First off - this is my 300th post! nuts.
Ok so let's recap how I did in the first round:
2009 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINALS
No. 1 Boston Bruins vs. No. 8 Montreal Canadiens
Boston in 6 - Boston won in 4.
No. 2 Washington Capitals vs. No. 7 New York Rangers
Washington in 6 -Washington won in 7.
No. 3 New Jersey Devils vs. No. 6 Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina in 6 - Carolina won in an unbelievable game 7.
No. 4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. No. 5 Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh in 7 - Pittsburg won in 6.
2009 WESTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINALS
No. 1 San Jose Sharks vs. No. 8 Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim in 6 - Anaheim won in 6.
No. 2 Detroit Red Wings vs. No. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets
Detroit in 5 - Detroit won in 4.
No. 3 Vancouver Canucks vs. No. 6 St. Louis Blues
Vancouver in 6 - Vancouver won in 4.
No. 4 Chicago Blackhawks vs. No. 5 Calgary Flames
Chicago in 5 - Chicago won in 6.
So overall I did pretty well picking the correct winner in all 8 series. Too bad I didn't lay some money on it... if I did... things would be way different because I am almost as bad as waffles when it comes to coolers of my own bets.
Stanley Cup Predictions: Pittsburgh vs. Vancouver - I will stick with this prediction.
Winner: Vancouver FTW.
Round 2 Predictions:
2009 EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS
No. 1 Boston Bruins vs. No. 7 Carolina Huricanes
Boston in 6 - well rested and ready to go. If it goes the distance who knows what will happen as we have seen how Carolina can come back and win. Cam Ward will be the difference maker if they take it down... however Tim Thomas looks like he is the real deal, even if he is a rookie.
No. 2 Washington Capitals vs. No. 4 Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh in 5 - Sid, Malkin, Gonchar, Fleury combined with too many weak Russians (Alex the Gr8 not included) on the Capitals makes for a lopsided victory. This one will get very nasty before it is over. Ovechkin fights Crosby?
2009 WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS
No. 2 Detroit Red Wings vs. No. 8 Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim in 6 - I'm only picking this one because I don't want to see the Red Wings in the Western Finals. I am hoping for a big upset here. Maybe Osgood will get back to his shitty goaltending ways and they will choke.
No. 3 Vancouver Canucks vs. No. 4 Chicago Blackhawks
Vancouver in 6 - this is going to be a much tougher series but I think Vancouver will take them down. It's all on the Sedins and Luongo. If they play as well as they did in the first round I can't see Chicago going the distance. Add in guys like Burrows and Kessler and you've got yourself a great series in the making. Chicago is too young and lack of experience will prove to be the difference.
28.4.09
Horse Race, Three Putts and Bayne the Babypants
I really have no reason to write anything today, I am just putting words down here because I feel slightly obligated to keep my minimal readers in the loop as to what has gone on over the past week or so.
Ball season kicked off and we are sitting at 1-1 with a game tonight and Friday. It's all about the beer anyway.
Golf tournament this past weekend. I couldn't putt to save my life but did drain one nice 40 footer for eagle and $17 skin LOL. Shot 77-80 to finish somewhere around 15th and probably had no fewer than 6 three putts during those two rounds combined. I literally blew 2 or 3 putts past the hole a good 10-15 feet and of course missed the ones coming back. I just cound't figure it out. I should have just took my bogey lumps but for some reason tried to make hero pars and knock in long par putts, and it cost me... money! Or should I say stuff. Yeah, it cost me stuff. Like first place was a 40" sony LCD. I only lost by 12-14 shots so yeah, my game needs some serious work.
The best part of the weekend is always the horse race. The horse race is a two man team event where the teams are arranged by handicap. I was the low with an index of 1.4 and drew a guy who had never played in a horse race before with an index of 6.0. It is quite the spectical when you look out onto the first hole and see no less than 25 carts flying around chasing down their next shot. It is basically a last team standing kind of format where each team of two alternates shots until you get it in the hole. Then the next guy tees off and away you go, battling other teams and trying not to fuck up and let your partner down. Usually you drop 2-3 teams each hole until you get down to the final 4 teams. Chip offs are used to determine the losers if there are too many teams that have tied with the same score on the hole. Guys are usually pretty trashed when it gets going because they've been in the clubhouse drinking for up to 4 hours already. It is awesome.
