Tom W. captures first career FNCPT victory

Hidden Court West - Tom W. defeated opponent Mike T. in head's-up play early Sunday morning to capture his first career FNCPT win in Event #8 of this season's Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour!

Event #8 featured unlimited full rebuys which could be purchased by players immediately after they were eliminated from the tournament. 

The event filled at 20 players, however a late cancellation by substitute player Jason B. reduced the field to 19.

Despite a quick early rebuy, substitute player Derek K. was the first player to hit the rail from the green square. He was followed by tablemate Kevin A. who also rebought once. Lolly was out 17th followed by Jim H. and Jim O, all of whom rebought once.

Substitute David S. called it quits in 14th place after 2 rebuys. He was followed by Jeff R. and Anita G.

In last season's unlimited rebuy event, Nick G. rebought an unprecedented 5 times and managed a 5th place finish. But late Saturday night, he only purchased 1 rebuy. Unfortunately he called it quits after his second elimination and was out in 11th place. Nick was followed by John M. who was out in 10th place thus forming the final table.

Keith K. was out in 9th place followed by Eric W. who managed to claw his way back from 2 rebuys only to get eliminated by the cooler hand of Jason Tr. "Buffalo" Bill was eliminated in 7th place by Mike T's growing chip stack. Angie was next followed by the S3E8 "Bubble Boy", Jason Tr.

4 handed play between substitute player Greg S, Jason Ta, Mike T. and Tom W. began at 1:40 A.M. and with blinds at 6k/12k/500. Greg was out in 4th place when his ace was outkicked by Mike T's ace. Jason Ta. was next when he moved his short stack all-in with As-10h. Tom W. called and revealed the Kh-Qh. Jason led until the river brought a 3rd heart and filled Tom's flush.

Head's-up play started just after 2:30 A.M. between Mike and Tom with both players having nearly equal chip stacks. Both players agreed to forgo the ante with blinds at 8k/16k/2k. However just a few hands into play, the final hand of the tournament was dealt. 

Mike raised the SB to 55,000 and Tom quickly re-raised to 110,000. Mike then announced "all-in" and Tom quickly called revealing Ac-Qd. Mike turned over Jd-Js and led the race as the Ks-2c-4h flop was dealt. The 10c turn gave Tom a gut-shot straight draw but Mike still led with his pocket jacks. But the Qh on the river paired Tom's queen and gave him his first career FNCPT win!

Thanks to everyone who attended S3E8 and congrats again to Tom on his win!

We would like to wish everyone a happy holidays and we will see you in the new year!

~Jason Tr.

Head Fish!

Ingram - Jim H's five victories were enough to take the top spot in the FNCPT's inaugural double-elimination, heads-up NLHE tournament late Saturday night.

Only 14 players RSVP'd for the tournament despite 18 regular invites and 39 substitute invites.  After everyone arrived, the first round match-ups were randomly drawn.  Tom W. faced Jim H, Jason Tr. faced Keith K, Kevin A. took on Sean O, Eric W. faced John M, Nick G. faced his wife Anita G, Angie S. faced Pat M. while "Buffalo" Bill B. and Jason Ta. received first round byes.

The blinds were 10 minutes each and included the following levels:

1. 500-1k
2. 1k-2k
3. 1.5k-3k
4. 2k-4k
5. 3k-6k
6. 5k-10k
7. 7k-15k
8. 10k-20k
9. 15k-30k

Jim H, Jason Tr, Kevin A, Eric W, Nick G. and Angie S. advanced in the winners bracket whilst their opponents fell to the losers bracket. Sean O, John M. and Pat M. were the evening's first eliminations with each of them going 0-2 and tying for 12th place. They were followed by Jason Tr, Anita, Nick, Tom and "Buffalo" Bill who all finished 1-2 and tied for 7th place.

Kevin was out next when he was eliminated by Keith and finished 2-2 which was good for 6th place. Angie followed Kevin (out in 5th place) after losing a grueling match against Eric that got into the 7k-15k level.

Despite losing his first round match, Keith K. managed to string together 4 straight wins over opponents Sean, Jason Tr, Tom and Kevin. Unfortunately Keith's luck ran out when he was eliminated by Eric and finished 4-2 on the night.

Jim H. cruised into the championship match out of the winner's bracket with 4 straight victories over Tom, "Buffalo" Bill, Kevin and Jason Ta. 

The final 2 players in the tournament (Eric and Jason Ta.) faced each other out of the losers bracket with the winner facing Jim in the championship match. Jason Ta. prevailed when he rivered a straight against Eric's top pair sending Eric to the rail at 4-2 overall on the evening.

Jason Ta. (3-1 on the night) squared off against Jim (4-0 on the night) in the championship match at 2:30 AM. Jim's undefeated record gave him the advantage of a rematch if he lost the match. As luck would have it, that's exactly what happened. Jason edged Jim in the match giving each of them a record of 4-1.

