Big Blind Special

I decide to head over to the MGM Grand. Buy in for 200 and elect to wait until the blinds hit me. Pick up a reasonable 45os and get to see a flop for free...or at least pre-paid. Flop is 44T two Spades, not a bad flop. I throw out a pot-ish sized bet of 8 to chase off drawers and I figure I'll just take down a small pot. Three callers. Uh oh. I know if someone else has a four that they may well have me out-kicked though I think 34, 45, and A4 are my most likely foes and any random 4 is ahead of me unless someone is a glutton for punishment and and came in with 24. At this point I want the turn to be a non-Spade, non-Ace, non-Ten, preferably a Five if I had my druthers and what comes off? The case Four. That works too. I now have this pressure to throw money into the pot because a) I want to throw off my opponents b) I want to build the pot and c) the guys back home will kick by butt for not betting it. I am now trying to calculate an optimal value bet without it looking like I'm trying to calculate an optimal value bet so I make it 20 on the turn trying to keep everyone in. Three callers! Huh? Well maybe one or two players have a Ten but the Spade drawer must know that a House beats a Flush, no? River is a third Spade. I check the board to make sure that I can't possibly be up against a straight flush (weak/tight!) and decide that 40 is the right number for the river. Call from the presumed Ten. Fold from the guy on the other end of the table. And a call from old guy in the 1 seat. I'm first to show and open my hand to the other player's dismay. No one else shows. I rake a big pot my first hand and I really wish I had position on that hand because I think I could have gotten more but I'll take the stack and a half addition to my chips.

Lock down poker for a few more orbits. Try to limp with a couple hands and get raised out. Flop trip threes in the BB again with Kd3d. Bet it and take down a limped pot. See a flop with Ad7d. Flopped two diamonds on a JJQ board. Checked around. Turn is an Ace and I bet it. One caller. River is a diamond. Checked to me and I put out 12 to try to get a value payment. No customer.

Cash out up 134.