"I'm not a President," one man said skeptically when we mentioned the holiday. He went on to dismiss all U.S. Presidents as "crooked," because they lie to people. We're led to think some poker players would fit in well with them. But would they pull a fast one when a lot of chips were on the line?
BLINDS: 200/400
IN THE POCKET: J-10 of hearts (suit may not be precise)
The evening was a disappointment until only a few hands before this. We had K-9, looked at K-Q-9 on the flop, went all-in and scored a double-up plus a 5,000-chip "Rodney hand" bonus. Now we're feeling better with around 14,000 chips. No one raises before the flop, so we're happy to call with suited connectors.
ON THE FLOP: 10-10-3
Now we're even happier -- but only for about five seconds. A woman down the counter from us (we're playing on a counter top again) bets 5,000. She did this on the K-9 hand, which put us all-in. She had Q-9 then. We're puzzled by what she has now -- perhaps a second high pair?! But there's little question about the right move: we call with three of a kind. Everyone else gets out of the way.
ON THE TURN: 5
The respect level seems to be mutual at this point. The woman checks. So do we.
ON THE RIVER: J
Wow -- now we want our opponent to make another bet. But instead, she checks. We will not.
"Five-thousand," we say as we bet. The woman calls.
"I've got a 10," she tells us -- and then she sees our 10-J. It gives us a winning full house, as her kicker card is a 6.
"You got it on the f**king river," she says in frustration. "You did it to me twice!"
"No way either of you were going anywhere, with a 10," a man between us comments. He's right. We're happy. We simply smile, as our stack of chips jumps to around 29,000.
Those two hands were the only ones we won all night, as we became very "card dead" after the one-hour break. Pocket 8's and pocket 5's were trumped by big cards on the flop and big bets which followed. But our two big wins were enough to reach the final table, then hang around through some drama involving other players.
With seven players remaining, we were forced to go all in for our remaining 10,000 chips with J-8. The flop brought an 8. The river brought a Jack. Trouble was, that Jack put four spades on the board. We didn't have one, while a man on our right did (Qs). He sent us home in seventh place. But on a night with about 30 players and lots of huge stacks, we were pleased.
"I bring it to remind me," we said across the table, "that my name is written in the Lamb's book of life."
This reference appeared to puzzle several people. But it's mentioned near the very end of the Bible:
Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life. - Revelation 21:27
You may be listed in the telephone directory. But this "book of life" is much more important -- because if your name is there, you're in the running for a reward which may sound like only a dream:
And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming out of heaven from God. - Revelation 21:10
"But wait," you may be asking; "isn't Jerusalem on Earth now?" Yes, there's a city in the Middle East with that name. But this is a new one, which God will bring down from heaven to Earth after Jesus returns (verse 2) -- and the incredible scene described through Revelation 21 indicate it will be forever pure, for God and Jesus Christ will live there (verse 23).
But that leaves a big question: how can you get your name in this "book of life"? What's your answer to that question? Feel free to leave it in a comment, and we'll offer our thoughts in a future post.
UPDATED POKER SCOREBOARD: 135 final tables in 390 nights (34.6%) - 20 cashes. This was our first live final table since the end of January.
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