Ragged Aces Poker Group

The season finished with a big bang as usual with a record number of players playing in our all-day BBQ championship (25).  This is the first year we didn't have a single empty seat for this big game and I want to thank everyone who participated. 

 It was an amazing day that saw the top four seeds at the begining of the tournament bust out prior to the final table and the lowest seeded player ever to play in a tournament (55) make the final table and bust within reach of the big money. Along the way we saw our share of big suck-outs, monster hands, and wtf showdowns.  With $920 in the purse, it was the biggest prize to be won (outside the Big Ace tournament) since the Ragged Aces were founded.

The tournament started with three full tables of 9, 8, and 8 players.  The first few hours of the day were spent building chip stacks and working up an appetite for the BBQ that started at about 4pm.  We had a few casualties prior to the BBQ but nobody left early and we were down to two tables by the time we broke.  One of the pre-lunch busts was Tyler and he helped make the day by jumping on the grill and kept the meat rolling through the break.  I should have taken more pictures

After everyone was well fed, we re-seeded the sweet 16 for the middle part of the tournament and the push to the final table.  Lost prior to the BBQ were Tom (23 seed), Tyler (alternate 28 seed), "Steamroller" Garth (18 seed), Aaron N. (15 seed), Adam P. (alternate 44 seed), Terry (22 seed), Sue S. (13 seed), and "Monkey Boy" Darin (4 seed).

In the Sweet 16 we had:

1. Mike (started 11)
2. "Bad Beat" John (started 3)
3. "Dead Hand" Joe (started 5)
4. "Action" Abi (started 6)
5. Susan G. (started 17)
6. Rob (alternate started 33)
7. Christine (started 7)
8. Allan (started 10)
9. Andrew (alternate started 55)
10. Jordan (started 8)
11. "Quiet Giant" Andre (started 16)
12. "Miss Manners" Nick (started 2)
13. Clark (started 1)
14. Garrett (started 19)
15. "Revealer" Rich (started 9)
16. "Black Hole" Peter (started 12)

Prior to the cards flying in the middle section of the tournament, we awarded the Bounty Hunter Cup to "Miss Manners" Nick for having the most bounty points during the season.  He also won the Most Improved Player Award in a tight race against Susan G. and "Black Hole" Peter.  Clark was awarded the Player of the Year award with his slim 2 point victory over "Miss Manners" or this might have been a 3 trophy win by Nick.

Only the Championship and the cash were left to be determined and as the game progressed, many of the favorites at the beginning of the tournament were washed away prior to the final table.  First to go after lunch was "Black Hole" Peter (12/16 seed), followed by "Revealer" Rich (9/15 seed), a suprising collapse by Susan G. (17/5 seed), a sputtering of the odds on favorite at the begining of the day by "Miss Manners" Nick (2/12 seed), a decent showing by Garrett (19/14 seed), a loss of momentum by Rob (33/6 seed), a fizzle by the season points leader Clark (1/13), and another top seed breakdown by "Bad Beat" John (3/2) on the final table bubble.

As the tournament collapsed to the final table, the cash game was starting up with Nick, Clark, John, and Tyler.  Others would join as they busted from the tournament including Joe, Mike, and Jordan.  The cash game would continue until 2am making a full day of poker for everyone involved.

Making the Final Table:

1. "Dead Hand" Joe (5 / 3 / 1 seed)
2. "Action" Abi (6 / 4 / 2 seed)
3. Mike (11 / 1 / 3 seed)
4. Andrew (55 / 9 / 4 seed)
5. Allan (10 / 8 / 5 seed)
6. "Quiet Giant" Andre (16 / 11 / 6)
7. Jordan (8 / 10 / 7)
8. Christine (7 / 7 / 8)

#8: Andrew Svensk
The final table saw a lot of action as the blinds continued to climb and positions continued to shift.  First to get eliminated was the big long shot of the tournament, Andrew.  He made a huge run getting all the way up to 4th in chip position as the final table came together.  But as can happen so often in poker, the momentum shifted and it was a fast decline on an amazing performance and he was gone, 55 to 9 to 4 to 8.  Congratulations Andrew on an impressive championship game, I hope to see you play more often in the 2009 season and make another run next year.

#7: Christine Musser
Christine was playing slow and steady.  Never really getting a huge stack, never really having a small stack.  She started the tournament in 7th position, was still there in the sweet 16 and slipped only one spot to 8th when the final table was determined.  Her stack was bigger at each level but the value of her chips were dropping fast as the blinds kept going up.  She never got that big rush every player needs to make a real run at the top spot and her time ran out in the end, 7 to 7 to 8 to 7.

