Gray-haired poker TRs: Living the WSOP dream

On some airline apps there is a luggage tracker, that can help sometimes

Best of luck in Vegas!

WSOP 2026: Event 25 (June 7), $500 Freezeout NLHE (Part 3 of 7)
J-J again sees a terrible flop ... I fold A-5 from the big blind and get shown A-Q ... Card dead ... The poker table almost gets doused with water

Level 3
200/300/300

I am dealt J-J. It seems like the difficult to play J-J is going to keep testing me. Let’s try not to punt with it like I did yesterday. I open the betting and New York calls. The flop is K-Q-3. Yesterday’s punt aside, this flop hits my range as the pre-flop aggressor more than it does that of the caller. Not the time to be timid. I bet. If my bet meets heavy resistance I will fold. New York folds.

I have A-K. I open the betting, and the sticky Minnesota calls from the big blind. The flop is K-Q-2. Minnesota checks, I bet small, and he folds. I have 18,400 chips.

I am in the small blind and have 9-2 suited. It folds to me. I complete the blind. The big blind checks. I flop bottom pair. I bet and get called. I do not improve on the turn. Time to slow down. I check and fold to a raise.

I have A-7 and it folds to me in late position. I bet. Sunglasses calls. The flop is K-Q-2. A bet from me gets the job done as Sunglasses folds.

It folds to 10% in the small blind and he bets 4x. He seems really strong to me. I have A-5 in the big blind. I go with my live read and fold. 10% shows A-Q.

End of level 3: 17,500 chips.

Level 4
200/400/400

I am card dead and do not play single hand in this level.

End of level 4: 15,500 chips

We go on break. TJ and I exchange tales of woe as we are both below starting stack. TJ got as low as 6,000 but he recently doubled up to 12,000. I eat my beef and cheese sandwich that I made this morning. I wash it down with a Dr Pepper.

Level 5
300/500/500

I am in the big blind, and it folds to 10% in the small blind. “He says, “Happy Birthday” and folds. I respond, “I’d forgotten what it is like to drag a pot.”

AT&T, who has paid as little attention to the game as I’ve seen in quite some time due to his fixation with his cell phone, busts out of the tournament.

10% has won some huge pots of late and has a very big chip stack. He proceeds to drop the three-quarters-full bottle of water he has been drinking from onto the felt. It hits, bounces up and hits again. Miraculously, the cap he has screwed on very loosely holds. I say, “That could have ended a whole lot worse.”

A player raises 1,100, another player calls, and I look down at A-Q. I raise to 5,000 and both players fold. I have 17,700 chips.

End of level 5: 16,400 chips

Really enjoying the trip report! Looking forward to the next installment

For what its worth I think in the JJ hand , the turn is a classic case of way ahead or way behind , we either have 2 outs or opponent has 2, even if they have pocket 3s or 5s its 6 outs. So in this spot I would check.

I also would say that the type of player to lead out of flow in a 3bet pot on A24 isn't going to understand raises or relative hand strength and so isnt likely to fold an Ace on river ( I haz top pair , I call ). So I dont think the river bet folds out much we beat or gets called by much we lose?

WSOP 2026: Event 25 (June 7), $500 Freezeout NLHE (Part 4 of 7)
Circa folds two pairs and wants to know what I had ... I am finally above starting stack ... I am quickly below starting stack ... I have a below average stack of chips ... I put a very short stack all-in when I am quite light ... A guy with the sniffles gets seated next to me

Level 6
300/600/600

Minnesota limps from UTG. I have Q-Q and I bet 2,200. Everyone folds. I have 18,500 chips.

I have A-10, and I open the betting, Two players, one of whom is Circa, call. The flop is A-10-4. I have top two pair. Circa, from the big blind, bets. I just call. I don’t want to blow him off of whatever hand it is he has. The turn is a rag. Circa bets. I call. The river is a Queen. Circa checks. I go all-in. Circa tanks. Circa asks if I have A-Q. I say nothing. I will not speak. I will not break despite his withering attempt to search into my soul. Eventually he folds and shows ... wait for it ... A-10. The identical hand I have. He asks me what I had. I just smile and think to myself, “You’ll probably feel a whole lot better if I don’t answer.” I have 29,800 chips. I have finally fought my way back above starting stack. The average stack in the tournament is 30,950.

Seat 3 to my immediate left is filled by Euro Lady. Almost immediately she is involved in a huge hand. There is a three-way all-in between Euro Lady (A-J suited) Sunglasses (Q-Q) and Circa (K-K). Circa’s Kings hold, Sunglasses busts and Euro Lady is left with scraps.

End of level 6: 26,400 chips.

Level 7
400/800/800

I have K-Q suited UTG. I hate this hand UTG. It feels like it always gets me in trouble. Still, it seems like too much hand to fold. I open 2,000. UTG+2 raises to 6,000. Folding seems too nitty. I call. The flop is J-7-2. I check, villain bets and I fold. My time spent above starting stack did not last very long.

Euro Lady bets her remaining 2,600 chips from UTG. It folds to me in the big blind. I have K-9 suited. Against an UTG raise from a player with a much bigger stack I might be worried, but given how few chips Euro Lady has, I think her raise means she is “strong enough” as opposed to “strong.” I call. She has me pipped with K-10. Her hand holds. I am down to 16,600 chips. I’m back to grinding a below average stack.

