Stokes Ho, Ho!

Hidden Court West - Despite rebuying, Chris S. went on to defeat head's-up opponent Lolly O. early Sunday morning to claim Event 8 of Season 5 of the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour!

Regulars Jim H, Mike T. and Mike M. all canceled in advance of the event and were replaced by substitutes Sean O, Drew M. and Jim S. But Jim S. had to back out a few days before and no substitute was located. So the event stayed nearly filled at 19 players.

A large winter storm was forecasted the day of the tournament and was expected to bring as much as 3-6 inches of snow. The TD's anticipated this would cause a handful of players to cancel.

Early in the day, Drew M. bowed out due to a family member giving birth thus reducing the field to 18 players. As start time approached, Keith and Angie called off due to the driving conditions. But that was it. Everyone else arrived by the expiration of the first blind level solidifying the field at 16!

Marc H. was the evening's first elimination after his pocket 9's ran into Kevin's pocket rockets and he elected not to rebuy. John M. was next after he shoved with K-J and ran into Bill B's pocket rockets.

Jim O. found himself all-in in level 6 (PLO) with blinds at 600/1,200/200 holding A-A-10-5 and getting called by Bill B. who tabled A-A-10-7. The flop brought both a 10 and a 7 giving Bill the lead. Blanks on the turn and river sent Jim to the rail in 14th place.

Chris Ba. was sent packing in 13th place courtesy of Sean O's flopped set of 10's. Fran followed Chris when Lolly's pocket 6's held against his A-5.

For the second consecutive tournament, Jason Tr. took a leap of faith by going all-in blind, getting called and eliminated. With only 16k left, Jason attempted to take down the blinds by shoving in middle position. Unfortunately he was called by Eric's A-K in late position which held up. Jason was followed by Jason Ta. who was eliminated in 10th place thus forming the final table.

Nick was the first elimination from the final table after he was all-in PF for 15k with blinds at 1,200/2,400/200 holding A-J. He got a caller in Bill who tabled pocket 8's. Bill's 8's held on the dry board.

On a short stack, Sean saw an opportunity to pick up the blinds so he raised with 8c-9c but instead got re-raised by Kevin. Sean then pulled the trigger by going all-in hoping his opponent would fold.  But Kevin called and showed A-K. The flop brought a king and the turn and river brought no help for Sean and he was out in 8th place.

Poised for a double-up, Tom got it in good holding A-A-10-4 versus Kevin's Q-Q-2-3 with blinds at 2,500/5,000/400 in PLO. Unfortunately for Tom, the 7-2-3 flop put Kevin in the lead. The turn and river were blanks and Tom was out 7th place.

Eric was next, out in 6th place, when he was all-in PF for his last 4k with K-K-5-5 in a 4-way pot which was eventually claimed by Anita's flopped set of 6's.

Bill became the event's bubble boy after he pushed with K-4 and got called by Lolly's A-5 which paired an ace on the flop and held up. But it was another 4.22 points to add to his commanding overall lead this season.

Four-handed play between Chris, Anita, Kevin and Lolly started with Chris holding a sizable chip lead over his opponents. The four players exchanged chips over two levels until a big hand between Anita and Kevin came up in NLHE.

On a 6-7-8-10 board and with a 9 in her holdings, Anita turned a T-high straight and moved-in. Unfortunately for her, Kevin called with J-9 giving him a higher straight to the jack. A river jack could tie the hand, but a blank fell instead and Anita exited the tournament in 4th place with her first cash in over a year.

Three-handed play between Chris, Kevin and Lolly continued as Chris' chip stack started to grow like an unstoppable rebel force. And it wasn't long when the tournament went head's-up after Chris eliminated Kevin with a broadway straight setting up a showdown with Lolly.

Chris held a 7-1 chip lead over his opponent at the start of head's-up play. But Lolly didn't relent and fought hand for hand. But eventually, an inevitable match-up came.

On the final hand of the tournament, all the chips were in the middle with Lolly holding As-9s and Chris holding Jd-Jc. The 9d-5h-Kd flop paired Lolly's 9, however Chris remained in the lead 80.7% to 19.3% with his jacks. The Qd turn increased Chris' lead to 90.0% to 9.09%. Lolly needed a non-diamond ace or 9 to continue. But it was not to be as the 3h came instead giving Chris his 3rd career FNCPT win.

With his win, Chris becomes just the 4th player in the history of the FNCPT who purchased a rebuy in a single-rebuy regular season event and went on to win that event. He joins David S., Tom W. and Joe H.

Congrats to Chris on his win and thanks to everyone who came out for S5E8.

~ Jason Tr.

April 8 Update
There was no shake-up in the top 4 spots, despite Jim H. taking Event 8 off.  With his win, however,  Chris S. jumped 8 spots to land in fifth place overall, dropping spots 5 through 7 down one place and Nick being bumped out of the top spots.  Through 8 events, the April 8 looks like this:

1. Bill B. (60.44 Points)
2. Sean O. (46.33)
3. Jim H. (32.55)
4. Fran D. (32.08)
5. Chris S. (27.34)
6. Jason Ta. (27.25)
7. Jason Tr. (24.60)
8. Jim O. (23.65)

The top half of the April 8 was decided long ago.  Bill and Sean have remained 1 and 2 the entire season.  Although a few players could crack the top half, it would take a coup to unseat Bill or Sean. The real race in the April 8 is at the bottom. Sitting in 7th place, Jason Tr. is only other player that has yet to fall out of the April 8; but at 7th, he's currently at his lowest point this season and in danger of loosing his automatic bid. There are four players anxious to take his spot, all are less than 4 points from the final automatic seat to the Championship tournament.

