2021 Michigan Championship of Online Poker (MICOOP)

Event #31: $250 NLHE [Sunday Special SE], $100K Gtd
Day: 1
Event Info

2021 Michigan Championship of Online Poker (MICOOP)

Final Results
Winner
Winning Hand
8♦8♥
Prize
$19,161
Event Info
Buy-in
$250
Prize Pool
$107,413
Entries
461
Players Info - Day 1
Entries
461
Players Left
1
20 Show newer posts

"sexycaitlyn" Coolered by "GrndChalengChmp"

Anthony Thompson
Anthony Thompson

In Level 29 with blinds at 30,000/60,000/7,500, "GrndChalengChmp" open-jammed for 2,034,223 from middle position and "sexycaitlyn" called off their 405,624 stack from the button.

"sexycaitlyn": {10-Clubs}{10-Hearts}
"GrndChalengChmp": {q-Diamonds}{q-Hearts}

"sexycaitlyn" was way behind and the {4-Clubs}{k-Spades}{j-Hearts}{4-Spades}{6-Hearts} runout was no help as their tournament came to an end in 14th place for $1,057.89.

Player Chips Progress
sexycaitlyn us
sexycaitlyn 		Busted

"smftt" Gets Lucky to Eliminate "getpaidman7474"

Anthony Thompson
Anthony Thompson

In Level 28 with blinds at 25,000/50,000/6,000, "smftt" raised to 105,000 from early position and then called the 730,482 three-bet jam from "getpaidman7474" on the button.

"smftt": {a-Hearts}{10-Hearts}
"getpaidman7474": {a-Diamonds}{j-Clubs}

"getpaidman7474" had "smftt" dominated and nothing changed after the {8-Spades}{8-Clubs}{6-Spades} flop.

The {9-Hearts} turn however, gave "smftt" a gutshot and they completed after the {7-Spades} appeared on the river, sending "getpaidman7474" out in 18th place for $836.85.

Player Chips Progress
smftt us
smftt 		2,872,652 1,152,982
getpaidman7474 us
getpaidman7474 		Busted

Riky "RikyOneTime" Lara Looking for MICOOP Success in His First Foray Into Online Play

Anthony Thompson
Anthony Thompson
Riky "RikyOneTime" Lara
Riky "RikyOneTime" Lara

One player who recently jumped into the field is 42-year-old Riky "RikyOneTime" Lara, a father of four girls and married to "a super supportive" wife.

Hailing from southwest Detroit, Lara is a $1/$2 and $2/$5 no-limit hold'em live grinder who started to play more tournaments before the pandemic hit.

"I play most of my cash game poker sessions at Motorcity casino in Detroit," he told PokerNews. "I also like hit up MGM Grand poker room when I’m trying to change things up. I do travel to the World Series of Poker (WSOP) every year to grind cash games. I usually stay three weeks to a month each year to grind these juicy cash games."

In addition, Lara is a regular at mid-major tour stops such as the Mid-States Poker Tour (MSPT), Heartland Poker Tour (HPT), and WSOP Circuit in the Ohio, Chicago, and Indiana areas.

"I do most of my traveling alone but I usually link up with friends from the felt at the WSOP," he said. "From time to time, I’ll take my wife with me on a road trip to a poker tournament."

It's an enjoyable experience for Lara, who grew up in what he called a "bad neighborhood" in Detroit, one rife with gangs, drugs, peer pressure, and a ton of violence. Poker has been a vehicle away from all of that.

"Poker for me all began at a very young age. I remember sitting at the kitchen table with my grandmother, my mother, and my Aunt Carmen, who’s probably the reason for me being a poker player. We’d stay up playing Mexican bingo for nickels, dimes, and quarters all night, and every time I won a bowl of change, I remember thinking it was the greatest thing ever.

He continued: "It wasn’t just about the quarters for me though. For me, it was more about the win. After that, I started playing five-card draw and some seven-card stud with the grown-ups. Even when I got to the age of 15 I found a way to go play poker at other people’s houses. There would be a table full of grown-ups drinking smoking cussing and then there would be me.

