So it has finally happened!! I am a champ for the 1st time ever in a Poker Tournament!!
May 14, 2018. That was the day that I was officially registered for my Lucksacks Poker League account. I remember how excited I was to be joining a poker league that was linked to Steemit and Steem. I had always enjoyed playing poker when I was younger and had spent many an hour playing poker online through Bet365. I had left it in the rearview mirror for a long time but the opportunity to play for Steem was overwhelmingly enticing and I was a big fan of the Poker community I had already been engaging with on Discord. A huge thank you to @PhilippeKiene for recommending I join and to @bethalea for making me feel so welcome.
I started off slowly, playing in a few fun money games. Immediately the excitement of playing poker was back, but with that came the stress of making those decisions. I have always been a big poker fan and enjoyed playing immensely but I would never call myself a great player by any means. I often have a hard time taking chances and risks when it comes to pushing in larger amounts but the reality is that in poker you need to take these chances or else you are never going to truly win. I was notorious for just hanging around and kinda playing while others pushed the game forward and won most of the pot.
I wish I could say I jumped in and started playing poker gangbusters but the grind of life and having a house with 6 kids makes it tough to jump on and play whenever I wanted. I participated in a few tournaments in the beginning but it did not go well. There were some experienced players in the room and I wasn't ready to hang. Even in a Freeroll tournament, I was a pansy when it came to taking chances with my cards and any time another player raised the pot too high I would fold like a cheap tent.
It was like I was so afraid to lose, I couldn't even get myself to play the game. My entires were far and few between because I felt like I was just a shitty player. Then I joined Scorum and round out that there was now a Scorum poker League. My interest was peaked yet again. What an amazing idea bringing poker to the Scorum community. Of course, I immediately signed up but I didn't race to play yet. It wasn't until after I participated in @tuck-fheman's Madden football tournament that I started telling myself I needed to get more involved in the poker leagues. I keep hearing the fun stories and have been reading some great articles about the action. I am a sucker for the engagement and at some point, I needed to learn to stop being the sucker at the table.
Last Saturday, I signed up for a Freeroll on the Lucksacks site. I was determined to change the way I played. I accomplished my goal of playing more aggressively but the poker gods were not on my side and I flopped out of that tournament with a 17th place finish I think. I wasn't as disappointed about my poor finish because I at least felt like I played hard. Yesterday I was sitting in front of my computer working on report cards when I saw a call for players for a 30 Scorum Freeroll. I figured I might as well play a little poker while I was working right? I went into the tournament with the same mindset and to my amazement, I finished in one of the highest positions ever, 7th place!
Today the exact same thing happened. I was working away when I saw the last call for players for another 30 Scorum Freeroll. What the hell? I thought. Right from the start, I could feel that things were going to go well for me. I set out playing the same way I had the day before and my risks were paying off. I wasn't playing recklessly but when I had a decent chance for something I wasn't afraid to go after it. I started winning a few bigger hands and quickly my pot was up to the 10,000 chip mark. I had a moment of nervousness because I didn't want to lose the pot I had built but stayed true to my game plan and kept attacking. I found myself at the final table with over 22,000 chips. I had finally made it to a final table.
I won't lie and say I was cool as a cucumber at this point and to make matters worse I got frozen out at one point and was stressing out as I was stuck sitting and watching a couple pocket pairs get folded. Thanks to @thebull for getting me back in the game. My steak continued and I was able to build up a healthy pot and found myself in the final two against @yzap. I was the chip leader by about 5000 and was happy knowing that I was about to have my best ever finish regardless of what happened.
After about 10 minutes of back and forth jockeying we both started to be more aggressive and lady luck was in my corner. On one occasion I got a flush on the flop and then a straight on another flop but it was sticking firmly with a two pair hand (Q's and 9's) when he pushed all in.
It turns out he had nothing and I was the winner of my first ever poker tournament in either the Lucksacks or Scorum league. I have to tell you, I was over the moon excited. 6 months of being a member of the leagues and I finally felt the sweet taste of victory. My competitive juices are already flowing and I can't wait to get into my next tournament. Thank you to @tuck-fheman for all the hard work he does with these leagues. They are so much fun and tremendously engaging!!
If you are not already part of either poker league I would first ask why not? and then I would highly recommend you check them out. If you are a fan of poker at all you will not be disappointed. The gameplay is incredibly professional and the people you play with are so much fun. I hope to see you at the tables!!!
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