Encore Club $3,000 Tournament of Champions (8,000 chips)

Walked into Encore about 8pm thinking I’d be buying into a game running alternately to the monthly TOC. Apparently, if you show up on the first Saturday and they’ve still got space, you can freeroll for the $20 entry fee. I had a full players card and got on for just $10. The August TOC was my last big win; it’s been a couple of lean months.

Blinds were already 75/150, and the first hour was unpromising. I had to lay down KxKx from BB after an Ax showed up on the flop when. I managed to pick off a bunch of raises and calls with 8x8x and an all-in and even luckboxed into a flush holding a 5♦. But the 5,000 chip add-on at the break got me just back to the starting stack.

Managed to double up after our table broke, then lost a good chunk in a split pot holding TxTx v AxKx and AxJx when the shortest stack matched their Jx on the flop. Shortly after, the no-longer-shortest stack took me out. I’d raised with K♠J♣, the board was Kx7x4x and I went all-in. NLSS called, flipped K♥7♥, the last Kx came on the turn, and without a Jx at the river I was out.

Two hours. -100% ROI. Placed 71st of 130.