It’s a reasonable argument, and A-Q was a pretty good hand in this spot. Some people told me I could have gone all in preflop. But top two pair is going to play itself there. Unfortunately, the turn came out 5d, the river 7d, and his flush knocked me out in fifth place. I had two pair and figured to be well ahead. At this stage, I was aiming to take third or maybe, with some luck, take down the event. I was well behind the two biggest stacks, but well ahead of the fourth- and fifth-place guys, who had about $200,000 each. With five players left, I had about $450,000. I made it to the final table in good position. I finished 22nd in the 2013 event and knew I could improve on that. This year, I was particularly excited about the ante-only event. But because there are so few ante-only events, it seems as if everyone is still trying to figure out the “correct” way to play. Most of the pros at the WSOP have played in hundreds of tournaments, have seen millions of hands, and have a deep reservoir of information on players and strategy.

It gets a little confusing at times, especially for observers trying to figure out what’s going on, but it’s a unique style of play that makes for a fun tournament. The player on the button acts as the big blind, making that position even more advantageous than usual. Instead of the under-the-gun player being the first to act, the player who would normally be the small blind (directly to the left of the button) acts first, because there is no small blind. Everyone puts in an ante to get their hole cards. In an ante-only tournament, there are no blinds. This year’s $1,500 ante-only no-limit hold ’em event drew 714 players, a massive field for an event still in its infancy. Each year there are new variations of poker and new structures.Ī few years ago, the WSOP introduced the ante-only game, and it was a hit with players. One of the great things about the World Series of Poker is that the organizers continue to innovate.

O que e ante poker