Since so much of what I’ve written recently is fairly negative, I think I will throw a curveball today. I’ve neglected to mention some of my recent success.

I’ve “outright shipped” (i.e., won) three tournaments in the last month and a half. In the grand scheme of things, each of these tournaments was about as small as a pro poker tournament can be without being irrelevant. However, outright wins are quite difficult to come by, so I will provide a brief recap.

The first was a $500 Bounty Event at Mohegan Sun with just over 100 entrants. I picked up aces on the money bubble and never looked back. The final four players negotiated a save and then we played it out.  In the end it was me who had his picture snapped behind a pile of chips and a trophy.

The second was a $26 tournament on Full Tilt with over 1000 players. This was about as clean a run as one can have; I was the chip leader with around 150 player left, with 15 players left, and with 1 player left. Easy game.

The third tournament took place just a few days ago, a $300 tournament with only 98 entrants at Harrah’s in AC. I’m particularly pleased with this win because I pulled off one of tournament poker’s more badass feats: repeatedly refusing a deal despite being a chip count disadvantage, then systematically dispatching my opponents. (At one point, we were actually on the verge of creating a save, but one player scoffed when I explained that I’d need his name, address and social security number to deal, so we played on).

Some tourney grinders play for the money. Some play for the fame (and will literally buy Player of the Year points from you if you’re lucky enough to chop with them). Me, I play for the doofy “winner’s circle” pics.

Next stop is Vegas.