The chip off is fun because the organizer basically chooses the toughest chip on the hole and while you hit your shot the other guys (one from each team) turn around and are not allowed to watch the others chip. Then a measurement takes place and the furthest from the hole is out, see ya, have a nice cart ride back to the clubhouse you donkey.
We never took it down (I donkey chipped it in playoff #3), but I sure did drink my face off. The girls were trashed and managed to drink 3 bottles of booze (one was a 60 ouncer) throughout the weekend. They passed out by 9pm on Saturday so Penski and I hit up the local pub which was just two doors down and we got there by walking along the beach. Good times, but we stayed too late, which surely cost me some shots 8 hours later... The deal was we would stay until we got knocked off the pool table... but being the sharks we are we rode it out until 2am and never lost a game. The pool was free and there was no money on the line, but man was it ever fun pissing off the local dudes who think they are the shit.
My playoff beard is coming along nicely with it almost showing some serious potential. Round two of the playoffs start on Thursday with the Canucks facing the Blackhawks. It's going to be a very exciting series and I can only hope that they win so I can keep growing this sucka.
That's it for now, I'm off to ball tonight so no ghey skills game for me tonight. Oh and that reminds me, I actually made my 3rd final table of the BBT. Made some much needed money but still showed some serious rust when I spewed some ridiculous amounts of chips late and I couldn't avoid getting eliminated in 5th place. Although it was fun pissing off Bayne (or Bayneby last night) with my donkey calling skills and outflopping his AK shove with my AQ SB special. I know he was just being silly and railing me pretty hard there at the end basically letting it be known that he wanted me to fail. I am fine with that, my expectations were very low to begin with and I was chalking it up to another bad bankroll decision that I continue to consistently make week in and week out. I'm still yet to reload since I started blogging though, so at least I've got that going for me...
Later.
Ball season kicked off and we are sitting at 1-1 with a game tonight and Friday. It's all about the beer anyway.
Golf tournament this past weekend. I couldn't putt to save my life but did drain one nice 40 footer for eagle and $17 skin LOL. Shot 77-80 to finish somewhere around 15th and probably had no fewer than 6 three putts during those two rounds combined. I literally blew 2 or 3 putts past the hole a good 10-15 feet and of course missed the ones coming back. I just cound't figure it out. I should have just took my bogey lumps but for some reason tried to make hero pars and knock in long par putts, and it cost me... money! Or should I say stuff. Yeah, it cost me stuff. Like first place was a 40" sony LCD. I only lost by 12-14 shots so yeah, my game needs some serious work.
The best part of the weekend is always the horse race. The horse race is a two man team event where the teams are arranged by handicap. I was the low with an index of 1.4 and drew a guy who had never played in a horse race before with an index of 6.0. It is quite the spectical when you look out onto the first hole and see no less than 25 carts flying around chasing down their next shot. It is basically a last team standing kind of format where each team of two alternates shots until you get it in the hole. Then the next guy tees off and away you go, battling other teams and trying not to fuck up and let your partner down. Usually you drop 2-3 teams each hole until you get down to the final 4 teams. Chip offs are used to determine the losers if there are too many teams that have tied with the same score on the hole. Guys are usually pretty trashed when it gets going because they've been in the clubhouse drinking for up to 4 hours already. It is awesome.
The chip off is fun because the organizer basically chooses the toughest chip on the hole and while you hit your shot the other guys (one from each team) turn around and are not allowed to watch the others chip. Then a measurement takes place and the furthest from the hole is out, see ya, have a nice cart ride back to the clubhouse you donkey.
We never took it down (I donkey chipped it in playoff #3), but I sure did drink my face off. The girls were trashed and managed to drink 3 bottles of booze (one was a 60 ouncer) throughout the weekend. They passed out by 9pm on Saturday so Penski and I hit up the local pub which was just two doors down and we got there by walking along the beach. Good times, but we stayed too late, which surely cost me some shots 8 hours later... The deal was we would stay until we got knocked off the pool table... but being the sharks we are we rode it out until 2am and never lost a game. The pool was free and there was no money on the line, but man was it ever fun pissing off the local dudes who think they are the shit.
My playoff beard is coming along nicely with it almost showing some serious potential. Round two of the playoffs start on Thursday with the Canucks facing the Blackhawks. It's going to be a very exciting series and I can only hope that they win so I can keep growing this sucka.