From the small blind I see it fold to me. Euro Lady is in the big blind. She still does not have a ton of chips. I have Q-6 suited. Not exactly a monster, but I decide to exert maximum pressure and put her all in. She calls with A-2. I flop a Queen and knock her out. I have 23,400 chips, and I am once again approaching a starting stack. I feel like I am running on a giant hamster wheel. Running, running, running and getting nowhere.

Euro Lady is replaced by a man wearing a four-leaf-clover hat and a gigantic amethyst stone on a necklace down to his chest. But these identifiers do not earn him a nickname for this post. Instead, what is most memorable about the man is he has the sniffles. Constant sniffles. And I have the misfortune of being seated next to him. Is it allergies or is he sick? I don’t ask, but I sure do hope someone knocks out Sniffles fast. This is an altogether different type of running bad. If he is sick and I catch whatever Bubonic Plague he has, that would really suck.

UTG+2, I have A-9 suited. It’s not a monster, but I open with a bet. There is a call and then a raise. I fold, and it turns out the raiser had A-A.

End of level 7: 20,000 chips.

And now I see that either a.i. is not perfect or I am going too fast to catch its mistakes. It's both.

In the first picture in the last post there are two Ace of diamonds. Obviously, one of them should be a spade.

In the second picture of my last post, both Sniffles and I have three cards despite the fact that we were playing NLH.

I figured I better explain these mistakes, because if I didn't, then I suspect that TJ (the creator of the hat/no hat game) would create a find the mistake in the rppoker AI illustration game.

WSOP 2026: Event 25 (June 7), $500 Freezeout NLHE (Part 5 of 7)
A check in the dark discombobulates our dealer ... I tell Hard Rock he just broke poker ... Sniffles busts quickly by making a ridiculous call, and I am ecstatic that he is taking whatever his ailment is with him as he heads out ... Another check in the dark again flummoxes the dealer

Level 8
500/1,000/1,000

I have Q-Q in the small blind. New York opens kind of big. My read on him is he does this with hands he is uncomfortable playing like 8-8 thru 10-10 , maybe 7-7 thru J-J. I could raise 3x, but I think going all in will actually look weaker. I go all in. New York folds. I have 23,600 chips.

We have a dealer who is clearly very inexperienced. Hard Rock is in a hand and just as the dealer is about to spread three cards for a flop, Hard Rock says, “Check in the dark.” The dealer freezes. He has no idea what this means. He has no idea what to do. He just freezes like a statue. It’s like he has been turned into a block of ice.

The dealer can’t/won’t turn the cards over. I say to Hard Rock, “You just broke poker.” It takes six of us at the table to prod the dealer into spreading a flop. Hard Rock exclaims, “I’ll never do that again!”

Meanwhile, Sniffles just keeps on sniffling next to me. It’s annoying at best and worrisome at worst if he is actually sick. Then Sniffles gets into a massive hand. There is a raise, five calls, and a re-raise. Only Sniffles calls. The re-raiser has A-A. Sniffles has Jc-Qc. What is he thinking? Whatever is ailing him, it clearly has infected his brain. Sniffles busts. I am relieved.

A few hands later, same dealer as two paragraphs above, 10% checks in the dark. Once again the dealer freezes. The entire table groans.

I am on the BTN and it folds to me. I have 10-10. I’m not terribly eager to take a flop with 10-10 given all of the over cards that can hit. I size up to 3.5x, and the blinds both fold.

A new player is seated to my immediate left. He says this is his fourth table of the day. I say, “I guess you can’t get along with anyone.”

End of level 8: 23,900 chips.

You are nailing this! You should turn this thread into a book. When a professional writer shows up in LVL it is noticable 😀

So much detail! It must be exhausting taking notes the whole time.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

WSOP 2026: Event 25 (June 7), $500 Freezeout NLHE (Part 6 of 7)
TJ has famous friends ... Card deadness ... TJ has a plan if we make it to dinner break

We go on break. TJ and I are on the escalator headed down to the Horseshoe Casino and talking when someone right behind me says something to TJ. TJ responds. I look back and see it is Daniel Negreanu, whose table is near TJ’s table. I step out of the way and let them have their conversation. TJ runs with the cool crowd.

As the break is coming to a close, I see Negreanu walk back into the Normandy. Everyone is asking him to take a selfie with them. Nonstop. Negreanu says yes to every request. The guy is a great ambassador for poker. Negreanu takes out his own selfie stick, starts recording for his vlog and states that he is “a man of the people.”

Level 9
600/1,200/1,200

I am dealt A-Q in early position. I bet 3,200. New York calls. The flop is 9-9-2. I continuation bet, and New York folds. I have approximately 31,000 chips. Am I finally ready to get off the hamster wheel and make a run for glory?

I am not. I go card dead. The blinds take a couple of bites out of me.

End of level 9: 24,500 chips.

Level 10
1,000/1,500/1,500

I continue to be card dead. This is a really bad time to be card dead. I don’t play a single hand this level. I have not been able to play a single hand since the A-Q hand early in level 9.

End of level 10: 16,400 chips.

We go on break so the dealers can do the color up race off. TJ tells me he has a plan for us (he has a shade under 20 big blinds). His plan is we are both going to make the dinner break and we will go to Battista’s for dinner. I’m not sure my chip stack is up to TJ’s optimism, but sure.

I get back from break and, hey, I won the color up race. An extra 500 chip is waiting for me.

