Hi All
It's been a while since my last confession mainly because I've been so busy. I followed my deep run in UKIPT Cork with a side event final table at the Super Poker event, and then another deep run at UKIPT London. Although the really big live score has eluded me so far this year, I feel at least I am achieving the sort of consistency that has been a characteristic of my career to date again after the worst year of my career live in 2012.
I was particularly happy with my run in London as I felt I didn't run particularly well and yet managed to make the most of what few opportunities I was given to get down to the last 2% of the field and be one flip away from being a serious contender two tables out. It wasn't to be on this occasion as I lost that first flip for my tourney life. Later I will look at one hand I was particularly proud of from late on day 1 when I found myself short stacked and in need of a double up. I took a calculated risk to slow play the first big hand I got all day to maximise my chances of winning a big pot and it paid off. More on that hand later in the strategy section.
I followed that with three cashes at the Norwegian Championships/JP Masters, which included a deep run in the main event. I was in good shape a few tables out but then after losing a big flip ran jacks into kings. You can't really avoid those confrontations that late in a tourney or control the outcomes.
I also had my best ever day one at an Irish Open, navigating my way on a tough table where I had to lock horns frequently with the impressive Jamie Roberts and the equally impressive Andrew "ulduffer" Sweeney. So I was very happy to bag up over 80k, comfortably ahead of average. Unfortunately it didn't happen for me on day 2. I maintained my stack for most of day 2 but as the blinds rose the time was always going to come when I had to get a move on. I got it in in a massive flip with Tom Kitt before the bubble but Tom's queens held against my AKs. The hand mentioned above from late on day 1 in UKIPT London saw me pick up kings. A tough day meant my stack at that point was starting to get short and the point had come where I needed to double up. I picked up a good hand to do it with, kings. After the utg player opened I decided to risk slow playing my kings to maximise my chances of getting the full double up. Table conditions seemed to be right for it. I hadn't been at the table for long enough to have seen much of the players but long enough to conclude that my immediate neighbours to the left and right were action junkies. A normal 3 bet here will make it obvious to everyone that I am pot committed and therefore make it less likely that anyone will play back light. While a flat with a 16 bb stack would set off alarm bells in the heads of anyone who knows me, I had never seen either of my neighbours before, so I was working on the assumption that neither knew who I was, and even if they were aware of such stack size considerations would probably assume I wasn't (most random players my age do stuff like flatting with marginal holdings with less than 20 bigs).
David Lappin standing on the rail behind me told me afterwards that as soon as I flatted he knew I had either kings or aces, and I imagine Neil Channing in the blinds at the other side of the table also suspected something, but I was hoping my opponents would be less suspicious. Vikrum Mehta to my immediate left also called so we went three way to a j43dd flop. With kings I was happy to get it in on almost any flop without an ace so my only thought now was how to maximise the amount of chips that went in to the pot. The opener cbet small, I flatted again to try to keep my customer and maybe keep Vikrum in. I got the raise I was hoping for from Vikrum, and the original raiser now retained for more than I had, so I pushed my stack in hoping I had the best hand. After an off suit 8 on the turn Vikrum folded to a shove and I found myself up against ad8d, and held. I was pretty happy with myself after more than trebling up (I also got the blinds and antes) but it's important not to be too results based. Similarly if I had list the hand I'm sure there would have been those who said it was my own fault for making a risky slow play, but I personally would have been happy with the calculated risk I took. One of the skills required in tournament poker is knowing when to take the low risk route and when to gamble. Gambling doesn't just mean taking on a flip but also high risk plays like this one.
Since I started typing up this letter (they seem to take longer and longer each time) I have been to Cyprus where I was lucky enough not only to be selected on the Irish team at the European Nations Cup, but also to be a member of the winning team! More on that trip in my next letter. Irish Eyes have a lot going on at present with the Legends Poker Cup coming up in City West, and ISPT in London, both of which I intend to play. Satellites are currently online on Irish Eyes Poker Ideal. Below are details of satellites and promotions on Irish Eyes right now, including a nice reload bonus if you need to top up your account.
