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 [kx kx] from BB after an [ax] showed up on the flop when. I managed to pick off a bunch of raises and calls with [8x 8x] and an all-in and even luckboxed into a flush holding a [5d]. 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 [tx tx] v [ax kx] and [ax jx] when the shortest stack matched their [jx] on the flop. Shortly after, the no-longer-shortest stack took me out. I’d raised with [ks jc], the board was [kx 7x 4x] and I went all-in. NLSS called, flipped [kh 7h], 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.