WSOP 2026: Event 25 (June 7), $500 Freezeout NLHE (Part 7 of 7)
The blinds have become a problem ... Eight BBs ... 2-4 in BB ... 2-4 in SB ... 6 BBs ... A-10 will have to do ... Dinner with TJ, but not where we hoped to eat

Level 11
1,000/2,000/2,000

I desperately need to find a hand to go with. I am down to eight big blinds. Plus, my table is seven-handed for the time being, which means the blinds will come around even faster.

In the second hand back I am the big blind, and I have 2-4 off suit. I have to fold to a bet. The next hand I am in the small blind, and once again I am dealt 2-4 off suit. Is this someone’s idea of humor? I’m not amused. Again, I have to fold.

I am below six blinds.

A player bets 6,000 and I look down at A-10. I go all-in. I know I have zero fold equity with the original bettor, but A-10 is more than enough to go with. Villain calls with J-J.

The cards are turned over and while my 10 pairs with the board, it is not enough. I’m out.

I text TJ that I busted. I tell him I will stick around for a bit.

A big chunk of the remaining Normandy tables (including TJ’s) get moved to the Horseshoe Ballroom. I walk with TJ. I tell him that if he doubles up to let me know, in which case I’ll probably head back to my hotel. I’m rooting for TJ to get his double up and send me to the exits.

Once we get to the Horseshoe Ballroom, TJ heads for his new table. I find a wall outlet so that I can charge my phone, and I plop myself on the ground. I call Mrs. rppoker to tell her what is going on. After my phone call is over, I start reading the tsunami of WSOP trip reports that are running on 2+2.

Just as I notice that it is 25 minutes until TJ will be on dinner break, TJ texts me that he just doubled up with his 4-4 shove holding against A-Q. I text back that I am still nearby, and I’ll stick around to go to dinner with him. I take some pictures of TJ in a hand that I think he may like to have. Moments later I look up and see TJ headed my way giving me the thumb’s down sign. He just busted. It turns out the pictures I just took of TJ were during his bust-out hand. Oops. My bad.

We try to decide where to go for dinner. TJ says that Battista’s is his place to go on dinner break when he is still alive in a tournament. He just busted, so he is adamant that Battista’s is clearly out as an option.

TJ says he doesn’t want to go anywhere fancy. He suggests the Horseshoe food court. I say that is good by me. We head down and he suggests Nathan’s. I am thrilled with that option, which means one and only one thing to me ...

... chili cheese dogs. I love, love, love chili cheese dogs. We drown our tournament sorrows in chili cheese dogs.

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 1 of 9)
I feel indifferent to my tournament options ... I decide to play ... For the first time ever, I finally get to play in the Horseshoe Event Center ... I tell myself to snap out of my funk and play with enthusiasm

The options for today are not thrilling. The best of the bunch is the 1:00 pm Daily Deepstack $250 NLHE tournament. I’ve played in the Daily Deepstack during past WSOPs and it doesn’t have the bigger than life feel to me of regular WSOP events.

When I was ready to go to sleep last night, I put the odds at 45% that I would play in the Daily Deepstack.

When the alarm in my phone went off late this morning, I put the odds at 49%.

When I got in the shower, I put the odds at 50-50. I was really feeling indifferent to which side of this coin flip would win out.

Odds post shower: 52%.

Odds when I left my hotel room: 60%.

Odds when I got in the cab: 70%.

Odds when I got to the Paris Hotel cab drop-off area: 80%.

The momentum build is slow, but it’s becoming clear that I am playing.

I’m not approaching it with, as football coach Jim Harbaugh likes to say, an enthusiasm unknown to mankind. But my enthusiasm is heating to a very, very slow boil. I am somewhat enthusiastic.

I get to the Horseshoe where I am certain the Daily Deepstack will be held. I pull out my cell phone and go to the WSOP Live app to register. The first thing I see is there are unlimited rebuys. I hate this. One rebuy I have come around to and embrace. But unlimited rebuys? This makes me wonder if people will just be playing Bingo to try to double up or just keep rebuying. I’d like there to be some semblance of poker play. I don’t want to be buying into a brainless shove fest.

I’m back to 50-50.

Oh, what the hell. I’m here to play poker. I pull the trigger.

I register and take a look at my table on the app. So far there are five of us, and a quick check shows that the person with the most WSOP cashes and the most WSOP earnings is ... me? Seriously? Talk about damning with faint praise. I’ve got two measly WSOP cashes to my name. TWO! One ... two ... it doesn’t take long to add up. I’ve got to believe that there will be plenty of people in the field with way more WSOP experience than me.

I walk in the Horseshoe Event Center where my table will be. Hold on, we have to stop and check off a box. I’ve finally made it to the Event Center at the WSOP as a player for the first time. The only problem is this is not THE Event Center of years past when this room housed final tables and featured tables. It’s “the” Event Center, not “THE” Event Center. Still, it’s a first for me.

I’m trying to find the excitement of the moment. And then I have a talk with myself. Who am I to think this is beneath me?! It’s still poker. At the WSOP. Let’s have some fun!

Much better.

Yes, this was definitely an oops. It sounded like jacks had great showdown value on a board of A-4-2-4-x. Definitely not a situation to bluff.

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 2 of 9)
A familiar face ... Dealer keeps dealing three cards to one player, and I ask if I can get in on that ... My table loves, loves, loves to tell bad beat stories ... I hit my gin card and almost don’t realize it

When the time comes, I walk to my table. I recognize the dealer as someone who dealt for my table in yesterday’s $500 NLHE freezeout event. I tell her I recognize her from yesterday. She beams with the pride of a veteran. Yes, she is a veteran ... of two whole days. Yesterday was her first day dealing at the WSOP. She has just checked off a box of accomplishment for herself ... getting recognized by a player from a previous event.

