home sweet home

I am feeling quite exhausted and am still severely jet lagged.  It does however feel great to be home

I am going to throw up a few random photos today an hopefully have enough brain power by tomorrow to attempt to summarize this amazing experience.

Thanks again to everyone who has supported me over the last 10 days.

CF

 

My new favorite poker room!  The Grand at the Golden Nugget. Sneaky pic Mischa, I look like I'm about to cry

 

Sorry mam, my name is Colin

 

Event #23 at the Golden Nugget the day before I left.  I played really well but was busted out in around 5 hours with AdQd vs 66 all in pre flop blind vs blind. We had been battling it out for hours and when it came down to it , I couldn't win a flip

 

mmmmm, delicious fruity treats on the plane

 

This is a SMALL sub at Vons grocery store.  Merican sized portions?

 

Want an edge?  Come on people that book has been out for months #getwiththeprogram

 

 

Lobby at WSOP

 

The sports book at Caesars Palace

 

The massive Pavillion room at the RIO. Is it just me or has the panoramic photo setting on the Iphone done some weird things to the peeps in this shot? haha 

 

Deep thoughts....

 

One of Mischa's sketches I found lying around the suite.  His best one was a picture of a cat thanking the cleaning staff for bringing us towels

 

 

I said soup, not french fries!?   Here comes the stink eye

 

"Inconceivable"

 

 

The windy city? son of a B#%$@

After having my flight delayed for two hours that word that no one wants to see appeared on the departures board :

CANCELLED

noooooooooooooooooooo.

I then proceeded to the United Airlines Help Desk only to see a queue that resembled the line at an American Idol Audition.  I was lucky enough to overhear a supervisor make the recommendation to simply call the customer service line and re book my flight that way.  The representative was very friendly which is the polar opposite to the demeanor of the 1000's of travellers who will all be doing their own Tom Hanks impression in the Terminal this evening.

I do consider myself quite lucky though as this is the first time in my life I have ever had to have a sleep over on the floor of an airport.  I was talking to a couple from Winnipeg and it will be until Friday until they can get home. 

I have been so disciplined with being healthy and eating well on this trip, but something tells me a few Coney Island dogs and a Chicago deep dish pizza may go down range shortly.

I was hoping to have a grand finale to my blog and sum up all of my experiences from the week, but I think I'll need to wait until I get through the night until I can really come to any solid conclusions.

 

Mother Nature and I are not on speaking terms at the moment

 

The line to get in line at customer service

 

All of the planes grounded for the evening

 

 

The Lobby at the Golden Nugget.  I would give anything to be there right now

 

 

********UPDATE*******

 

 



After a miserable sleep across 3 chairs, I found out that my flight this morning had been cancelled.  All flights to Ottawa today are booked so I had to get creative.  I am now flying into Washington at 11:25 and then catching a flight around 5pm to Ottawa.  Everyone keep your fingers crossed that I make it home tonight.  I not only feel and look like a zombie, but judging by the distance people are giving me, I think I am starting to smell like one too.

 

serenity now serenity now

 

CF

 

 ********UPDATE*******

 

My flight from Washington was delayed over 3 hours do to the storm and I didn't wind up arriving until after 10:00.  My jaw hit the floor when I saw that my checked baggage had somehow made it through the matrix of the United Airlines system and like myself, had arrived safely in Ottawa.

 

zzzzzzzzzz

 

CF

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Shopping , Fremont street and Goodbye

The weird thing about poker is the way you feel going into an event really has nothing to do with your results.  I felt amazing yesterday and felt like it was going to be a good day at the tables.  The Carnivale events at the Rio draw in a lot of top pros who aren't committed to a WSOP event on that day.  I sat at a table next to Neil Channing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Channing and it was refreshing to meet a pro who was having fun yet when it came down to crunch time, was as serious and intimidating as they come.

It was my quickest bust out of the week as I only made it to the 4th level.  I will not bore you with hand details but for those of you who care, I got all my chips in on the flop and lost set over set.

Feeling a little dejected I decided to use an old family remedy to put a smile on my face, Shopping!

Mischa and I had pretty much ignored the mall the entire visit so I figured I would use the afternoon to spend some dough and bring home some nice things. The prices are really amazing and there is a wicked selection of really cool garb.  We then spent the evening wandering around Freemont street and enjoying a refreshing cool breeze that had descended into the desert.

I am sad to say that Mischa left this morning.  It was so awesome hanging with my best bud and it feels so quiet in the room at the moment without his booming laugh. 

I am currently packing up the suite and getting ready to check out.  I'll be heading down to The Golden Nugget for my last night and am going to take one more shot at a Grand Poker Series event. 