Nick opened the season in 7th place but quickly fell out of the top 8; he returned after Event 6 (in 8th place) and stayed there for two events, before falling again after Event 8.  He remains on the outside looking in by a minuscule 0.16 points.

Marc H. started the season in 4th place and stayed there through two events. After missing Event 3, he dropped out of the top 8.  But he fought back and after a second place finish in Event 5, he again found himself among the league leaders. He stayed for 2 more weeks until he missed Event 7 and dropped out again. He has three events left to build his points up and overcome the 1.83 points between himself and 8th place.

Kevin A. also started the season as part of the April 8 with a third place finish in Event 1.  He held on to a top spot for three weeks despite a 16th place finish and 20th place finish in Events 2 and 3, respectively.  But another 16th place finish in Event 4 dropped him out of the April 8 for good.  Two final tables in the last four events, however, has Kevin back in contention and sitting just 2.08 points out of 8th place.

Lolly is as high as she's ever been this season, sitting in 12th place overall. But coming off her best finish of the season in Event 8, she has the momentum needed to overcome the 3.90 point deficit that is between her and 8th place.

Assuming Event 9 fills up, the average points awarded will be 3.74 points. With a good showing, Nick, Marc or Kevin could be back in the April 8 and Lolly could make her debut.  The last three events are shaping up to be a nail-biter as the points-race tightens up at the bottom of the April 8.

Fourth time's the charm

Ingram - After agreeing to chop 1st and 2nd place prize money, substitute Sean O. went on to capture his first career regular season victory by defeating head's-up opponent Jim H. in the early morning hours Sunday to claim E7 of Season V of the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour!

With three regular players out, the directors turned to the sub list for replacements. Sub player's Sean O, Drew M. and Erik M. (season debut) all answered the call. However just a few hours before the tourney, Drew M. canceled for unspecified reasons. Sub Jim S. (season debut) filled-in on short notice keeping the field full at 20 players. 

The tournament started on time for a change sans Chris S, Fran D. and Tom W. who were all running late.

After being sucked out by Jason Ta's turned full house and felted, Lolly purchased the evening's first rebuy. A short time later she found herself all-in holding two queens against Nick's pocket T's. A 10 spiked on the flop and blanks on the turn and river gave the tournament it's first elimination.

In an effort to double-up, Kevin pulled the trigger holding K-T and got a caller in Bill's pocket 9's. The flop brought a 9 and Kevin rebought. A dozen hands later, Kevin shoved all-in on a 9-J-Q flop and Jason Ta. quickly called with K-T for a flopped straight. Kevin mucked his holdings to a meaningless turn and river and quietly exited in 19th place.

Anita was out next after flopping top-pair (8's) and announcing "all-in" only to be called by Angie's pocket "Vowels".

Next to hit the rail was Eric W. who went card dead after the break. Early on, he picked up aces in the hole out of the small blind and got no action before losing 35k to Keith on the last hand before Keith was moved to the other table. Blinds and antes whittled him down to just 22,500.  On his last hand, Angie called 6k in the cutoff and it folded around; Eric looked down at 7-7 and was "small in" for his last 22,500. Jim S. called from the BB and Angie called. The K-x-x flop was checked, as was the J on the turn. Jim checked the river T and folded to Angie's all-in. Angie rolled over A-Q for runner-runner to broadway and Eric's 7's hit the muck.

With blinds at 3k/6k/500, Jason Ta. raised to 18,500 holding two T's only to have Bill come over-the-top all-in for 109,000. Jason called and Bill revealed A-Q. The flop, turn and river brought no help and the season points leader was out in 16th place.

It was rough sailing for "Captain" John, having earlier lost a QQ v QQ; with his opponent holding the queen of clubs, the flop and turn brought four clubs and John doubled up his opponent.  He finally bowed out in 15th place after flopping middle-pair (9's) holding A-9 and pushing his short stack in. Angie called with bottom-pair (8's) with J-8. John was on the verge of a double-up as the turn brought no help for Angie. However a jack on the river gave Angie two-pair and the elimination.

Down to less than six BB's, Jason Tr. decided to push all-in blind and got a caller in Chris S. who turned over A-T. Jason flipped over K-9 and prayed for the flop to hit him. The flop brought a 10, cutting Jason's outs in half. The turn and river were blanks and Jason was out.

Jim S. was next to the rail when he pushed with Q-10 and got called by Fran's A-J.  The flop broadened Fran's lead with an ace and the board held. Erik M. pushed the last of his chips in with pocket 6's and was called by Fran holding A-T.  The turn gave Fran a straight and Erik hit the rail.

Mike M. exited in 11th place after shoving for 37k with A-K on a 10-7-8 flop and getting called by Jason Ta's 6-8. A 6 on the turn gave Jason two-pair and a huge lead. Mike hoped to chop with a nine, but it never came and he joined the cash table. The final table formed with Tom's elimination in 10th place.

Jim O. ran his pocket fours into Sean's pocket queens and became the first one eliminated from the final table. Nick followed after over-playing K-8 while Jim H. held pocket kings. Jim scored back-to-back eliminations when he took all of Angie's chips holding A-J to Angie's A-T. 

