With a Banner Like Mine, I Should be Writing More

And I will. I always do this time of year. It's freaking freezing outside, and I tend to get a little nostalgic around now. Also, the weather lends itself to mass-poker playing. So does my amount of off time. That means fewer Rush tournaments, and more massive MTT's with opportunity for huge payouts on eensy-weensy buyins. Historically I always make more money playing in winter time.

And I'm hoping the trend will continue. So far this year I've yanked over $1,500 off the Internet playing poker. Last year my total was $1,200. Secretly (or not) I've been attempting to double each year's production. That's a lofty goal for someone who doesn't like letting more than $200 sit in his bankroll without pulling some out so that "they'll never get it back". Most of the time, $5 and $10, (and all of the time $24) tournaments are out of my range. But I've got a plan. One month left. $900 to go!

1st Annual Billy Watson Memorial Tournament, Results

Last Saturday brought our Sitka Poker group to the Bell Residence for the first annual Billy Watson Memorial Tournament. This year’s event was a $5 rebuy with the first buy-in from each player donated to the Hard Six program of TLC in Mesa, AZ. Hard Six is the program responsible for bringing Billy back to our family after years of drug abuse. Each day he struggled with emotional instability and addiction, and my family and I are grateful for the strength he showed for so many years.

23 players showed up for the tournament on Saturday. Along with other donations, we were able to gather $300 for the cause! The tournament itself was fast paced and gut-wrenching (as rebuys tend to be). There were 82 rebuys and 21 add-ons, making the total prize pool $515 after the charitable deduction!

My brother Erick flew up from San Diego, and my Dad (and Billy’s best friend) flew up from Arizona to participate. I was so very glad they made it, and I hope that wherever we hold the tournament next year, we can have even more family members participate. This was my tournament though, as I fought through the brutal blinds schedule (the tournament lasted only about 4 hours), the extremely tough field that our group comprises, and the other three money winners to take 1st place overall.

Thank you so much to everyone that participated! Thanks again to those that donated on the side. Thank you, thank you, thank you! to the Bells for hosting! And I hope to see a lot more people next year!

The winning hand:

Late night poker:

Cash game followed. Joe the Pro ruled!
Winners: Yours truly: 1st, Betty 2nd, Emy 3rd, and Tammy 4th.

1st Annual Billy Watson Memorial Tournament

Hosted by John Bell
Tournament Director: Brandon Saiz

On January 21st, 2009, my uncle Billy died after a lifetime of fighting drug addiction. An avid poker player and a great friend, Billy reminded us how important it is to grasp every moment of time with friends and family. Help us celebrate life and remember Billy this Saturday, January 23rd, by playing in a $5 rebuy charity event.

This is how it works:

$5* gets you 1,000 chips to start.
If before the first break you are at or below the starting 1,000 chips you may rebuy for $5.
This allows you to start the tournament with either 1,000 or 2,000 chips. Also, if you lose all of your chips during the rebuy period, you may pay $5 or $10 to stay in the tournament with 1,000 or 2,000 chips respectively.

At the break, anyone may finish rebuying up to 2,000. An add-on will then be available: 2,000 chips for only $5.

*The first buy-in from each player ($5) will be donated to TLC’s Hard Six rehabilitation program in Mesa, AZ in memory of Billy Watson, my uncle and fellow poker player.

Each table will have seated a designated “table captain” to assist with buyins/rebuys. These players’ seats will be locked from movement until tables merge.

The following is a rough blinds schedule**. The first break will be 1 hour and 15 minutes in. At that time add-ons will be allowed. Before play continues the total prize pool, payouts, and total chips in play will be announced.

Level	Duration	Small Blind	Big Blind	Start Time	Chip Up
Round 1	15m	$25	$50	0:00
Round 2	15m	$50	$100	0:15
Round 3	15m	$75	$150	0:30
Round 4	15m	$100	$200	0:45
Round 5	15m	$150	$300	1:00
Break 1	10m			1:15	yes
Round 6	15m	$200	$400	1:25
Round 7	15m	$300	$600	1:40
Round 8	15m	$600	$1,200	1:55
Round 9	15m	$800	$1,600	2:10
Break 2	10m			2:25	yes
Round 10	15m	$1,000	$2,000	2:35
Round 11	15m	$1,500	$3,000	2:50
Round 12	15m	$2,500	$5,000	3:05
Round 13	15m	$4,000	$8,000	3:20
Break 3	10m			3:35	yes
Round 14	15m	$5,000	$10,000	3:45
Round 15	15m	$8,000	$16,000	4:00
Round 16	15m	$10,000	$20,000	4:15
Round 17	15m	$15,000	$30,000	4:30

**Please note that the later blinds may be extended/eliminated to bring about the end of the tournament around midnight based on the total chips in play.

