345 scratch cards

If you run a poker event with a €345 buyin and attract almost a thousand players from all over the world, is that success? I'd certainly have assumed so, but apparently many disagree if you made some lofty predictions about getting 4000 runners. It's an expectations game I suppose.

The oddly named Super poker event in Citywest was essentially a souped up turbo. There's definitely a place for this sort of event on the calendar and I do like a good turbo myself. It's a bit like the IPO, but in a much nicer hotel, and without the bonus of a thousand or so drunks wandering round the place, some of them representing Boyles slurring "Well, aren't we all having great craic altogether" in your face every few minutes.

I never really got going and busted in time for a nice leisurely dinner at Lemongrass in the company of Nick Abou Risk and his friend Gary, the Drumlish lads (Smidge and Jaymo), Mick Mccloskey, Daragh Davey and David Lappin. Between the eight of us us we had ten starting stacks collectively. However, late regger Nick had nine of those. Nick's just turned full time pro so best of luck to him.

I did get a bit of a run in a side event, and could have done well if I didn't keep getting all in pre with kings against smaller pairs or Axs. A lady who shall remain nameless once told me she was so fed up of getting her kings cracked that she'd started open folding them. I can't see myself going down that road though, but it's certainly an interesting line.

David and I did the livestream commentary on the final table, ably produced by Iain Cheyne as ever. My friend and constant heckler Alan Mclean (father of tourney organiser Stephen) had a great run all the way to the final table and was unlucky not to go farther. Chatting to him at one of the breaks on the final table, he told me a story that made me laugh. His wife Patricia is also a very good player: in fact many (myself included) would rate her a better player than Alan. Numbered among these apparently is their daughter, who tried to buy a share in Patricia in the event and wasn't too happy being fobbed off into buying a percentage of her old man instead. However, as soon as she realised her grudging percentage was amounting to something, she was on the phone constantly to find out how much she was getting now.

Well done to Stephen for another successful addition to the domestic calendar. It's not an easy business climate at the moment and not everyone appreciates a good live turbo as much as I do. When I asked one young pro if he was going to play it, his pithy reply was "I'd rather buy 345 scratch cards".

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