Finally being back home in Geelong I decided to venture to cricket training at my old club Alexander Thomson (ATCC).

I’m still unsure if I’ll return to ATCC or continue playing at the Richmond City Cricket Club for the third year running – it is really a decision of where I’ll be living and if I can commit to the club 100% or not.

I bowled marginally, landed it well and spun it a little, but I was really impressed with the timing of my batting as I thought that would have suffered the most over the winter break due to the wrist injury that I picked up at the latter end of the 2008/09 season.

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With cricket training wrapped up I packed my stuff, had a shower and headed up to Melbourne to join James Bernarkopoloupolous in our aim to ship a PokerNews Cup seat.

I sat around watching the start of the Dogs (yay) and Cats (boo) match before Crown Director of Tournament Operations Jonno Pittock dragged me up to the bar for a chat and a drink.

Discussing all things poker and beyond for over an hour, work eventually came calling for Jonno while I bought into the $65 PokerNews Cup Phase One satellite.

Both me and James sat down to play, and once he lost to a three-outer to elimination, it was left to me to hold the fort down. Only two tables made up the tournament, and consequently only three seats and some cash were on offer. I flopped a set on my first hand to increase my stack by 800 or so, and after eliminating someone with Ace-Jack to his King-Queen, I was on the final table. I found a double up with a dominating Ace-King and a few orbits later we were four-handed. Everyone chucked in $40 and I put in a little extra with $45 to make up four seats for all of us as we were fairly even in chips with crazy high blinds.

I grabbed James from the cash game tables and we grabbed a drink and took a walk along Southbank to bitch about shit while we waited for the 7:10pm PokerNews Cup Phase Two satellite to begin.

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After speaking to Mat and deciding that we were going to do something after the satellite, he decided to come in and rail the both of us.

Lining up on the feature table and seat one meant that it was the perfect spot for Mat to view from as this seat is right on the rail. It’s not a great structured satellite with quick levels and only a 4,000-starting bank, but it’s probably the best you can hope for when the buy in is $250.

With blinds at 25-50, an early position player made it 250 to go and I flatted with Q♣ Q♦ before the small blind made it 625. Original raiser folded and I called to see a flop of J♣ 8♣ 4♣ fall and a bet of 1,200 follow. I tanked for probably five minutes before folding figuring that at best I could be up against two overcards and a flush draw and at worse a bigger pair with a club draw. My fold may be disgusting to some, but I felt that I could find a better spot (even though that sounds weird holding an overpair and flush draw) with my edge and skill set against the rest of the table.

During the next level I would get those chips back when I flatted from the big blind holding A♦ J♦ when the three-bettor from the above hand made it 300 to go from early position over a limper. Three of us saw a K♠ Q♦ 8♠ flop and checked it round to see the 4♣ land on the turn and a check from me and the limper. The original raiser tossed a single 500-denomination chips, and after deliberating for a little and putting him on a Queen or a pair of Jacks or tens, decided to make it 1,250 to go. The limper passed and after telling me that I had nothing, the original raiser folded as well.

Not much would develop until during the 300-600 level there would be three limpers round to me in the small blind, only to have me shove for my last 3,800 with K♥ K♠. The first limper – Kane Sherwell – instantly called holding Queen-Jack for his last 3,500, and when the board ran out with a Queen on the flop and river I was left with just a small blind and a small case of tilt!

With twenty players remaining I officially gave up and went over to James to bitch about my bad beat. I quickly raced back to see what my button would deliver, and when it was a pair of nines, I shipped it in and double to 1,200. Next hand I shoved the cutoff with King-Jack and picked up the blinds and antes and was up to 2,100.

I went on to fold the next few hands before doubling though my Queen-Jack nemesis and then once again when I picked off a triple barrel bluff from the nit on the table as we made the ten-handed final table.

Sitting with 13,000 in chips and needing roughly 35,000 to have a chance at capturing one of the three seats or $1,320 on offer I looked down at fives on the first hand after a player opened to 3,000 with blinds at 500-1000. I mucked and when I flopped a five I felt a bit sick – he did show pocket tens when he took the pot down and I patted myself on the back for making a good fold instead of being so results orientated like everyone else.

I slowly began chipping up and knocked a player out holding Q♦ 3♠ to his pocket eights when the board ran out A♥ J♥ J♦ 4♠ A♠ to see me sneak into the chip lead with around 28,000 – basically he shoved my big blind for like 3x and I had to call, I wasn’t just being a douche!

Bernarkopoloupolous was still on the final table and seated on immediate right with a short stack. Before the final table began I tried to give him some advice about letting players crumble round him and to not do anything silly or unwarranted. I also told him that he could shove my blinds without any risk of me calling if it meant that those chips would see him come out of the danger zone. However with blinds at 1200-2400 James decided to ship it in with K♣ 6♣ for 13,500 and when I looked down at A♥ A♦ I threw my head back, shook my head at Mat and – wanting to fold – made the call to put my buddy at the risk.

Of course the board ran out 10♥ 9♥ 8♠ 7♥ 2♠ to see him double up as I was left crippled with barely 10,000.

The volume dial on my iPod went up, and I just tried to regain focus as I still had a chance to capture my seat with seven players left.

I folded until I was dealt K♠ Q♦ under the gun and managed to double against Ace-King when a turned a Queen. I stole some blinds, and before I knew it I had snatched the chip lead back.

Once I knocked out a player holding Q♦ 2♣ when he shoved my big blind with K♥ J♥ for a little over a min-raise we were down to just five.

Michael Pinzone and I shared the chip lead while James sat comfortably in third. The other two however were very stubborn and just waited for the other to be knocked out so that they could walk away with the whole $1,320.

After three orbits of chips getting passed between us three, the two shorties eventually decided to chop the money once both their stacks were equal to just one big blind!

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SHIP IT ONE TIME FOR THE CHIP AND A CHAIR was all that was going through my head as I was able to achieve one of the toughest poker accomplishments – come from a single chip (well in this case just a small blind) to win the whole tournament (well chop first as it was a satellite)!

Summoning Jack ‘Treetop’ Staus, I hope that the feat I achieved in the satellite can see me turn my $110 investment and back from the dead story into $250,000 and title of Champion of the 2009 PokerNews Cup Australia!

To celebrate we went to Stalactites Greek Restaurant in the city before heading to David Saab’s house to round out the night with lots of laughs and banter.