And we’re off.

First hand:  2c6c. Not playing that junk.

1987 entrants so far. There will be substantially more - tomorrow is a second Day 1, which will include rebuys from the people who bust out today.

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Win my first hand of the day - AJ. Raise to 300, two callers. Bet 700 on the flop, they fold. Easy peasy.

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Guy to my right is playing every hand. Just took a big pot by hitting a full house after he called a 300 preflop raise with his 87. It will be interesting to see whether this style lasts long.

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Won my second hand of the day with my favorite hand Q 10. Flop comes AJ8, so I have an inside straight draw.  I bet 300 and one guy comes along. The next card is an A. I check, he checks. Now I feel pretty good he doesn’t have an A, although he could be trapping me. Next card: another A. I bet 700 and he runs away.

The guy next to me asks me to show my fourth A. “Is that a rule?” I ask. He says I don’t have to if I don’t want to. I don’t, for obvious reasons.

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A word about the guys at the table. The thing I love about the Seniors Tournament is that they all look and act like Hank Hill. Good hearted men in comfortable clothes, mostly with old men beards. No aggression just to be aggressive. Between hands, they talk about tools and dogs and trucks. No college professors as far as I can tell.  Or Democrats.  

They are perfectly pleasant, and we’re all getting to know each other. By the end of the day, those of us left will be good friends.

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Had some ups and downs and was back to my original 20000 stack. I was in the small blind with QJ, with three players who limped (bet the minimum) before it was my turn to act. I raised to 300. They called.

The flop was A 8 7. I was first to act. Because they had limped, I felt pretty good that none of them had an A, and because I had raised, I felt pretty good they thought I did have one. So my bet of 800 took it down, and I’m back to plus 700 for the tournament.

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This is my card protector for the tournament, custom made for me by my beloved son Josh.

The outer ring says. “Playing Smart Since 1963” and the inner ring says “Durfee #1.” If he had his druthers, he would have also written, “Playing Q 10 is stupid,” but he loves me and understands my blind spots.

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Another big hand where I was bailed out by the poker gods.  

On the button, I get AJ.  Guy two seats to my right raises to 300.  I call, as do two other players.  Flop is K10 7, so I have an inside straight draw.  The bets check around to me and I bet 1000.  The original raiser is the only one who calls, which makes me nervous.  He may have AK.

So I visualize a Q hitting the board and … it does!

There being two hearts on the board, I decide to make it expensive to chase the flush.  “Don’t be greedy,” says Wojo in my mind.  I bet 2500.  After a long tank, the guy folds. I am now up 3000 for the tournament.

I am playing very few hands, but I am playing them very aggressively.  This is a good image to have going forward, brown suit or not.