Traditions...

In my two years of playing poker, I've never outright won a multitable cash tournament; neither live nor online. I've chopped three ways in a midstakes live MTT, I've won a couple of WPT satellites, and I've final tabled at many different stakes both live and online. However, I just can't close the deal.

Last night, in keeping up with this tradition, I finished 2nd in the Party $100+9. I made an ugly mistake when we were down to 3 handed... when will I learn?

One of these days I'm going to put all the pieces together and get there....

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The ugly details:

- Going into 3 handed, I had 67% of the chips. Both opponents had equal stacks. There are about 68x bb in play; I have ~43x bb and they have ~12.5x bb each.
- On the 3rd hand of 3 handed play, the button folds, I find A4o in the SB. BB who has given me his blinds on 100% of my steals (there probably have been more than 15 orbits at the final table), and has otherwise only reraised me 2 times (both all in) on the button; both times showing JJ. He has just less than 12x bb, and I retardedly push all in. He insta calls with AKo and no suckout occurs.

There is absolutely no reason for me to raise anything more than 3x bb. BB has been playing completely predictably where he folds over 90% of his hands and reraises all in otherwise. 3x bb is the correct amount to raise regardless of if I have 72o or AA. BB's actions easily define my behavior, as he will only play a hand that has A4o crushed. Even with BB having a stack as low as 9xbb, my strategy should be the same. I risked ~9x bb (aka 13% of all chips) with absolutely nothing to gain.

This mistake cost a substantial portion of the $4k diff between 1st and 2nd as it stopped me from being able to continue to run over the table; time to add another entry in my "MTT Notes to self..."