With six remaining and blinds at 10k/20k/3k, Jim H. bumped the action to 63k. Chris S. looked down at A-Q and came over the top for 275k all-in. Jim called and revealed "Ace Magnets". Jim managed to avoid an ace on the board and his pocket kings held.

The tournament bubble loomed with 5 players remaining. Keith got it in good with his A-K for 150k PF against Fran's A-8. But he was drawing thin once an 8 hit the flop. Bricks on the turn and river sent Keith home in 5th place.

4 handed play between Jim, Sean, Fran and Jason Ta. began with Jim and Sean holding a majority of the chips in play and with Fran and Jason on the short stacks. Blinds were at 15k/30k/5k.

Jason bumped the action up to 80k and was called by Jim. The flop came A-8-9 and Jim announced "all-in"; Jason made the call and revealed A-2 as Jim turned over A-6. It appeared as though a split pot was in Jason's future, but a 2 on the turn gave Jason a commanding 86.4% lead in the hand. But the river brought a 6 and gave Jim the better two-pair. Jason collected his 4th place money and keyed Jim's car on the way out. It was Jason's first cash of Season 5 despite six final tables appearances.

With three remaining, Sean raised to 120k and Fran shoved for 300k. Sean made the call and tabled As-Kh; Fran turned over Jd-Th. The Ac-Ks-9c flop gave Sean better-than a 4:1 lead in the hand. Fran was looking for a queen or running jacks, but a 9 on the turn limited Fran to a queen. The 6d fell instead giving Fran a 3rd place cash; it was Fran's third straight profitable tournament, and he has cashed in 4 of his last five events.

Head's-up play between Jim and Sean started with blinds at 25k/50k and each player agreeing to forgo the 7k ante. Jim held 1.6 million chips to Sean's 900k.

After several hands, Sean had a slight lease holding 1.4 million chips. With 7 minutes remaining in the level, both players agreed to chop 1st and 2nd place prize money 50/50 and play it out for the points. This seems to be the trend in the FNCPT lately as this has happened in 3 straight events now.

Jim and Sean slugged it out for the remaining 7 minutes in the level. I watched the action tableside anticipating the final hand would be dealt at any moment as a chop was agreed to and both players wanted it to end (in my mind). But it didn't. Jim and Sean battled back and forth giving a full effort well into the 40k/80k level. A few hands after receiving a devastating blow to his (Jim's) stack, the final hand of the tournament was dealt.

Sean raised to 270k and Jim quickly re-raised all-in. Sean snap called and turned over As-9h. Jim meekly revealed 7h-4d. The Jc-7c-9d flop gave Sean the lead with middle pair (9's) and Jim bottom pair (7's). The 3d turn changed nothing. Jim was down to a 7 or a 4. The 2d came instead and Sean had his first FNCPT win.

Sean had 3 previous head's-up matches in FNCPT regular season events but finished 2nd each time. The fourth time was a charm.

Congrats Sean on your first FNCPT win and thanks to everyone who came out for S5E7!

~ Jason Tr.

PS, I would like to thank everyone who assisted in tracking eliminations Saturday night. It's appreciated and makes the writing of this blog much easier. Thanks again!

 April 8 Update

 

The heavy hitters are all at the top. Bill's three victories keep him way out in front, though Sean remains on his tail after Saturday's win. Jim H. has only cashed twice, but it was for 1st and 2nd place -- enough points to creep past Fran for third place. Fran has cashed in 4 of the 5 events he's played in, but missing two events allowed him to slip to fourth. After Fran, there is a 6-point drop to fifth place.

As tight as the race is at the top, there is an equally tight race at the bottom. Only 3.24 points separate 5th from 8th. Jason Ta. climbed 4 spots with his fourth place finish in E7. Jason Tr. only slipped one spot, despite a less-than-satisfying 14th place finish Saturday night. Jim O. was the first to hit the rail at the final table and earned only 2.83 points, but it was enough to jump 3 spots to the 7 slot. Nick held even in 8th overall. Here are the updated "April 8" through 7 events:

1. Bill B.   56.22
2. Sean O.   43.52
3. Jim H.   32.55
4. Fran D.   30.71
5. Jason Ta.   24.95
6. Jason Tr.   23.11
7. Jim O.   21.97
8. Nick G.   21.71

Marc and Drew were both idle and dropped out of the Top 8; it was worse for Drew who cancelled late and took a 0.95 point penalty. Keith's bubble earned him enough points to put him within 1 point of the final guaranteed spot at the final table. Mike M. remains on the outside looking in, but he treaded water to remain in 12th place. Chris S. jumped two spots in the standings with his 6th place finish. Mike T. was headed in the opposite direction, missing E7 (his third absence this season) and dropping 3 spots to 14th place.

With the difference between 8th place and 14th place at less than 3.5 points, it is still anybody's game going in to the last 4 events.

~ Eric W.

Unstoppable

Huntington Dr. - Fueled by 1800 Silver Tequila and home field advantage, Bill B. managed to defeat Mike T. in a head's-up battle for points after agreeing to chop 1st and 2nd place prize money early Sunday morning in the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour's Season 5 Unlimited Rebuy event!

Huntington Dr. became the 5th venue to host a FNCPT event. All 20 regulars reserved a seat for the rebuy extravaganza. The opening deals went out just after 7 P.M.

Chris Ba. was the evening's first official elimination after exercising a lone rebuy. Chris' pocket queens got busted by Jim O's two-pair: 8's and 9's. Marc followed (out in 19th place) after a rebuy and getting it all-in with Q-6 to Chris S's A-J. Ace high proved to be the winner.

