[Dodoubled]

So, my one-night experience hanging out with TP and two of his cronies has come to a close. Here's a recap of what happened. (I'm pretty much dead tired, so I apologize in advance for any typos).

I arrived around 11:30 p.m., expecting to see the hero and his mates flinging around Benjamins and schmoozing with the superstars at some high-stakes game. Instead, they were flinging around Washingtons, betting against each other on a quarter-video-poker machine. Right up my alley, I thought. However, their betting rules confused me, so I played alone, perfectly content to gain a $15 return on my $5 investment.

After pumping $10 of that back into the machine and another $2 on drinks, TP and the guys finished their games. Then, TP and I headed upstairs to check out the tail end of the $5,000 tourney (about 22 people were left, first payed $285,000). A number of big-name players were still in the mix, including Scott Fischman, Johnny Bax and Vanessa Rousso. Fischman, however, busted soon afterward. As TP said, we also ran into Jennifer Leigh (Jennicide) and her mom, and had a nice chat with the two of them.

About five minutes after getting upstairs, TP looked at me and said, “Hey, there’s Steve Dannenmann.” TP then told me the story of how he busted the 2005 ME #2 at this year’s WSOP (I think), and we figured it would be the perfect icebreaker to start up a convo.

So that’s what we did. Real nice guy. A bit smug, but not in a disrespectful sort of way. For instance, the first question I asked him was one that I figured he’d never been asked:
“Uh, Steve, um, so how has your life changed since last year?”
He said, “Well, what do you think?” TP and I both asked him first if he now had to deal with annoying fans who ask that question, and he smiled. Then TP asked him if he still had his job (which he does, a CPA).

Anyhow, we chatted for a couple of minutes and Dannenmann said something along the lines of “Hey, you guys wanna play something?” And I said, “Yeah, sure. My bankroll isn’t bulging, so all I can really do is the $100 (plus-$20). He said, “That’s fine, go up there and put my name down.”

So I went to the booth and put down MP, GPD and SD. A few minutes later, the table was still looking for one more player. Just then, TP’s friend Mark, the beneficiary of a $120 slot-machine cashout, rolled in. He realized Dannenmann was playing in this lil’ sit-and-go, so he put his name down. He also managed to ask Dannenmann another great question: “Uh, Steve, um, so how has your life changed in the past year?”

Dannenmann looked at me, smiled, and said, “Why don’t you answer that question, Geoff?” I smiled as I turned back toward Mark.

So we sat down a few minutes later. Dannenmann drew the two-spot, TP had the eight, Mark had the nine and I had the 10. Three hands and two folds in, TP (a big table-talker, by the way), commented that he expected this hand to be queens. He looked at his cards and raised (I think to $150) and Dannenmann called. Flop comes out rag-8-rag. I don’t remember all the betting patterns, but all I know is Dannenmann pushed all in on the turn and TP called, flipping up aces. Dannenmann flipped top set and raked, leaving TP with four green chips. TP was gone within seconds, and he soon breezed over to the $500 game. (Some GREAT stories from that table; I’m sure he’ll tell you all about it.)

After Dannenmann’s double-up, the game progressed rather quickly. Blinds went up every 15 minutes, so it really had the feel of a turbo. I built my stack slowly, but efficiently, and got two players all in with AA and AQo. With four players left, I sat third in chip size (about 7,000). With the blinds at 400-800 (100 ante), UTG pushed all-in for his last 2,300. I called with KJo, and Dannenmann called for odds.

Flop came out 10 Q rag, and I pushed all-in (I figured it was a good move, especially considering the blind structure). Dannenmann, who had both of us covered, called and flipped over 10-9. UTG flipped over 10-7. Turn and river come out 5 5, so I’m gone. More importantly, however, the pot chopped, keeping UTG alive. The board doesn’t pair, and Mark is guaranteed second place. As it was, Mark got screwed, and ended up busting out minutes later, leaving Dannenmann and the other dude still alive. (The other dude, we’ll call him “Proud Mary” because of the fact that he quadrupled up by catching three consecutive rivers), crippled Dannenmann’s stack on the first heads-up hand. (PM pushed with KJs, Dannenmann called with A10o. A J fell on the flop). On the last hand, PM pushed Dannenmann all-in with 33, and Dannenmann called with AK. PM turned a set, and it was over. PM took $700, and Dannenmann took $300. I thanked Dannenmann for hanging out with the bourgeoisie (I didn’t actually use the term, “bourgeoisie”), and that was that.

That said, Mark and I headed over to find TP still alive in the $500 tourney. At the time, he was clinging to dear life, but raked a nice pot with KK when he flopped a set. I’ll let him take over from here …