That's it for now, I'm off to ball tonight so no ghey skills game for me tonight. Oh and that reminds me, I actually made my 3rd final table of the BBT. Made some much needed money but still showed some serious rust when I spewed some ridiculous amounts of chips late and I couldn't avoid getting eliminated in 5th place. Although it was fun pissing off Bayne (or Bayneby last night) with my donkey calling skills and outflopping his AK shove with my AQ SB special. I know he was just being silly and railing me pretty hard there at the end basically letting it be known that he wanted me to fail. I am fine with that, my expectations were very low to begin with and I was chalking it up to another bad bankroll decision that I continue to consistently make week in and week out. I'm still yet to reload since I started blogging though, so at least I've got that going for me...
Later.
20.4.09
Effing Big Game with tiny stacks is ghey dude
That was probably the worst spur of the moment decision I have made in my poker life. The worst bankroll management I have ever displayed. The weakest tightest lamest fucking boringest game I have ever played in my life. No cards, and no chips to play with makes for a dumb combination of gambling and luckboxery. I thought we'd at least get a 3,000 starting stack...
I seriously had 10 effing times more fun playing in a 1,000 person donakament with DoubleDave and Queener (PokerBrian22 in this instance) on Saturday night (barely cashed) then I did playing in that gheyfest called the big game. Don's Big games are supposed to have big stacks, not little tiny stacks that you have to basically shove or fold when you get to the river. Top it off with 2 rebuy periods and you've got yourself a recipe for disaster. Schaubs was not happy. I don't need to explain it any further. If you were there, you understand, if you weren't then you are very very lucky. I'ts 100% my fault for registering in the first place, so I have to accept my bankroll suicidal tendancies... and I do.
Who is cracknKK? He/She sure reminds me of cracknaces... they were both at my table and somehow aces chips were shipped to KK... then KK started playing like aces. Weird. I know it is Chad's wife, I knew this before, so really i am just being silly Schaubs who starts stuff about nothing we didn't already know. If it was me, and my wife and I are playing in the same private tournament and I go out because she has a better hand, then I am probably going to go sit beside her (join her in the other room of course) and help her out as she grinds to the money. Hell, I might even tell her something like "Hey that Schaubs that is raising, he is a nit, so put in a big raise and he will fold... unless he has the nuts" She/He was right, and I played like a total weak tight fanboi.
As the great Ryan Kessler said on the ice this weekend during the Canucks gameso some pussy who wouldn't drop the gloves: "Give your balls a tug!"
Anyway that Queenie is one tightass mofo. He was basically at the same stack I was when I pushed my JQo (tilt) into KK's AQ0 for 10BB's and when I came back an hour later Queenie was still in it with the same size stack! No wonder he accumulates so many final tables and so many points, well done on your second place finish... again.
Probably my last game of poker for a while as I strap on the cleats and spikes and get down for some baseball and golfing action all week and into the weekend. Lake view, golf, beers. Life is good.
Have a good week and GL at the tables everyone.
I seriously had 10 effing times more fun playing in a 1,000 person donakament with DoubleDave and Queener (PokerBrian22 in this instance) on Saturday night (barely cashed) then I did playing in that gheyfest called the big game. Don's Big games are supposed to have big stacks, not little tiny stacks that you have to basically shove or fold when you get to the river. Top it off with 2 rebuy periods and you've got yourself a recipe for disaster. Schaubs was not happy. I don't need to explain it any further. If you were there, you understand, if you weren't then you are very very lucky. I'ts 100% my fault for registering in the first place, so I have to accept my bankroll suicidal tendancies... and I do.
Who is cracknKK? He/She sure reminds me of cracknaces... they were both at my table and somehow aces chips were shipped to KK... then KK started playing like aces. Weird. I know it is Chad's wife, I knew this before, so really i am just being silly Schaubs who starts stuff about nothing we didn't already know. If it was me, and my wife and I are playing in the same private tournament and I go out because she has a better hand, then I am probably going to go sit beside her (join her in the other room of course) and help her out as she grinds to the money. Hell, I might even tell her something like "Hey that Schaubs that is raising, he is a nit, so put in a big raise and he will fold... unless he has the nuts" She/He was right, and I played like a total weak tight fanboi.