The rematch started and advanced into the 3rd level when Jim dealt a huge blow to Jason's stack. Jim raised to 5,500 preflop with A-8. Jason reraised to 10k on top with K-10 and Jim called. The 8-4-10 flop hit both players who both checked bringing the king turn which gave Jason two pair. Both players checked and the river brought an ace, giving Jim the bigger two pair. Jim moved in and Jason quickly called and was reduced to less than 30k. 

Jason managed to battle back a little until the final hand of the tournament was dealt. Both players got it all-in with Jason holding the Ac-8h and Jim holding the Ad-5d. Jim led on the 6s-5h-7d flop with a pair of 5's however Jason picked up an OESD. The Qd turn missed him and Jim continued to lead. The As river both hit and missed Jason giving Jim two pair the win.

 Congrats to Jim on the hard fought win!

With tying records of 4-2 overall in the tournament, Jason, Eric and Keith all tied for 2nd place and split 2nd and 3rd place monies.

Here is the completed bracket:

Thanks to all who participated in the event and we hope to see you next month.

~ Jason Tr.

Hot Chowder!

 

Norborne - Armed with his silicone oven mitt, substitute player David "Chowder" S. defeated John M. in a heads-up battle that lasted just a few hands, claiming the win in just his second FNCPT event. 

With 4 regulars unable to make the tournament, invites went out to subs who slowly started to fill the seats.  In the days leading up to the event, all seats were claimed and a few subs had to be turned away. The cards flew at 7:07 sans a few late arriving stragglers.

Early on, Fran D. made a run felting both Eric W, Jason Ta. and David S. at the blue table, pumping up the prize pool with rebuy money.  At the red table, Keith K. became the first player officially eliminated, choosing not to rebuy.  He was followed by his wife Angie in fairly short order.  Kevin A. hit the rail in 18th after a rebuy, and with his elimination in 17th place, Jason Ta. missed his first final table of the season.

Jim H. was card dead and finished a disappointing 16th place, followed by sub Brian N.  Brian had been crippled after his early position raise of 20k was re-raised to 60k by Jason Tr. He pondered before moving in over the top. Jason called for his last 130k and revealed pocket queens whilst Brian turned over A-K. The board missed Brian and Jason's queens won the race.  Brian was never able to regain traction and eventually finished in 15th place.

Jeff R. was next, out in 14th place, followed by Mike T. who pushed his last 30k in the middle preflop in early position holding A-K; the blinds were at 5k/10k. John called in the BB with a massive stack, rolling over K-Q. Both players flopped a pair on the A-Q-7 board, but a river king gave Mike a commanding lead with a bigger two pair.  But John managed a queen on the river to send Mike home in 13th place.

The eliminations of Chris S. (12th place) and Eric W. (11th place) led to the final table bubble, which burst when Fran D. was eliminated in 10th place.  Seats were redrawn and the final table formed with the remaining nine players.

Jim O. started out steamrolling the competition at the red table but ended up steamed after suffering two horrendous beats including his elimination in 9th place holding K-K.

When sub Jason B. pushed the action with his last 30k, he found a caller in John M. and a re-raise out of Jason Tr.  With folds around, the action came back to John who put the additional 200k re-raise in, showing K-8.  Jason B. tabled A-9 and Jason Tr. showed pocket 10's.  The board was all bricks and Jason Tr. scooped a large pot, eliminating Jason B. in 8th place and putting a dent in John's stack.

Next out was Nick G. in 7th place, marking only his second non-cash of the season, and his first finish outside the top 5.  Lolly had been nursing the short stack for much of the final table but made a late surge before being eliminated in 6th place by none other than John.  The money bubble bursted with Tom W's elimination in 5th place.  Three of the four remaining players had gotten through the night with a rebuy.  Only Jason Tr. made it to the money with his original stack.

With four players left and everyone in the money, Anita tangled with John.  On the queen flop, Anita put her stack at risk and was called by John.  Anita showed Kd-Qd for top pair and John revealed Ad-7d for ace-high.  But tonight was John's night and running diamonds gave John a bigger flush and sent Anita to the rail in 4th place.

In three-handed play, David S. raised the pot 95k and Jason Tr. re-popped him for 195k more, holding Ac-Td.  David called with Jh-Th and was a huge underdog on the one-heart flop.  But running hearts gave Chowder the flush, pumping up his stack and sending Jason Tr. away in 3rd place.

On the final hand of the night, David and John got all their chips in the middle, with David having John covered.  The ace on the flop gave Dave top pair, which was better than John's sailboats.  The turn and the river missed John and his remarkable night (which included 9 eliminations -- nearly half the field) ended with a second place finish.

Thanks to everyone who participated in Event #5 and congrats again to Chowder on his victory and his new sexual partner, the silicone oven mitt.

~ Eric W.

Head's-up test match report

In preparation for the upcoming November head's-up event, I decided to host an exhibition head's-up tournament last Saturday night.

7 players participated who included myself, Jim O, Lolly, Keith, Angie, John M. and substitute player Fran D.