The starting lineup:

Seat 1: A man wearing one pair of glasses with another pair of glasses perched on his baseball cap. Neither pair of glasses is sunglasses. He will be “Double Glasses.”

Seat 2: A man wearing a loud floral shirt who has a quiet demeanor of both play and personality. The shirt seems out of character. He is “Flowers.”

Seat 3: A man wearing a Yankees hat. He could be the twin brother of a good friend of mine from college in terms of looks and the fact that he is also a nonstop talker who likes to chat people up in an incredibly boisterous and pleasant way. I would name him after my friend, but that would have zero meaning to you readers. So I’ll just call him “Yankees.”

Seat 4: An unassuming man wearing a Texas Longhorns hat. He is “Longhorns.”

Seat 5; A nice, kind, bald man with a wide smile who is from Italy. He is “Italia.”

Seat 6: A chatty, active player from Albania who also can speak Italian to his neighboring player. The player in this seat is wearing screaming red shoes. Clown shoes almost. Let’s go with it. He is “Clown Shoes.”

Seat 7: Me.

Seat 8: A heavyset woman who says she has not played tournament poker in a while, and yesterday during a tournament in level 1 she meant to put out a 500 chip but instead tossed out a 5,000 bet by mistake. She will be ”5K.”

Seat 9: At first, a woman in a vibrant purple top sits down and tries to check-in, but it turns out she is at the wrong table. A puzzled man, who made a Day 3 of a tournament the other day, is wondering why this woman is sitting in what he believes to be his seat. It gets sorted out and the man, who is wearing a Carolina blue colored shirt, takes his seat. He will be “Carolina Blue.”

Level 1
100/100/100

We start six-handed, but the table fills up pretty quickly. During each of the first two hands of play, the newbie dealer deals a third card to 5K who is seated next to me. I say, “I either need to get in on getting dealt three cards, or I need a table change.”

For some reason, Clown Shoes decides to tell me a loooooooong story about Daniel Negreanu having A-A in a tournament and losing to A-K. Clown Shoes has a bit of an accent that makes it kind of difficult to follow the story. Plus, I’m not really interested in a Daniel Negreanu bad beat story. I politely nod along as Clown Shoes regales me with this “extraordinary” tale of woe. It’s not even his bad beat story. It is someone else’s bad beat story. Groan.

Early on a number of things become apparent. Clown Shoes initially is playing in like 80% of the hands. Also, the table is incredibly chatty. Way more talkative than the normal WSOP table. And finally, this table loves to tell bad beat stories. Can’t tell enough of them. Can’t get enough of them. Just one bad beat tale after another. Groan.

The only way this could get worse would be if they changed subjects and started telling tales of woe about their fantasy football teams. Mercifully, I am spared hearing about the tragic time their fantasy football team lost by one stinking point because their idiot opponent had the backup fullback of a Monday Night Football team in their lineup and the obscure blocker was given the ball at the one-yard line and scored a garbage time touchdown to turn certain fantasy football victory into defeat. I am spared this kind of pain because my table is still droning on and on and on about bad beat stories. Just kill me!

The first playable hand I am dealt is 9d-10d in the big blind. Longhorns min bets. An argument can be made for a light 3-bet on my part, but I just call from the big blind. The flop is Qd-8d-2h. I have a flush draw and a gut shot to the straight flush. I check, Longhorns bets, and I call with oodles of outs. I am focused on a diamond coming, but instead the turn card is Js. At first I was disappointed that the flush has not arrived. It takes me a couple of seconds to realize that I have made my inside straight. I check, Longhorns bets. I just call. I don’t want to blow him off of his hand. The river is a rag. Longhorns seems to like his hand, but I don’t want to give him a chance to check back the river. So, I lead out with a bet, and Longhorns calls. He has A-Q for top pair and top kicker, which is no match for my straight. I’ve played only one hand, and already my 25,000 starting stack has ballooned to 32,000 chips.

End of level 1: 30,100 chips (not sure from my lack of notes how I gave back 1,900 chips, or maybe my 32,000 chip count in the previous sentence was wrong).

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 3 of 9)
My 10-10 has to survive a scary river card ... Carolina Blue is off to a fast WSOP start with two cashes including one deep run ... Double Glasses says, “Dealer, you’re killing me” ... Carolina Blue tells Double Glasses, “If you fold that hand, don’t play poker.”

Level 2
100/200/200

The nonstop bad beat stories continue to be told at the table.

Carolina Blue from UTG opens the betting for 600. It folds to me in the small blind. I have 10-10. I could raise, but this seems like a hand I want to play a small pot and not a big one. I just call. The big blind folds. The flop is 8-7-2 rainbow. I check, Carolina Blue bets, I call. The turn is another 8. I should have way more 8s than the UTG aggressor. Plus, I think it is very possible villain has A-K or A-Q and I am ahead. I bet. If Carolina Blue has a bigger pair than me (very possible) this is where I should hear about it. He just calls. The river is an Ace. This seems like a terrible card for me. I just check intending to call a bet. I won’t love it, but I will make the call. Instead, he just checks back. I show my 10-10 and he mucks his cards.

End of level 2: 36,800 chips.

Level 3
200/300/300

I am coming to believe that Carolina Blue is the best player at the table. He plays an above-average number of hands, always seems to know where he is in the hand, and much more often than not he ends up with the chips. He also has already made a deep run in one WSOP tourney this summer and cashed in another.

