Suck Out! A Horse with No Name Recognition (Part IV)

Suck Out! The CPL's own Docu-Series continues....Part One can be found here (Forward/Intro), part two here (Staking), and part three here (Backer's Perspective)...enjoy!

The Horse: Save a Cowboy, Ride this Horse
By Karaoke Phil

I've been called a donkey. Now, I'm a horse. Mark (my backer) and I have fantasized about the WSOP and tried to develop schemes to get there. Haven't we all? Many times I have talked about selling "pieces" of myself to raise the needed money to play (only half in jest). No one ever took me up on any such ideas. Til now.

"Really?" I think I actually said that out loud to myself during that CPL Monday Madness game. Mark told me to check my email because as he wrote in the table's chat box, "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised." Yeah, surprised is as good a word as any.

Okay, sure, Mark and I are friends. We go way back - to about the time of the transition from Carter to Reagan. For you younger readers those were Presidents last century. This stake is for $55. I know Mark would just give me the $55 if I really needed it. But, he didn't have to make this offer - let alone actually transfer the money over (within minutes) when I said "sure." Yes, I am surprised, but I am also honored. Mark likes to play cards himself, but he's entrusting this money to me.

I must, obviously, enter this with a plan. Foremost, I cannot let Mark down. I am taking this as a very serious business arrangement and I want to make good on my end of the bargain. As I do with many such things I'll have staged goals. First, I need to "break even". At the very least I don't want any "cake" weighing me down and giving me poker diabetes. Beyond that, of course, is the desire to earn some money.

FullTilt Poker offers plenty of games selection from which to choose. I will certainly play a Midnight Madness on the 4th or last tournament. It's a big field with a total guarantee of $15K and always ends up with about a $17K prize pool. If things don't go well that Midnight Madness shot will be the attempt to make things right (and, likely, the best shot at "big" money).

There are numerous No-Limit Hold 'em (NLHE) full and short table tournaments from which to choose. And, there are daily Stud H/L and HORSE tournaments that look quite appealing. Then there are the Sit-n-goes (SNGs): NLHE offers 1, 2, 3 and 5 table options - 9 handed of course. Finally, there are Matrix SNGs for HORSE, OH8 and Stud H/L that may not make much money for anyone, but are a good bet for not losing much. That's a conservative route I won't likely take.
Upon deeper reflection my one wish is that I had a little more flexibility, but my backer set the parameters at 5 - $11 tourneys or SNGs - my choice of which ones. It would have been nice, however, to poke around at the regular $8.80 tourneys where I have had some good success. There also seems to be more variety at the $5.50 level including 2 table HORSE SNGs which are a favorite of mine. I think Mark would certainly alter the terms but, I can work under these parameters. We have our marching orders and I have a plan. Let's shuffle up the cards and start the dealing.

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