CLEVELAND ROCKS, BUT THE NATION ROLLS...
(and oh yeah, bubble-boy takes down the Big Game)

Where to begin? I spent the early evening hours of Sunday in a bit of a quandry...my beloved Red Sox were about to play yet another game 7 to decide the American League pennant. I was feeling much the way David Ortiz described the team's mood --Confident, NOT comfortable, but confident. So as I sat down to watch the game, I couldn't help but feel a bit ridiculous signing up for the blogger Big Game. I mean, unless the game was decided in the first 2 innings, there was no way in hell poker was going to be anything but a mild distraction. But I figured, what the hell..I have the tokens, and its the BBToo. So F'it...Im in.

In the early going, things went about as I'd expect....preflop raise here, missed flop there. Nothing to write home about (or here for that matter). As I got short I made a nice squeeze move with pocket 6s (sorry cmitch) and got called by pocket 5s. A nice double up there kept me around through the first break but several dozen unplayable hands later found me pushing pocket 3s into aces. Miracle 3 on the flop and I was feeling the thrill of my first dirty suckout in ages. Pocket kings to Kat's AQ moved me up the leaderboard and I floated along as the tourney field shrank.

Somewhere in the midst of all this, the Sox broke out in the 7th as rookie sensation Dustin Pedroia cranked one to Rhode Island. I was smellin' a pennant when Tripjax pushed his ATo into my jacks and-irony of ironies-made his runner-runner straight on the river versus MY trip-jacks. With half my stack decimated I somehow managed to work my way to the final table, then the money, then headsup with none other than Trip. This time luck was on my side as I managed to overcome a 3 to 1 chip deficit to take down my first Big Game title after about an hour of headsup play. As it happened Trip and I got it all in on a king hi flop with me holding pocket kings and trip holding aces. Tough break for Trip, but he played great and we both know he's had my number on his fair share of occasions.

So all in all, A great night. Sox win the pennant, I win a little respect (not to mention cash). And in the end, I learn that luckboxery can be a blast if it happens to hit you at the right times.

Who knew?