As the great Ryan Kessler said on the ice this weekend during the Canucks gameso some pussy who wouldn't drop the gloves: "Give your balls a tug!"
Anyway that Queenie is one tightass mofo. He was basically at the same stack I was when I pushed my JQo (tilt) into KK's AQ0 for 10BB's and when I came back an hour later Queenie was still in it with the same size stack! No wonder he accumulates so many final tables and so many points, well done on your second place finish... again.
Probably my last game of poker for a while as I strap on the cleats and spikes and get down for some baseball and golfing action all week and into the weekend. Lake view, golf, beers. Life is good.
Have a good week and GL at the tables everyone.
17.4.09
My first driving range compliment(s) lol, Happy likes Golf
Ok maybe not my first, but my first in a very long time. You see I was down at the range that is a skip down the hill from my place and was keeping to myself, doing my usual routine.
I start off with the wedges. These are my new CG14 wedges that I picked up off our head pro a couple of weeks ago. I am still in demo mode so I am free rolling these grooves at the moment. Man do they ever make a difference! I am spinning it from inside 75 now and my chip shots are holding much better and I basically just have more control over my golf ball now which is exactly what I was looking for. Anyway, I step on the range and grab the 56 degree wedge and take dead aim for the car… the one where I shattered the window not too long ago. Ahhh memories.
So I'm landing it on the roof once or twice and basically just goofing off as I normally do while I warm up. Then I get serious and start hitting the shots I need to practice. Set up, grip, alignment, tempo. I pick my target and am just doing my thing as always. I get to the driver and some guy passes by and says "wow you are hitting it halfway up the back net, I can only roll it up there" and we laugh and I say "yep, well I've had lots of practice."
I really never know what to say to people when they give me a golf compliment about a shot. I try to be modest and I usually just tell them that I have been golfing for over 20 years and that I have had lots and lots of practice. That is basically it, just keep practicing.
Then when I am done my session and as I am about to leave another dude shouts out at me as I pass by and says "wow that was awesome, you are the best player I have ever seen hit a ball like that."
I am thinking to myself "Buddy, you need to get out more often!" but instead I say "Thanks, I've had lots of practice..." and I just kept walking. I'm still struggling with what the right response is with a compliment like that. I don't often get them, but when I do, I try to just be me and not be the dickwad who thinks he is all that.
"Hey look at me, I'm the amazing golfer guy" - Happy Gilmore.
I tried to find the exact quote but all I could come up with was these beauties:
Shooter McGavin: You're in big trouble though, pal. I eat pieces of shit like you for breakfast!
Happy Gilmore: [laughing] You eat pieces of shit for breakfast?
Shooter McGavin: [long pause] No!
----
Chubbs: Golf's no different from Hockey. It requires talent and self discipline.
Happy Gilmore: Golf requires goofy pants and a fat ass. You should talk to my neighbor, the accountant. Probably a great golfer... huge ass.
Chubbs: Hey, I'll bet your neighbor the accountant can't drive the ball four hundred yards. I'll bet your neighbor the accountant doesn't have a shot to get on the Pro Tour!
Happy Gilmore: And how would I do that?
Chubbs: You win the Open tomorrow, and you're automatically on the Pro Tour. Then who knows? Maybe you'll win the Tour Championship one day. Get that gold jacket that I never got.
Happy Gilmore: Gold jacket, green jacket, who gives a shit?
----
This scene was shot about 45 minutes from my house:
Announcer: We haven't seen Happy Gilmore play this badly since his first day on tour. He and Bob Barker are now dead last.
Bob Barker: I can't believe you're a professional golfer. I think you should be working at the snack bar.
Happy Gilmore: You better relax, Bob.
Bob Barker: There is no way that you could have been as bad at hockey as you are at golf.
Happy Gilmore: All right, let's go. [Happy punches Bob in the face. Bob grunts as he stumbles to the ground]
Happy Gilmore: [after punching Bob Barker to the ground] You like THAT old man? You want a piece of ME?
Bob Barker: [shakes his head as he get up from the ground] I don't want a PIECE of you... I want the whole THING! [Bob punches Happy in the stomach once then punches him in the face ten times. His tenth blow causes happy to fall into a small pond]
Have a good weekend peeps.