Kevin A. checked out in 18th place after purchasing not one, not two but three rebuys. Mike M. was next, spending what remained of his rebuy on pocket jacks that were crushed by Jason Ta's pocket kings.

John M. suffered some terrible beats enroute to a rebuy -- only to have it happen again. John declined a second rebuy and exited the tournament in 16th place. Chris S. followed John to the rail in 15th place.

Angie was eliminated in 13th place when she pushed with pocket 3's and got looked up by Eric's A-10 which connected with the Q-T-Q flop. This was after Angie purchased a single rebuy.

Before the tournament began, Bill and Angie made a bet that involved shots of tequila from a pint of 1800 Silver. Originally, the loser of a hand was supposed to do a shot. But that wasn't happening that often so they both started doing shots as the blinds changed. Before everyone knew it, the pint was gone.

Keith was out in 12th place after his pocket kings got out-drawn by Jim H's A-Q. Tom followed in 11th place when his A-Q failed to connect to the 10-7-6 flop and he couldn't beat Bill's 10-J.

With only 10 players remaining (2 tables of 5 players), the final table bubble loomed. The short-stacks remaining were all looking for a little more breathing room at a full table. Then fireworks erupted at the brown table. A three-way all-in between Anita, Lolly and Fran had Fran's Ah-8h rivering a winning flush over Anita's pocket 8's and Lolly's pocket 10's. The final table then formed with the remaining 8 players (and because Anita had Lolly out-chipped, she got credit for a final table, despite not sitting for one hand).

Eric was the final table's first elimination when he pushed his short-stack with pocket 3's. To no one's surprise, he got called by Bill who tabled Q-10 and once again hit the flop and scooped the pot.

Jim H. was eliminated in 7th place after he got it in good with pocket 4's to Fran's pocket 3's. Unfortunately for Jim, Fran managed to river a 3 for a winning set. The elimination notes indicated that after this occurred, Jim was sad :(.

Short-stacked and card dead, Jason Tr. made a stand for his last 100k going all-in blind. Bill called and showed pocket 4's. Jason turned over 7-2 in disgust. No 7 came and Jason was out in 6th place.  All-in, blind, for 100k?  On his way to the rail, Jason was overheard muttering, "I think I want my money back."

With only 5 players remaining, the money bubble was about to burst. Jason Ta. was manning the short-stack and sought a double-up when he pushed with A-Q. Bill called with 8h-9h and ended up making a winning flush which dispatched Jason in 5th.

With only 305k in front of him, Nick looked down at A-9 and bet all of his chips. Mike T. called in the SB and Fran came over the top all-in in the BB. Mike tanked for a minute before mucking his cards as Fran had his remaining 600k easily covered. Fran revealed pocket 8's. Nick's A-9 was shown and missed the board giving Fran the huge pot and Nick 4th place prize money. This was Nick's second straight 4th place finish this season.

3-handed play between Bill, Mike and Fran continued through the 25k/50k/7k level with Fran holding fewer chips than his opponents.  He was looking for a double-up when he called Bill's all-in bet in the BB holding A-9. Bill showed pocket 4's and the race was on! Unfortunately the Q-7-3-2-J board missed Fran and he settled for 3rd place prize money.

Head's-up play between Bill and Mike began with Bill having a slight lead in chips. Both players agreed to chop 1st and 2nd place money and play it out for the points. Surprisingly, they actually did play it out as they exchanged pots back and forth well into the 40k/80k level.

On the final hand of the tournament, Bill moved-in with Ad-6d and Mike called with Qc-Kc. The 2c-8s-Js flop kept Bill in the lead with his ace. The Jd turn put a pair on the board and Bill in front. Mike needed a queen or king to have a chance at another pot. But it was not to be as the 9s fell giving Bill his 3rd win of this season and Chris S. the $160 River Jackpot.

A total of 13 rebuys were purchased in the tournament. This was down from 14 in last season's event which coincidentally Bill won despite purchasing 3 rebuys and earning fewer points than the 2nd place finisher. 

Bill has all but put a lock on the Player of the Year honor this season and he is expected to shatter the single-season points record of 69.07 set by Jason Tr. in Season 3. He has cashed in 5 of the 6 events so far and racked up a whopping $1,410 in earnings over that time. This is at the halfway point of the season. There are still 5 regular season events remaining. If Bill is to beat the single-season points record, he would need to tally a total of 14.52 points over the 5 remaining regular season events. That is an average of 2.90 points per event.

Bill is also now just the 2nd player in the history of the FNCPT to eclipse $4,000 in career earnings. Not bad for a guy who didn't have a single cash in 19 straight regular season FNCPT events. Look it up.

Thanks to everyone who came out for S5E6 and congrats again to Bill on another win!

~ Jason Tr.

Pineapple Split

Norborne - Fran and Marc slugged it out head's-up in the FNCPT's first-ever Crazy Pineapple tournament.  Having already agreed to chop first and second place prize money, the pair agreed to play 10 hands and see who was on top. Ten hands later, the house forced the players to play it out, and in the end, Fran held all the chips.

Play started shortly after 7:00 p.m. with all 20 seats filled.  The new format did not slow the action as five players busted and rebought before the first break.

The night's first two eliminations came from the blue table.  When Marc's rivered flush topped Jim H's straight, Jim became the first casualty of the evening.  John followed quickly behind as the night's 19th finisher.