Carolina Blue decimates Double Glasses with nut flush versus second nut flush. Somehow, Double Glasses does not go bust, but his stack takes a beating. Double Glasses says, “Dealer, you’re killing me,” but then he adds, “Just kidding.”

Double Glasses then asks Carolina Blue, “Would you have folded my hand?”

Carolina Blue says, “If you fold that hand, don’t play poker.”

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 4 of 9)
Clown Shoes does not believe my story ... Clown Shoes makes a unique offer to his opponent before the flop is turned over ... Double Glasses busts, rebuys and ends up right back at our table ... I decide against set mining with 4-4 and would have been up against A-A

I get into a big blind (me) versus small blind (Clown Shoes) confrontation when it folds to Clown Shoes who completes, and I just check with Qh-3h. The flop is Kc-7s-2d. I have absolutely none of it, but I have not been active so I think if I show aggression it will be believable. Clown Shoes checks, I bet, and he calls. The turn is an 8. Clown Shoes checks, I continue to tell my story with a bet, and he remains a nonbeliever and calls. The river bails me out with a Q. I have now made a hand, but it is second pair. Clown Shoes checks. I don’t want to give him a chance to check raise, so I pass on possible thin value and just check back. He has Ace high. I have a pair of Queens.

As I am stacking my new chips, I say, “Obviously I was bluffing, and then I got there.”

Clown Shoes says, “I didn’t believe you.”

I respond, “You were right not to.”

I have 37,100 chips.

Clown Shoes calls an all-in bet from 5K (they have almost identical stacks), but before they turn over their cards he offers her a deal. Clown Shoes says that whoever wins the hand will pay the loser half of the re-buy buy-in. 5K says she is agreeable to the deal. They turn over their cards, and Clown Shoes has the winning hand (not the nuts obviously) and he pulls out his wallet and gives her $125 and she presumably rebuys.

Double Glasses busts. He rebuys and ends up right back at our table even though there must be 70-80 tables in action for the tournament. It’s like he went into a revolving door just behind our table and came right back out to our table.

The unlikelihood of Double Glasses being sent back to our table will prove to be significant later (foreshadowing).

Longhorns is UTG and opens the betting. Italia is UTG+1 and raises. I have 4-4. I was considering calling Longhorns bet to set mine and potentially winning a huge pot or losing a small pot. But with the second bet, there is no certainty I can call cheaply. For all I know, Longhorns may get into a raising war. I fold. It turns out that Italia did have A-A, and he busts Longhorns

There have already been a lot of A-A hands dealt at this table. There will continue to be a ton of A-A hands dealt at this table.

A new player joins the table. He is dressed entirely in black, so he will be “The Man in Black.”

I write in my notes that despite my growing chip stack, I have had almost no playable cards dealt to me. The deck has been ice cold for me so far this WSOP.

End of level 3: 37,100 chips.

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 5 of 9)
“Yeah, the universe was telling you to fold.” ... Trips in a 5-way flop ... I fold A-J pre flop to a tight player’s open, and I’m right

Level 4
200/400/400

The seat to my immediate left is filled by a strong player from Japan, so obviously he will be “Japan.” Double Glasses immediately tells Japan that his new seat has been cursed so far at this table. At this point I have concluded that all of the strongest players at the table are seated on my end of the table. The weakest players are across the way. This is unfortunate and challenging.

OK, maybe Clown Shoes is not as formidable as I thought. He gets into a raising war with Japan and doubles up Japan (A-A) which is far superior to Clown Shoe’s 6-6. Clown Shoes defends his action by saying he also had the same 6-6 the hand before and he thought the universe was sending him a message. I hear this and I think to myself, “Yeah, the universe was telling you to fold.”

I am UTG+2. I have A-J. I open for 1,200. Only The Man in Black from the HJ position calls. The flop is 7-4-2. I bet and my opponent folds. I have 37,300 chips.

When I am in the big blind I have 5-6 and the table goes limp happy and we go five to a flop. The flop is a glorious 6-6-J. I check, Carolina Blue bets, everyone else folds and I just call to keep my client from going anywhere. The turn is harmless. Again I check, Carolina Blue bets and I decide I can extract more chips from him. I raise and he calls. The river changes nothing. I think he is invested in the hand, so I lead out. He folds. I win a big pot.

The next hand, which will be the last hand before the break, sees Flowers open the betting from very early position. I’m not positive the exact position because I was so busy stacking chips and taking notes from the last hand. But what I did take note of was the fact that Flowers had played almost no hands to this point. While still imperfect information, I felt he was only playing the strongest premium hands (although who was I to talk having played hardly any hands since I continued to be unbelievable card dead pre flop). In any event, I did not like how my A-J looked against such a tight player from very early position. I folded. It would turn out that Flowers had A-Q. Yay me.

End of level 4: 45,800 chips (tournament average stack 31,690).

We go on break. I am extremely aware of how I have been dealt almost nothing playable pre flop. At the same time, when I have seen flops with modest holdings (usually from the blinds) I have been absolutely smashed by the deck, which has allowed me to build a really healthy chip stack.

Loving the report as always 😀

Today's quick strategy tip; it's much better to start a bet with Q3hh on K-7-2 if there is one heart on the flop. That gives you so much better barrell opportunities on the turn.

I don't mind the rare brute force bluff on the right boards obviously, but most bluffs works better if you have a sliver of backdoor possibilities.

