Quads Baby, Yeah
You don’t hit quads often, and it seems that when you do, it is best to be playing against Mongolia. Ace-seven is a raggedy old hand to see a flop with, but it paid off big time for Japan and Singapore in this hand.Four teams also managed modest wins with the pocket deuces in seat 1. This hand is a prime example of why Match Poker is scored via a points system and not by total chip count. It does not seem right that teams should suffer huge consequences for making legitimate plays (i.e. the folding of A7 pre-flop here). The missed opportunity costs them a few points in this one hand only, instead of making the event one of the key moments of the tournament. It is consistency and the ability to maximise situations throughout all 240 hands that wins the day.
Kicker Trouble
Well into the tournament now, the varying team strategies are beginning to show. Trailing teams Japan and Mongolia are ‘going for broke’ and prepared to get it all-in fairly regularly. Everyone else must adapt and pick their spots wisely. With a solid performance in Day One, Singapore are clearly playing far more cautiously to maintain their qualification spot. They escape with-out too much damage with their AQ in seat 1 yet are also the only team not to win with AK in seat 3. India are unlucky not to score more here (the only other team to correctly figuring out their kicker trouble in seat 1). Who would’ve thought that CPG could treble-up with their AK and China even double-up with the seemingly trouble holding of AQ?