We decided to alter the blinds schedule a little by eliminating the antes and eliminating the second 2k/4k level. I had a running 10 minute clock on the screen which reset itself when it hit zero.

This way second round matches could start on a fresh 10 minutes even if there were first round matches in progress. I had the blinds taped to the wall in a few places around the table. They looked like this:

1. 500-1,000
2. 1,000-2,000
3. 1,500-3,000
4. 2,000-4,000
5. 3,000-6,000
6. 5,000-10,000
7. 7,000-15,000
8. 10,000-20,000

The match-up’s were randomly selected and the cards flew just after 7 P.M.

Jim and Angie’s match ended on the first hand. Both players made a full house and all the chips got in. Both players agreed Angie had the bigger boat and the match ended. 10 minutes later both players agreed there was an error and it was Jim who indeed had the bigger full house. But Angie’s second match had already begun so it was too late to change.

The other 2 first round matches (me & Fran and Keith & Lolly) lasted about an hour. Actually Keith & Lolly’s first round match got into the 7,000-15,000 level.

We took a 20 minute or so dinner break during the middle of the second round matches. The tournament resumed with most games getting into the 5,000-10,000 level before they ended.

John and Keith were the first 2 players eliminated with both of them going 0-2. Fran & Jim were next with respective records of 1-2. Angie cruised into the championship bracket with 2 consecutive wins over John and Lolly after the first round mishap. Lolly managed 2 wins before her second loss sent her to the rail. Despite a first round loss to Fran, I strung together 4 straight wins coming out of the losers bracket to face Angie in the championship.

We battled back and forth but Angie’s cards proved to be better and I was wore down and short stacked in the 3,000-6,000 level when I moved with A-8. Unfortunately Angie called with A-K and I was done.

Here is the completed bracket:

Here is what the payouts and points would have looked like had this been a league event:

Place	Player	Winnings	Record	Points
1	Angie	$85	4-0	5.91
2	Jason	$40	4-2	3.94
3	Lolly	0	2-2	2.95
T4	Jim	0	1-2	2.36
T4	Fran	0	1-2	2.36
T6	Keith	0	0-2	1.69
T6	John	0	0-2	1.69

This is with a $20 buy-in and minus 10% for a rake.

There were a few errors during tournament play. It started with blinds relative to the button. We finally got it right where the dealer was always the SB and acted first PF. There were some instances where a blind level was skipped for a few minutes but it was caught and corrected. This will probably happen again. The players just need to keep track.

Now here’s the shocker. We ended at 2:10 A.M. So it took as long as one of our standard 18-20 person tournaments. However, with more players and multiple games going, I don't think the tournament would go much longer. If we have an even field of players, then there will be an even number of first round matches. So if we have 16 players, then we would have 8 first round matches and then 8 second round matches. So I think things will run a little smoother/faster if we have an even number of players.

Originally I wanted to have a mandatory start time and if you did not arrive by that time, you were not included in the seating and were disqualified.  Now I'm leaning towards allowing late arriving, prepaid players to be blinded off at the rate of 2 big blinds per minute.

Obviously it will be best if everyone that intends on participating arrive on time.

I also want everyone to be aware that with an increased player field in a double-elimination tournament like this, you are going to have groups of players finishing with the same record and tying for places in the final results. As an example, I simulated a 16 player tournament. This was with a $40 buy-in and a 10% rake removed. Here were the results:

Place	Player	Winnings	Record	Points
1	Pat	$275.00	5-0	12.64
2	Mike	$140.00	6-2	8.43
T3	Nick	$53.33	3-2	6.32
T3	Jim H.	$53.33	3-2	6.32
T3	Jason Ta.	$53.33	3-2	6.32
T6	Lolly	$0.00	2-2	3.61
T6	Kyle	$0.00	2-2	3.61
T6	Jim O.	$0.00	2-2	3.61
T9	Angie	$0.00	1-2	2.52
T9	Bill	$0.00	1-2	2.52
T9	Anita	$0.00	1-2	2.52
T9	Eric Wej.	$0.00	1-2	2.52
T13	Jeff	$0.00	0-2	1.80
T13	John	$0.00	0-2	1.80
T13	Jim S.	$0.00	0-2	1.80
T13	Keith	$0.00	0-2	1.80

 
With 15-20 players, we pay the top 4 spots. In the above example, there is no 4th place. Nick, Jim H. and Jason Ta. split 3rd and 4th place money which totaled $160 giving each of them $53.33. In double or triple elimination matches with 16 players, you are guaranteed to have 3-4 players who will tie for 3rd place. The upside is most players on average will receive more points.

Feel free to email any comments, questions, concerns, etc.

~ Jason

Matt Pe. quits FNCPT

Ingram - Last season's runner-up in the League Championship has officially called it quits.  Matt Pe. announced today that he will be dropping out of the league due to joining a bowling league.  Matt added "I wish it didn't happen this way, but it is what it is.  Keep sending me invites to non Saturday events, I may be able to make one of them."  Matt has not played in a single event this season.

