turn by betting $22,000 after Antonius checked.

Just to clarify an earlier point, Antonius and Dwan did not actually pull any money off the table when we went from heads-up play to six-handed. Patrik has AU$1.9 million in front of him; Dwan has about AU$600,000.