John's elimination caused Jason Tr. to be re-seated at the blue table.  Shortly after the move, he found himself in a three-way pot on the draw for all of his chips. Jason held an open-ended straight draw but was up against a set and two-pair.  Jim's set held and the evening continued with only 17 players.

Next out, also at the blue table, was Angie.  Her elimination caused Bill to change tables and shortly after that, Bill was eliminated in 16th place.  As the blue table claimed its fifth victim, action was heating up on the red table.  Fran bumped it preflop.  Kevin called and Eric went "small in" for less holding "Route 66".  Eric's sixes didn't improve and he subsequently became the evening's first elimination at the red table.

The poker grim reaper returned to the blue table for its next victim.  Nick put it all-in the middle preflop with A-A and got called by Keith's K-K.  But the board was dry for Keith and he was eliminated in 14th place.

Chris B. hit the rail next holding A-K-5 preflop and going up against 8-8-5.  The Q-Q-J flop missed Chris, but the overpair on the board gave Chris' A-K more possibilities.  A deuce and trey on the turn and river were both bricks for Chris and he was eliminated in 13th place.

Marc kept active at the blue table, putting Anita at risk with a bet of 100k PF. Anita called with A-K-6, but Marc's J-J was dyno-mite! as he sent Anita to the rail in 12th place.

Not wanting to let Marc build too big of a chipstack, Nick kept active at the blue table as well; he raised the action holding A-A-x and Jim called, putting himself at risk holding T-T-x.  Nick hit an ace on the river, but the T on the turn gave Jim a 1-outer.  Instead of drama, Nick improved to quad-aces with an Ace on the River.  Jim was out 11th and play progressed to the final table bubble.

Tom found himself short-stacked with only about 9,500.  When he woke up with A-8-x, he shoved and found someone willing to double him up.  And although Kevin's Q-T-x was mathematically behind, Tom was "drawing thin" against Kevin.  Sure enough, Kevin hit a queen on the flop and sent Tom home on the bubble in 10th place.

The table consolidated and play resumed 9-handed and it didn't take Kevin long to give away Tom's chips and the rest of his own; he was the first player dispatched in 9th place.  Lolly hit the rail next when her 8-8 didn't improve against Marc's Q-Q.

Mike M. and Nick tangled in a pot, Mike holding A-Q-4 and Nick holding A-Q-6.  When a 6 hit the flop, Nick discarded the queen and his sixes held, eliminating Mike in 7th place.

Next up for Marc was Chris S., holding 7-7-3.  Marc was behind temporarily holding A-K-J, but when a jack hit the flop, Marc seized the lead.  Air on the turn and river brought no help to Chris and he went out in 6th place.

With five players left, the money bubble was about to burst.  Jason Ta. shoved holding K-Q on a K-6-7 flop.  He got a caller in Marc holding K-K.  At that point, the turn and the river didn't matter because Jason was drawing dead.  Marc's chip stack swelled and Jason's night ended on the bubble.

Four-handed play didn't last too long as Nick put himself at risk and then found the bad news: K-T against A-K.  Nick earned $110 for his 4th place finish whilst his wife was killing the Omaha-Eight cash table.

Three handed play began with Mike T, Fran and Marc.  Fran got out of the way when Mike and Marc shoved with Mike being at risk.  Both players held an ace (A-4 vs. A-Q), but Marc held the Ace of Spades and used it to make a river flush and send Mike home $150 richer.

Before head's-up play began between Fran and Marc, they agree to chop the first and second place price money, $330 each.  They also agreed to play 10 hands and at the end of those 10 hands, whoever had the most chips would be declared the winner.  At the end of ten hands, as their deal was revealed, they were informed that they had to play the cards out until one person held all the chips.  They did so, and the final hand was dealt.

After an 8-8-3 rainbow flop, both players discarded and Fran revealed an under-pair (6-6) while Marc held on to two overs (K-T).  Neither the jack on the turn nor the deuce on the river improved Marc as Fran took home first place points along with $330.  Because Fran had rebought earlier in the night (and Marc did not), Fran only earned 0.57 points more than Marc, despite the first place finish.

Thanks again to everyone who played in S5E5 and congrats again to Fran!

~Eric

The Merchant of Hidden Court West

Hidden Court West - Jim H. managed to edge out a red-hot Bill B. in head's-up play to claim the fourth event in Season Five of the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour early Sunday morning.

The event was filled at 20 players a week in advance, however Mike T. dropped out early Thursday due to babysitting issues. He was replaced by substitute player Shawn B. who made his FNCPT debut.

The cards flew at 7:15pm sharp.

Eric W. was the last player to arrive, but the late start meant he had only been blinded off one small blind.  After pulling a few pots, he raised it up in the level 3 while in the small blind and got four callers.  Eric bet the AA7 flop and two people dropped with Drew M. being the only one to stick around.  Eric checked the brick turn and Drew bet out; Eric re-raised all in and Drew quickly called, tabling 77 for a flopped boat.  Eric needed the a king or a paired board for his AK to survive.  The river was dry and Eric was eliminated in 20th place.

Several leaguer's convinced Eric to stick around for the cash game which was at least 2 hours away. In the meantime, Eric took to the camera to treat everyone to some of his Pulitzer Award Winning Photography. Here are  just a few of Eric's great shots:

The field held at 19 players through the next few blind levels.