Despite missing 4 regular season events last season, Matt managed back-to-back wins in S2E10 & S2E11 to finish 3rd overall in the league standings.  He then went on to finish 2nd in the Championship earning a total of $1290 last season.  Matt is also only one of three players who have earned 3 regular season FNCPT wins.

Notorious for his no call, no show's and late cancellations at league tournaments, Matt was instrumental in the implementation of the FNCPT late cancellation/no show penalty.

~ Jason Tr.

Jason Tr. Christens Hidden Court West

Hidden Court West - Event #4 in Season 3 of the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour was an event of firsts. It was Jason Tr's first win of Season 3. It was the first time Position Poker was played. It was the first time 5 subs have played at a single event. It was the first time an event was played at the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour's new venue, Hidden Court West. It was the first time it hailed before a tournament. It was the first time a player and his family spent the night at the host's home the night of a tournament. And lastly, it was the first time a league member not playing in the actual event posted a bounty on another player's head if eliminated out of the money and an even greater bounty if said player was eliminated before the final table.

The new format of playing Position Poker with No Limit Texas Hold'em did not seem to have the effect the tournament directors had hoped for. This may have been because players like Bill B. did not catch onto the minor differences even after making the final table and playing it for 6 hours. But other players seemed to enjoy the twist that it brought to the game.

The event started out with only 17 players and began about 30 minutes late due to the new location and the bad storms just prior to the cards flying. First to hit the rail was none other than John M. being knocked out once again by Nick G. Jim H, Pat M, Mike T, and sub David S. were knocked out next in order. Jim S. was next to go with his usual roller coaster chip ride, once winning all in with his famous 6-3, but soon after being sent home. Subs Matt M. and Greg S. rounded out the next to leave leading to the final table being formed.

As noted earlier, there was a rumored bounty set on Nick G. by Mrs. Innocent Angie S. Nick G. was later interviewed about this suspected bounty and he was quoted as saying, "I noticed the whole tournament players were gunning for me and grinning, but I just can't say the rumor of Mrs. Innocent Angie's bounty against me is true when she is my dear friend...then again I know my uncanny ability in this game frustrates her...yet I know deep down she still loves me so I just don't know, but I know players had an extra edge against me tonight..."

Jason Ta. was the first to pack his bags at the final table being left chipless in 9th place, but manages pull off another final table showing. Anita G. was happy with her play this tournament, but didn't want to leave yet when she finished 8th. Bill B. was just at the point he thought he understood the concept of Position Poker when he noticed he was out of chips. Kevin An. had great back and forth blows with Chris S, but ended up left with a measly 6th place and no money which failed his goal for the night.

The tournament was left with 5 players, Jason Tr, Eric Wej, Chris. S, sub Brian N. and Nick G. Could Nick G. possibly pull against the odds and cash again making it the first 4 consecutive tournaments of Season 3 and defy the odds of everyone playing against him? I guess not as he finished the night in 5th place after being eliminated by Jason Tr. As he was eliminated, there was a faint sound of Mrs. Innocent Angie cheering in the night. Congratulations to Brian N. for holding on for 4th place. Readers may remember Brian for rebuying 5 times in last year's unlimited rebuy tournament. Unfortunately, the prize for 4th place was not enough to sustain the losses, but Brian is heading in the right direction.

Chris S. could not find the right cards towards the end of the night finishing in 3rd place. Heads up began against a familiar duo of Jason Tr. and Eric Wej. The tournament could not ask for two nicer guys fighting it out heads up. Jason Tr. requested coloring up to reduce the chips in play, but just 2 hands after doing this, Jason ended Eric's night.

On the final hand of the tournament,  Eric raised his option and Jason called. The flop brought the . Eric checked and Jason moved all-in. Eric thought about it for a minute before calling and revealing the for ace high. Jason turned over the infamous for bottom pair. Eric picked up a gutshot straight draw on the turn. However the river missed him, gave Jason trips and the win.

The two players are now 1-1 against each other in head's-up matches. Congratulations to Jason Tr. for his 3rd career FNCPT win and a night well played along with Eric Wej. Also, thanks to everyone who came out for S3E4!

Only $22 was collected in the River Jackpot and no one picked the , so the jackpot will roll over to Event #5.

Jim O. limits his play for first FNCPT win

Norborne - The 23rd time was the charm for Jim O. as he managed to lock up his first FNCPT win. Jim used a mixture of good cards early and the ability to survive starting the final table card dead on his way to victory lane. As a sub, Kyle's second place finish gave him enough points to ink his name into the current April 8. Third place went to Nick who has cashed in all three events this season.

