Morry

Hey guys,

My name is Dave Morrison, I’m 23, and I’m currently a student at the University of Victoria in Canada majoring in English and eventually moving into sports journalism after completing my writing degree. I play mainly on pokerstars while hitting up local tournaments in Canada and the Northwest and I normally head to Vegas every year for the World Series of Poker since I turned 21. I met Gary Wise in Vegas in the summer when he came over the top of me with aces at the MGM Poker Room while I was drawing to a flush after the flop. I ended up folding but he slipped me his card and website and here we are today. I’ve been blogging the poker tournaments I’ve entered for about 2 years now. I’m a semi-pro poker player with my best cash coming in the 2006 World Series when I placed 112th in the 2000 buy in No Limit hold em’ event. Recently in Vancouver, a big poker tournament was held with the likes of Brad Booth and many other professional poker players….here’s the story, I Hope you all enjoy:

Location: Langley, British Columbia
Date: August 31st – Sept 1st and 2nd
Event: Canadian Poker Tour – Cascade Casino Poker Shootout
Prize Pool: 500,000 CND
Starting Chip Count: 5000

First off before I start this poker blog I’d like to thank Naoya Kusano for his continual support in my attempts to pursue poker glory. It’s almost like Christmas in August when I get the call from Naoya asking me if I’d like an entry to an amazing poker tourney. Trade in the tight red Santa pants for red cords, and the big red Santa coat for an Abercrombie shirt and you basically have a Japanese version of Santa with one big difference. Naoya you’re a much better friend then the man who I used to write Christmas letters to at age seven, I can’t thank you enough for your support. But enough of the Dr. Phil stuff..let’s get this poker blog rolling….

The Event? 1100 dollar buy-in poker shootout at Cascade’s Casino in Langley. This tournament was a little different from other’s I had entered because all you have to do was to place top 2 out of the 10 at your first table. You don’t have to beat anyone else – you just stay alive until there is you and one other at your table. Not so hard right? Well you have to do that not once, not twice, but three times if you want to win this tournament. It’s obvious you need a bit of luck to win this thing, but that’s poker, I was ready to play.

After arriving in Vancouver at around 11 pm, my partner in crime Bobby (Who got traded for Mykel just before the NHL trade deadline) recommends’ we stop at the Crispy Cream donut shop in Surrey on the way to the Cascade Casino in Langley. This idea irks me for a couple of reasons:

1.) My entire 3 months of hard work in the summer at attempting to get the things you people call “muscles” will be ruined with two crispy cream donuts and a coffee (yes they have that much fat..or maybe I didn’t work out enough)

2.) I can’t imagine trying to explain to Naoya the fact that we got robbed of our tournament buy in at the Crispy Cream Donut shop in Surrey on the way to the casino..(have you seen the crime rate there?)

After little debate I tell Bobby to bite the bullet…his donuts will have to wait..we don’t want Naoya mad and we have a tournament to buy into..

We eventually get to the casino and register for the tournament. Call me spoiled or maybe arrogant..but there’s just something different about the casino’s here compared to the casinos in Vegas. Yes, I do realize that the infrastructure in Vancouver is about 900 million less expensive, and there’s no random acts of gun violence across the street from you, but just the mood and attitude of the casino and its employees is so different then Vegas. In Vegas, if you wanted a chocolate edible pony with rainbow skittles, within 10 minutes room service would be at your door if you were willing to pay for it. At Cascade’s Casino in Langley..we needed a cot for Bobby so we didn’t have to pretend to be the Hanson brother’s and share a queen size bed. No cot was ever sent – by the time we realized they probably weren’t coming we called the front desk and they were all out of cots. Bobby built a blanket fort on the ground after realizing that I would probably reward his sacrifice later if I could win this tournament..

I toss and turn all night..(I never sleep well before tournaments) and before you know it – its morning. I get woken up at 10 am..Bobby informs me of a “cursed” roulette wheel that has already taken 40 dollars out of his jean pockets before 10 am. Casinos have no mercy; I shake my fist in revenge at the terrible wheel. Bobby then comments on how the air conditioning in our hotel room is cranked to below -40 … I tell him I just wanted it to feel like Vegas. Have you experienced the air conditioning in Vegas? The cost needed to cool the casinos down there must be worth more than Vick’s winnings in his illegal dog fighting ring. I was itching to feel that vibe for Vegas again. Bobby eventually tells me to calm down and I can do nothing more but to nod my head in agreement. I did get a little too excited about the air conditioning in our room.

