USOP Taipei Report

I've missed Taipei so much. Some of my fondest poker memories have been in Taipei. One trophy, 2nd, 3rd, 4th (twice) so after being away for 3 years, I was excited to be back. This time it is for USOP, backed by the same company that owns Upoker. It's extra sweet because Upoker has a special place in my heart with all the history, and now owned and operated by my friends. 

Views from Elephant "Mountain"

Almost every event I ran up a good stack

Being it's inaugural event, no one knew the numbers to expect. But not only it surpassed expectations, it broke records for international events held in Taipei! There were also support from players all over the world, as far as Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Mauritius, USA, France etc. A lot of my friends also attended and it was great to see some of them do really well, running deep and taking down trophies. 

Nice sunset

I however did not have a great series. I am personally not a fan of the "play to ITM" on day one. It becomes a marathon and quite strenuous. I admit I overplayed a few hands but the key hands I have lost have all been coolers on the wrong side. AJ vs QQ on a AJxQJ run out, 55 vs QQ on 589Qx, AA top set vs K high flush draw. But I did do well in the PLO KO event where I got as low as 5bb and came back to knock out 7 players. I could have played safe to sneak into the money but I played to win and had 45% chance to quadruple up on the bubble. Alas I didn't get there so ended the trip with no ITM record. But it was a fun series.

金峰卤肉饭 yummmm

Me being a foodie, I've always enjoyed Taipei for it's food. Unfortunately on the third day I had a very serious food poisoning incident. I even had fever and chills. But that did not stop me from having my favorite foods, and finding new favorite restaurants there. My best experience was at Sushiro, where they served reasonable priced quality sushi. We went there 3 times during the trip. Needless to say I put on weight this trip, but quickly lost it after fasting as soon as I returned home. 

I probably ate 20+ plates of Negitoro this trip

Taipei is a nice place to chill, especially when it has cool weather. I particularly enjoyed the night walks and bike rides. We also took a day to hike up Elephant Mountain for views of the city and Taipei 101. Overall it is a wholesome city to visit and I hope I can return again soon. 

Bike ride with boo