That was until Marc was eliminated in 19th place. Lolly, John, Kevin, Nick, Shawn, Angie, Keith, Mike M. and Anita all followed thus forming the final table.

Jason Ta. was the first player out at the final table. He was followed by Chris S. and then Jim O.

6 handed play included Drew M, Jim H, Jason Tr, Sean O, Bill B. and Chris Ba. Bill was the big chip leader as evidenced below.

Chris Ba. was eliminated in 6th place followed by Jason Tr. who was out on the bubble in 5th place for the 2nd time this season.

Substitute player Drew M. managed to hang on for 4th place with his 2nd cash this season. Drew was followed by fellow "super" substitute Sean O. (out 3rd) who cashed for the 3rd time this season.

Head's-up play began with Jim having approximately 100k more then his opponent Bill. And it didn't take long for the final hand of the tournament to be dealt.

On the final hand, Bill limped and Jim raised to 20k. Bill then shoved and Jim quickly called revealing the "Ardmore Girls", pocket queens. Bill showed the 10d-Kh. The Jc-Qs-10h flop gave Jim a set of queens for the lead however Bill had drawing hope in the form of an ace for a straight. The turn card was the 6s and brought neither player any help. Bill needed an ace and an ace only to win the hand and to have a shot at his 3rd victory this season. But is was not meant to be as the 2s fell instead and gave Jim his 3rd career win at Hidden Court West and a spot in the current "April 8".

Nobody matched the 2s river card so a measley $20 will roll over to S5.

Jim is the all time FNCPT leader in regular season wins with 6 and career earnings with $4,535.

Thanks to everyone who came out for S5E4 and congrats to Jim on his win.

~ Jason Tr.

Pot 'Em All

Ingram - Substitute player Drew M. defeated Jim O. in head's-up play late Saturday evening to claim the FNCPT's 4th annual Pot Limit Omaha event!

The Metallica theme in the season PLO event returned for a 3rd straight year with "Pot 'Em All".

With 3 regulars missing the event, the TD's had to rely on the sub list to fill the tournament. Substitutes Sean O, Drew M. and Shawn B. all answered the call. Unfortunately Shawn B. cancelled a day before and was replaced by Greg S.

Everyone showed and the field held at 20 players. This was the first league PLO event that filled.

After a rebuy, Kevin was out again and was the tournament's first elimination. Anita followed Kevin. Mike T. and John M. were next followed by Greg S. who rebought.

Lolly (rebuy) was out in 15th place followed by Chris S. Jason Ta. was out in 13th place on a rebuy. Nick followed Jason and also rebought.

2012-2013 POTY Jim H. was eliminated in 11th place. And a dual elimination of Sean O. and Eric W. (out 10th and 9th place respectively) formed the final table.

The final table of 8 players included Fran D, Jason Tr, Bill B, Jim O, Keith K, Mike M, Drew M. and Tom W.



Mike M. was the first casualty of the final table followed by Tom. Jason Tr. was next, out 6th, after his flopped set got sucked-out by Jim O's flush draw. Fran D. was next, out on the bubble in 5th.

Making a run for a 3rd straight win, overall points leader Bill B. was without his championship lanyard. And it may have been the difference as he was eliminated in 4th place. But 4th place paid and it was his 3rd straight cash of the season.

Keith K. managed to hang around and outlast 17 players in the field before being eliminated in 3rd place. With 3rd place points, this will move Keith into the coveted "April 8".

Head's-up play between Drew and Jim started with Drew having just a 100k chip lead over his opponent. $460.00 first place prize money and 14.14 league points were up for grabs and it was anybody's game.

Both players sparred back and forth into the 15k/30k/5k level when the final hand of the tournament was dealt.

All the chips were in and Jim showed Ad-Jd-10s-3d while Drew revealed As-Js-7d-2c. With both players holding A-J, Jim and Drew were deadlocked on the Ac-9c-4h flop. But the 7h turn gave Drew the lead with two-pair. Jim needed help on the river to win or tie. But the Qh missed him and gave Drew his first FNCPT win in as many tries and a spot in the top 8.

The Qh river card gave Eric the $55.00 River Jackpot. Woo-hoo!!

Congrats to Drew on his win and thanks to everyone who came out for S5E3.

~ Jason Tr.

Two-for-two!

Norborne - For the first time this season, Bill B. was eliminated. But after rebuying, he was back in the hunt and managed to work himself into a headsup match against Sean O. again. After slugging it out, Bill got it in bad -- again -- and came out on top -- again.

For the first time in the FNCPT, the tourney was to be a full rebuy plus add-on event. Several people took the option of adding on before play began, some took it and then gave it back and a handful more added on at the first break. The event was full at 20 until Joe H. was under doctor's orders not to play in the event. A sub could not be located and the event started with 19 players, the blue table being short one seat.

First out was Keith K. who quietly exited after his trips fell short on Jason Tr's turned straight. Jim H's streak of bad luck continued. The hand after doubling up, Jim's K-K ran into Mike M's A-A and the board was dry; Jim H. was felted in 18th place for the second straight event.

With blinds at 3k/5k/500, newcomer Aaron M. got all of his chips in with K-J and was called by Nick's A-Q. Aaron spiked a jack on the flop to take the lead, but Nick found redemption on the river, hitting an ace and sending Aaron home in 17th place. Aaron was followed to the rail by Kevin who was felted in 16th place.

