Final Table - Hooray

Ok, I made it to the final table, not one but two. Though the second was a miniscule buy-in ($3) with no guaranteed prize money.

First I will go on with $3 buyin game(~120 players). I was playing 3 other tourneys and was waltzing through the fields on this one. With 11 left I had 45K compared to second place 25K chips. Headed to the final table almost confident(over, if you may say) with two others even in stacks with me and others just hanging in there. First hand I had my black out and went from 1st to 9th at the table. This guy who had 40K in chips limps in MP(800/1600 BB) and the SB shoves for 9K. In BB - 48K (the most common position for my bustouts) I get AQo and I push to eliminate the limper, but MP guy insta-calls and shows down AK. Wow. I have no idea why he did that or why I did that. Anyways SB has AA and I am crippled and was out later in 8th place. Unreal but hard truth!

Other tourney is one that I fought the hard battle. Around 700 players in $5K Guar and is a $10 buyin game. Was the chip lead with around 100 left and then hit the coldest of decks for the next hour and half. I kept saying to myself I will make the FT. This one was before I played the $3 game. Around 15 left, I was standing at 15th position and now kicking and screaming aloud that no matter what I am gonna make the FT. As I hung in and after playing only 3-4 hands in a 2 hour window I made my first FT appearance at Cake. Got the double up I needed with 88 against QJ and then hung in to watch people knock themselves out of the game. I even laid down 99 when folded to me in MP, as I wanted to crack this one open. I nearly got my wish. Ended up with 4 players with top being a monster stack 1.4m, others around 250K and me at around 180K. The hand that got me out was kind of played badly but I guess thats how it goes at FT online. On my blinds, I was folding to raises and wasnt getting into needless action but this hand the chip stack limps on button (10K/20K) and in BB I took a stand with 66. He makes the allin call with QT and the flop is T53. Gone at 4th. I dont understand why he limp calls, if he had raised I was surely going to fold as I would have waited for a better spot. Well, it was not to be.
On a side note, QT is my old nemesis hand and it is very conveniently haunting me around Cake. You wouldnt believe how many times QT hit me square in the nuts , I probably took 15 bad beats(mostly runner-runner against my sets or top pairs on flops) against that hand over the weekend. I started calling it out loud "Show me frikking QT" once the opponent called my big bet or allin on river.