For more details see below:
- How to get your FREE enteries to the Legends Poker Cup Super Satellites
- Take your first step on your way to win 1 million euro at the ISPT at Wembley
- Get your seat at the Celtic Poker Tour Players Championship with ADDED money
- Get a 150% Irish Eyes Poker Reload Bonus
- TheFirm - your exclusive opportunity to get staked and coached by some of the best know and successful poker pros in Ireland today.
SPORTSBETTING
First though Sports Betting. Irish Eyes Bet have launched our new sports book. More sports & events and even better odds than before. And watch for Ken Doherty's weekly sports hot tips on Twitter (@IrishEyesBet ) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/IrishEyesBet )
Plus check out our Live in-match betting where you can bet on games in-play. http://www.irisheyesbet.com/openpage.php?pg=livebetting
Before you place your bet, check out our odds at http://www.irisheyessports.com/
CASINO & LIVE CASINO
Irish Eyes Casino has two seperate casino offerings if you fancy a thrill of casino games without having to go to the casino. Classic slots, table games, roulette, video poker and much more.
Plus we offer LIVE Casino action from Casino de Venezia or DBG live casino. The games take place in full security since all the dealers in the live casinos are subject to continuous monitoring of the pit bosses and by monitoring staff that manage a complex system of about 200 cameras.
See our LIVE casinos now at http://www.irisheyesbet.com/openpage.php?pg=LiveCasino
Irish Eyes Poker are delighted to announce ISPT satellites where you could win your seat to the ISPT Day2 and go on to walk away with the winners cheque of €1 million!
ISPT is the biggest poker event ever organized, mixing online and live gaming. The main event will take place live from 31st May 2013, in the stadium of Wembley, London. The most innovative poker tournament ever will take place in a prestigious environment, gathering thousands of players and broadcast live in more than 38 countries. 1 million euro is guaranteed for the winner.
IrishEyesPoker.com will run a series of satellites where players can win their way to Day2 of ISPT for as little as €15. With one million Euro guaranteed for the winner, this new series of online satillites gives players an excellent way to progress to ISPT day2 and a chance to take home the huge winner's cheque.
The ISPT Live Event Satellite will be held on Sunday 19th May at 8pm BST (7PM GMT). This satellite has a €300 buy-in (including reg fee) and is a freeze out. One ISPT Package with €3,500 guaranteed (includes ISPT Live event Day2 entry and €500 towards expenses). The winner of the ISPT Satellite will progress to Day2 with a starting stack of 50,000 chips.
Prior to that there will be feeder ISPT Super Satellites running Sunday 14th, 21st, 28th April + 5th and 12th May at 8pm BST (7PM GMT). These Super satellites have a €15 buyin, plus have one €15 rebuy and one €15 add-on allowed. There will be one entry to the ISPT Live Event Satellite for each €300 in the prize-pool.
As Irish Eyes Poker offer multiple poker networks please note that the satellites are available on the Ideal poker network. For more see http://www.irisheyesbet.com/openpage.php?pg=ispt
THE FIRM
Would you like to play on someone else's dime while getting coaching from Ireland's most successful players? Maybe you would like to get staked by 'The Firm'?
The Firm, in association with Irish Eyes Bet, give you the opportunity to get staked and coached by some of the best know and successful poker pros in Ireland today.
To see if you could be the next poker phenomenon, all you have to do is grind 200 MTTs profitably on Irish Eyes Poker and you will be eligible to submit a Hand History for analysis. You will receive feedback on the Hand History and, if it shows potential, a staking deal could be in the pipeline. The Firm coach and stake many players and are always looking for the next crop of online poker phenoms. Do you have what it takes?
Choose your MTT's from a wide selection on the Irish Eyes Poker multi-network site. For a list of some of our favourites see Doke's Hot Tournament Picks - Click here. Once you have the MTT's crushed, send your hand histories and your Irish Eyes username to team@iriseyespoker.ie
For more details see http://www.irisheyesbet.com/openpage.php?pg=thefirm
CELTIC POKER TOUR
Every Thursday evening at 8.30pm the Celtic Poker Tour online satellite takes place on Irish Eyes Poker. These satellites have fantastic value as there are 2 x €120 seats guaranteed in each satelllite. The satellites have a €10 buy-in and one rebuy OR addon for an extra €10, and all entries and rebuys/addons go towards the second and subsequent seats. Winners can use their CPT Online Tournament Token to buy into any Celtic Poker Tour Live event with a value of €120.
