it was a pretty good run

finally a losing session. well, not really too bad. down just 1/2 a buy in. i can't remember how many + sessions in a row that was -- somewhere near 10. got cold decked for a long stretch in the middle of the session. i flopped 2 pair a few times and bet it, only to fold to a big river bet when i knew i was beat. granted i made some good laydowns, but still it was frustrating to hit some nice hands and have to lay them down when my opponent out drew with 3, 4, and 8 outers. one guy in particular had my number all night. he continued to make calls when he was behind and outdraw. after a while i was hoping for his action just so i could possibly beat him in a hand. it took a while but finally, he flopped 2 pair when i flopped a set. we got it all in on the turn and he didn't hit his 4 outer.

about to head home about $20 up on the session after making a big comeback from down 2 buy ins, i asked the chip runner how long until she scanned the ID cards again (you can accumulate hours for casino benefits). she said, "2 minutes." on the very next hand, i called a small raise in the blinds with AsJs. the flop was J high, and with 5 players in the hand, i led out. i got raised from middle position and everyone else folded. nothing out there scared me and i thought the guy might be on QJ or KJ. i could have easily gotten away from 1 pair here, and out of position, i should have dumped it without a second thought. what did i do instead? i re-raised. he immediately shoved for $400 more. obviously i dumped it and he said he had bottom set of 4s. the timing (and quality) of my play was comical !! i had literally been racked up and ready to go, instead choosing to wait for one last scan. nice $260 choice that was.

about 5 minutes later i called a standard raise on the button with J-9. 3 of us saw the flop. i called a continuation bet from early position with an open end straight draw. i made the nuts on the turn with an 8-10-4-7 board. he lead out again. now i was pretty sure he was on an overpair or possibly top pair / top kicker. i thought if i smooth called, he would probably check/fold or check/call on the river, so i thought the best chance to get his chips in the middle was to raise the turn. he had only about the amount of the pot behind, so i raised enough to make him fully commit to the pot, but not all in. well, he tanked and then pushed all in. i insta-called. busting that guy caused the table to break, so i ended down just a bit on the session.

at least i learned a pretty valuable something -- i made possibly one of the worst raises i've ever made. oh, and another thing.....why am i calling raises with AJ in the blinds anyway?