Let me set the scene.

There a four players left in the $10+1 Sit’n Go on Pokerstars.
I am the chipleader with almost t10000.
Between me in the 8th chair and the next biggest stack(t4000) in 5th, are the two short stacks(t2500,seat 3 and t1600, seat 2).
(All figures are best guesses, I did not request the hand history, lazy me.)

This means I have almost no threat of someone trying to steal my blinds, and I can raise almost every time it is the short stacks blind.

I can just play perfect big-stack strategy, never let the small stacks see the flop for cheap, if at all possible. I only folded in the steal postition twice, as I was running hot.
(24o and 83o, if I remember correctly).

They were my pawns to control, what a great feeling.

Yes, I did win, but I just had to brag.

How did I get this chiplead?

With 7 players left(3rd round), I was in the big blind(t1470), and it folded around to the small blind(t1450) who min-raised.

I look at my cards and find [2d] .
I put him on AQo and called his minraise hoping to flop something.
With no-one left to act behind me, this is not too bad a hand heads-up.
Not the best play, but I had a "feeling".

The flop?

My read was almost perfect: , and he flopped a flush draw.
I let him bleed off a min-bet, and catch his on the turn.
He was drawing dead, AND he got there.
I easily called his river push when the board didn't pair.
Now I had some breathing room.

5 players left, and the other doubled up person on the table min-raises me.
I call with 67o, and nailed the flop of 345.

Mistake? Usually, but it was only 100 of my ~4000 to see the flop.
3X BB, and I would have folded, and the other players were not gambling at all.

He bets out the minimum, and I make a pretend crying call.
The turn is a Queen, completing the rainbow, and he bets a half-pot bet(maybe less).

I only call as the board may still pair. Still trying to look weak.
When the ace falls on the river, I then min raise his pot sized bet, and happily match his over-the-top push.

MHIG,
and he mucks what must have been Aces and gueens.

So I had 2 questionable calls that were hit hard by the flop.
After other S'n Gs where nothing went my way, i loved it.

This S’nG certainly made up for card dead previous one, where I just blinded myself into 4th.

Sit and Goes, the perfect format for me, give you all the thrills of a small tournament,
the challenge of playing short-handed and heads-up, and make you a tidy profit when you can pull off a win. All that in just over an hour per session.
I love them.

I played 3 last night,
5th, 4th, and finally a 3rd.
Down $15, since I am currently playing the $11s.
Played 1 tonight, and made second.
Finished 4th, won $27.
Over 2 days made a profit of $1, beating the table fees, barely.
Building the bankroll is a grind.

Still loving it.

I wish I could say I made a $1 profit. 5 $11s, 5 out of the money. 4 on terrifically bad beats. Could not draw any cards yesterday. Even a good player can't win with lousy cards, and I'm NOT a good player.

Deposited at Paradise later. Started playing a $50 ring game for help clearing the bonus, before I start SNGs there. Hit the nut flush and doubled up, up to $91 at one point--$30 buyin. Finished at $48. Just could not get any cards.

That's the frustrating part of playing poker. No matter how fresh the fish, no matter how well you play, you have to have something to play. I score very well with avg luck. I slip ignominiously to the bottom with below avg luck. With above avg luck, I score like I did on Pokerstars a couple weeks ago--5 straight cashes with 1 3rd and 4 firsts. That's the only part of poker I'd admit is gambling.

CJ

ps--Glad this isn't 2+2. The above is statistically insignificant.

Agree with you 100%.
The only statisically important thing I have been keeping track of is my bankroll.

Speaking of bankroll, when is the next Party bonus?

Heard there will be another reload bonus today. (Thursday)