All of a sudden its 12 noon, the tournament is starting and I’m sitting across from 9 men at my poker table. Two things I didn’t want to see at my table:

1.) A woman
2.) A young Asian male

Racist or sexiest you say? Hardly…but I’ve never won a big pot against a lady in any poker event I’ve ever entered. Jennifer Harmen (female poker pro) taught me how the “I’m going to rip your heart out and spit on your dreams” pain feels when her runner-runner flush (Two spades came on the turn and river to make her a flush) took down my set of 10’s (flop went 10/4/2 – I had two ten’s in my hand for three of a kind) in the World Series of Poker in 2006 when she knocked me out in 112th place in the no limit 2000 buy in event. I also got check raised by another elderly lady in the World Series in 2007 for a big pot that I eventually folded. I can’t make reads or beat a woman at the poker table; I’ve come to this conclusion..this notion could also explain my embarrassing love life as well – people do say the psychological aspects of a poker table are a lot like life…

The Asian factor? Once again, not racist – it’s just that my extremely aggressive style of play seems to be countered when I play with people just as aggressive or more aggressive than me. A stereotypical young Asian male is a perfect example of this. I find out later in this tournament that this indeed could be my Achilles heel.

Important Hand #1 – I pick up pocket kings (KK) about 3 minutes into the tournament on hand number 2 in first position. I hate picking up big hands in the first 5 – 10 hands!! I’m too anxious, too nervous, I want to chill at my table with a redbull or corona and let the table get comfortable to me. I have no reads on any players besides stereotypes and first impressions. The blinds are 25/25 so I raise to 225. This is not a play I generally make with kings as I enjoy limping with them in first position but my strategy is to play super aggressive with lots of raising in this tournament. I figure that if I get to show people pocket kings early in a showdown this would gain respect from my fellow players and help me to bluff at big pots later. I don’t know if the shirt I was wearing said “don’t respect my raises” but I get 6 callers with my kings. The flop comes Ace/7/5 and I check my kings knowing at least one person at my table has called this raise with an ace. Someone bets 300, I ask the dealer where the garbage can is.

Important Hand #2 – I look down at A/Q suited of hearts in 2nd position and just call 50 (blinds are 25/50 now) completely willing to call any reasonable raise before the flop with this hand. Grandpa “Joe” raises me in 6th position for a total of 250. My impression is that he is somewhat weak and I believe him to be tilting (throwing chips away in anger/frustration) as he only has 2900 left from the original 5000 chips we started with. Another person calls and I end up calling. Grandpa “Joe” picks up his dream flop with a board that reads Q/9/4. I figure my A/Q is good, but I love to slow play and I check my top pair of queens into him knowing that Grandpa “Joe” will probably continuation bet into this pot as he raised pre-flop and sits in last position. He fires 600 in about an 825 chip pot. I instantly re-raise to 1800, leaving him with another 1100 behind him and putting him on J/J at best. The other player in the hand folds and Grandpa “Joe” does what I fear most… “I’m all-in” he announces. Since when have I feared Merv Griffin? Did I get my hand caught in the cookie jar? Am I really leaving Vancouver in a record setting 30 minutes? (A loss here would lower me to 2000 in chips) I call and he turns over a disaster for me…KK..a huge 70% favorite over my top pair with an ace kicker. Maybe it was the extra tip at breakfast for my waitress, or perhaps the 20 bucks I threw Bobby for gas money but the turn brings me a somewhat miracle ace (3 out of 10 times I win this hand even with that flop) and I’ve made two pair. “Garbage” Grandpa Joe announces, “Poker!” I proclaim back. So I’ve already beaten him to the ground with my sick suck out on the turn but the river really hits him where it hurts as I hit another ace for a full house (QQAAA). The guy beside me: “Well you really step on their throat when you knock em down eh?” – you know it bud..you know it…

Important Hand #3 – I look down at Wayne Gretzky’s in first position (9/9). The blinds are 50/100 and I simply call the 100 again willing to call any reasonable raise with my pocket pair of nines. The gentleman across from me, (who looks like the prince of Arabia wearing Armani exchange clothing and rings made of gold) raises to 250 pre-flop. 4 callers including me. Here comes the flop…Kazaam (a reference to Shaq’s hit movie) – I hit lightening in a bottle as the flop comes down K/Q/9. Knowing my set of 9’s (999) is probably good here and wanting to disguise it I bet 400 into the pot. The Arabian Prince calls me and the other two fold, its trap time baby. The turn brings out a meaningless 6 (K/Q/9/6) and I check into the Arabian Prince. 1000 he says and tosses two red 500 chips into the middle like he owns an oil rig on the gulf coast. Could he really have jack/10 for a straight I ponder? Not likely with his pre-flop raise. I pretend to actually think about this for a bit before finally asking as intimidating as I can (which is about the same intimidation as Howie Mandel), “How much you have left?” He tells me about 2600…I fire 3500 worth of chips into the middle to put him all in. He pauses for a second (which tells me he doesn’t have jack/10 and my hand is good) and fires all of his chips into the middle flipping over K/Q for two pair. The river brings a two of clubs and all of sudden I’m up to about 11,000 in chips. Bobby is nowhere to be found, apparently lost again at the roulette wheel.