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 6 of 9)
I miss the flop completely when three low cards are shown, I still bet and Double Glasses folds an over pair (10-10) to the board ... Double Glasses get tired of folding to my aggression and fights back

Level 5
300/600/600

Yankees, who has engaged the other side of the table in almost nonstop but very friendly chatter, decides to get a chair massage at the table. This does not slow down his banter.

I have come to the conclusion that Japan and Carolina Blue do not like to fold. The attempts I try early this level do not get them to back down and go mildly bad. I conclude that I should be betting value against them and stop trying to bluff them.

Double Glasses opens for 1,500. Hey, I have a real hand. A-Q. I raise to 4,500. Double Glasses calls. Then, before the dealer shows the flop, Double Glasses checks in the dark. The flop is three low cards, which obviously miss my range. I continue to sell the story of a strong monster, and I bet half pot. Double Glasses folds. He asks me what I had. I say nothing. He says he had 10-10. Wow, I’m shocked he folded that, but I offer nothing in the way of what cards I had. Double Glasses seems to get much more aggressive after this hand, and I get the feeling in particular that he wants to try to outplay me after this hand.

End of level 5: 50,300 chips.

Level 6
400/800/800

I have A-Q UTG and bet 2,000. Double Glasses calls. The flop is 10-8-4. I have none of it. I continuation bet 2,500. Double Glasses glares at me. He seems kind of pissed. He raises pretty large. I seem to have made a poker enemy. I fold.

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 7 of 9)
All-in J-J versus A-K ... I win a coin flip ... I attempt a bluff against a player who is a non-believer

Next, I am in the big blind and have A-K. I love a big hand in the big blind. It folds to Clown Shoes in the small blind. Come on, I get a hand and get no action? Clown Shoes, however, bets 2,000. I pop it to 6,000. Clown Shoes doesn’t even think for a second. He goes all-in immediately. I call. He has J-J. The flop and turn do me no good, but then there is a beautiful, tournament-saving Ace on the river. I’ve won a flip and my chip stack soars. I have 60,200 chips.

Shortly after that I am dealt J-Q suited on the button. Even though I have not been trying to bluff against Japan and Carolina to my immediate left since they don’t like to fold, I think this is a hand I need to raise even though it isn’t an obvious premium hand. It folds to me and I bet 1,800. Of course, Japan and Carolina Blue call. The flop is 2-4-9. Both of my foes from the blinds check. I bet. Japan calls and Carolina Blue jams all-in. I have to fold. I tried.

Again I write in my notes, “Don’t bluff Japan and Carolina Blue. Just bet for value against them.”

About this time a parade of late reg players join the table in the seat immediately to my right, quickly get it all-in with nonsense like 5-5 and bust out. We seem to be in the late reg blaster stage of the tournament where they search for a quick double up or go broke so they can rebuy and eventually build a lazy large stack. Even though I have decided to embrace late reg as needed, I don’t love players having the ability to buy-in late looking to gamble. I’ve budgeted for second bullets if need be, but I still think freezeouts are a more pure form of tournament poker. OK, I’ll get off my soapbox and get back to the tournament at hand.

The first player in the late reg and gamble stage in the seat to my immediate right looks like he is 21 years old. He joins the table and goes bust in five hands.

In the big blind I have 6-7 and get to see a flop and turn cheap. On a J-2-5-8 board, I have an open-ended straight draw. Japan bets 3,500. I don’t know if I have the right odds to make this call in the moment, but I figure I’ll either just lose the 3,500 and fold if I miss, but I could win a huge pot if I get there. I don’t get “there” and I fold to a bet after the river.

End of level 6: 49,400 chips.

Level 7
500/1,000/1,000

I’ve been card dead pretty much the entire tournament pre flop, and it gets worse this level. I can’t find a single hand to play.

End of level 7: 48,000 chips (although this seems a bit off compared to the 49,400 chips I had at the end of the last level. Given blinds posted and lost, my chip stack should be more different from the last level. One count must be wrong).

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 8 of 9)
My opponent has Aces and I check/fold from the small blind ... I finally get A-A but get no action ... I run into TonySoprano9 on break

Level 8
600/1,200/1,200

I am in the small blind when it folds to me. I have 8h-9h. I just complete the blind. Japan is in the big blind, and he raises. I’ll be out of position, and while it is interesting my hand is very speculative. I fold. Japan disgustedly turns over A-A. I can dodge bullets, baby!

It is unbelievable how often this table has had A-A. Everyone but me. I haven’t been dealt A-A in three tournaments now. And then, no sooner than I have that very thought, I am UTG+2 and I finally get dealt A-A. My fear is that I have been so card dead all tournament that a raise from earlyish position is going to chase everyone away. I have been patient all day long, which means I haven’t played a ton of hands. But I’m certainly not going to limp my Aces. Hopefully someone wakes up with something. Everyone folds. I win the blinds. Yippee.

End of level 8: 43,300 chips.

We go on break. I haven’t eaten today, so I get a $12 WSOP hot dog and wash it down with a Dr Pepper from my backpack.

On my way back to the Event Center, I run into TonySoprano9 who is coming out of the Horseshoe Ballroom. It turns out he just busted his tournament. Something with PLO. I think it may have been the mixed PLO/NLH tournament. In any event, once he tells me he just busted, it seems like bad form for me to ask for the possibly gruesome details. I simply say, “Sorry.” He asks me what I am playing and how I’m doing. I tell him I’m getting no cards, but I have hit a couple of big blind specials to help the cause. He asks me how many chips I have and then asks what the starting stack was. It’s a brief conversation because my break is coming to a conclusion from my end of things, and I suspect there is a mixed cash game calling his name somewhere. We head in our separate directions.