Although the limit event was popular in the off-season poll, filling seats proved to be difficult. Seven regulars were unavailable (at least one was because of the limit format) and it appeared that E3 was going to be sparsely attended. At one point, we had as many as three subs fill up the empty seats. But as the event drew near, an eighth regular had to back out a ninth regular canceled the day of the event, and one sub was a no-show. And so play began with only 13 players and S3E3 became the first FNCPT short-handed event with 6 players at the red table and 7 at the blue table.

Jim H. was the first elimination of the night, putting together several solid hands that proved to be second best. He lamented about it on the FNCPT Google+ site. Jason Tr. was the next out, unable to put together any traction or ever put his chip stack in a positive direction. Anita became the first elimination at the red table, finishing in 11th place. The final table bubble burst when Eric's A-9 went up against Keith A-J and Keith hit an unnecessary jack on the flop. It was Eric's second consecutive 10th place finish. At the second break, three of the four players eliminated were prop players that failed to make the final table in this small field event.

The first casualty of the final table was Pat M. followed by John M.. John's call-on-the-draw, attempting to knock out two people crippled him when he didn't get there. Nick finished him off, but John ended up breaking even on the night when the won him the $40 River Jackpot.

Angie had built up a solid stack and was looking to build on her S3E1 win when she got mixed up with Nick, who committed all his chips preflop. In typical fashion, Angie wished Nick good luck with his all in, despite going against her. Nick showed A-3 and despite a 3 on the flop, he was a long shot against Angie. But he made his 2-outer on the river to double up and left Angie crippled. She stayed afloat for awhile, but ultimately finished in 7th place.

With less then half the starting field remaining, Keith K. was looking to follow up his S3E2 cash with another night in the money. He got off to a strong start, winning the first two pots at the blue table. Though he gave away some chips early at the final table, he steadied the ship and was ready for another run at the cash when he tangled with Jason Ta. and came up short, finishing 6th.

Sub Jeff O. had built a monster stack by the time the final table formed, but he was withered away by the limit structure and the oppressive stretch of blinds after the third break. In the end, he finished in a respectable fifth place.

Typically, FNCPT events pay 4 spots. But with the thin field of 13, only three spots were being paid. And so with four players left to fight in out, one would still go home with empty pockets. The cash bubble was burst by Jason Ta., though despite the disappointing finish has managed to make the final table at each event this year, improving his finish each time. He will certainly be looking to cash in event #4.

Three-handed play began with Kyle, Jim O. and Nick and the first to blink was Nick, being eliminated in third place. As mentioned above, not only has Nick made each final table this year, but he's managed to cash each time as well, putting himself at the top of the April 8 and leading the prop bets through three events.

As heads up play began, the players agreed to forgo antes and dug in for what was expected to be a long battle given the limit structure. In reality, it didn't take long for Kyle to make top pair on the flop with Jim holding the nut flush draw. And a on the river gave Kyle top two but also filled Jim's flush. All the money got in and Kyle had four outs the the boat (or any 10 for a chop). But it was not to be as a harmless gave Jim his first FNCPT career victory.

Thanks to all who participated in Event #3 and congrats again to Jim O!

Nick flushes Keith and earns 3rd FNCPT win

Ingram - Nick G. outlasted Keith K. head's-up Saturday night to claim victory in S3E2.  This is Nick's 3rd career regular season win which ties him with Matt Pe. for the top spot in most FNCPT regular season victories with 3 apiece.

Each player started out with T150k in chips using the standard T100k blinds schedule.  Play started out rather slow with several players arriving late and one player not showing at all.  Substitute player Carl W. was a NCNS and will be the first player penalized under the new cancellation policy which awards negative last place points.  After the last of the late arriving players arrived, the field settled at 18.

Sean was the first player eliminated after Mike T. limped in early position and Sean looked down at pocket jacks.  He raised it to 13k with blinds at 1.5k/3k.  It folded back to Mike who re-raised to 45k.  Sean re-raised all-in for 46.5k more and Mike insta-called revealing pocket aces.  No help came for Sean and he was out.

John M. was the next player to hit the rail after Nick flopped trips, turned a boat and made quads on the river.  John's full house was good for 17th place.  Kevin was next (out 16th) when he got it all-in with top pair (jacks) on the flop and ran into a buzzsaw in the form of Angie's slow played pocket aces.

"Buffalo" Bill was out 15th when he raised to 16k preflop with blinds at 2k/4k/500.  Eric raised to 40k all day and Bill pushed for a total of 76k.  Eric called revealing pocket 5's whilst Bill showed pocket 8's.  Bill led all the way until the river brought a 4th heart to the board making Eric a flush.  Best thing for him, really.  His therapy was going nowhere.

Anita was out in 14th place when she limped with pocket kings and ran into the flopped boat of Jason Ta.  She was followed by both Jeff R. and Tom W. who were eliminated on the same hand by Mike T.  On the hand, Mike's pocket 10's turned a full house to Tom's J-9 and Jeff's pocket queens.

Angie was short stacked and crippled after getting caught trying to steal blinds by Lolly's jack and was out in 11th place on the next hand when her Q-8 was bettered by Nick's Q-9.