Goods hands but no action: I pick up A/A again and limp in 2nd position, the small and big blinds both call and the flop brings 8/8/3, I fire 300 into the pot and take about 400 worth of chips. I get kings again and play them exactly the same way as my aces; again I pick up about 400 in chips from nothing more than the blinds. I’m picking up monster hands but unfortunately I’m getting no action. I have about 13,500 in chips and another guy at my table just got eliminated so there’s no need to pull the fire alarm: lots of chips, small blinds, tons of time, I’m in good shape…until Chernobyl happens.

Important Hand #4 (TSN Turning point of the tournament) – I’ve been playing for about 2 and a half hours and I’m in a great state of mind. Toni Braxton at one point somehow sneaks onto my iPod shuffle playlist which makes me ponder for a second on whether my roommate Graeme Bollinger has developed a sensitive side or one of my Vegas buddies is deciding to come out secretly, but other than that things are rolling well. The Asian factor I was talkin’ about earlier? Well it happens.

A young Asian gentleman wearing a bright purple sweatshirt who clearly bought his wardrobe after watching the latest George Nozuka music video (Lie to me, Last Call) on MTV has continually fired huge raises pre-flop into our table for the past 20 minutes without receiving any callers. Our table seems to be just happy to fold their blinds to him and let him gather our chips. I mean, I’m not talking normal raises..blinds have risen to 100/200 and this guy is pre-flop raising to 900 or 1100 without hesitation. It’s not even worth calling to play with him unless you pick up a monster or you’re trying to be Jet Li in Hero. With blinds 200/400 I pick up my monster. I look down at two red aces (AA) in the small blind and pray that the “purple panther” will raise. (a nickname given to him by me for his continuous speed at firing bets and raises into the pot at a rapid pace and his purple sweatshirt). My dream and prayer is answered as he raises 1800 into the pot in 6th position. I have the best hand you can start with in poker but my demeanor doesn’t change. Timbaland’s “Scream” bumps into my ear from my iPod (which I am about to do after this bad beat) and I think for a bit before deciding to re-raise close to 3 times his raise (4400). I have to re-raise here because I am first to act (which is terrible positioning in poker) and I figure that after I raise this hand I will take the pot right there as I’m clearly representing a huge hand. The only reason I can see that he doesn’t fold here is if he feels I’m making a poker play at him because he has been raising so much and I’m defending a weak Ace/Jack or I’m trying to get him out of the hand with a weak pocket pair like 6/7’s or 8’s. Once again I swear my t-shirt says “don’t respect my raises” because the “purple panther” thinks for bit and decides that his hand is better than mine and shoves his chips (11,500) into the middle. Time it takes me to call? Quicker than my first time with a lady (I know – it’s hard to believe, that’s extremely fast). He flips over 10/10 against my Ace/Ace and I’m an 80 percent favorite to win this hand and will have a colossal chip leader with 5 players left. I only wish my poker buddy Tilly Vandoremalen was there because I could hear him in my head, pessimistic as ever: “Well there goes ACE/ACE getting beaten by pocket 10’s” predicting my demise before the flop has even come down. The flop brings the “purple panther” a MIRACLE ten and all of a sudden I’ve gone from an 80% favorite to a dismal 11% chance of winning this hand. The turn brings a jack, and with the board reading (5/10/Queen/Jack) a king would now win me this pot giving me a straight or I could still with the hand with an ace on the river for three of a kind. It doesn’t happen and I’m down to 1000 chips and developing in my mind a reasonable excuse for the Canadian Coast Guard if I decide to jump off the ferry on the way home.

Important Hand #5 – Three minutes later I get knocked out of the tournament. With 1000 in chips and really nothing for me to work with as the blinds are 200/400 I look at 7/9 suited on the button (last position). Everyone has folded to me and shove my chips into the middle hoping to steal 600 chips or even if I’m called I would probably have two “live” cards (Live cards are two cards that the small or big blind would not have in their hands as if they make this call as they would probably have an ace or at least a King). Gavin Smith’s lookalike (Gavin Smith is a poker pro) decides for another 800 it’s worth it for him to call with his Ace/2 and with the board bringing neither of us a pair I get to take the walk of shame down the escalator and out of the casino. Bobby adds insult to injury by explaining to me we were 20 minutes away from a free poker buffet. Get me out of here.

Not much is said between Bobby and me on the ride back to the BC ferries. After a poker tournament I usually go into another world in my mind and try to analyze every hand, every mistake, and every correct move. You could ask me simple questions about my life or what my name is and I wouldn’t be able to gather the intellect to answer your question because I’m so zoned out. For people that don’t play poker – Rule #1 – never try to talk to someone after they get knocked out of a big tournament. You’ll either get an extreme amount of rage thrown towards you or be answered in 2 word sentences that resemble a Chewbaccan dialect from Star Wars. Another decent run at a tournament and another exit due to a tough beat. Oh well, there’s always the next one..and if worse comes to worse I know Plan B isn’t moving anywhere fast, I can always drink my sorrows away with a couple of Shirley temples from bartender Jen and shots of Jager from Scottie. Victoria..Here I come…after a two sailing wait..and a small consideration to lethally gas myself in the ferry lineup…

I’m only joking people..

– Morry