High-Stakes Poker Season 6, Episode 12: Big Papa Shoves, Mouth Hit-and-Runs, and OMG Misclicks
On the next to last High Stakes Poker episode of the season, Doyle Brunson desperately tried to dig himself out of the red. He went back to his latest trademark move, the huge overbet shove, hoping to get slightly unstuck. Mike "the Mouth" Matusow, who is the opposite of stuck this season, took his winnings and ran, but not before being called chicken by his table mates. And though Daniel Negreanu donated to Brunson's cause, he got a gift of his own from Phil "OMGClayAiken" Galfond.
Cast: Daniel Negreanu, Mike Matusow, Tom "durrrr" Dwan, Doyle Brunson, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, Eli Elezra, David Benyamine, and Phil Galfond.
Ivey eats small children tofu steak for dinner: Gabe Kaplan opened the episode by updating the non-forum-stalking members of the audience on the Phil Ivey prop bet with Dwan. During the first few episodes of the season, Dwan bet Ivey $1 million that Ivey couldn't stick to a vegetarian diet for a year. Turns out Dwan was right. Kaplan reported that Ivey already bought out of the bet for $150,000.
Fear and loathing in Las Vegas: In one of the best exchanges we've heard on televised poker in a while, Matusow complained about how he's at a disadvantage playing against wealthier opponents to whom the money means less. Dwan said he's done quite well against richer players, and Matusow responded, "Yeah, but you have absolutely no fear of God, of anything." Dwan countered, "When I'm crossing the street and a bus is coming, I usually get worried." Then Matusow launched into a story about getting hit by a bus in London. "Yeah, well, I have a fear of that so I generally avoid it," Dwan said.
During the conversation, Grospellier opened in early position to $3,000 with 8♣7♣ and action folded around to Matusow in the small blind. He looked down at K♦Q♦, and with $400 already in the pot, decided to fold. Right on cue, durrrr said, "See, you have a fear of big bets. I have a fear of buses." A hand or two later, Matusow ran scared, taking his winnings and heading home.
Best new nickname: Kaplan renamed Doyle Brunson, aka "the Godfather," aka "Big Papa" "Imhotep," the Egyptian pharaoh who built the first pyramid.
Misclick of the night: Galfond hasn't had a great showing on High Stakes Poker, and the last few episodes haven't exactly showcased his live reading skills. Negreanu had straddled to $1,600 when Brunson raised to $4,500 with A♣2♥. Grospellier called with A♥3♥, Galfond came along with 9♦7♦, and Negreanu was priced in with 10♣7♠. The flop came 10♥10♠7♥, about as sweet as Negreanu could have asked for. Action checked all the way around and the turn brought the 6♣. Grospellier decided to take a stab at the pot with his nut flush draw, firing $11,000. Galfond called with a pair of sevens. Negreanu raised to $41,000, and Kaplan commented on how obvious his "strong means weak" act was. Brunson and Grospellier saw through it and folded, but Galfond didn't get the memo. He called, asking how much Negreanu had behind. After the K♠ on the river, Negreanu made another strong bet, $80,200. "I thought you were going to give up on the river", said Galfond. Umm, not exactly. Galfond made the call. "Oh my God, Clay Aiken went for it," Kaplan said as Negreanu raked in the $272,800 pot.
Worst "Did You Know?" of the season: Negreanu shared his brilliance at hand reading with the HSP audience. He said, "Did you know that when I call out someone's hand, it's really not magic?" Yes, we knew.
Best "Thirty Seconds with Kara Scott" of the season: This week, the players were asked to describe Tom Dwan in ten words or less. Highly entertaining. Matusow said, "He's gonna be OK, but he's going to have to learn the hard way." Right. Lex Veldhuis called him "annoying, inconvenient." And Negreanu said, "slightly awkward...and unique."
Brunson gets shovey again: In Episode 10, Brunson shoved 200 big blinds over three straddles with A♥Q♥. This time, the veteran's shove was on a slightly smaller scale. He was down to only $74,000 to start the hand and, stuck $230,000, had loosened up big time. Negreanu raised to $4,200 with jack-six, Brunson called with 7♠5♠, and Benyamine joined the party with A♣5♣. Brunson flopped the joint on the 6♦4♥3♦ board and checked. Benyamine checked too, and Negreanu bet $10,500 with top pair. Brunson didn't waste much time moving all-in. Confused by the move, Negreanu called. They ran it twice, but neither turn and river helped Negreanu, and Brunson doubled up.
Godfather Part XVII: After his double courtesy of Negreanu, Brunson is still down $150,000 for Season Six. He has booked a win on his last 16 televised cash game appearances. He has some work to do next week if he's going to keep his streak alive.
Next week, Lex "RaSZi" Veldhuis takes Matusow's place, and in stereotypical "RaSZi" fashion, convinces the group to raise the stakes. Don't miss what happens when the most aggressive high stakes players bump the blinds to $500/$1,000. Will the extra juice help Brunson get out of the red, or will it just cost him the rest of his stack? High Stakes Poker airs at 8:00 p.m. EST on GSN.
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