I get to my table. I have won the chip race during the break and there is a bonus 500 chip waiting for me. Also, late reg has now concluded. There are 651 players remaining out of 1,296 entries.

WSOP 2026: (June 8) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 9 of 9)
Big pair against a bigger pair ... I have history with Q-Q versus A-A ... Lamenting card deadness so far this trip

Level 9
1,000/1,500/1,500

First hand back, I get dealt Q-Q. OK, that’s more like it. I’m getting a couple of premiums. Let’s hope this goes better than my A-A the previous level that got zero action. I open the betting 4,000. The Man in Black who has been hit by the deck the prior level or two (A-A twice, K-K twice) calls. Double Glasses – who you may recall busted earlier, bought back in and was sent right back to our same table – raises to 16,000. As I wrote earlier, at one point he felt like I may have bluffed him off a winning hand or two, and I suspect he has been targeting me. I go all-in. The Man in Black folds. Double Glasses snap calls. That’s not good. He shows A-A. The previous level, Double Glasses was in the reverse situation when he was all-in with Q-Q against Italia’s A-A, but a Q on the flop bailed out Double Glasses. Yankees reminds him of this. You remember all those bad beat stories the table was so enthusiastic about recounting earlier in the tournament? Well, I sure wouldn’t mind giving them something to talk about here. Alas, the deck is not in a cooperative mood. I am unable to administer a bad beat, and I’m out since Double Glasses barely has me covered.

Q-Q versus A-A. It’s a ...

As I am walking out of the Event Center, I think back to the 2019 WSOP. I’m pretty certain it was the Big 50 $500 NLH tournament. I made Day 2, and my Q-Q ran into A-A and knocked me out of that tournament. History has repeated itself. It’s a memory. It’s not a good memory, but it’s a memory. I need to work on having more good memories.

Today was rough. Card dead again. Plus, having Carolina Blue and Japan (the two best players at my table) as the two players to my immediate left for much of the day was no picnic.

My confidence feels a bit shaken. I’m not getting cards and my tables have felt tougher so far this year compared to past WSOPs. It’s an incredibly small sample size of three tournaments so far this summer, so everything could conceivably turn for the better any time now. But so far it hasn’t, and I find myself questioning myself. Should I be widening my range. I don’t really think so. There just don’t seem like many close calls in terms of hand selection for me in my tournaments so far this WSOP. I think I have been playing properly patient, but patience is no fun when it never seems to get rewarded. Again, it’s a miniscule sample size of three tournaments in my 2026 WSOP. I see other people getting smashed by the deck, and I ask myself, “When is it my turn? When do I sun run?” Yes, I had a couple of big blind specials today that helped immensely for a while, but my allocation of high-end premiums is really, really tiny. I feel like I should write a letter to the Department of Starting Poker Hands Allocation.

I feel like such a whiny crybaby. I don’t have a pithy ending to this day. Boo hoo me.

Sigh.

Stop it, stop it, stop it!!!!! Tomorrow is another day. Hopefully a better day. I need to shake off this woe is me mindset (QUIT FEELING SORRY FOR YOURSELF RPPOKER!!!!!!!!), and start fresh in the morning with the belief that good things are due to occur.

So far in three tournaments I’ve had a punt, card deadness leading to a dwindling chip stack that eventually had to get it in with A-10, and todays Q-Q versus A-A cooler.

At least I have not been suffering any bad beats so far. Wait, I didn’t say that out loud, did I? Saying it out loud would just be begging for trouble. Hope I didn’t crack open Pandora’s Box.

I can confirm the picture is 100% accurate.

I enjoyed our chat that evening and it helped to refrain me from tearing my hair out at Vegas losing a 4-0 lead.

WSOP 2026: (June 9) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 1 of 8)
The snooze button gets a workout ... Check in the dark repetition ... Horse and Iron Maiden come out firing, determined to try to win the tournament in level 1

Lots of game plans get tossed out the window today.

Plan A: Still be alive on Day 4 of the WSOP Monster Stack. That clearly did not happen.

Plan B: Play at the Venetian, Day 1D NLH (two-day event). When I went to bed late last night, that was the plan. Starting time at the Venetian is 10:10 a.m. I set my alarm clock accordingly. When it goes off this morning, my body says, “Hell no. Too early. Not gonna happen.”

Which leads us to ...

... Plan C: I re-set my alarm for the much later start of the WSOP daily deepstack. Alarm goes off, I hit the snooze button and go back to sleep. Alarm goes off again. I hit the snooze button again. I figure I’ll just get up when I feel like it and jump into the tournament a few levels in, which will still allow plenty of play. Eventually I get up, shower, shave, get dressed and jump in a cab. Amazingly, it appears that I might actually make it on time. I get dropped off at the Paris cab area, walk toward the Horseshoe Event Center and register on the WSOP Live app while walking. I arrive at my table with 45 seconds to spare, which feels late to me because I am a five minutes early is on time guy in all aspects of life.

The starting lineup:

Seat 1: A stylish gentleman my age with snow white hair and beard. He will be “Silver Fox.”

Seat 2: Me.

Seat 3: A man with a “New York or Nowhere” on his shirt, which sounds like a name for him.

Seat 4: A very confident (bordering on arrogance), well dressed older woman. She carries herself like she is used to getting exactly what and who she wants in life. We’ll call her “Cougar.”