CPT PLAYER'S CHAMPIONSHIP
Plus, we are delighted to announce that Irish Eyes Poker in partnership with Celtic Poker Tour see the running again of the CPT Player's Championship in which €20,000 will be added to a free entry live tournament. To be eligible to enter this great tournament, all you need to do is:
- Win any Celtic Poker Tour Live Event
- Accumulate 50 player points from Celtic Poker Tour weekly events AND 10 Doubloons Irish Eyes Poker between now and May 2013
- Accumulate 1000 Doubloons on Irish Eyes Poker AND play in one live Celtic Poker Tour Event (at which you must Register your online User name ) between now and May 2013.
INCREASE YOUR STARTING STACK - TRIPLE POINTS FOR PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP ON IRISHEYESPOKER
You can increase your changes of winning the Players Championship live event by building your starting stack at the event by accumulating player points and online VIP points. Play online now and Irish Eyes Poker will give you 'Triple Points' for your CPT Players' Championship starting stack.
For every 1000 Doubloons earned online over the required 500 required to enter, you will receive 3000 extra starting stack chips. Example, you have 2500 Doubloons, then you get 5,000 starting stack plus 4,000 chips extra = 9,000 chip starting stack. Note: the starting stack for the Player's Championship is 5,000 chips, and maximum starting stack for any player having earned increased chips is 25,000 chips.
TEAM IRISH EYES POKER
If you haven't read about Team Irish Eyes Poker yet, make sure you see how our rewards and rake back program works. The Team Irish Eyes Poker page has been updated to show you the % rake back levels and other rewards for casino and betting play. Visit www.teamirisheyespoker.com for more info.
The Irisheyesbet.com Legend's Poker Cup 2013 which will be Europe's largest ever poker tournament in terms of player numbers. With a entry fee €130 (+ €20 Registration Fee Incl Vat) and an expected prize pool of €250,000, this tournament will have 4 day 1's. Player must register and pay for all buy-ins online through Irish Eyes Bet.
Players have the option to play as many day 1's as they like and can accumulate their total stack from four starting days to progress through to Day 2. It's a unique format that caters for different players, from those who want to take one shot at a big prize pool through those that want more than one chance to make day 2 and players such as myself who think playing all the day 1's gives us a better than ever chance of actually making day 2 with a decent stack. I'm looking forward to the event which takes place in City West Hotel, Dublin, from the 23rd to 26th May. For more information and to buy-in click here
FREE LEGENDS SUPER SATELLITE ENTRIES
Irish Eyes Poker want to give you two free entries to any Legernds Poker Cup Super Satellite of your choice.
Online Super Satellites for the Legends Poker Cup are on every Monday to Saturaday at 8pm on Irish Eyes Poker IDEAL with Guaranteed seats to the weekly Legends Poker Cup Qualifier.
To get your free entries, simply email us at crm@irisheyesbet.com with your Irish Eyes Poker Ideal network username and nickname. NOTE: you must download and log into the Irish Eyes IDEAL Poker network before you email us. Please email us your IDEAL username and nickname and the day you want to play the satellite, and give us as much notice as possible, so for instance, email us on Monday to play Tuesday.
RELOAD BONUS
If you'd like to check these or any other tournaments out, use the Irish Eyes 'reload' bonus code 'IERELOAD' which gives a reload bonus (once per player) of 150% up to €500 (t&c's apply). The bonus is cleared in 10 steps, so if you deposit 100 euro, you will get the bonus of 150%, in this case 150euro , the bonus will be credited in 10 steps 150/10 = 15 euro. Make sure to enter the promotional code IERELOAD when you are making a deposit.
SUPPORT
And if you are having any issues regarding the move from our old site to the new system, you can read about the changes at these pages:
http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/accessing-your-irish-eyes-account.html
http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/letter-from-doke-with-help-for-players.html
If you have any issues about your account, email support@irisheyespoker.com or see http://irisheyespoker.blogspot.ie/2012/12/accessing-your-irish-eyes-account.html
Keep up to date with news, tournament info, and sports bets by joining our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TeamIrishEyesPoker
Irish Eyes Poker is a Mulit Poker Network site, so you can play on many different poker systems at once, all through Irish Eyes Poker.
Good Luck at the tables......unless I am at the same table :)