I start off with the wedges. These are my new CG14 wedges that I picked up off our head pro a couple of weeks ago. I am still in demo mode so I am free rolling these grooves at the moment. Man do they ever make a difference! I am spinning it from inside 75 now and my chip shots are holding much better and I basically just have more control over my golf ball now which is exactly what I was looking for. Anyway, I step on the range and grab the 56 degree wedge and take dead aim for the car… the one where I shattered the window not too long ago. Ahhh memories.
So I'm landing it on the roof once or twice and basically just goofing off as I normally do while I warm up. Then I get serious and start hitting the shots I need to practice. Set up, grip, alignment, tempo. I pick my target and am just doing my thing as always. I get to the driver and some guy passes by and says "wow you are hitting it halfway up the back net, I can only roll it up there" and we laugh and I say "yep, well I've had lots of practice."
I really never know what to say to people when they give me a golf compliment about a shot. I try to be modest and I usually just tell them that I have been golfing for over 20 years and that I have had lots and lots of practice. That is basically it, just keep practicing.
Then when I am done my session and as I am about to leave another dude shouts out at me as I pass by and says "wow that was awesome, you are the best player I have ever seen hit a ball like that."
I am thinking to myself "Buddy, you need to get out more often!" but instead I say "Thanks, I've had lots of practice..." and I just kept walking. I'm still struggling with what the right response is with a compliment like that. I don't often get them, but when I do, I try to just be me and not be the dickwad who thinks he is all that.
"Hey look at me, I'm the amazing golfer guy" - Happy Gilmore.
I tried to find the exact quote but all I could come up with was these beauties:
Shooter McGavin: You're in big trouble though, pal. I eat pieces of shit like you for breakfast!
Happy Gilmore: [laughing] You eat pieces of shit for breakfast?
Shooter McGavin: [long pause] No!
----
Chubbs: Golf's no different from Hockey. It requires talent and self discipline.
Happy Gilmore: Golf requires goofy pants and a fat ass. You should talk to my neighbor, the accountant. Probably a great golfer... huge ass.
Chubbs: Hey, I'll bet your neighbor the accountant can't drive the ball four hundred yards. I'll bet your neighbor the accountant doesn't have a shot to get on the Pro Tour!
Happy Gilmore: And how would I do that?
Chubbs: You win the Open tomorrow, and you're automatically on the Pro Tour. Then who knows? Maybe you'll win the Tour Championship one day. Get that gold jacket that I never got.
Happy Gilmore: Gold jacket, green jacket, who gives a shit?
----
This scene was shot about 45 minutes from my house:
Announcer: We haven't seen Happy Gilmore play this badly since his first day on tour. He and Bob Barker are now dead last.
Bob Barker: I can't believe you're a professional golfer. I think you should be working at the snack bar.
Happy Gilmore: You better relax, Bob.
Bob Barker: There is no way that you could have been as bad at hockey as you are at golf.
Happy Gilmore: All right, let's go. [Happy punches Bob in the face. Bob grunts as he stumbles to the ground]
Happy Gilmore: [after punching Bob Barker to the ground] You like THAT old man? You want a piece of ME?
Bob Barker: [shakes his head as he get up from the ground] I don't want a PIECE of you... I want the whole THING! [Bob punches Happy in the stomach once then punches him in the face ten times. His tenth blow causes happy to fall into a small pond]
Have a good weekend peeps.
Hockey, Sick par 3 golf hole
Hockey playoffs are well underway and I have to say I am pretty pleased with the way things have turned out so far. I actually didn't go with the picks I listed below for the Astin work hockey pool because of the way he set it up with points being rewarded etc. I still went with the winner below in one of them and picked Chicago in the other. Boston from the East as well as New Jersey in the second one. So far I am running ok in it sitting at about 6th place of 141. First place is a cool $1,250 which would be awesome. I've never won a pool of that magnitude before and with this many people entered it won't be easy. Lots of luck is definitely required.
I have a golf tournament next week that I play in annually now. Lola, Penski and JFTB will be jumping in a van for a 5 day adventure. Stop off at friends lake house for two nights prior to the tournament for some fishing and relaxation. We usually bring a bucket of balls and pound them out into the lake or ocean. Super fun fun super fun.
Ok gotta get at it, so I will leave you with this wicked hole that I would one day love to play... you have to take a helicopter to get there! Double Nuts!!
