The year was 2007. Steve managed to post the best net-score at Trophy Lake and take home golf's Camel Cup. After that win, began an amazing run of fortune as a Kansas Jayhawks die-hard. First it was the football team not only going to their first Orange Bowl in eons, but winning it! Followed shortly after that by his beloved basketball team winning their first title in 20 years.
Given the fortunes of his alma mater when he holds Camel hardware, maybe it's time to put some dough on KU to win the title again this year and not only because of their talent.
Steve became the first-ever American to take the Tournament of Champions down on Friday, March 12. After qualifying for the tournament in the last event of the season, Steve played confidently until hitting a rough patch before he managed to take two large pots off Tim to bounce back into contention. From there he coasted to the final two where he took out fellow American MattG who at that point could barely open his eyes to read his cards (thanks to the handiwork of mixologists Chris and Ben).
The details are a bit hazy for sure, but if you view the Camel Cup twitter page, you get an idea of two things: 1) the way the poke-off and tournament unfolded till the final three and 2) how good of shape MattG was in given his last tweet read, "Adam's 8-10 loses to Steve's 10-8"...umm, what?
Anyway, the standings are below and a big thanks to Dave for hosting. Next time the runner-up is sticking with beer and perhaps we'll be back in a hotel. The new season will be 10 games with the TOC taking place in February.
Anyone who would like to sign up to host future events, check the calendar on the right and let us know.
Congrats again to Steve on the big win and best of luck in Vegas.
TOC #3 Results:
1) Steve
2) MattG
3) Dave
4) Adam
5) Chris
6) Ben
7) Tim
8) Tyler
Feb 19, 2010
Chris Wins, Steve Qualifies, Poke-off Looms
There was a late rush of attendees for event #5, with much still to be decided heading toward the Tournament of Champions. Who would finish atop the table and gain free entry? With four players assured a spot, how will the other four spots fill up? Can the likes of Aran, James or Steve make a last-tournament charge to qualify? Most of those questions were answered on Thursday, but there is still some open-ended qualification to be determined.
With ten attendees, we started with two tables of 5. Table assignments got heated when several players seemed more interested in having a view of the Olympics on TV rather than concern about the poker at hand.
Coming into the final tournament in a tie for sixth place, Tyler was hoping his spot might already be clinched. After taking a nice pot early, he called Steve's all-in with a pair of 6s and an ace kicker only to see Steve flip over a 5-6 which gave him two pair. A player in contention for the top spot, MattG, bled some early chips, then took a major hit when he rivered a set of 9s only to be beaten by Chris' nut-flush. The #1 spot coming in was now down to 900 chips with 9 players still in the tournament.
One of MattG's major competitors for the top spot was Ben who arrived late, played just a few hands and received a similar beat when his trip-10s were beaten by Aran's flush. Ben had pushed and he was out in 9th. We were down to one table.
With his small stack, MattG knew that he would have to pick his spot and push. He did so twice in three hands and split the pot both times, increasing his stack enough to have some wiggle room. With a similarly dwindling stack, Dave pushed with A-J and was called by Aran's suited K-7. The 7 came on the river and Dave was out in 8th, leaving him in a potential dangerous spot as he remained stuck on three points for the season.
After hanging on with a big win a few hands prior, James decided it was time to push and was beaten by Chris' trip-Jacks. His response was, "Alright, I gotta go work out anyway" and then he slammed his beer and headed for the door with a 7th place finish.
This put us in a one-point bubble situation as the top-5 would earn a point. MattG was calculating that if he got the one point, he would only have a threat to his top spot by Tim winning the tournament. So he was delighted when Tim went head to head with Steve and get crippled when Steve took the pot while shouting, "Give it to me, Daddy." A few hands later, Tim pushed with his 400 chips and revealed his opportune pocket rockets that held up so he tripled up to 1200 for some life.
Moments later it was a raise by Brett, followed by an all-in by Aran which put Tim at risk for all his chips. Brett folded and Tim's k-10 was dominated by Aran's k-q. Aran made a full house and Tim went out in 6th. The top spot was now guaranteed to MattG as he got his point and was far enough ahead of Chris to not be caught.
With the joy of this realization, MattG loosely pushed with a-7 suited and was taken out by Brett's a-10 to finish fifth. Continuing on a theme of river trips getting beaten by flushes, Steve took out Brett in the same manor. Brett rivered a third seven, but that gave Steve the diamond flush and Brett was out in 4th, leaving him tied for 7th with Tyler and Dave.
Aran pushed on Steve, who called and won with his 10s to Aran's 8s and the third place finish ended Aran's run at qualification. It also solidified Steve's spot in the big game.
After a number of hands back and forth, Steve pushed on a nut-flush draw only to see that Chris already had a made hand and won with the heart-flush. Chris' victory was his first tournament win, which is hard to believe given how many times he's in the final three in tournaments.
So that leaves us with MattG getting free entry to the TOC and a three-way tie for 7th which will be settled via a Poke-Off before the Tournament of Champions. Three men enter and when one goes out, the other two will move into the big game. We need to work out the location and date of the TOC, but it will likely be March 12. Location tbd.