Regardless of my results today, I am very proud of what I have accomplished on my first attempt at live tournament poker.  All of the hard work I have put in over the past years has proven to be invaluable and I have been feeling very confident and comfortable against any of my competition.

Wish me luck today everyone.  This is my last day before I head back to reality so I am going to make the most of it by hitting a buffet for breakfast!  My first buffet of the trip so I am going to make it count #rolaids #pepto


Take care

 

WSOP merch area.  I swear they kept the a/c turned up just to up the sales of their hoodies

 

Wouldn't it be nice to see my picture on the wall someday

 

YES   milk for my coffee!!  woohoo

 

saving the best for last

 

Dealers waiting for the start of the Carnivale poker series

CF

The Carnivale of Poker

In a few minutes i'll be heading to the Rio to play in a series called the Carnivale of poker.  This will be the first two day event I have played so far and there should be a huge turnout.

This post will be short and sweet, but I just wanted to say one thing.  After seeing Bill Maher last night , I am so proud to be a Canadian. The political/religious make up of the U.S is terrifying and all of us from the great white north are lucky our government is not run like a business.  Don't be afraid to be yourself and come out of your shell. You only get one chance at this game of life so make the most of it! Be kind to all people and make the most of every day. 

Wish me luck today.  The tournament starts at 11am so I better get on my horse.

take care

CF

Caesars Palace 2013 Mega Stack Event 31 - 13th place

I awoke yesterday feeling revitalized and enthused after a great evening with some old friends.  Seeing Pete and getting away from the "normal" routine of Vegas was a perfect way to hit reset and clear my mind of equity calculations, poker strategy, and the bad beats that sent me to the rail the previous couple of days. 

I arrived at Caesars a few minutes before the start of the tourney , showed my players card, picked up an orange juice and sugar free red bull and sat down ready to redeem myself.

Right away I noticed that the field had a very different vibe to it than the rest of the events I had played in.  I think a lot of is has to do with it being a Saturday. Businessmen make the 4 hour drive in from Los Angeles to play on weekends and  appear to generally be there to have fun. This is part of the reason these tournaments are targeted by professionals as the majority of these businessmen are not fundamentally solid players and leave a lot of dead money on the table.  Another positive from what I could see , is that it seemed like these men were trying to get the value of their tournament buy-in back by drinking a ridiculous amount of cocktails. 

The tournament was a Re-entry format meaning if you busted out in the first seven levels, you could get your wallet out and register again.  This format is great for people coming in for the day as if you lose early you wouldn't have to get back in your car and drive back to L.A.  One of the thirsty suit wearing players at my table re-entered seven times and appeared to be attempting to light his money on fire.

The event had 190 players and had a very international feel to it. I assume this has a lot to do with the global brand recognition of Caesars Palace as well as the  100's of "wolfpacks" who had come to Vegas live their own Hangover party dream. 

Prior to staring the event we were all approached by the tournament director and were asked to sign a waiver consenting to use our picture and or likeness for commercial and promotional purposes.  Being a live poker newbie, this really emphasized to me the scale of the tournament I was actually playing.

I sat in between a wild man from the U.K and an online pro from Belgium for the first 5 hours.  The combination of my Doug Mackenzie accent, mixed with these two guys really must have been a challenge for any of the people at our table to pick up on our conversations. 

Due to the abundance of Hangover Wolfpacks, the rail (where people can watch the games who aren't playing) was loud and rowdy by the end of the day.  There were these two guys who were literally yelling into my ears for hours while pounding dacaris out of their novelty Eiffel tower glasses.  After a while it was getting rather obnoxious and I requested to the tournament director to have them removed from the room.   

Fast forward 9 hours and I am sitting 8 out of 13.

I pick up AK on the button.  The action is folded around to me and I raise all in with around 22 BB's. 

Small blind folds and the big blind calls with pocket JJ

A jack comes out on the flop and my day is over

good game sir

I am very proud of this result, even more so than the 8th place finish at the Golden Nugget (probably because I made more $$ than the 8th place finish.  haha)  After knowing the empty feeling I was left with the previous two days , walking up to the cage to collect your prize was just what the doctor ordered. 

Mischa has not only been my biggest fan here, but also a force who has motivated me to stay positive and have faith in my abilities. Having a friend who can come and be a levelling device throughout of the ups and downs of tournament poker has been a blessing.

After I busted out, he and I went and celebrated with a Guinness and come spicy treats at PF Changs.

Tonight we are putting on our suits and are heading over to the Palms Place hotel, to see Bill Maher.  It should be a great night and for the first time on the trip will actually be dressed like adults as opposed to two old dudes who stole their 16 year old son's wardrobe.

