NLOP Weekly Championship: Payday Sunday

"A lot of grinding ahead," someone wrote as the final tables approached at Sunday night's National League of Poker championship tournament.  We knew all about that; we've tried to win money in the weekly "big game" off and on for years without success.  But this Sunday, the work finally paid off!  Here are the highlights....

:21 IN: We have pocket Queens and double the blinds.  A player to our right who's been chatting with us about how to respond to the Newtown, Connecticut grade school killings apparently is tired of us mentioning prayer and the Bible.  He goes all-in.  We dare to call.  He shows K-A!

The flop is J-6-4.  The turn is 3. The river is J.  Our discussion abruptly ends, as we eliminate him and double our stack which started at $10,000 to $18,740.  (Watch for details on that chat in an upcoming post.)

:24 IN: We have A-K under the gun.  The flop is 6-2-8; we call a minimum bet of 100.  The turn is 4.  We stubbornly call a bet of 900.  The river is a rewarding Ace!  We bet 1,900, our opponent folds, and we win $4,450.

We win another pot in the first half-hour, and reach the break at $20,970.  We're in 69th place, with 848 players still in.

:59 IN: After missing the flop in a few tries, we have 8-6 of diamonds under the gun.  The flop is 7-8-7.  We bet the minimum 300 and get callers.  The flop is 8, giving us a full house!  We bet 600 and get called.  The river is a meaningless 2.  We bet 3,600, get called, and wind up winning $11,850.  (NLOP's "hand history" section is down at this time, so some opponents' hands are not available.)

That one win in the second period improves us by the break to $26,570.  Now we're 94th, with 562 still playing.

1:11 IN: We have A-7.  The flop is 2s-Js-Ah.  We call a bet of 1,480 with top pair.  The turn is 5h.  Everyone checks.  The turn is 7s.  We bet about 1,780 with two pair, only to see our opponent go all-in for 5,550.  We call -- and he shows two spades for a winning flush.  Uh-oh - that could be a bad sign.

Failed attempts dominate the third period, and we lose half our stack.  The next break finds us at $13,235, dropping to 252nd place out of 399 remaining players.

1:52 IN: After falling short with 10-9 suited, we have 10-10.  A player goes all-in for 10,635 - almost everything we have.  We dare to call, as does someone to our left.  The flop is A-J-3.  Both players with chips (including us) check.  The turn is 10, and we can't "check it down" now.  We bet our last 525, get called -- and find we're topping J-K and J-Q!  The river is 2, and we jump back to life with $35,055.

2:04 IN: After winning a "Big Blind" special pot with K-J, we now have K-A.  We accept a doubling of the blind.  The flop is Q-3-6.  With a substantial stack and "overcards", we call a minimum bet of 1,200.  The turn rewards us with an Ace!  Now we double back when a player bets the minimum.  The river is 4.  We bet 4,000, get callers - but they can't beat our top pair.  We win $38,090.

Our stack has climbed after four periods to $57,067.  We're in 50th place, with 247 remaining.  The top 52 players will win money; players between spots 53-60 win an "invitation" to next Sunday night's tournament.

2:28 IN: We have 6-6.  The flop is 8-5-7.  We call a minimum bet of 2,000.  The turn is 4, giving us a straight!  Our opponent bets 9,640; we double in reply.  The betting leads to us going all-in -- and we're facing 6-2.  (Thankfully not 6-9.)  The river is A, and we split the pot to take $55,917.

2:35 IN: We have A-8 and the dealer's button.  The flop is 6-J-A.  A player bets 8,760, and we dare to call.  The turn is 8.  That leads to us going all-in -- and our opponent also has A-8.  The river is Q, and it's another split pot.  This one nets us $51,267.

2:47 IN: We're under the gun, with pocket Aces!  We limp in, but no one jumps out to raise.  The flop is Jh-4h-7x, and we go all-in for our last 28,667.  One player calls, but shows Q-J.  The board brings 6 and 10, and we praise God as we claim $76.534.

After a Big Blind miss, we finish the fifth period at $72,134.  We're hanging around in 52nd place, with 134 to go.

3:15 IN: We have Q-J of spades.  The flop is 8x-7s-Qx, and we go all-in with top pair and 28,334.  A player calls - but only has 7-6!  The board brings K and 10, and we're in six-figure joy with a win of $103,468!

3:19 IN: We have 10x-5s in the Big Blind, and wind up heads-up against the Small Blind.  The flop is As-10s-6x.  We bet the minimum 12,000 with middle pair, and get called.  The turn is 8s.  The Small Blind bets 12,000 back at us; we call.  The river is A, and our opponent goes all-in!

We have top two pair, but 62 players remain (remember, the top 52 win money).  What would you do facing this challenge?  Call us wimpy, but we fold.  Our opponent never shows his cards.

At least we're still in the game after six periods, at $54,268.  We're in 50th place, two spots from a prize with 62 players remaining.

3:39 IN: The field has dropped below 60 players, as we have A-Q in the Big Blind.  An "invitation" for next Sunday night is secure.  A player ahead of us raises.  Under any under circumstances, we'd call with this hand.  But this close to winning money, we fold.  The flop is 5-3-5.  The turn is 4.  The river is 8 -- and a player who also has A-Q wins the pot, eliminating a woman in the process.

We miss a big split pot - but during this hand, the field drops to 51 players.  We're in the money!

3:49 IN: With blinds and antes eating our stack away, we go all-in with Q-8 of spades for our last 5,068 chips.  The flop is 3-9-7.  The turn is 4.  The river is K - and a player with A-K claims the pot, knocking out another player along with us.

We battled hard for close to four hours, and wound up in 36th place out of 1,036 contestants.  In a real poker room, the payoff would have been substantial.  In the world of NLOP, a four-hour shift wins us -- brace yourself -- six dollars.

But in our current situation, winning any money beats having no money at all.  And the satisfaction of finally having a payday in the big Sunday night game is sweet as well.