Eric burst the final table bubble after calling Nick's all-in, leading and having the river card flush favor from earlier returned to him.

After having her chip stack reduced a few hands earlier at the hand of Jason Ta, Lolly was the first player eliminated from the final table when she moved in blind with 6-2 o/s and was called by Keith.  Mike T. was next when he moved all-in for about 130k with Kh-9h.  Keith called in the BB with K-Q, matched his queen to the board and sent Mike out in 8th.

Jim O. was out 7th after he found himself short stacked and getting a string of crappy cards.  He finally woke up with pocket 4's, but unfortunately he ran into Keith's pocket jacks.  Jim was followed by Jason Ta. (out 6th) and the S3E2 bubble boy Kyle H. (out 5th).

Jim H. was eliminated in 4th place after re-raising Jason Tr's 175k raise to 420k and having Nick move all-in behind him.  Jason folded and Jim called showing Q-J o/s.  Nick turned over pocket 10's which held up and Jim was out.

Jason Tr. was out 3rd when he pushed his short stack in with the Kh-9h and got a caller in Keith who took the pot with ace high.

Nick held a sizeable chip lead over Keith head's up with blinds at 40k/80k/10k and play continued for about 20 minutes until the final hand of the tournament came. 

With blinds at a staggering 60k/120k/20k, Nick raised to 370k and Keith moved-in on top for 570k more.  Nick called and showed the Ac-10c.  Keith turned over the Kd-Qd.  Nick led through the 2c-2s-4d flop, but Keith could take the lead with any king, queen or running diamonds.  But the 8c turn missed him and took outs away in the form of flush possibilities for his opponent.  The Jc river gave Nick the winning flush and his 3rd career FNCPT regular season win.

With the jack of clubs river card, Lolly hit the River Jackpot for $80.  A new River Jackpot will start next month.

Congrats to Nick on his win and thanks for everyone who attended S3E2.

~ Jason Tr.

Angie + Beer = Event #1 Win

Norborne Angie kicked off Season III of the FNCPT with a win, overcoming a substantial chip disparity in the process. With the win, Angie has laid claim to a seat in the Championship early on. Over the last two years, the winner of Event #1 has remained in the Top 8 and finished the season with an automatic seat in the Championship (in Season 1, Jeff won event #1 and finished 3rd overall at the end of the season; Jason Tr. won Event #1 in Season 2, en route to his Player of the Year honors).

With a cancellation late in the week, the field was set at 19 players. However, another player cancelled after the tournament started and the field shrunk to 18, forcing the tables to be balanced before anyone was even eliminated.

Pat's rough night ended early as he mis-read his hand twice in big pots and was eliminated in 18th place. Bill was the next one sent home. After spending most of the night folding, he limped on the button preflop. Chris was in the big blind and managed to turn his 10-6 into a boat on the river, taking all of Bill's chips.

Jason Tr., last year's Player of the Year was sent home in 16th place after he was unable to gain any traction. Keith's two pair were crushed earlier by John's full house, but Keith rebought and managed to outlast three other players for a 15th place finish.

Father and daughter were the next to go. Season 1 champion Anita was bounced in 14th after a string of good hands would not hold up. Next out was reigning Champion Jim S. in 13th place.

Lolly and Sean were the next two players eliminated and the two tables both played five-handed, waiting for the next elimination and the formation of the final table. Jim H obliged the remaining 9 players by bowing out in 10th place.

Jason Ta. was the first player eliminated from the final table. He was followed by Jim O. in 8th place and John in 7th. Kevin's aggressive play at the final table earned him a 6th place finish, but because of a rebuy, he earned 8th place points.

Eric was nursing a shortstack on the bubble and had managed to double up a few times, but the blinds and antes were oppressive. When he looked down and saw A-10, he pushed and was called by the A-7 of Mike. A seven on the flop ended Eric's night and burst the bubble.

Nick was the first out of the money with a 4th place finish. Three-handed, Mike was the next to succumb to the pressure, leaving with 3rd place money. Angie and Chris were poised for a heads up battle with Chris having a healthy chip lead.

There was considerable pushing back-and-forth of blinds with no one taking a commanding lead (and a clock snafu that delayed an increase in blinds). But as the clock ticked, the blinds and the pots both got bigger. With 4 previous cashes, Angie was starved for a win. And having not tasted the winner's circle since his first event in Season 1 (and a string of 2nd place finishes outside the FNCPT), Chris wasn't going to go gentle into that good night.

As the two battled back and forth, Angie raked pots and slowly built a slight chip edge. And on the final hand, the players got all the money in the middle. Angie showed KJ for top two pair while Chris showed QT and an open ended straight draw. In the end, Angie's top two pair ended up being the best hand, good enough for $350 and her first FNCPT victory.


The six of diamonds on the river meant that no one won the River Jackpot. $40 will rollover into Event #2's jackpot.

Thanks to everyone who played in Event #1 and congrats again to Angie on the win!