My ROI is looking terrific for the trip and I am going to stay focused and keep this train chugging along

Thanks again for your support everyone. 

CF

 

The beautiful cash game poker room at Caesars.

 

The tournament room emptying out after a day of madness

 

Blackhawks vs Kings at the sports book at Caesars

 

A Whopper bar?  Only in Vegas. 

 

 

 

Take care everyone

 

CF

zero for friday

 I have now had two consecutive losing days.  I have done enough homework to know that variance in live poker is a way of life yet it is still a hard pill to swallow.  I mean when you're playing live the feeling of losing is completely different.  Not only are you sitting face to face with the villain that just beat you, but you also have to consider the logistics as well. Having to queue up for registration, cabs to and fro, lunches, drinks, etc.  When i'm at home its easy.  I simply click a button an fire up another tourney or I turn off the computer.  no worries

My head is still above water for the trip and i'm going to continue to keep grinding away.

Seeing my friend Pete's band last night was so much fun.  Not only was it great to see a friend but it was also a nice change of pace from being in and around casino's the last while.  The show was excellent and my face is sore from the amount of laughing that went on.

He is off to Hollywood today for the last show of his tour and then the band will be making their way back to Calgary for some much deserved time off. 

It was great to meet the other musicians , some of which I have been reading about in metal magazines since I was a teenager.  Everyone was so nice and it definitely was a night to remember.

I am just about to head out the door to go to Caesars to play event number 29 in the mega stack series.

Wish me luck today everyone!

CF

 

Before the show, I took Mischa to the Grand Poker room for some run good karma

 

Pete doing his best rockstar face

 

Kobra and the Lotus

 

Chillin with Fear Factory and the boys after the show

 

 

What a ridiculous tour bus!

 



 

 

WSOP at the Rio

After successful start to my week and a little cash injected into my bankroll I fell asleep with a smile on my face and a feeling of contentment.  It was such a great way to start my week and it has only motivated me to continue to work hard and bring home the bacon.

Speaking of which, I made Mischa and I a great bacon and egg breakfast yesterday morning with a side of perogies for my friend.  I should have known that any man with the last name Hrziwnatzki would want some perogies at every meal.  Trying to find them at the grocery store was a challenge however as a female staff member responded to me with " you want a pair of what?"   hahah   no mam, PEROGIES.  I was trying to think of a way to describe them to her and it was harder than I ever imagined.  I'm not sure if it was my Canadian accent but there was some serious charades and Pictionary going on in an attempt to communicate.  After a while we discovered them tucked away in the corner of the freezer next to the ice cream?  

Mischa walked over Caesars Palace with me only for us to discover the tournament I was hoping to play was sold out.  It was a heads up tournament and there was a limited number of spots.  Chalk that up to a noobie mistake as I should have pre- reg'd the day before.

With a few hours on our hands, Mischa and I decided to head over to the home of the World Series of Poker , The Rio.

Walking down the long halls to the convention centres that house this massive tournament series gave me a nervous feeling.  This series attracts 10's of thousands of people each summer and the size of the facility was very overwhelming.  When we first stepped foot into these famous rooms you could feel the intense energy.  Mischa is not a poker player yet he still looked at me with a blank look on his face as we couldn't believe the scale of what we were looking at.  The sound of thousands of players clicking there chips, resembled a field full of crickets and would have challenged the ability of any noise cancelling headphones.

I decided to play a 10pm tournament which runs a little different than most.  Since it starts so late, the blind structures enable you a few hours of deepstack play and then it literally turns into a shove fest.  Around 35 big blinds deep, I picked up pocket AA in middle position in the third level and wound up getting it all in pre-flop.  I got called with pocket kings and the board ran out with four hearts and he took down the pot with a king high flush.

I was a little disappointed but I tried to keep in mind of how well I did the day before.   I took a deep breath , shook the man's hand, wished the rest of the table good luck and came home and went to bed.

Tonight a musician that Mischa and I grew up with is playing a show in here in town.  His band have been touring Europe and the U.S over the last 6 months and it is a great coincidence that he happens to be in town while we are here.  They are touring with Metal legends Fear Factory and both Mischa and I are on the guest list and have backstage passes!  

In a few minutes i'll be heading back to the Rio in an attempt to qualify for Sunday's bracelet event.

Thanks to everyone who has been sending me emails and messages.  Having the support of people you care about goes a long way in making this intense challenge a little easier. 

take care

CF

Melting in the desert sun

Big kisses to everyone back home

Analysing the schedule at Caesars Palace only to find out the event is full

I think I can I think I can I think I can

Sizing up the competition at the WSOP.  I felt like a pro having a photographer (mischa) snapping shots of me prior to playing

Save a spot for me at the final table this weekend guys!