When he and his wife first got married 20 years ago, they were barely making ends meet, but that didn't stop him from playing a weekly $25 buy-in tournament.

"We’d get around 8-10 people and somehow I always would win or chop. That money helped us out in so many ways. We even almost depended on it every week to help out with everything. That’s where my wife’s strong support came from when it comes to playing poker for me. She really enjoyed watching me play poker. So when it comes to any games even if there out of town she’s the first one getting me out the door to go grind."

Prior to PokerStars coming to Michigan, Lara had never played online.

"I know it’s going to be such a big change for me," he said. "I’m looking forward to the challenge and trying to see the positives in online poker. Instead of having to buy airfare or lodging or renting a car, I can try to makes some money in the comfort of my own home in my PJs. I look forward to putting a lot of time and energy into online tournaments since I’m mainly a cash game player."

In addition to MICOOP, Lara has been dabbling in $0.50-$1 and $1-$2 NLH.

"I don’t want to just dive in and make mistakes so I’m taking it slow and getting used to things. I do love how much faster the game is and how much bigger the game plays compared to live. I’m just paying way more attention to betting patterns and the timing of each bet."

PokerNews will be keeping an eye on Lara as he competes for MICOOP glory.

Tags: Riky Lara

Updated Chip Counts for the Remaining Field (full)

Anthony Thompson
Anthony Thompson
Player Chips Progress
Mirana99 us
Mirana99 		2,507,691 1,659,838
PimpMyBalance us
PimpMyBalance 		2,071,442 648,283
wicked_smaaart
wicked_smaaart 		1,868,289 917,199
smftt us
smftt 		1,719,670 761,250
Mike "PeppSee" Long us
Mike "PeppSee" Long 		1,602,924 103,000
Peter "PLH729" Hotaling
Peter "PLH729" Hotaling
1,217,199 -603,788
Gamestop2012 us
Gamestop2012 		1,103,662 51,036
JewelMick60
JewelMick60 		1,066,547 796,547
Young$$$REDBONE
Young$$$REDBONE 		1,032,057
GrndChalengChmp us
GrndChalengChmp 		1,026,346 -318,000
eyewantoowin us
eyewantoowin 		987,916 264,714
grandma1967 us
grandma1967 		968,083
getpaidman7474 us
getpaidman7474 		849,482 140,000
cbauer6789 us
cbauer6789 		838,482
DavidKayePoker us
DavidKayePoker 		757,331 343,627
A3PGOAT
A3PGOAT 		733,700 -1,053,805
MasterBlaster17
MasterBlaster17 		668,953 -45,059
TappermanBlaz3
TappermanBlaz3 		603,796 486,128
rich2579 us
rich2579 		397,669
Steve "Gamerguy123456" Caswell
Steve "Gamerguy123456" Caswell
393,108 206,320
TheWamboozler us
TheWamboozler 		385,747
sexycaitlyn us
sexycaitlyn 		269,906 -990,518

Read full

Long Gets Big Blind Special

Anthony Thompson
Anthony Thompson

In Level 26 with blinds at 17,500/35,000/4,500, "1WINATATIME" raised to 60,000 from the cutoff and Mike "PeppSee" Long defended his big blind to see a {2-Clubs}{9-Clubs}{a-Spades} flop appear.

Long check-jammed for 805,997 after "1WINATATIME" continued for 60,000 and "1WINATATIME" called off their 468,927 stack.

"1WINATATIME": {a-Hearts}{j-Spades}
Mike "PeppSee" Long: {9-Hearts}{2-Diamonds}

Long out-flopped his opponent and neither the {4-Diamonds} turn nor the {8-Clubs} river changed a thing as "1WINATATIME" was eliminated in 25th place for $836.85.

Player Chips Progress
Mike "PeppSee" Long us
Mike "PeppSee" Long 		1,499,924 419,612
1WINATATIME us
1WINATATIME 		Busted

Tags: Mike Long

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