World Series of Poker

Anybody going?
Over the past two years, I've really sharpened my game and I'm thinking about making a serious try at qualifying.

 

Us journalists don't even have to worry about qualifying. 10 thousand bucks is nothing.

 

I dream of going but I can't say I've really thought of going.

 

I'm ninety percent sure I'm going -- a little reward for busting my balls the past couple of years. I'm probably not playing in the Main Event, unless something really, really good happens earlier, but I'm going to play a couple of the $1,500 three-day events, probably in late June.

My game isn't strong enough in PL or Omaha, I don't think. I'll stick with NL Hold 'Em, maybe play the six-handed as well.

I'm going to Vegas for the Oscar De La Hoya fight in May... I'll see what satellites are going on then, too.

If you're going Buck -- or anybody else -- we should get together for a pep rally.

By the way, a buddy of mine from Ottawa, Marc Karam, is playing the final table in the EPT Monte Carlo today. He made it to the final table last year, too. Helluva player.

 

If you want, you can watch a live webcast of the Monte Carlo event at the ept's website. Looks like they're in the prelims before the cards get in the air right now.

 

I will be playing in a $1,500 WSOP event in late June. I am also attempting online qualification to the main event ... we'll see. I played in the media event last year and took 17th of about 250 ... boy did those blinds escalate.

Anyway, Mrs. CI are making Vegas and the WSOP a yearly vacation spot.

 

Played in a $1,000 event last year (with the help of a satellite), and wound up sitting at the same table as Annie Duke and Steve Zoine. Made it through about half of the field, but missed out on the money. The coolest part about it was our table was in the corner of the room, and we had a crowd of at least 50 people watching the whole time. Nothing like playing a pot against a pro while hearing a bunch of railbirds behind you analyzing the hand.

I'll definitely be going back this year. There are satellites running at the Rio all the time, so if you're hesitant to invest a full buy-in, you can play for $100 or so and try to earn your stake money that way. I'd wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who's halfway serious about playing poker. Just those few hours alone boosted my confidence and my game tremendously.

 

As an aside, have any of you ever used software like Poker Academy to learn the game and get really good at it? I live kind of isolated from friends, so I don't get a chance to play against some real people but a handful of times a year, but I'd like to really learn pot odds and so forth so that I can do more than just wing it next time I play.

 

Poker Academy is a great, great program. It's not a poker game, it's a simulation.

I started with the basic program, but quickly upgraded to PA Pro. It's $129, but it paid for itself the first weekend I hit the tables after working on my game with it.

 

Cool, sounds like my decision is made.

Also - where do you play online these days? Has the new legislation affected your ability to play poker online?

 

I cashed out the night the idiotic legislation passed. I just play PA Pro now. Last summer, thanks in large part to that software, I turned a nice profit over a nine-night stretch at the 3/6 tables in Las Vegas.

 

Full Tilt still has cash action for U.S. players.