With blinds climbing to 5k/10k/1k, Mike T. was at risk against Sean. Sean's A-J was well ahead of Mike's A-7 suited. The flop-turn-river stayed clean for Sean and Mike was out in 15th place. In the same blind level, Sean sent another player home -- this time Anita was the victim. Anita held route 66 against Sean's A-J but the ace on the flop sealed Anita's fate, sending her packing in 14th place.

The next elimination came when John pushed all in for 67.5k with A-9 and Jason Tr. called holding 8-8. Again the board stayed clean and John was out in 13th place.

With blinds at 7k/15k/2k, Chris got in all-in good with A-T against Bill's A-2. But Bill's luck had yet to run dry. The flop came with a sweat as Bill hit a gut-shot. On the river, Bill made his 3-outer, hitting a trey for the straight and ending Chris' night in 12th place.

Marc H. was out in 11th and Nick G. followed him, bursting the final table bubble. After a few orbits with minimal action, Jason Tr. pushed all in UTG blind for 76k holding 5c-6c after suffering a devastating suckout courtesy of Angie S. Fran flatted and Eric came over the top for 123k. Action folded back to Fran who made the call. Fran showed a higher pocket pair than Eric, turned trips, and rivered a boat to eliminate both players. Jason Ta.'s night ended soon after in 7th place; he was followed by Chris B. who finished in 6th.

Mike M. had built a fairly health stack in the early stages of the final table. But his stack took a major blow when he got it all-in preflop against Bill. Bill  pushed with J-9 and Mike called holding K-Q. But Rear Admiral Suckout connected big time on the J-J-9 flop and brought Mike's stack back down to earth. The money bubble burst when Mike M. was eliminated in 5th place, leaving Angie, Fran, Sean and Bill to fight it out. Angie's battle ended first as she took home a 4th place paycheck.

Three-handed, with the blinds at 15k/30k/5k, Bill and Fran got it all-in with Fran holding T-J and Bill tabling K-9. Bill took a stranglehold on the hand after the Q-9-9 flop. But with a king on the turn, Fran went from a 3:1 dog to a 3:1 favorite. But lady luck sat on Bill's lap again as he boated up on the river, sending Fran home in 3rd place.

The rematch was set:  Bill versus Sean.

Sean had made it to head's-up on his initial buy-in for the second consecutive tournament, but he was still looking to close the deal for his first FNCPT victory. It was his third time making it head's-up -- twice in the last two events. And it appeared that Bill had used  up all of his luck. Surely there were no more suckouts in the deck for Bill, right?

Well, not really.

On the final hand, both players put their chips in the middle with Bill holding a slight chip-advantage. Sean showed 10s-10c while Bill showed a dominated As-Th. But Bill being a 2:1 dog meant only one thing for his opponents all night: they were drawing thin. Such was the case on this hand, as Bill flopped an ace and turned a flush, making Sean's river trips meaningless.

For the second straight event, Bill bested Sean and took home first place.

Thanks to everyone who participated in Event 2 and congrats again to Bill B. on his suckouts victory in Event 2.

~Eric W.

Chop-a-palooza

Norborne - Season Five kicked off with a bigger buyin doublestack that left four players fighting it out until the wee hours of the morning.  As it got down to heads up, Bill and Sean agreed to chop the prize money, but they fought it out on the felt for the points.  When it was all said and done, Bill was the last man standing, starting Season Five the same way he ended Season Four:  on top.

All twenty seats were full for a short period of time, with Sean O. filling in the last seat.  A cancellation early in the week was unfilled and the event kicked off with 19 players.  Players were late to arrive and the event got start about 15 minutes later than scheduled.

Tom was the first player to hit the rail, when he out-flopped Lolly.  Holding TJ,Tom made it 12k to go when the flop came out TJ7. After Lolly re-popped him, Tom shoved and Lolly called, revealing AA and finding herself a 3:1 dog.  But a 7 on the turn gave Lolly a better two pair and the ace on the river just added insult to injury. Frustrated, Tom headed for the door.

Season Four's Player of the Year was not Player of the Night: Jim H. followed Tom out the door with an 18th-place finish.  Keith was the next one down when he put all of his chips at risk with TT versus Kevin's AQ.  Kevin took the pot down when an ace fell on the river.

In similar fashion, Chris S. put his tournament-life at risk with JJ and was called by Sean's AK.  Sean won the coin flip when a king came on the river and Chris headed home in 16th place.

The next elimination came when Chris S. and Jason Ta. tangled in a pot.  Preflop, Jason raised to 50k holding QQ and Chris shoved for his last 132k.  Jason insta-called and was quickly behind on the 9K3 flop, giving Chris top-top with his AK.  Chris was in the driver's seat until a queen fell on the river, giving Jason the pot.

Angie aggressively bet when she flopped top pair, but unfortunately for her, the flop hit Jason Tr. too.  Jason's set of 7's held up, sending Angie home in 14th place.

Lolly pushed all in holding AJ only to have Eric come over the top,isolating Lolly when the rest of the table folded.  Eric revealed KK for a sizeable lead, but the flop gave Lolly an inside straight draw.  A harmless deuce and trey completed the board and Lolly was eliminated in 13th place.

As the number of players dwindled, Nick started playing more aggressively.  He raised to to 60k with 55 and was re-raised by John for 84k allin.  Without fold-equity, Nick called and found himself ahead in the coin flip.  John missed the board and Nick's pocket fives took down the pot, sending John home in 12th place.

