I played in GrannyMae’s TOEJAM freeroll at The Gaming Club on Tuesday night. This was a “invite only” freeroll sponsored by TGC and GrannyMae. Top 20 places paid including a $450 first prize out of a total of $1500, so there was a good potential for cashing. The tourney started with 121 2+2′ers.
In other words: Rock Garden.
Talk about weak/tight play. Yikes! There would be entire orbits where no hand went to the turn much less showdown. A pre-flop raise would buy the pot. This started at level 1 and continued until I busted. I can’t say I was much different though. Of course, I am weak/tight, so it was pretty much SOP for me 
I made it to the first break in 40th place of the 61 remaining. I was below average in stack size with T1400. After the break I was basically in push or fold mode due to blind sizes. Thanks to the tightness (including mine) and some halfway decent cards, I was able to survive for a while, but that’s all it was, survival. I’m in the cutoff and look down to see AQo. Great hand to push with especially after it’s folded around to me. I push my last 1500 into the middle only to be insta-called by the button. Ruh roh. Blinds fold and the cards flip up.
He has AKo.
Shit.
Neither of us improve and I go home in 35th.
It was good to play with some of the 2+2′ers, but we all lived up to the 2+2 reputation of weak/tight. Geez, even I thought it was a bit much, so that’s saying something
Anyway, it was pretty fun, just wish I would have cashed, especially after the beating I took at the OIC table I had up before the tourney and the Party SNG I played after starting at TOEJAM. Suffice it to say I think I need a couple days off, more on that later…
Thanks Granny for setting it all up!
Hi Chris. Longtime reader, first time poster. I also played the Toejam last night. Was in 3rd place fairly late, but went out in 11th, when my AKo was flushed on the river by A9s, we were all in before the flop. I don’t know if I should have just been folding to make into the higher money, but when do you take a stand, if not with AKo in a shorthanded situation? Gotta play for the win or higher placing….
I did notice all the folding going on; I’ve never seen the small blinds fold so much when everyone has folded before them. Even when there was action going on, especially after the first hour, we may have seen the occasional flop, but rarely the turn and river unless they were all in before the flopd.
I’m a relative novice, but I would think that there were at least 5 to 8 very good players, yet with the type of game being played, it is not obvious they are good because they do not have the chance to use their skills (or maybe they do but we don’t know it).