Break on through to the other side

A bill, one hundy, triple digits, century mark, double up...call it what you will but my current bankroll is $100.45.

It has taken 5,845 hands to do so but the monkey is off my back finally. After some initial success and a big tourney win, I have been engaged in a long battle with the East-West gremlins throwing horrendous suckouts my way as well as donking off chips by my own doing. I twice peaked above $97 before losing ground but I have passed the first major milestone and even if I dip below it again I will always have doubled up my original $50 stake.

The session started like so many others, hopping on a table and getting in line for three others. But this time I was very focused. I knew I was within two buy-ins of the $100 goal and I kept my cashier window open so I could keep real time tabs on my progress. Previously I had been very wary of concentrating too much on hitting a specific number for fear of pressing too much to make it happen and making poor decisions. I think back to what Jason said about Martin telling him to not worry about dollar amounts, concentrate only on making good decisions and let everything else fall how it may. My thinking then changed to "I'm going to make enough good decisions to pass the $100 mark" which I quickly recognize as goal oriented thinking disguised as solid fundamentals. But this session was different. I was in a zone. I wasn't really driven to pass the century mark this session but at the same time I was fully ready for it to happen and didn't really consider that it wouldn't happen.

What was the final leg of this portion of the journey like? Well as you may recall from last the last episode, I was sitting at $95.27, perched at the edge of doubling my roll but on the outside looking in. Cards were with me. I don't think I lost a single showdown this session.

O-ver-bet-ted (clap clap clap-clap-clap). It was early and didn't have a good feel for the table. If I had known that the table was as reasonable as it was then I would have just potted pre-flop and let someone make a good second best hand. At these stakes though I'm fine with the play, it pays off often enough and it is soooo hard to isolate after you have multiple people already in the pot.

O-ver-bet-ted (clap clap clap-clap-clap). OK, this time it works like it's supposed to. I shove from late position and get a call from short stack KJos who doesn't catch up and I take him out and pick up some blinds and limps.

Flop top set with 77 and play it HORRIBLY. A fairly dry board that I probably could have milked for more.

Limp in with 8h9h UTG and catch AK slow playing his hand into oblivion. That will be a $4.28 please. Thank you.

Worst hand of the session. I pay extra to see a flop with As5s. Flop nothing but a Jason nut flush. Someone please pot this thing so I can fold. No such luck, it checks through. Turn gets me half way to my flush and the bet is a quarter and unfortunately by the time it gets to me I'm priced in. River blanks and I paid .40 with a junker hand. That decision weighs heavier on me later in the session when I take down a pot which lands my about .20 shy of $100.

Pot it with AQ and get a pretty decent flop. A bit more crowded in the paint area than I'd like but I had no hard decisions after a pot sized bet on the flop takes it down.

Pot it with fish hooks and reel in a desperation all in from short stack .14 and a call from speculative Td6d. Flop is less than ideal 7c6s5s. I pot it and call a shove from Mr. second pair/Jason straight. Turn gives me a set to lock up the side pot. Short stack doesn't improve on their open ender and I take down a healthy $4.44 pot.

And here's the one that put me over the top. I see a flop with with a marginal KsJd. Flop is a 4sAdTs and I basically have three safe Qs in the deck to get any action whatsoever out of me. Turn is a blank but one of my three desired ladies pays me a visit on the river to give me the immortal nutters. I'm in late position with no action in front of me and I make it a modest pot sized bet of .20 hoping I can get at least a little something from someone with a random Q. Instead I get a shove from behind me. Folds around to me and I can't click the call button fast enough. The thought of a chop occurred to me but I like my chances for scooping. Indeed the sucker straight pays me in full and I bust through the C-note barrier.

I immediately extricate myself out of the other tables and call it a session so I can rest on my laurels for at least a little while. And that, folks, is how it happened.