[DoubleDeuce]

**Warning this story contains graphic depictions of poker highs and lows**

Buddy has a NLHE tournament with 21 players. Its been a while since we've played but sounds like a good time to drink some beer and play some cards.

So I pay my $20, grab a bock and take my seat. Starting stacks are around T12000, blinds 10/20. Sweet. Plenty of room to move. Plus I see some new faces at the table so I don't want to do anything foolish. Well about 6 hands in I manage to triple up with the nut straight. Nothing tricky about it, all the money went in on the turn and I thought both guys were on flush draws but noooooo I didn't even have to sweat that. One guy had a lower straight and the other dude had a pair of 8s ("Dude I thought you were bluffing"). Ha...found the primetime donkey.

Anyways I've got a sick stack and it just keeps getting sicker. Turns out a bunch of the new guys are drinking and gambling fools. Donktastic! I get moved to a new table and I notice the new guys here aren't any better. I get to sit behind the biggest stack at the table who only has half my amount. It quickly becomes obvious he is ultra-loose and playing any 2 cards. It doesn't take long for me to chase a straight and make a big score. He donates half his stack to me.

A little while later one of the decent players raises it up, I pick up QQ on the button and just like a big stack I reraise it. He's not intimidated and pushes all-in. I call it and he shows down JJ. Busted.

So now my stack is rediculous, its 12-handed and I have 1/3 of the chips in play. I felt like I was at the WSOP with mounds of chips in front of me. I was fumbling and bumbling with all those chips. Guys were already kidding me for a chop.

Well I should've chopped it because the blinds became a nightmare. Not only were the blinds doubling, antes were introduced and they were doubling as well. The clock was accelerated too...from 30 minutes to 20 minute rounds and finally 15 minute rounds. Which sucked even worse because the drunken donkeys couldn't figure out the action.

[drunken slur]Ohhhh yooouuuu waiting on me? How much? HOLY CRAP! Thats alot! Uhhhhhh...I call.[/drunken slur]

So the blinds and antes are so bad people are having to go all-in the blinds. It turns out there are multi-way pots every hand, crazy sidepots, and of course miraculous shortstack suckouts. One guy leaves after he loses the main pot and walks out the door...but we have to chase after him because he won a sidepot for a couple of chips.

So you can guess where this is going...after that wonderful chip lead I bust out in 4th place. For all that quality play I won a whole dollar. Yep $21 for finishing in the money minus entry fee equals one fat buck to spread around.

And the dude that walked out the door won the whole thing.

[_GUN_]

that's totally gross. perhaps, you should mention to your buddy to adjust the blind structure. sorry about your ending.

[bigjohn]

Or just freeze the blinds><>...

[DoubleDeuce]

Originally Posted by _GUN_

that's totally gross. perhaps, you should mention to your buddy to adjust the blind structure. sorry about your ending.

Yep I'm digging around for a good blind structure so I can politely suggest a change.

I remember playing when the blinds were 8000/16,000 with 2k or 3k antes. Which I think was about 1/7th of total chips in play. We could barely get a full rotation of deals before the blinds went up because we had to figure out multi-way side pots with antes every hand. Ohh it was sick.

In hindsight I should've proposed a chop when it was 6-handed. Everybody was frazzled and would've agreed. Is it ok to propose a chop when the tourney still hasn't made it to the money round? Payout was top 4 and we were stuck with 6 players for a long time.

[BigKyle]

Personally, I would have no problem offering a 6-way chop with 4 money spots.

As for the blinds, simple advice would be 10,000 chips, start at 25-50 blinds, and raise reasonably every 15-20 minutes, or more aggressively for 25-30 minute rounds. Only lower the level lengths when the tournament is reaching shorter-handed play, like six players or less. Last, with only 21 players, most of whom are drunk and beginning players, go without the antes. Some folks have enough trouble just posting the blinds properly.

[jmc]

Dude, if everyone else is motoring around going all in preflop, DONT play!
Sit back, let them bust each other out, and come in w/ your super premium hands.