The longer blind levels allowed for more play through the critical stages of the tournament and as both tables played short-handed, the short stacks tightened up and the smart players started stealing.  Mike pushed all in with QJ and Anita called with Q5.  Everything looked great for Mike as it appeared his aggression would pay off in the form of a double up.  But his hopes were dashed when a 5hit the river, giving Anita the pot and sending Mike home in 11th place.

It was bubble-time.  The final table bubble burst when Jim O. was eliminated in 10th place.  The April 8 bubble burst when Eric re-raised Sean's 90k preflop bet to 165k allin.  Eric KQ was ahead of Sean's KT until a Q hit the river, giving Sean a straight.  The remaining players (Bill, both Jasons, Kevin, Anita, Nick and Sean) would all start the season as part of the April 8.

The first April 8'er to fall was Anita.  Jason shoved 235k in the pot with TT and Anita called with K9.  But without help from the board, Anita lost the pot and hit the rail in 8th place.

Nick had built a healthy stack from his previous aggressive play, but he was doubling-up the short stacks on the regular, putting him in a bad spot.  With the blinds at 20k/40k Nick put the last of his chips at risk with K9 -- the same hand that eliminated his better half.  Unfortunately for Nick, the results were also the same as the board brought him no help and Sean's A7 ws good enough to win the pot.

In the same blind level, Jason Ta. put his chips at risk with AQ. Sean's no-brainer call with QQ had Jason dominated and his hand held up, eliminating Jason  Ta. in 6th place.

The 20k/40k blind level may be the level where champions are made under the new structure.  The level claimed its third victim on the money bubble.  Sean remained involved in the pots, bumping the preflop bet to 175k.  Jason Tr. applied maximum pressure from the big blind, re-raising to 270k.  Not going anywhere, Sean called and eliminated Jason, guaranteeing himself (and the other three players at the table) a payday.

Get to the choppa!  With the elimination of Marc H. and Kevin A., play advanced to headsup play; Bill and Sean agreed to chop the prize money, but the players traded blows for quite awhile before the final hand of the night.  Around 2:00 am, Sean was willing to risk all of his chips holding AT, and the KQ5 flop gave him an overcard and an inside straight draw.  But the flop hit Bill for second pair and a dry turn and river gave the victory to Bill.

John claimed the $50 River Jackpot with the deuce of spades on the river.  Thanks to everyone who came out for Event 1 and congrats to Bill on the victory!

~ Eric W.

Season 5 is alive!

Norborne - After another grueling 13 events over 12 months, Season 4 of the Fish 'N' Chips Poker Tour is in the books and Season 5 is upon us. Congratulations again to Season 4 Champion Bill B!

Here are some facts and stats from Season 4:

• A total of 32 players participated in the 11 regular season events last season compared to 33 from Season 3.
• Out of the 32 players, the top 8 in the overall final standings earned a seat in the Championship.
• Out of these 8 players, 3 of them played in all 11 regular season events.
• Jim H. finished 1st overall in the league standings with 51.39 points and earned his first Player of the Year honors. He did this despite playing in only 8 events.
• Jim H. was the only player to earn 2 regular season wins last season. 
• 7 of the top 8 players in the final standings won at least 1 regular season event.
• 9 of the 11 events offered a full or partial rebuy. In Season 3, only 6 of the 11 events featured a rebuy.
• A total of 46 rebuys were purchased in Season 4. This was up from 40 purchased in Season 3.
• Out of the 46 rebuy's purchased last season, a record 10 players cashed. This was up from the record 9 in Season 3.
• Overall odds of cashing on a rebuy increased to 10:46. As always, 100% of all rebuy proceeds go to the event prize pool.

Like Season 4, Season 5 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.
• The Championship buy-in will remain at $100.
• The Championship blinds structure will remain the same.
• A majority of the events will be no limit hold'em.
• The PLO event with a full rebuy is back.
• The rebuy + add-on event will return.
• The HO event will return.
• The unlimited rebuy NLHE event is back for the 4th consecutive season.
• So is the double-stack $50 NLHE freeze-out.
• And the $60 triple-stack freeze-out returns. This once again will become this season's regular season finale.
• The $5 for 2 cards River Jackpot is back.

Changes in Season 5 will include:

• 8 events this season will offer a rebuy.
• All rebuys this season will be full rebuys.
• The first 3 blind levels in every regular season blinds schedule this season will be reduced to 20 minutes from 30 minutes. Level 4 will remain at 20 minutes. Levels 5-11 will be increased to 30 minutes from 20 minutes. Levels 12-15 will remain at 20 minutes. Level 16 will be reduced to 15 minutes from 20 minutes. All remaining levels will remain at 15 minutes. A side by side comparison of the old and new structure can be viewed here.
• The rebuy period will now expire at the conclusion of level 4.
• Bill B. and new regular Mike M. will each host an event this season.
• There will be a total of 4 regular season freeze-out (no rebuy) events this season.
• All 4 freeze-out events this season will have increased starting stacks.
• The no limit Tahoe event didn't make the cut.
• The Ante-Only tournament is gone.
• The Qualifier starting stacks will increase to T200k with bonus chips.
• The Qualifier buy-in will be increased to $50.
• The new updated T100k blinds schedule will be used at this season's Qualifier.
• The Championship starting stacks will increase to T300k with bonus chips.
• The start time of the Championship will be moved back to 5pm.

Good luck to everyone in Season 5!

~ Jason Tr.