Update: Tournament of Champions will be held Friday, March 12 at Dave's (thanks Dave!).
Event #5 Standings:
1) Chris
2) Steve
3) Aran
4) Brett
5) MattG
6) Tim
7) James
8) Dave
9) Ben
10) Tyler
With ten attendees, we started with two tables of 5. Table assignments got heated when several players seemed more interested in having a view of the Olympics on TV rather than concern about the poker at hand.
Coming into the final tournament in a tie for sixth place, Tyler was hoping his spot might already be clinched. After taking a nice pot early, he called Steve's all-in with a pair of 6s and an ace kicker only to see Steve flip over a 5-6 which gave him two pair. A player in contention for the top spot, MattG, bled some early chips, then took a major hit when he rivered a set of 9s only to be beaten by Chris' nut-flush. The #1 spot coming in was now down to 900 chips with 9 players still in the tournament.
One of MattG's major competitors for the top spot was Ben who arrived late, played just a few hands and received a similar beat when his trip-10s were beaten by Aran's flush. Ben had pushed and he was out in 9th. We were down to one table.
With his small stack, MattG knew that he would have to pick his spot and push. He did so twice in three hands and split the pot both times, increasing his stack enough to have some wiggle room. With a similarly dwindling stack, Dave pushed with A-J and was called by Aran's suited K-7. The 7 came on the river and Dave was out in 8th, leaving him in a potential dangerous spot as he remained stuck on three points for the season.
After hanging on with a big win a few hands prior, James decided it was time to push and was beaten by Chris' trip-Jacks. His response was, "Alright, I gotta go work out anyway" and then he slammed his beer and headed for the door with a 7th place finish.
This put us in a one-point bubble situation as the top-5 would earn a point. MattG was calculating that if he got the one point, he would only have a threat to his top spot by Tim winning the tournament. So he was delighted when Tim went head to head with Steve and get crippled when Steve took the pot while shouting, "Give it to me, Daddy." A few hands later, Tim pushed with his 400 chips and revealed his opportune pocket rockets that held up so he tripled up to 1200 for some life.
Moments later it was a raise by Brett, followed by an all-in by Aran which put Tim at risk for all his chips. Brett folded and Tim's k-10 was dominated by Aran's k-q. Aran made a full house and Tim went out in 6th. The top spot was now guaranteed to MattG as he got his point and was far enough ahead of Chris to not be caught.
With the joy of this realization, MattG loosely pushed with a-7 suited and was taken out by Brett's a-10 to finish fifth. Continuing on a theme of river trips getting beaten by flushes, Steve took out Brett in the same manor. Brett rivered a third seven, but that gave Steve the diamond flush and Brett was out in 4th, leaving him tied for 7th with Tyler and Dave.
Aran pushed on Steve, who called and won with his 10s to Aran's 8s and the third place finish ended Aran's run at qualification. It also solidified Steve's spot in the big game.
After a number of hands back and forth, Steve pushed on a nut-flush draw only to see that Chris already had a made hand and won with the heart-flush. Chris' victory was his first tournament win, which is hard to believe given how many times he's in the final three in tournaments.
So that leaves us with MattG getting free entry to the TOC and a three-way tie for 7th which will be settled via a Poke-Off before the Tournament of Champions. Three men enter and when one goes out, the other two will move into the big game. We need to work out the location and date of the TOC, but it will likely be March 12. Location tbd.
Update: Tournament of Champions will be held Friday, March 12 at Dave's (thanks Dave!).
Event #5 Standings:
1) Chris
2) Steve
3) Aran
4) Brett
5) MattG
6) Tim
7) James
8) Dave
9) Ben
10) Tyler
Jan 21, 2010
Who is Tim?
When it comes to organizing poker events, let alone out-of-town golf trips, the Camel Cup crew isn't the easiest to pull together. "Herding cats" is an accurate phrase. It requires a lot of email exchanges, every single response in turn replied to by Ben in a ploy to annoy everyone. One common question comes up in those email strings. Whenever the name of Tim is brought up or he replies to an email (a la "what is a punter?"), the inevitable response is "Who is Tim?"
This, of course, is in reference to Tim's less-than-stellar attendance record at Camel Cup events. He usually makes it to the Resi's, rarely a Camel Cup and occasionally a poker event. So when he shows up, it's a rare sight. What is even more rare? Tim's chip stack lasting past the first hour or two.
Thursday was different. You can chalk it up to "home court advantage" or maybe it had something to do with "Steel Panther" rocking in the background, but Tim was a different animal. He didn't just call bets, he raised. He didn't get bullied out of hands, he was the aggressor. It paid off huge as the man who had never even cashed in an event won the whole bloody thing.
This not only sent shock waves through the Camel Poker community, but it secured Tim a seat at the Tournament of Champions in March. Not quite a David v. Goliath or Buster Douglas v. Mike Tyson upset, but a surprise nonetheless.
The night got off to a fairly slow start, though Ben seemed intent on chasing some pots and it got him in trouble as his chip stack dwindled. When faced with an all-in bet from Chris, Ben called quickly only to find that Chris' pocket 5s were made a set on the flop and his two pair were beaten. Would the points leader relinquish his hold on the #1 spot in the standings?