#6: Allan Rousselle
Allan began the day in the top ten and continued to build his stack to ensure he'd be in the final 8.  He took some beats early on but bounced back and played smartly throughout the day.  By the time we broke to two tables, Allan was in good shape, seeded 8th and accumulating chips.  Through the middle stages he played tough and smart without making too many mistakes and had built his stack to the 5th largest by the time John was eliminated on the bubble.  Once the final table assembled, the wheels seemed to have come off and it was a steady decline until he was gone on the cash bubble in 6th place, 10 to 8 to 5 to 6. 

#5: Andre "the Quiet Giant" King
Making the money in the largest tournement of the year against the toughest competition is difficult and I congratulate everyone that made it to the top 5 this year.  Andre "the Quiet Giant" took the smallest payout in 5th place but it was a huge achievement for him to move up from a starting seed of 16 and finish in 5th.  Andre's stack never really waivered until the end and he was a force to be considered every time you were in a hand against him.  Congratulations on making the money in a championship game, it is something to be proud of, 16 to 11 to 6 to 5.

#4: "Action" Abi Velin
Making the money in the championship is one thing, but "Action" Abi is the first player in Ragged Aces history to do so more than once.  She was 2nd in the 2006 championship and 4th in the 2008 making the money in both tournaments and falling only one place short of being the first to grab a top 3 finish twice.  Abi benefitted from having some good cards in good situations and playing well when the cards weren't cooperating.  It is always a difficult balance when you are a top 6 seed and have to weight your aggression with your chips so you don't get "chip drunk" and Abi has perfected that balancing act.  In the end, who knows if making the cash deal changed the way people were playing or not but Abi got a little more in cash in the deal and busted in 4th place so it was beneficial on her part, 6 to 4 to 2 to 4.

#3: "Dead Hand" Joe Curtin
Playing in his second season and the first season where he played 10+ games, "Dead Hand" Joe has shown that he can play with the best and make the final 3.  The big 1st prize still eludes Joe but if he can get over that last short game hump he is going to be tough to beat.  Joe began the day with the 5th highest chip count and working at the same table as Mike (who had a ton of chips by the Sweet 16) he was able to accumulate the 3rd highst chip total after the BBQ.  Once reseeded, Joe dominated his table in the middle section of the tournament and combined at the final table with the largest stack.  His stack was 3,000 above 2nd place, 10,000 over Mike's 3rd, and triple the size of the 8th place small stack.  At the time of the cash deal, he was no longer the chip leader and took an equal share of the second highest payout (with Mike).  Joe busted out in third, receiving his first championship trophy chip in the roster of aces and became the 12th Ace on the roster.  Congratulations on a well played game, 5 to 3 to 1 to 3.

#2: Mike Brewer
As with Joe, Mike has been playing with the Ragged Aces for only two seasons.  He only played 8 games this season and it hurt his initial seeding at the championship.  It didn't seem to effect him much as he jumped all over his initial table and built a huge chip lead going into the sweet 16.  When the tables combined, he had 5,000 more chips then 2nd place and almost double what 4th had at the time.  He took a couple of big hits in the sweet 16 that didn't allow him to accumulate any higher by the time the final table was put together dropping him to the 3rd largest stack as the field caught up. Once the final table got rolling, Mike was able to parlay his stack and position into a dominating presence only eclipsed by the work being done by Jordan to build a huge chip lead as he eliminated foe after foe.  Mike took an equal cut of a higher total of 2nd place money with Joe in the cash deal to take the pressure off and allow them all to play for the trophy.  This was Mike's first real shot at the trophy as he had got to the money the previous year after busting himself and playing LJ's stack to a 1st place finish.  Because it was a shared stack, it has an asterisk in the record book so this only counts as a 1st time cash and trophy chip for Mike.  Mike failed to repeat his heads up win from the previous year and fell to Jordan in the end and took 2nd place, receiving his first championship trophy chip in teh roster of aces and became the 13th Ace on the roster, 11 to 1 to 3 to 2.

#1 Champion of 2008: Jordan Stefnik
Jordan is the first rookie to win the championship (not counting the first season in which we were all rookies).  He played in 10 games this year including the Big Ace tournament.  He also played in the RAWSOP satellite tournaments and won a seat to the Big Ace tournament.  He placed in the top 3, three times during the year winning two of those games including the Big Ace tournament.  He then turned around and won the Championship game when he busted Mike in the final heads up hand at about 11pm.  Then he sat down with the cash game and proceeded to win some cash there as well.  It was an excellent year for Jordan and I have to say it was an impressive showing after six games of learning the players to be able to crush the competition in three of the last four games he played this year.  Jordan has already thrown the gauntlet on winning Player of the Year for 2009 so watch out for your chips as the new year heats up.  Jordan will join the Ace club on the roster with his next top three finish which I expect will be early in the 2009 season.  Congratulations on a fantastic year Jordan, you are a worthy poker adversary and well deserving of this big win!  Jordan's seed trail to the victory circle was 8 to 10 to 7 to 1.

The Seeds:

Good luck everyone on the new year!