Poker Burnout and the Long Recovery

So how did I let myself get burnt out on a game I can’t stand to not think about? What happened to take me so far out of the loop for so long? Well, I’m always one to think that there’s nothing better to drive you away from the felts than a good losing streak, and that’s what I hit. During my trip out to Arizona for Billy’s service I treated my bankroll like I was on vacation. And my bankroll suffered like it was spending money.

Next, I may have played a bit too much in January. This was because of an excess of success and time. I was laid up from surgery and had a lot of unexpected time on the couch from it. I was playing so much during the days because I simply could not do anything else but TV, books, and/or poker.

Finally, I was an emotional wreck from the end of January through – alright, let’s be honest – I’m an emotional wreck most of the time. However, poker proved to be much more than I could handle for the last month or so. My approach to the game has improved though; as I play more games to get back into the swing I realize that I’m handling the ups-and-downs much better.

In the meantime Danny Saiz hooked me up with a great banner and background for the blog. So thanks Danny. And while I’ve lost perhaps my favorite regular reader in Billy, I know I’ve picked up a couple more along the way. And hopefully I’ve started back up quick enough not to lose them as well.

One of Life's Bad Beats

I started playing poker in 2003 after moving to Sitka, Alaska. Ever since that time I have always had poker buddies. Much like drinking buddies or fishing buddies, our conversations revolved around our hobby. Sure, every once in awhile we would wander into discussion about family or friends or work or sports or whatever. The basis for our friendship had started in poker, and therefore the dialogue would inevitably end up there.

Usually these poker buddies would become my best friends. I spent an inordinate amount of time with them over the years. Each poker tournament ran at least three to four hours. Our cash games would run through the night. Our phone calls would go on and on about this bad beat, or that great rake. At work we would pass the time talking over strategies or felt stories that amused us. We would dream together about one day sitting at a prestigious final table together and having EPSN do a feature about these two friends making it all the way.

This past week I saw the passing of one of my best friends – one of my favorite poker buddies. My Uncle Billy died while I was out on the boat. I found out on Thursday.


Billy was the most driven poker player I knew. He lived alone and spent much of his time away from work working over the fish at PokerStars. My first Christmas gift to Billy was a poker book, a poker DVD, and a set of cheeky card protectors. His first gift to me was Harrington’s second Hold’em book. Family made Billy my Uncle, but Poker made Billy my friend.

Billy and I grew closer than ever over the last seven months or so. I flew to Vegas to watch him and my dad play in the WSOP event #2. Along with the time I spent stalking his play for day 1, I spent a ton of time with him elsewhere. We watched movies up in the room. We went to nearly every meal together. We ran to the strip to play various cash games and tournaments. Probably the most important part of the trip – we swapped cell phone numbers.

Since that trip we’ve been in steady contact on the phone. Somewhere along the line he learned to use the text messaging feature on his phone. Along with the 380+ email conversations over the past year, we’ve also added phone conversations to our repertoire.

Billy has also staked me in multiple games above my bankroll. Most recently he bought me into the Sunday Warm Up. He also was planning on having me fly out to Vegas this spring to buy me into the WSOP circuit event that was coming to town. At every step it was apparent that Billy treasured our new friendship as much as I did.

Really all I can do now is treasure that friendship. I will cherish the time God brought Billy into my life. I will grasp at the memories that bring a smile to my face. It is one thing that helps when my brain is running and trying to logically explain why he is gone now. Or worse, when my brain tries to run through scenarios that have me miraculously calling or emailing him at the right time to derail him from the course of events that lead to his death.

My other help comes from the family and friends that I have on and off the felts. My daughters can’t help but make me smile all day long. My dad is like an anchor, in spite of losing one of his best friends in Billy. My friends at Railbirds are amazing in their support, proving to be a form of therapy for me. I look forward to playing games on Full Tilt with them soon.

This has been a busy month for my blog. I will be taking a needed break from publishing through the remainder of the month. In the meantime I will be appreciating more time with my family, and trying to smile more than usual.