My Trip to the WSOP: A First--Getting Knocked Out By A Player Who Folded

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My Trip to the WSOP: A First--Getting Knocked Out By A Player Who Folded

I just got back from my trip to the WSOP. Something happened to me that never happened to me before. It is a little embarrassing and it was potentially very costly.

Let me set this up:

I entered the $350 Deep Stack event at The Venetian. While the WSOP has added a daily, deep stack cash event it is not as good as the one at the Venetian. The Venetian events use automatic shufflers and the rounds are 40 minutes. The WSOP Deep Stack events are shuffled by hand with 30 minutes rounds. Also, I believe the Venetian events have a much better blind structure. More play, more opportunity to read the opponents.

There is one disadvantage to the Venetian events. The smoke. There are so many players that they have to add tables outside the smoke free poker room and in the smoke filled casino.

The Venetian Event

670 players and paid 64 places. First place was over $47,000.

We had played for over 12 hours and it was near 1 am. We were down to 67 players.

I was at a corner table and in seat 10. The blinds had just increased to $2,000-$4,000 with a $500 ante. There were 9 players at the table.

In early position, I was dealt pocket Aces. I had $87,000 in chips and I raised to $10,500. The players folded to the big blind. The big blind was a loose aggressive player who liked to re-raise pre-flop with a wide range of hands and to push his draws on the flop with check raises. He had over $250,000 in chips and was probably one of the chip leaders.

I was hoping he would re-raise or check raise me on the flop since I wanted the opportunity to double up. He just called.

The pot was $27,500. I had $76,500 left.

The flop was Jh-9h-8c.

Being heads-up I thought this was the kind of flop my opponent would check raise me with any draw.

I bet $25,000. I studied my opponent to see if he would make a play here.

From the corner of my eyes and to the left, I spotted a bunch of $5,000 chips splash the pot. I immediately turned to my left.

The player in seat 2 had raised me! I didn't even know he was in the hand! WTF!!!!!!!

I was annoyed.

I was annoyed with the dealer for not saying this player called pre-flop.

I was annoyed that the dealer didn't state three players were in the hand pre-flop.

And I was pissed at myself for not knowing this player was in the hand.

With pocket Aces, a coordinated flop, and against two opponents...well, there was no way I was going to bet the flop.

Now it would cost me another $40,000 to call a raise! Essentially, I was going to be all-in if I called this bet.

The big blind folded.

I was burning up. Was I pre-tilting?

My opponent could be raising here with a set, two pair, top pair, a draw or some combination. I had no idea....and I was really pissed.

I moved in.

My opponent had a set of 9's and I was knocked out by a player who I thought had folded.

It was so, so, absurd.

I did play in three side tourneys at the WSOP and lost all my coin flips. But after what happened to me at The Venetian, I decided it was time to leave Vegas.

Yes, I take full responsibility for my screw-up. And, yes, I would probably have lost 40% of my chips on that hand. But I don't play pocket Aces like a rookie--I would have checked with a coordinated board and two opponents in a raised pot.

I guess I was not the only thing that was really steamed. While driving out of Vegas in the 95 F-degree heat, my tire blew up about 4 miles from the Baker exit. Such fun.