~ Eric

Farewell Season II, Greetings Season III

Livonia - After another grueling 13 events over 11 months, Season II of the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour is in the books and Season III is upon us. Congratulations again to Season II Champion Jim S. Here are some facts and stats from Season II:

• A total of 37 players participated in the 11 regular season events this season compared to 36 from Season I.
• Out of the 37 players, the top 8 in the overall final standings earned a seat in the Championship.
• Out of these 8 players, just 4 of them played in all 11 regular season events. Last season, 7 of the top 8 played in all 11 events.
• Jason Tr. finished 1st overall in the league standings with 55.82 points and earned Player of the Year honors. This was well short of the benchmark 66.76 points put up by Season I POTY, Mike T.
• A total of 3 players earned 2 regular season wins this season. This included Jason Tr. with wins in S2E1 and S2E8, Jim S. with wins in S2E2 and S2E5 and Matt Pe. with wins in S2E10 and S2E11. Last season, Mike T. was the only player to win 2 events.
• Despite missing 4 of the 11 regular season events each, Matt Pe. and Jim S. not only managed to win 2 events each but also managed to finish 3rd and 4th place overall in the season standings.
• Jim S. would go on to win this seasons' Championship Event. Ironically Jim's daughter Anita G. won last season's Championship.
• Only 4 of this season's 11 regular season events featured a rebuy. Last season 9 of the 11 events featured a rebuy. However S2E8 included unlimited rebuy's.
• Just like last season, a total of 32 rebuy's were purchased this season. But 22 of these 32 rebuy's were purchased in just one event, S2E8: the unlimited rebuy event.
• Out of the 32 rebuy's purchased this season, a total of 3 players cashed. Keith K. accomplished this by cashing in 4th place in S2E4 and both Jim S. and Jim O. cashed in 2nd and 3rd place respectively in S2E8.
• Overall odds of cashing on a rebuy increased to 3:32. As always, 100% of all rebuy proceeds go to the event prize pool.

Like Season II, Season III will include:

• 11 regular season events with the same scoring formula.
• The top 8 point finishers earning a seat in the Championship Event.
• Positions 9-17 earning a seat in the Championship Qualifier. The winner gets the 9th and final seat in the Championship.
• A majority of the buy-in's will remain at $40.
• A majority of the events will be no limit hold'em.
• The limit hold'em event will return by popular demand.
• The omaha high event with a full rebuy will also return by popular demand.
• The unlimited rebuy, no limit hold'em event returns as well.

Changes in Season III will include:

• 6 events this season will offer a rebuy.
• S3E2 will include a starting stack of T150,000 in chips and use the standard T100,000 blinds schedule. The buy-in for this event is increased to $50.
• S3E4 will be no limit hold'em position poker with a full rebuy. You can learn more about position poker by clicking here.
• S3E7 will be a double-elimination, no limit hold'em, head's-up tournament.
• S3E10 will be this season's deep stack event. The starting stack will be increased to T300,000 in chips using the standard T100,000 blinds schedule. The buy-in will remain at $60.
• This season will feature a River Jackpot. We'll sell 40 cards per event (everyone can buy 2, then if less than 40 are sold, you can buy more at the first break). If you pick the card that becomes the river card on the last hand of the tournament, you win the jackpot (if we sell all 40 cards, you basically get your $40 buy-in back). If no one picks the river card, the jackpot rolls over to the next tournament. The last tournament of the season, we'll sell all 52 cards. There is no rake on the River Jackpot -- just a random/luckbox way to re-distribute wealth that should not affect tournament play in any way. 
• The season long props bet will be extended to all regular players and will include rotisserie scoring in 5 catagories. The catagories include: 1. final tables, 2. cashes, 3. fewest rebuys, 4. eliminations and 5. average finish. The player with the highest point total after the 11 regular season events will win the prop. Players interested in participating will have to pay the $50 bet prior to the start of event #1.

Good luck to everyone in Season III!

~ Jason Tr.

Hook, line and Champion!

Ingram - Jim S. defeated Matt Pe. in a 20 minute head's-up battle early Sunday morning and became champion of the 2010-2011 Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour!

Each player started the tournament with T200,000 in chips (double the starting stack from last season) and T450,000 chips were awarded as a bonus based on each players' cumulative season points. Seats were assigned randomly and the stacks looked like this:

Seat 1: Matt Pe., 254,500
Seat 2: John M., 248,000

Seat 3: Jim S., 253,000

Seat 4: Bill B., 226,500

Seat 5: Jason Ta., 248,000

Seat 6: Jason Tr., 267,500

Seat 7: Jim H., 245,000

Seat 8: Nick G., 259,500
Seat 9: Eric Wej., 249,500

The cards flew at 7:03 P.M. sharp sans Matt Pe. who arrived about an hour into the tournament. Matt's late arrival was by design as he prefers to avoid the very early stages of tournament play.