I have a golf tournament next week that I play in annually now. Lola, Penski and JFTB will be jumping in a van for a 5 day adventure. Stop off at friends lake house for two nights prior to the tournament for some fishing and relaxation. We usually bring a bucket of balls and pound them out into the lake or ocean. Super fun fun super fun.
Ok gotta get at it, so I will leave you with this wicked hole that I would one day love to play... you have to take a helicopter to get there! Double Nuts!!
14.4.09
NHL Season 2 - The Playoffs!
The playoffs are here and the Canucks are up against a red hot St. Louis Blues in the first round. Here are the rest of the matchups and my predictions as usual:
2009 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINALS
No. 1 Boston Bruins vs. No. 8 Montreal Canadiens
Boston in 6
No. 2 Washington Capitals vs. No. 7 New York Rangers
Washington in 6
No. 3 New Jersey Devils vs. No. 6 Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina in 6
No. 4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. No. 5 Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh in 7
2009 WESTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINALS
No. 1 San Jose Sharks vs. No. 8 Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim in 6
No. 2 Detroit Red Wings vs. No. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets
Detroit in 5
No. 3 Vancouver Canucks vs. No. 6 St. Louis Blues
Vancouver in 6
No. 4 Chicago Blackhawks vs. No. 5 Calgary Flames
Chicago in 5
Stanley Cup Predictions:
Pittsburgh vs. Vancouver
Winner: Vancouver
It's all about goaltending and I strongly beleive that Luongo is going to show up this year in full force. I might just be jinxing them by writing this here today (woouldn't be the first and won't be the last) but I really don't like to be supersticious like that so I have always tried to just write what I feel, regardless of what magically effect it may have.
Realistically I could see a Boston vs. Detroit final, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the kid named Crosby is going to be on fire this year along with that other stud centre Malkin.
Anyway, I am just happy that the Canucks are actually IN the playoffs this year. That in itself is a win in my books. Hockey season two is upon us and the Canucks will take part. They've got a great team and I look forward to seeing what damage they can do. Maybe it will be one of those runs where everything just lines up perfectly. Other upsets take place paving the way to a Western final against another team who never thought they could get there.
Hockey every night, baseball games for Lola's team and my team makes for some very non-poker fun filled nights of drinking, laughing and hangin' out in the sun. No kids yet, so we've made a priority to make each night count, each weekend a blast and to book more vacations and trips than ever.
Having the time to do this stuff is definitely a luxury that, when I become a parent, I will look back at and wonder what I use to do with my time. I hear people say it all the time "we never have time to ourselves" and I want to make sure we have a blast this summer.
This is probably just my long winded way of saying you probably won't see me too often at the tables in the near future. Golf tournaments, ball games and out door fun is definitly taking precedence over the BBT4.
GL to all of you in the April race and beyond. If you see me at the table, my chips are available for the taking...
2009 EASTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINALS
No. 1 Boston Bruins vs. No. 8 Montreal Canadiens
Boston in 6
No. 2 Washington Capitals vs. No. 7 New York Rangers
Washington in 6
No. 3 New Jersey Devils vs. No. 6 Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina in 6
No. 4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. No. 5 Philadelphia Flyers
Pittsburgh in 7
2009 WESTERN CONFERENCE QUARTER-FINALS
No. 1 San Jose Sharks vs. No. 8 Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim in 6
No. 2 Detroit Red Wings vs. No. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets
Detroit in 5
No. 3 Vancouver Canucks vs. No. 6 St. Louis Blues
Vancouver in 6
No. 4 Chicago Blackhawks vs. No. 5 Calgary Flames
Chicago in 5
Stanley Cup Predictions:
Pittsburgh vs. Vancouver
Winner: Vancouver
It's all about goaltending and I strongly beleive that Luongo is going to show up this year in full force. I might just be jinxing them by writing this here today (woouldn't be the first and won't be the last) but I really don't like to be supersticious like that so I have always tried to just write what I feel, regardless of what magically effect it may have.
Realistically I could see a Boston vs. Detroit final, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the kid named Crosby is going to be on fire this year along with that other stud centre Malkin.
Anyway, I am just happy that the Canucks are actually IN the playoffs this year. That in itself is a win in my books. Hockey season two is upon us and the Canucks will take part. They've got a great team and I look forward to seeing what damage they can do. Maybe it will be one of those runs where everything just lines up perfectly. Other upsets take place paving the way to a Western final against another team who never thought they could get there.
