Where is Playground Poker Club?

Playground is in Kahnawake, Quebec, just outside Montreal. It hosts the WSOP Super Circuit and is one of the busiest poker rooms in North America.

How big was the WSOP Super Circuit Montreal Main Event?

It drew 2,844 entries, a record for the series, with $2,000,000 CAD for first place.

How did Lexy bust the Main Event?

On Day 3, short at about 11 big blinds, she moved all in with ace-king and was called by pocket eights. The eights held.

What is the GGMillions High Roller buy-in?

$14,000 CAD, which is roughly $10,000 USD.

What does it mean to be in position in poker?

Action moves to the left, so the players on your left act after you. Acting last gives you more information on every street, which is why you want strong players on your right and weaker players on your left.

What is a four-bet and when should you use it?

A four-bet is a re-raise of a three-bet. Against aggressive players who three-bet often, a few well-timed four-bets push the pressure back onto them and make them think twice before re-raising you.

Still Alive in Canada’s Biggest Poker Tournament Ever: WSOP Super Circuit Montreal

I came into Day 3 of the WSOP Super Circuit Montreal Main Event as one of 426 players left from a record 2,844 entries, with 13 big blinds and $2,000,000 CAD up top. I busted with ace-king against pocket eights, jumped straight into the $14,000 CAD GGMillions High Roller, fought back from half a stack to bag an average stack, and went out on Day 2 with pocket threes against aces.

Chapters

0:00Day 3 of the WSOP Montreal Main Event
0:49Table draw and why position matters
1:4513 big blinds with $2M CAD up top
3:02Short-stack shove: AK vs pocket eights
4:13Busted and on to the $14K CAD GGMillions
5:22Dinner break with Bobby and a mindset reset
8:06The comeback: hero call with pocket deuces
9:43Day 2: fighting back vs. aggressive pros
11:13Chatting with $335K winner James Pillon
12:21AK flop, river raise and a brutal setback
13:14All in: AQ vs QJ for a double up
15:28Threes vs aces for my tournament life

Day 3 of the Main Event, with 13 big blinds

The WSOP Super Circuit in Montreal broke the record for the series, and I made it to Day 3 of the Main Event as one of 426 players left from 2,844 entries. I had already locked up $10,000 CAD, and first place was $2,000,000 CAD.

My stack was 68,000 chips, which was just 13 big blinds. At that depth there is no room to wait around. I needed a hand to shove, and every orbit without one cost me chips.

Why my table draw mattered

My draw put most of the solid players on my left and the recreational players on my right. That is the wrong way around. Players on your left act after you, so they are in position on you and get to see what you do before they decide. You want the strongest players on your right and the weaker players on your left.

Ace-king against pocket eights

After a full trip through the blinds with nothing to shove, I was down to about 11 big blinds. I moved all in with ace-king and got called by pocket eights. It was a coin flip for my tournament, and the eights held.

Busting the biggest Main Event in the history of the series hurt. But with one tournament left on the schedule, a WSOP ring was still on the table.

The $14,000 CAD GGMillions High Roller

I registered the GGMillions High Roller right away. The buy-in was $14,000 CAD, about $10,000 USD, and we started with 100,000 chips.

It did not start well. I lost a big three-bet pot when my opponent rivered an eight-high straight, and by the dinner break I was down to about 44,000 chips, roughly 44 big blinds.

The dinner break reset

I spent my dinner break visiting Bob at his own tournament, because he always cheers me up. I will be honest: I was a little homesick. When you are on the road for weeks at a time, there are things you miss, and I did not think I was playing my A game.

So I did some deep breathing, said a prayer, and gave some thanks. Bad days are part of the job for any pro. The hard part is not letting one bad day turn into two.

The comeback and a hero call with pocket deuces

After the break the stack started climbing. The key hand was a river call with pocket deuces. It folded to my opponent in the small blind, and he called. He bet the queen-jack flop, which had a flush draw, and I called. He bet the turn too.

I told myself that if I called the turn, I was committed to calling the river, because his betting looked like hands such as nine-ten and missed flush draws. I made the call and he showed nine-high. I bagged 165,000 chips after 12 hours of poker, right around average.

Day 2 against a field of pros

The High Roller field was almost all professionals, and only the top 15% got paid. Players busting from the Main Event, including Michael Mizrachi, kept registering while late registration was open.

How to play against an aggressive table

My plan for Day 2 was to push back. Aggressive players love to re-raise: you open, they three-bet, you fold, and they take your chips without ever showing a hand. A four-bet flips that pressure back onto them. You can also tighten up and call their bluffs more often, because they will be bluffing a lot.

Meeting James Pillon

On a break I talked with James Pillon, who had just won the Canadian Championship at Playground for $335,000 CAD. He said it was a grind for most of the tournament, and that one hand at the final table, where he got it all in and made a good call, changed everything.

The setback, the double, and the bust

I opened under the gun and called a three-bet, and the flop came ace-king, which I loved. A nine came on the turn and we both checked. On the river I bet for value and got raised. He showed jack-nine and had me beat, and I was down to 58,000 chips.

A few hands later I got it in with ace-queen against queen-jack. I was about a 69% favorite, and it held to double me back to around a starting stack.

After the first break I had about 25 big blinds. When that stack ran low, I got the last of my chips in with pocket threes and ran into pocket aces. That was the end of my run.

I am proud of how I played this one. It was a tough field, and the ace-king hand was unlucky. Playground was a blast: the crushers, the legends, the locals, and the food. Thank you for coming along.

Questions viewers asked

Where is Playground Poker Club?: Playground is in Kahnawake, Quebec, just outside Montreal. It hosts the WSOP Super Circuit and is one of the busiest poker rooms in North America.
How big was the WSOP Super Circuit Montreal Main Event?: It drew 2,844 entries, a record for the series, with $2,000,000 CAD for first place.
How did Lexy bust the Main Event?: On Day 3, short at about 11 big blinds, she moved all in with ace-king and was called by pocket eights. The eights held.
What is the GGMillions High Roller buy-in?: $14,000 CAD, which is roughly $10,000 USD.
What does it mean to be in position in poker?: Action moves to the left, so the players on your left act after you. Acting last gives you more information on every street, which is why you want strong players on your right and weaker players on your left.
What is a four-bet and when should you use it?: A four-bet is a re-raise of a three-bet. Against aggressive players who three-bet often, a few well-timed four-bets push the pressure back onto them and make them think twice before re-raising you.

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