Seat. 5: Doesn’t get filled for a couple of levels, but eventually gets filled by a very attractive middle-aged nearing oldish woman wearing a hat that says “Reclaimed Vintage.” She will be “Vintage.”

Seat 6: An OMC type with a somewhat wrinkly face. He will be “Wrinkles.”

Seat 7: A younger player wearing an Iron Maiden t-shirt, so he will be “Iron Maiden.”

Seat 8: A not quite middle aged man who has a horse card protector. He will be “Horse.”

Seat 9: A guy wearing a stylish sweater wrapped around his neck like a preppy tennis pro at a country club. He will be “Country Club.”

Level 1
100/100/100
25,000 starting chips

Silver Fox arrives six hands into the tournament, and Wrinkles says, “You just missed being the big blind.”

Silver Fox says, “I love the big blind.”

Iron Maiden and Horse have come out firing. They are making huge oversized bets in the first orbit of the first level. On one such hand, there is 8,000 in the pot because Horse over bet the flop and got called (remember, this is 100/100/100), and now on the turn Iron Maiden bets 15,000 into Horse, who folds.

I play my first hand with Ah-Jh suited and open for 300. Horse calls and checks in the dark (something he does a lot we will soon realize). The flop is 4h-7h-4s. With my flush draw and two over cards, I bet and Horse folds.

Horse keeps checking in the dark. I have no idea what purpose it serves.

Horse and Iron Maiden continue to tangle in huge pots. Uh, guys, it’s level 1. They don’t care. They are firing haymakers at one another.

It reminds me of the famous 1985 Marvin Hagler-Tommy Hearns fight when the two of them came out and were throwing ferocious bombs and massive haymakers nonstop at one another and the fight only lasted three rounds. If it went any longer there would have been no survivors.

Here is that fight. The greatest, most brutal, most action-packed three rounds in the history of boxing. Watch it. You’re welcome.

Speaking of, uh, it’s level 1, dude, a heavyset player in an A’s baseball cap one table over is jumping up and down and celebrating like crazy as though he has just won the tournament.

Cougar, seated two to my left, has been playing the most hands at the table early on. She isn’t blasting away like Iron Maiden versus Horse at the other end of the table, but she has been extremely active. When she is in hands, she eyes her foes with disdain and contempt. She must be a real force of nature in her life away from the poker table.

With K-Q, I open the betting and get two calls from the blinds. The flop is 7-5-3. Both of the blinds check, I bet, the small blind calls and Wrinkles raises from the big blind. I fold. I am mad at myself. Continuation betting as a bluff was a mistake considering the flop smashed the two blinds’ ranges. I should have checked and taken the free card.

End of level 1: 23,600 chips.

I can post with less frequency per day.

I was trying to post an entire tournament per day to give the feel of an actual day, but I can see that this could be too much content per day for people to digest.

I think I will start doing four posts per day. That will be a slower release of results to the trip report.

One benefit of doing this is it will stretch the trip report into a portion of the calendar when I believe trip reports aren't especially active.

WSOP 2026: (June 9) Daily Deepstack 1:00 pm $250 NLHE (Part 2 of 8)
I go all-in during level 2, but I have a reason ... I have A-K, the flop has an Ace and I bust Cougar who overplays K-K post flop ... I play 9-9 conservatively

Level 2
100/200/200

Horse continues to check in the dark with great frequency. It’s like he earns a bonus every time he does it. I genuinely have no idea what he hopes to gain by this, especially since it does not appear to be based on card strength judging by what he has had at showdowns up to now.

Horse is also proving to be sticky. A hand that was bet on multiple streets and called by Horse gets to showdown and he wins with fifth pair.

I get into a big hand against Cougar who has continued to play more hands than anyone else at the table so far. Way too many hands. Her approach seems to be that if her opponent slows down in a hand, she pounces and wins the hand without getting to showdown. I am UTG+2 with K-Q and I open the betting. Cougar raises and I call. The flop is Q-J-2. I check. She bets 2,000. I raise it to 6,000. She calls. The turn is a harmless 4. I check, she bets small, and I go all-in. I know I am overplaying my hand. I have a good hand but not the nuts. My all-in is opponent dependent. Plus, I have two other thoughts. The first is the poker saying “shove light, call tight,” The second is, if I bust, I can re-buy for almost exactly the amount of chips I started the hand with. Cougar stands down and folds. She eyeballs me suspiciously. How dare I make this supremely confident woman show weakness. She does not seem at all happy with me. I have 31,700 chips.

Shortly thereafter, Cougar and I tangle again. I have A-K and I open the betting. She 3-bets. Knowing I can re-buy if necessary, I 4-bet. She calls. The flop is A-4-7. I bet. She jams all-in. I snap call. She has K-K, doesn’t improve on the turn or river, looks at me with contempt, and she storms off. I on the other hand have almost doubled my starting stack with 49,300.

A new player arrives in seat 4. He is an OMC and is wearing a Corvette shirt, the kind you get from a specialty dealer when you buy a high-end car. He will be “Corvette.”

I have 9-9. I decide I want to play this hand carefully. No need to spew a bunch of my newly earned chips with a tricky hand that probably flops poorly. UTG opens. I call and another player calls. The flop is 10-4-2. The original bettor makes a continuation bet. I suppose a pair of nines on a 10 high flop can afford to call one bet and assess on the turn, but I choose to fold.

I am in the small blind with A-Q. Wrinkles bets 600. Silver Fox calls. I raise 4x and they both fold.

End of level 2: 48,500 chips.