Hockey every night, baseball games for Lola's team and my team makes for some very non-poker fun filled nights of drinking, laughing and hangin' out in the sun. No kids yet, so we've made a priority to make each night count, each weekend a blast and to book more vacations and trips than ever.
Having the time to do this stuff is definitely a luxury that, when I become a parent, I will look back at and wonder what I use to do with my time. I hear people say it all the time "we never have time to ourselves" and I want to make sure we have a blast this summer.
This is probably just my long winded way of saying you probably won't see me too often at the tables in the near future. Golf tournaments, ball games and out door fun is definitly taking precedence over the BBT4.
GL to all of you in the April race and beyond. If you see me at the table, my chips are available for the taking...
9.4.09
The James Bond Game
FCPC Simon's latest game was a ten man single table $100 buyin super duper mega stacks. We began this slugfest with 1 million chips each and the blinds started out at a meager 100/200. Fuel and I arrived about 30 minutes late and they were just finishing up the first level.
Did I mention we started out with ONE MILLION chips each? Oh and the other requirement I forgot to mention was that you MUST show up wearing a shirt and tie. No exceptions. At first I thought Simon was joking, but he wouldn't budge as I tried to get out of it by threatening a no show. I finally caved and decided to break out the bow tie! One guy kept saying I looked like the kid from the movie "The Problem Child" or was it the Bow Tie Killer? Either way, it was funny to me because everyone else was just wearing the usual black/blue suit, pinstripes, suspenders, sunglasses etc.
The Vodka martini's were flowing and I was already 4 beers deep with a decent buzz. I did partake in this and that, the martini's were good, the poker suffered though. I felt a bit off as we approached the 3rd hour. My throat was drying up and really wasn't feeling that great. No excuses necessary though, I just wasn't playing that well and it eventually caught up with me.
Anyway, I had a blast... but played very poorly. Rust. Bubbled. I suck.
Fuel referenced the 5000 BB pot in his latest post. It was pretty fun to watch these two guys get it all in that early in the tournament. Here is a pic of the hand.
Check out my stack when I arrived:
Did I mention we started out with ONE MILLION chips each? Oh and the other requirement I forgot to mention was that you MUST show up wearing a shirt and tie. No exceptions. At first I thought Simon was joking, but he wouldn't budge as I tried to get out of it by threatening a no show. I finally caved and decided to break out the bow tie! One guy kept saying I looked like the kid from the movie "The Problem Child" or was it the Bow Tie Killer? Either way, it was funny to me because everyone else was just wearing the usual black/blue suit, pinstripes, suspenders, sunglasses etc.
The Vodka martini's were flowing and I was already 4 beers deep with a decent buzz. I did partake in this and that, the martini's were good, the poker suffered though. I felt a bit off as we approached the 3rd hour. My throat was drying up and really wasn't feeling that great. No excuses necessary though, I just wasn't playing that well and it eventually caught up with me.
Anyway, I had a blast... but played very poorly. Rust. Bubbled. I suck.
Fuel referenced the 5000 BB pot in his latest post. It was pretty fun to watch these two guys get it all in that early in the tournament. Here is a pic of the hand.
Check out my stack when I arrived:
5 bundles of 100K each. There were also some green chips worth 25K each either not in the shot, or I spewed them off before I took this shot. After the bubble we introduced the 500K plaques and shortly after that it was over. The tournaments always end at the same time, it's just a matter of how the blinds are structured... 25 minute levels and we were still done at 12:30am. The levels really started to climb (read: double) near the end, which kinda sucked since I was the short stack. I think my high water mark was never above 2 million. My reads were good, except I usually figured it out after I either folded or wasn't in the hand to begin with.
Good times, good guys. We even talked about getting an FCPC golf game going... which I should do a bit better at.
THE MASTERS STARTS TOMORROW!!!
I played my first round of the year yesterday... maybe I'll write more about that next time.
Later.
6.4.09
I am so pumped for the Masters! Time to dust off the green jacket I made in 2003 when Canuck Mike Weir took it down. Can an American take it in 09'?
If you are interested in joining my annual Masters golf pool, send me an email and I will send you the deets. You must be able to pay me by Thursday, no excuses.
Golf Fan Schaubs
Golf Fan Schaubs
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