After Ben's exit the action simmered down with a number of small pots being won left and right and nobody taking any major damage to their stacks. Then came Tim's first big move as Steve, on a draw with K-J, pushed all in and Tim called with A-10 and it held up. Severely crippled (with 200 in chips left), Steve pushed and was beaten by Adam's flush.
With the bubble in play for one point, Chris, Dave and Matt all guarded their small stacks. Neither of them wanting to pull the trigger and Chris ensuring that others at the table were johnny on the spot about their turn as the blind clock ticked closer to going up. After winning a small pot to provide a little breathing room, Matt was dealt AK suited and decided to push. Tim called with A-10 again, and despite the ace pairing for each of them, the king outkicked the 10 and Matt doubled up.
Now the urgency was on Chris and Dave as they were running short on chips. Dave finally pushed and was taken out by Adam's pair of Kings, followed shortly afterward by Adam again knocking out another player when Chris pushed and Adam's trip-sevens held up.
Now the short stack of the three, Matt felt the need to find a good hand and push but the blinds were killing him and he never got a good hand, having to push on 6-5 offsuit. Tim called and took him out, leaving Matt with a third-place cash and two points that moved him into first in the season standings (pending Adam's finish).
So we went head to head and when Adam took the chip lead, I must admit, I uttered to Ben, "well I think Adam's got this one". But I was unaware of the magic that Tim was conjuring up on his home turf. It was evident a few hands later when Adam's pocket-6s were beat by Tim's A-3 when he flopped a straight. Crippled by this loss, Adam later pushed with 7s and Tim paired his 10 to take event #4 of the season.
Congratulations to Tim on a well-played night of poker. His game is really coming along. I think there was even a tear in Steve's eye the moment Adam went out as he realized that all that hazing and bullying had finally paid off. Tim, the poker player, is all grows up. :)
Event #4 Standings:
1) Tim
2) Adam
3) MattG
4) Chris
5) Dave
6) Steve
7) Ben
This, of course, is in reference to Tim's less-than-stellar attendance record at Camel Cup events. He usually makes it to the Resi's, rarely a Camel Cup and occasionally a poker event. So when he shows up, it's a rare sight. What is even more rare? Tim's chip stack lasting past the first hour or two.
Thursday was different. You can chalk it up to "home court advantage" or maybe it had something to do with "Steel Panther" rocking in the background, but Tim was a different animal. He didn't just call bets, he raised. He didn't get bullied out of hands, he was the aggressor. It paid off huge as the man who had never even cashed in an event won the whole bloody thing.
This not only sent shock waves through the Camel Poker community, but it secured Tim a seat at the Tournament of Champions in March. Not quite a David v. Goliath or Buster Douglas v. Mike Tyson upset, but a surprise nonetheless.
The night got off to a fairly slow start, though Ben seemed intent on chasing some pots and it got him in trouble as his chip stack dwindled. When faced with an all-in bet from Chris, Ben called quickly only to find that Chris' pocket 5s were made a set on the flop and his two pair were beaten. Would the points leader relinquish his hold on the #1 spot in the standings?
After Ben's exit the action simmered down with a number of small pots being won left and right and nobody taking any major damage to their stacks. Then came Tim's first big move as Steve, on a draw with K-J, pushed all in and Tim called with A-10 and it held up. Severely crippled (with 200 in chips left), Steve pushed and was beaten by Adam's flush.
With the bubble in play for one point, Chris, Dave and Matt all guarded their small stacks. Neither of them wanting to pull the trigger and Chris ensuring that others at the table were johnny on the spot about their turn as the blind clock ticked closer to going up. After winning a small pot to provide a little breathing room, Matt was dealt AK suited and decided to push. Tim called with A-10 again, and despite the ace pairing for each of them, the king outkicked the 10 and Matt doubled up.
Now the urgency was on Chris and Dave as they were running short on chips. Dave finally pushed and was taken out by Adam's pair of Kings, followed shortly afterward by Adam again knocking out another player when Chris pushed and Adam's trip-sevens held up.
Now the short stack of the three, Matt felt the need to find a good hand and push but the blinds were killing him and he never got a good hand, having to push on 6-5 offsuit. Tim called and took him out, leaving Matt with a third-place cash and two points that moved him into first in the season standings (pending Adam's finish).
So we went head to head and when Adam took the chip lead, I must admit, I uttered to Ben, "well I think Adam's got this one". But I was unaware of the magic that Tim was conjuring up on his home turf. It was evident a few hands later when Adam's pocket-6s were beat by Tim's A-3 when he flopped a straight. Crippled by this loss, Adam later pushed with 7s and Tim paired his 10 to take event #4 of the season.
Congratulations to Tim on a well-played night of poker. His game is really coming along. I think there was even a tear in Steve's eye the moment Adam went out as he realized that all that hazing and bullying had finally paid off. Tim, the poker player, is all grows up. :)
Event #4 Standings:
1) Tim
2) Adam
3) MattG
4) Chris
5) Dave
6) Steve
7) Ben
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