Unlike last year's Championship, no players were eliminated in the first blind level. Pots remained relatively small until John M. picked up pocket kings in middle position in level 3 with blinds at 1.5k/3k. John called off over 150k of his stack on the hand to Eric's 2 pair.

Jim H. was the first player to announce "all-in" when his dwindling chip stack became dangerously low. Jim managed to pick up a few pots here and there until he called a 19k raise PF by "Buffalo" Bill with blinds at 3k/6k/500 holding A-Q. Bill checked the A-rag-rag flop and Jim quickly pushed. Bill insta-called and revealed A-K. The turn and river brought no help for Jim as he became the evening's first elimination.

Nick G. remained relatively quiet and card dead through the first 6 levels, slowly bleeding chips. Then he picked up pocket kings. After Jim S. called his raise with Q-J and flopped a queen, he quickly called Jim's all-in and found himself well in the lead. Unfortunately Jim rivered a jack and doubled up through Nick. Nick's stack was reduced to 88.5k. However, on the very next hand Nick managed to double up through "Buffalo" Bill when his A-K bettered Bill's A-10.

John M. was eliminated in 8th place. Eric reaised PF to 38,000 and John re-popped it to 80,000; Eric thought briefly and called. The flop came 10d-Qh-3c; Eric checked, John pushed all-in and Eric quickly made the call, revealing pocket queens for a flopped set. John revealed his death knell for the tournament, pocket kings. The Ah turn and 4d river were no help and John was out.

Jason Ta. found himself on the rail when he pushed his last 107k in PF with the Qs-Js. He got a caller in Jim S. with pocket 10's. The A-3-3-K-6 board missed Jason and he was eliminated in 7th place.

This season's "Player of the Year" Jason Tr. started the tournament with the chip lead. Unfortunately, just like last season, the lead proved to be no advantage. Card dead for a majority of the night, Jason found himself folding, retreating and like Broomcorn's uncle, getting blinded away. With blinds at a staggering 7k/15k/2k, Jason woke up with pocket jacks UTG. He moved his stack of 122k in and was called by Jim S. who turned over A-K. The flop brought an ace, the turn and river brought no help and Jason was out in 6th place.

Nick's chip stack roller coaster ride came to an end with 19 minutes remaining in level 9 with blinds at 10k/20k/3k. Bill in the SB raised to 40k. Nick holding A-5 in the BB called. The A-Q-4 flop produced a 70k bet from Bill. Nick moved in for an additional 158k. Bill called and revealed A-9. The turn and river brought blanks, Bill's 9 played and Nick was out in 5th place.

4 handed play started in the 10k/20k/3k level with Jim holding a slight chip lead over Matt and Eric and Bill on the short stack. However "Buffalo" Bill took a stand defending his short stack and picked up the blinds and antes with a few well timed all-in's which continued into the 20k/40k/6k level. This was until Jim min-raised to 80k and Bill re-raised all-in for 196k all day with the Kh-Jh. Jim called and turned over Ad-9s. The 6d-2c-10c-5d-4h board stayed clean for Jim who took the pot with ace high. Bill was eliminated on the bubble in 4th place.

Just 3 minutes into the 20k/40k/6k level, Eric completed the small blind and instead of checking his option, Matt shoved. Eric called showing A-T spades, slightly better than a 2:1 favorite over Matt's Kh-3d. But the flop brought Matt salvation in the form of Kd-8s-7d and a 4:1 lead in the hand. The 9h on the turn and the 4d on the river didn't help Eric, as he sent a 600,000 pot Matt's way, leaving himself with less than 200k in chips.

Eric managed to claw his way into the next level where blinds reached 25k/50k/7k. With only 54k left in his stack and in the BB, Eric checked his option after calls from Jim and Matt. The triple club flop was checked by all three players. Jim lead out with 100,000 on the turn; Eric called his last 4k and Matt folded. Jim revealed the 10c-7c for the flopped flush. Eric mucked his king in disgust and was out in 3rd place.

Head's-up play between Jim and Matt started with 21:27 remaining in the 20k/40k/6k level with Jim holding an approximate 3:2 chip lead over his opponent. Both players exchanged pots, none very significant, over the course of 20 minutes until the final hand of the tournament came up. Matt raised to 200k PF and Jim called. The flop brought the 7h-Tc-9s. Matt moved all-in and Jim quickly called. Matt turned over Kc-7d for middle pair. Jim revealed the Ah-8s for ace high and an open ended straight draw. The Jd turn filled Jim's straight giving him the lead. Matt's only hope was a three outer 8 on the river to pair the board and chop the pot. But the meaningless 7s came instead and gave Jim the second plaque on the FNCPT Championship Trophy.

Congratulations to Matt on a strong finish in the regular season (back to back wins in Event's 10 and 11) and his second place finish in the Championship. Despite missing 4 of the 11 regular season events this season, Matt still managed a 3rd place overall finish in the standings.

Congratulations, Jim, on your 2010-2011 Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour victory!

~ Jason Tr.