The Vic, where my love of live cash poker began

The Victoria Grovsner London. The first place I ever sat down, glassy eyed, nervous, £100 in chips in my sweaty palms. It was the most i'd ever sat down with. Sure, I know how to play. I'd played for 6 or 7 years online tournaments. Loads of home games. Casino tournaments. Online cash. But this was my first live cash.

I held on to the chips like they were the last I would ever had. I was nervous in every pot. I had a very good LAG player to my left who put pressure on me at every opportunity. I was bleeding chips basically. Then fortune smiled upon me. The player to the left of the aggro guy says he's too cold from the air conditioning, does anyone want to swap with him he asks. I jump at the opportunity. The aggro guy doesn't look happy. I mutter under my breath as I sit down "lets see if you raise me every pot now", he smiles.

So i get into a rhythm. A loose aggro thinks 8To is the nuts on an 8 high board and I do him for his full £50 stack with JJ. He asks "Have you got a pair?", "Of course I have" i reply. Then I get AA UTG. I make it £7 (blinds are 50p/£1). The guy next to me says "I was gonna do that". "I've got a good hand though, I think" I say back as I look back at my Aces nervously. They obviously all think i'm a total donk at this stage. I get 4 calls and the flop comes K high. I check nervously and my friend who was going to raise makes it £35. The other callers fold. We are both £150 deep and I pick up my chips and announce all in. He looks distraught by this but makes the call. The turn and river blank out and he shows K4 nervously, he looks like he half hopes it's good. I turn over the aces silently and he looks like he's gonna cry. He stands and just stares at the aces for a good 5 minutes and leaves.

My love affair with live cash begins with a bang. I leave my week in London, £700 in cash stuffed in my wallet. It hardly closes.

Fast forward to this week. Where my current day story continues. The Vic is pretty busy. I think they have 3 or 4 £100NL games going. All the regulars are there. Me and Wota sit with £100 a piece. I proceed to bleed chips like i'm some degen gambler. My style these days is very loose aggressive. I limp a lot of pots. I slow play and fast play big hands and bluffs. I generally miz it up and i'm very hard to play against. However I am on no form at all tonight. Then we have a firs alarm about an hour in, to top off our week and prove live poker is indeed rigged for me and Wota. When we stand outside Wota is over £100 up and i'm over £100 down. I lend £100 off him for top ups and we go back in after around 30 mis. I proceed to bleed more chips, play badly and generally get pissed off.

Then I limp AT from UTG. I flop the nuts when it comes down KQJ. I check, wota bets £7, a loose guy calls and I call. Turn is a blank. I check, wota bets £25 and the guy folds. For some reason I go soft on him and flat call. I check a spade river that brings a flush and he turns over 2 pair. I turn over the nuts and wonder if I should have value towned him. I just don't like taking money off him live for significant cash i guess. Then 2 hands later I limp Q7o UTG+1. An aggro good player raises to £4 and gets 5 callers and me. Flop brings Q72 with 2 clubs. Gin flop for me and exactly the type of hands i get paid on. I check and the aggro guy bets £10 and gets 4 callers. Not exactly what I want. So I have 1 move and 1 move only. I say raise, £10 and all in. I monkey in my £150. Aggro guy folds. An Asian guy calls for £50 and another guy who can't lay flush draws down calls for £75. They run it, blank turn (4 I think) and a Q on the river which gives me Queens full, the Asian guy trip queens and the chaser a flush. I announce queens full and rake the pot. Good times. I play for about an hour longer. Play shit and manage to end the night £57 up. God knows how. GG!

Wota gets pissed off and goes and plays blackjack and wins £100. Proving he is actually the luckiest man alive. Fucking luckbox. :)