BLOG – High Stakes Poker; high stakes bluffing

BLOG – High Stakes Poker; high stakes bluffing

Wednesday, 7 April 2010

Playing with blinds of $400/$800 and a $1,600 mandatory straddle, the world’s best had millions on the table in the most recent episode of High Stakes Poker. One hand in particular blew everybody’s head off.

Barry Greenstein had been getting out of line and had the cut-off, raising to $5,500 with Qc-Td. Phil Ivey to his left had been… well, Phil Ivey, winning almost every hand he participated in with his Godlike poker abilities. He suspected his charitable friend was full of it and popped it up to $18,000 with a 3-bet. Oh, and 5s-2d.


Team PokerStars Pro Lex Veldhuis saw his opportunity to make another pre-flop bluff and looked down at Kh-Jh for an eternity before making a 4-bet, realising that both Ivey and Greenstein were weak. He added another $50,000 to his $1,600 straddle for a total 4-bet of $51,600.


Greenstein quickly folded and Ivey riffled chips, staring down Lex in the way that only Phil Ivey can and asking for a chip count. “He’s just posturing,” Gabe Kaplan assured the audience. “Doesn’t want Barry to know he raised him with air.”


Mr. Kaplan, I don’t know if you’ve ever met Phil Ivey, but…
“All in,” said Ivey, shipping it for $200,000 in total with 5s-2d for one of the ballsiest 5-bet bluffs I’ve seen since… well, since he did the same to Paul Jackson at the Monte Carlo Millions. Lex folded, by the way. Now that would have been sick if he’d called.


Anyway, to less high-stakes news. My bankroll challenge is still going, despite a little dip I’m still hovering around the $100 mark by casually playing small stakes games at PokerStars. But… student loan arrived. I’m wondering about depositing $300 somewhere – or even $600 – and bonus-whoring my way to midstakes.


On the one hand, it’s a quick way to build a bankroll. On the other, working my way up from nothing and grinding it out in $1 STTs and $0.01/$0.02 teaches discipline, bankroll management and work ethic. I just can’t really be bothered though.


Here’s hoping I win a tournament for $500 or so and solve my problems all at once, eh?



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